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James Bond’s Swordfight In Die Another Day Roasted By Expert: “It Really Gets Quite Terrible”-TGN
Summary
Die Another Day’s swordfight scene between James Bond and Gustav Graves is criticized by a sword expert, earning a low rating of 3 out of 10.
The film’s depiction of specific fighting techniques and bladed weapons in general is deemed exceedingly inaccurate by the expert.
Die Another Day’s over-the-top and cartoonish nature, including CGI-heavy action and unrealistic set pieces, contributes to its negative reception and the franchise’s shift towards a grittier direction in Casino Royale.
Die Another Day‘s bombastic swordfight gets reviewed by a sword expert, and he doesn’t award high marks to the James Bond action scene. Released in 2002, Die Another Day marks Pierce Brosnan’s fourth and final time playing 007. The film, which is directed by Lee Tamahori, earned mixed to negative reviews from critics, but performed well at the box office, ultimately earning over $431 million.
In a recent video for Insider, sword master Dave Rawlings breaks down the sword fight between Bond and villain Gustav Graves (Toby Stephens) in the divisive Die Another Day, and there’s a lot that the sequence gets wrong.
From technique to the film’s depiction of different bladed weapons, Rawlings points out that Die Another Day is exceedingly inaccurate, ultimately awarding the scene a three out of 10. Check out portions of Rawling’s commentary on the swordfight below:
“Immediately, the first attack is this big, ‘I’ll spin at you, I’ll expose my back,’ and the distance is so bad that he could just be stabbed in the back.
“It’s a broadsword or a saber or something, therefore you have to go and cut candles or scenery. You don’t use this like this. This is terrible.
“This is where it really gets quite terrible. There’s this insane idea that somehow longswords are really heavy, clumsy weapons. They are not. You can move a longsword much more quickly and much more dextrously than you can a rapier. It’s still balanced as if to be used in one hand but you have the advantage of being able to move it around the position of the forward hand.
“Even the most barbaric technique of a longsword… the strike of wrath… it’s not done foolishly. It’s done as a mechanic, it’s a way of claiming space in front of you. Wide swings don’t serve anybody and they represent the actual piece of equipment very poorly.”
Die Another Day Takes 007 Too Far
The Bond franchise has always included gadgets and storylines that are more science fiction than science fact. Some entries, however, just push the envelope too far. 1979’s Moonraker, for example, features an outlandish sequence in which Roger Moore’s Bond goes to outer space, complete with a highly advanced space station and a laser gun battle. Die Another Day, while not going quite this far, does come across as a somewhat cartoonish entry.
Related: James Bond: Why Die Another Day’s Opening Never Worked
Despite not featuring Brosnan’s 007 going into outer space, Die Another Day does feature Icarus, a satellite weapon that can direct powerful solar beams of energy onto Earth. The movie also features a number of CGI-heavy action sequences that have resulted in much of the film aging quite poorly. From Bond driving an invisible Aston Martin to a sequence in which he kitesurfs a large Arctic tsunami wave, the film just takes the action a step too far.
Die Another Day being so over-the-top and the generally negative reaction to this, however, is a significant factor in why Casino Royale takes the franchise in a much more gritty direction. The first Daniel Craig entry is widely praised as one of the best in the franchise, and it’s entire creative direction can in part be attributed to the failures of its predecessor. While Die Another Day‘s swordfight is one of the movie’s more grounded action sequences, it’s clear that even this set piece gets more wrong than right.
Source: Insider