10 EXACT Moments Movies Self-Destructed

5. Bond Goes Surfing - Die Another Day

Die Another Day Pierce Brosnan
MGM

Oh Die Another Day, you started so well.

Pierce Brosnan's final outing as 007 goes downhill pretty sharpish once its diverting pre-title sequence is out of the way, but there's one distinct moment at the start of the movie's third act that sends the outlandish spy-actioner careening into unforgiveable cartoon territory.

We're talking of course about the infamous beat where Bond creates an improvised kite-surfboard from the wreckage of his ice dragster and a parachute, allowing him to ride a gigantic tsunami wave generated by villain Gustav Graves' (Toby Stephens) solar laser Icarus.

The resulting sequence is simply too ridiculous to accept as anything less than the Brosnan era of Bond movies imploding before our very eyes - an idea that's inherently absurd and made far worse by the retina-scarringly awful VFX.

This specific scene is often credited with pivoting the Daniel Craig era into more serious-minded territory, lest it outright become the very thing that's parodying it - an Austin Powers movie.

For his part, even director Lee Tamahori admitted it's the only part of the movie he wishes he'd done differently.

Contributor
Contributor

Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.