20 Things You Didn't Know About The World Is Not Enough (1999)

2. Zukovsky’s Ironic Move

World Is Not Enough Fight
MGM

Valentin Zukovsky became one of the most beloved characters of the Bond franchise during his appearances in GoldenEye and The World Is Not Enough.

Prior to and during GoldenEye, he was Bond’s bitter enemy; Double-0 Seven had shot the former KGB agent in the leg and had run off with his girlfriend, leaving him with a limp. In The World Is Not Enough, Zukovsky uses a silver-tipped cane to remain mobile.

However, in Zukovsky’s last scene, the cane is revealed to be a gun with a single used by the “legitimate businessman” to free Bond from Elektra’s ornate Ottoman Empire torture chair.

The cane-gun is adapted from a similar weapon that appeared in Ian Fleming’s 1953 novel, Casino Royale, but its use in this film is particularly ironic: the same instrument that Zukovsky relies upon as a result of James Bond having shot him in the leg is also used by Zukovsky to save Double-0 Seven’s life.

Just as striking is the fact that Bond was on the wrong end (the barrel) of the cane when he using it to try and help lift the Russian crime boss out of a vat of caviar earlier in the film...

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I started writing for WhatCulture in July 2020. I have always enjoyed reading and writing. I have contributed to several short story competitions and I have occasionally been fortunate enough to have my work published. During the COVID-19 lockdown, I also started reviewing films on my Facebook page. Numerous friends and contacts suggested that I should start my own website for reviewing films, but I wanted something a bit more diverse - and so here I am! My interests focus on film and television mainly, but I also occasionally produce articles that venture into other areas as well. In particular, I am a fan of the under appreciated sequel (of which there are many), but I also like the classics and the mainstream too.