Most James Bond movies live and die by their villain, and while A View to a Kill mostly dies a slow, boring death by its own doing, Christopher Walken's performance as Max Zorin helps make the process more enjoyable. As always, Walken is gleefully charismatic in this 1985 spy adventure, with a dash of his evil side that we see only so often. The film itself is the sum of its parts - the final outing of an actor who, self admittedly, was playing a part that he had long before aged out of. It's grossly 80s in all the worst ways. You've got obnoxious hair metal guitars screaming over a brass score, more helpless Bond girls in an era that couldn't care less about them, and a near-60 Bond who's throwing out pun after pun like a T-shirt cannon at a baseball game. Thankfully, Walken's presence is the secret ingredient that keeps this movie from being 007's worst outing.
The year is 1985. Roger Moore has filled Bond's shoes for 12 years now, and the newly released A View to a Kill would be his last swing as the iconic secret agent. It would be the 14th official entry in the franchise, not counting '67's Casino Royale and '83's Never Say Never Again, both of which were non-EON productions. View follows James Bond hot on the trails of Max Zorin, a mega-rich industrialist working in the "fascinating" world of microchips who plans on eliminating the competition in his field by destroying Silicon Valley. Rounding out the heavy hitters are Zorin's henchwoman, May Day (Grace Jones), the latest Bond girl in Stacy Sutton (Tanya Roberts), and a new ally with Godfrey Tibbett (Patrick Macnee). All the action and beautiful locals that you come to expect out of a Bond movie are here... something is just off.
'A View to a Kill' Is One of the Worst Bond Movies
Well really, there's a lot that doesn't work with A View to a Kill. Moore's Bond run is notoriously hammy in just about every way. Mile-a-minute puns, ridiculous physical gags, out-of-control character names (the titular Bond girl Octopussy!?!), scores that go way over the top, and more. There's a charm to all of this, of course, with fans seemingly taking on an appreciation for this era's cheesier elements, but even its biggest defenders will admit that each film has its fair share of unforgivable moments. View, in particular, boasts more than enough eye-rolling elements to make any fan wish that he'd stick around for an eighth lap.
'A View to a Kill' Sets the Stage with Cheese
The film opens with Bond in the snowy Siberian mountains, recovering a Soviet microchip, and skiing away from a slew of faceless enemies. It's a traditional opening for the franchise and gives the impression that maybe, just maybe, this film will be a bit more grounded than its recent predecessors. The scene is scored with a slightly annoying attempt at mixing rock with a beautiful and grandiose orchestral action score, one that is serviceable but also feels desperate to reach younger audiences. All in all, the movie seems to be in good hands.
Just when you're locked in enough and think that View is going to play things a bit straighter than the franchise's unintentionally laughable moments, Bond starts snowboarding down the mountain and a cover of "California Girls" by the Beach Boys fires up. This needle drop is disgusting. I like some ham, don't get me wrong, but this scene just about made my head explode. Bond (let me reiterate, played by a 57-year-old Moore) manages to get away in a submarine, where he and a woman much, much younger than him become involved in some steamy activities. Um... alright. Follow this up with Duran Duran's aimless, shrugged-off titular theme "A View to a Kill", and you'll realize what a stinker you're locked in for. Sheesh.
From there, the movie does actually ground itself in some real Bond-isms for a bit. Early on, there's a chase scene in Paris with Bond and May Day that goes over great. Bond's car gets smashed to bits, but he manages to stay on her tail for the majority of his hunt. It's a wonderful showcase of both physical performance and stunt drivers absolutely killing it in their fields. The film's general interest in microchips is set, and its eyes become locked on one primary antagonist - Christopher Walken's Max Zorin
Christopher Walken Elevates 'A View to a Kill'
Walken doesn't play Zorin to the degree that you might hope. There are shades of his "more cowbell" tendencies, but by and large, the actor keeps things subdued. He's a slimy and pompous millionaire with his eyes set on dominating the microchip industry, and willing to take anyone who stands in his way. Walken is clearly having fun getting to have a go as a Bond villain, and who wouldn't? Zorin isn't even remotely close to the franchise's top villains like Silva (Javier Bardem) from Skyfall or Casino Royale's Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen), but this was also a time when Bond's villains were like menacing wallpaper. Aside from the many appearances of Blofeld, Auric Goldfinger (Gert Fröbe), and Scaramanga (Christopher Lee), most Bond villains were a disposable means of vocalizing plans to destroy or take over the world. Zorin is somewhere in the franchise's B-tier of globe-dominating foes, but he's an A-tier factor in this film.
Every now and then, Walken gets a moment to let his Walken-isms shine. During his first conversation with 007, Bond points out the industrialist's fascination with horse racing, to which Zorin replies "I'm happiest... in the saddle!!!" Walken delivers the line with a real "he hid it the once place he knew he could hide it... his ass!" Pulp Fiction-type delivery, but with more of a giddy love for horseback riding. Zorin's declared happiest state being "in the saddle" is sure to be felt by the audiences - we are happiest when A View to a Kill is riding in Zorin's saddle. As always, Walken elevates every film that he is a part of. When he's not delivering exposition with regard to blowing up Silicon Valley or choppily but charmingly delivering a threat, he's swinging axes and firing off mini uzis, making Zorin one of Bond's more physical villains.
'A View to a Kill'? More Like a View to a Nap
So A View to a Kill opens a bit shoddily with a terrible Beach Boys needle drop and an uncomfortable age gap between Bond and his lover, but it saves itself by moving on to a fun chase through Paris and establishes an unintentionally hilarious villain. Okay, so we're in good hands, right? Well, that'd be the case if the movie weren't moving at a glacial pace. Yeah, the first 30 minutes of a film should be setting the stakes, introducing the villain, and housing a few action scenes, but by the time everything is ready to go it feels like the movie has been on for over an hour. Every moment in between the shootouts and chase scenes generously drags. It's as though director John Glen felt no urgency to direct the film's down moments with a sense of intrigue or romance. Everything looks nice - the locations are beautiful, the cars and outfits are top-notch, and the performances are almost all spot on, the movie is just a slog.
That being said, the movie ends with a few fun back-to-back set pieces. Between Bond and May Day's escapades through the mines of Silicon Valley to the climactic battle over the Golden Gate Bridge, the movie does have a fun finale. It shows that Glen was more interested in directing the action scenes than anything. With a spy movie, that's not enough. Half of these movies are spent in conversations as 007 digs deeper into the psyche of his opponents, figuring out every last bit of their plans and the reasons behind their evil actions. That or we watch Bond spending time with MI6 as they figure out how to deal with these deadly masterminds. You can't have a director helm these movies who's only interested in one side of spy activities, they have to be fully on board. That, Glen, is not.
A View to a Kill was Bond's last silly entry for a little over a decade. The franchise would go darker for Timothy Dalton's short-lived, underrated two-movie run, and would kick off Pierce Brosnan's with the killer Goldeneye before resorting back to Moore-like spy hijinks. Had it not been for Christopher Walken's performance as Max Zorin, this era of Bond might have ended on its most uninspired and unmemorable moment yet. His enthusiasm to play the part is infectious, breathing new life into a series begging for a reset. If you've been turned off from A View to a Kill because of its notorious quality but you're a fan of Christopher Walken, give this one a chance, and you'll realize that you too are happiest in the saddle.