A View to a Kill

For the Ian Fleming short story that inspired the film, see From a View to a Kill.

For the theme song for this film performed by Duran Duran, see A View to a Kill (song).

Template:Infobox Film Bond A View to a Kill, released in 1985, is the 14th film in the James Bond series and the seventh and last to star Roger Moore as MI6 agent James Bond. The title itself is adapted from Ian Fleming's short story "From a View to a Kill", contained in the For Your Eyes Only collection of short stories released in 1960; however the title and a Paris location is where the similarity between short story and film end, making this the third completely original Bond film after The Spy Who Loved Me and Octopussy. The film does however take an idea from the James Bond novel Diamonds Are Forever and Goldfinger. In the film, Bond is pitted against Max Zorin, who plans to destroy California's Silicon Valley.

It was produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson. Wilson also co-authored the screenplay along with veteran screenwriter Richard Maibaum. At the end of Octopussy during the famed "James Bond Will Return" sequence, it listed the next film as "From a View to a Kill", the name of the original short story; however, the title was later changed a few months before filming, probably in order to accommodate some dialogue between MayDay and Zorin in which MayDay, looking at the Golden Gate Bridge says, "What a view..." and Zorin completes her sentence: "To a kill". The original title "From a View to a Kill" was taken by Fleming from a version of the words to a traditional hunting song "D'ye ken John Peel?": "From a find to a check, from a check to a view,/From a view to a kill in the morning".

Production

Leftover canisters of gasoline used during filming of Ridley Scott's Legend caused Pinewood Studios' "007 Stage" to be burnt to the ground in 1984. Albert R. Broccoli, the producer of the James Bond films, had the studio rebuilt in 4 months time so that filming could commence on A View to a Kill. The soundstage was renamed "Albert R. Broccoli's 007 Stage". In July 2006 the stage burned down a second time.

Casting

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Christopher Walken as Max Zorin

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Roger Moore, Desmond Llewelyn and Patrick Macnee.

Notably, Christopher Walken is the first Bond villain actor, and the only chief villain, to have won an Academy Award (Benicio del Toro was only a henchman to the chief villain in Licence to Kill). Walken had been a long-time fan of the James Bond series, and said that one of his inspirations as an actor was the character of Red Grant (played by Robert Shaw) in From Russia with Love (1963). Early publicity for A View to a Kill in 1984 included an announcement that David Bowie would play Max Zorin. A statement from Albert Broccoli went on record as saying "David would make the perfect villain. We plan to exploit his unique physical oddity - his different-coloured and different-sized eyes." Bowie replied that his appearance in the movie was "absolutely out of the question...I think for an actor it's probably an interesting thing to do, but I think that for somebody from rock it's more of a clown performance. And I didn't want to spend five months watching my stunt double fall off mountains." Many years later, Bowie said that "it was simply a terrible script and I saw little reason for spending so long on something that bad, that workmanlike. And I told them so. I don't think anyone had turned down a major role in a Bond before. It really didn't go down too well at all. They were very tetchy about it." The role of Zorin was offered to Sting and then to Christopher Walken.

Dolph Lundgren, best known for his role as Sylvester Stallone's boxing rival Ivan Drago in Rocky IV, has a brief appearance as one of General Gogol's KGB henchman. Grace Jones, who was dating Lundgren at the time, had asked the film's producers to find a small part for Lundgren. Lundgren appears during the confrontation between Gogol and Zorin at the racetrack; Lundgren is seen standing several steps below Gogol. during this scene, May Day lifts another of Gogol's henchman up over her head. Lundgren's character draws his gun. May Day then throws the other henchman into a wall.

Filming

The view of the parachute jump from the Eiffel Tower

In Paris it was planned that two stunt men, B.J. Worth and Don Caldvedt, would help film two takes of a parachute drop off a (clearly visible) platform that extended from a top edge of the Eiffel Tower. However, sufficient footage was obtained from Worth's jump, so Caldvedt was told he would not be performing his own jump. Caldvedt, unhappy at not being able to perform the jump, parachuted off the tower without authorization from the City of Paris. He was subsequently sacked by the production team for jeopardizing the continuation of filming in the city.

When a company with a name similar to Zorin (the Zoran Corporation) was discovered in the United States, a disclaimer was added to the start of the film affirming that the evil Zorin was not related to any real-life company. This is one of only two Bond films to have a disclaimer at the start of the film (Licence to Kill had a disclaimer in the end credits about the dangers of smoking); The Living Daylights has a disclaimer about the use of the Red Cross logo.

In the mine scene towards the end of the film, Grace Jones' screams when sparks fly around her are genuine. The sparks were created to mimic the effect of electrical cables in and near the water, but Jones was not told about them.

Papillon Soo originally had many of Scarpine's lines and had a larger role as Pan Ho (such as almost the entire chateau sequence had her acting Scarpine's part), it was given to him for unknown reasons.

The Zorin Airship

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The Zorin Industries airship over San Francisco

In 1984, Airship Industries managed a major marketing coup with the inclusion of their Skyship 500 series airship in the film. At the time Airship Industries were producing a fleet of ships which were recognisable over many capitals of the world offering tours, or advertising sponsorship deals. As all Bond films have included the most current technology, this included the lighter than air interest.

In the film, the first introduction to lighter than air travel is when the villain, Max Zorin, made an appearance in airship used as a "mobile" HQ and conference suite, in a planned but currently nonexistent Skyship 6000. A mock up model had been made showing a larger Skyship 500 with a double decked gondola and four ducted propulsion units. This was shown floating over San Francisco Bay, and cleverly disposing of a conference passenger. The ship was similar to the designs at the time of a larger skyship 5000 and the envelope and shape of the gondola can be seen as almost direct copies of the designs. The ship was mocked up in green Zorin Industries livery.

For the finale, the ship in question was in fact an actual Skyship 500 registration G-B1HN which at the time was operating a promotional tour of Los Angeles and had played a major part of the opening ceremony of the 1984 Olympic Games. For the games, the ship had "WELCOME" painted across the side of the hull. During the 1984 season, the ship was predominantly in green and red, as part of Fujifilm's blimp fleet. As the film was set around California, the Bond production team were also able to utilize the ship and shots of the ship over San Francisco and famous landmarks.

The ship was adapted with a similar livery, bearing the fictitious Company of "Zorin Industries" and various smaller scale, yet perfectly working, models of the ship were used at various stages.

In the film, the ship is used as an escape vehicle for Max Zorin and his assistants. The escape airship was hidden inside a portable contractors office (portacabin) where the top extension collapsed down. This allowed escapees to enter the office door, and dramatically press a few buttons, and the roof of the building would collapse open, allowing the envelope to inflate through the top.

In actuality, however, this was not possible, as inflation can take up to 24 hours; however, for the benefit of this film, the inflation took approximately two minutes.

Film locations

Zorin's chateau in Chantilly, France

Ascot Racecourse

Fisherman's wharf, San Francisco

• Siberia, USSR
• London, England, UK
• Ascot, England, UK
• Paris, France
• Chantilly, France
• San Francisco, California, USA

Shooting locations

• Pinewood Studios / Albert R. Broccoli's 007 Stage
• Iceland
• Switzerland
• France
  • Eiffel Tower, Paris
  • Jules Verne Restaurant, Eiffel Tower
  • Château de Chantilly
• San Francisco, California — United States
  • Fisherman's Wharf
  • Golden Gate Bridge
  • Lefty O'Doul Bridge (in chase scene)
• England — United Kingdom
  • Ascot Racecourse
  • Amberley Working Museum

Credits

At the conclusion of the end credits, it says the traditional "James Bond will return" but not the title of the next film as had been tradition since From Russia with Love, nor has the title of the next film been announced in the end credits of any Bond film since.

Plot

In the pre-title sequence, James Bond is sent to Siberia to track down 003 and recover a microchip. Upon doing so, 007 is ambushed by Soviet Union troops and is forced to flee. After Bond has returned to England, Q has the microchip analysed and informs M, Bond, and the Minister of Defence that the microchip's design is an exact match of a microchip made by "Zorin Industries."

Along with Miss Moneypenny, the group then venture to the Ascot Racecourse to observe the company's owner, Max Zorin. While at the track, Zorin's horse miraculously wins the race; Sir Godfrey Tibbett, a horse trainer, believes Zorin's horse was using some sort of drug, although Zorin's horse when screened prior to the race came back negative. Through Tibbett, Bond meets with a French private detective named Aubergine to discuss how Zorin's horse won the race, however, during their dinner at the Eiffel Tower, Aubergine is killed by May Day, but not before Bond learns that Zorin is holding an annual horse sale later in the month.

The Eiffel Tower

Bond and Tibbett travel to Chantilly, France where Bond poses as James St. John Smythe (pronounced "sinjin"), a rich dilettante, with Tibbett as his chauffeur and valet. Bond and Tibbett locate and break into Zorin's secret labs where Tibbett learns that Zorin is using microchips in his horses to release a drug in the horse when prompted by a switch hidden in Zorin's cane. Afterwards Bond and Tibbett are discovered and are forced to flee. Tibbett is later killed by May Day and an attempt to drown Bond in a lake while unconscious inside a car fails. Later, General Gogol from the Soviet Union shows up at Zorin's estate with several other KGB agents, but Zorin, an ex-KGB agent himself, gets upset with Gogol and forces him to leave.

In Zorin's airship, the billionaire industrialist unveils to a group of investors his plan to destroy Silicon Valley in an operation he dubs "Main Strike" in order to gain complete control of the microchip market. However, one of the investors wants nothing to do with the scheme and demands to leave; he is promptly dropped out of the airship by a secret chute and plunges to his death. Bond later learns that Zorin is a psychopath, the product of Nazi medical experimentation during World War II, and he was later trained by the KGB. To succeed, Zorin plans to detonate explosives beneath the lakes along the Hayward Fault and the San Andreas Fault causing them to flood. A bigger bomb is also on site in the mine to destroy a "geological lock" that is in place to prevent the two faults from moving at the same time. Once the "geological lock" is destroyed, it would supposedly cause a massive double earthquake.

Silicon Valley

Bond soon discovers state geologist Stacey Sutton, whom Zorin has double-crossed, and the two team up. Bond and Sutton then survive a fire started by Zorin in San Francisco City Hall and escape in a stolen fire truck after Zorin kills a city official then frames Bond for the murder. Bond and Sutton then sneak into Zorin's mine where he plots to blow up the "geological lock" to start the massive earthquake. Zorin floods the mine with the first set of explosives, the action almost killing Bond and Zorin's henchwoman May Day, while Sutton escapes the mine. As a result of being betrayed, May Day helps Bond remove the bigger bomb that would destroy the lock, and put the bomb on a handcar to send it out of the mine on a railroad line. However, the brakes on the car malfunction. May Day stays on the car and holds the brakes open. Doing so eventually costs her her life, but saves Silicon Valley.

The Golden Gate Bridge

In the final battle, Bond manages to grab a rope attached to Zorin's airship as he was leaving the mine. During the flight Bond gets the rope tangled on the Golden Gate Bridge. Zorin's ally Scarpine is knocked out by Stacey Sutton (who escapes to the Bridge) and is helpless for most of the fight. Zorin and Bond then fight on the bridge ending with Zorin falling to his death in San Francisco Bay. Scarpine then regains consciousness and his ally, Dr. Carl Mortner, tries to toss dynamite out of the airship, but it fails when Bond cuts the rope of the airship to let it rise and the airship is decimated, killing everyone inside.

In the final scene, Q's surveillance robot, with Q himself at the controls, sneaks into Stacy's house and spots Bond and Stacy in the shower. When contacted by M about Bond's whereabouts, Q quips "He's cleaning up a few things," before the robot's view is obscured by a well-thrown nightdress.

Vehicles and gadgets

Main articles: List of James Bond vehicles and List of James Bond gadgets

• Iceberg Submarine — Bond escapes from a mission in Siberia by getting into a boat built to look like an iceberg.
• Bug Detector - Tibbet uses a device which is shaped like an electric razor to detect a bug hidden in the lamp near Bonds bed.
• Camera Ring — Bond wears a ring given to him by Q-Branch that acts as a camera.
• Polarized glasses — A pair of glasses with a variable polarization filter which enables Bond to see though a window despite daylight glare.

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A 1979 Silver Rolls Royce

• Louis Vuitton Cheque-Book Imprint/Photocopier — Fortuitously shaped copying device which exactly fits over Zorin's cheque book allowing Bond to make a copy of the last cheque written.
• 1984 Renault 11 TXE — Bond steals this from a Parisian taxi driver to chase May Day after she killed a French secret agent, the car ends up being decapitated, and then chopped in half after going through a typical James Bond chase sequence.
• 1984 Chevrolet Corvette - Bond emerges from the waters of San Francisco bay and a KGB agent picks him up in the Corvette
• Rolls-Royce - driven by Patrick Macnee, it belonged to producer Albert R. Broccoli; for Macnee's small part, he received his own "starring" credit; that is, his name is the only name to appear on screen at the time.

Cast

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Willoughby Gray as Nazi experimentor Dr. Carl Mortner

• James Bond — Roger Moore
• M — Robert Brown
• Q — Desmond Llewelyn
• Miss Moneypenny — Lois Maxwell
• Max Zorin — Christopher Walken
• Stacey Sutton — Tanya Roberts
• May Day — Grace Jones
• Fredrick Gray (Minister of Defence) — Geoffrey Keen
• General Gogol — Walter Gotell
• Sir Godfrey Tibbett — Patrick Macnee
• Scarpine — Patrick Bauchau
• Chuck Lee (CIA agent) — David Yip
• Pola Ivanova — Fiona Fullerton
• Bob Conley — Manning Redwood
• Dr. Carl Mortner — Willoughby Gray
• Jenny Flex — Alison Doody
• Pan Ho — Papillon Soo Soo
• Venz — Dolph Lundgren

This film is not only Roger Moore's swansong, but Lois Maxwell's as well. Maud Adams is often said to be visible as an extra in one of the San Francisco scenes; in the DVD documentary Inside A View to a Kill, Adams explains that she was visiting her friend Roger Moore on location and ended up in the crowd, but admits she is unable to actually see herself in the film; director John Glen, in the same documentary, confirms that Adams appears as an extra, but does not specify where she is visible. Adams, as a result, appears in three Bond films playing different characters, having previously played Andrea Anders in The Man with the Golden Gun in 1974 and the title role in Octopussy in 1983.

Reception

A View to a Kill is usually mentioned along with The Man with the Golden Gun and Moonraker as one of the worst entries in the Bond series. Though totalling a box office take of $152.4 million worldwide, the U.S. box office was $50.3 million (not adjusted for inflation) with U.S. admissions of only 14.1 million - over seven million down from Octopussy (1983). The contemporary criticism centered on the aging Roger Moore (56 when shooting, 57 at completion). Roger Moore remarks in his solo commentary (2006 Ultimate DVD Edition) that he regards A View to A Kill as his least favorite Bond film he featured in, citing an increase in violence as a significant reason. Also reflecting on the issue of his age, he said, “Looking back I realized I did look as old as I felt”. In other interviews, Moore stated he felt somewhat embarrassed, since he found out during production that he was older than Tanya Roberts's mother. As with its predecessor Octopussy, this film is often cited as the reason why the creators decided to take the series, revived two years later with Timothy Dalton as Bond, in a darker, more morally ambiguous direction.

The plotline was also criticized for being almost identical to that of Goldfinger. In Goldfinger, the villain's scheme is to irradiate the entire U.S. gold reserve, making it worthless, causing financial meltdown in the West, plus the value of Auric Goldfinger's personal gold stocks would increase tenfold; correspondingly in A View to a Kill, Max Zorin intends to destroy Silicon Valley by triggering a massive earthquake, thus leaving his company with a monopoly on the microchip market, also similar to the plot of the 1978 film Superman: The Movie. Also as in Goldfinger, one of the business partners in the scam gets cold feet and would rather take the money and run. While Mr. Solo was assassinated by Oddjob and his body disposed of in a car crusher, in A View to a Kill, the dissenter in the ranks is dropped from Zorin's airship and into San Francisco Bay. Additionally, both Zorin and Goldfinger are being bankrolled by the Communists: in the former case, Zorin is an ex-KGB agent, while the bomb intended to irradiate Fort Knox is supplied by the Chinese. Regardless, there are others who disagree that this was one of the worst Bond movies.

• Date of first broadcast in US: 5th November 1987, on ABC
• Date of first broadcast in UK: 31st January 1990 (7th most viewed programme in the UK in 1990)

Soundtrack

Main article: A View to a Kill (soundtrack)

Video games

A View to a Kill was also made into two video games in 1985.

The first, titled A View to a Kill, was published by Domark. It is available on ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, and MSX.

The second, titled James Bond 007: A View to a Kill was a text-based video game for DOS and Apple II computers. It was developed by Angelsoft, Inc. and published by Mindscape Inc.

Related to the film, the character Mayday was a playable multiplayer character in the 1997 and 2000 video games GoldenEye 007 and The World is Not Enough for the Nintendo 64. Mayday is also available as a A.I. bot in the 2002 video game, Nightfire.Later, Nikolai Diavolo, a character played by Willem Dafoe in the 2004 game James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing, claimed Max Zorin was his mentor and friend. In GoldenEye: Rogue Agent, A multiplayer level is the summit of the Golden Gate Bridge, Including a trapdoor deathtrap, and the Zorin blimp, which would fire on players when activated. Players are also able to climb on the large suspension cables, but only for a short distance before slipping and falling to their deaths.

External links

• A View to a Kill at IMDb
• A View to a Kill at Rotten Tomatoes
• A View to a Kill at Box Office Mojo
• MGM's official A View To A Kill website
• A View To A Kill overview page on The Ultimate James Bond Community
• A View to a Kill at MobyGames
• A View to a Kill (text based game) at MobyGames