James Bond Retrospective: Die Another Day (2002)
Gadgets 
After his introduction in The World Is Not Enough, John Cleese stepped into the role of Q for Die Another Day. While his debut appearance had been a little too slapstick and out of place, his role here is much more reined in and more befitting of the character made so popular by the late Desmond Llewelyn. His laboratory in an unused underground railway station is filled with gadgets from throughout Bonds screen history as well as his latest toys for the mission ahead. 
Following a three film deal with BMW, Die Another Day marked the return of Aston Martin to the world of Bond. The Aston Martin Vanquish used in the film would quickly become Bonds most talked about gadget. Dubbed the Vanish by Q, the car is capable of making itself invisible with the aid of tiny cameras on all sides that project the image they see onto a light emitting polymer skin on the opposite side making the car almost invisible to the naked eye. While the concept is not entirely unfeasible, it perhaps stretched believability to the limit for many. In addition to the invisibility feature, the car was fitted with an ejector seat, front firing rockets and hood mounted machine guns. 
The Aston Martin was used during the films most memorable scene, the car chase in Iceland. With Zao in hot pursuit in a green Jaguar XKR with rear mounted machine gun and mortar launcher, Bond tries to outrun him across the ice in his Aston Martin. The chase is a thrilling high octane race across the frozen lake superbly edited and choreographed taking full advantage of both cars gadgets, the signature moment being when Bond flips his car over when sliding on its roof by firing the ejector seat into the ground to land the car back on four wheels. Bonds other significant gadgets in the film include his surfboard with a hidden compartment of C-4 explosives, a Walther P99 gun and GPS equipped knife. He also uses his watch to trigger explosives in his briefcase full of diamonds and a ring, capable of emitting a high pitched sound that shatters glass. James Bond Will Return.. Despite mixed reviews the film went on to become to the most successful of the Brosnan era films and up until 2006, the highest grossing Bond film ever, taking almost $432 million at the box-office. To mark the 40th Anniversary celebrations, the film premiered at the Royal Albert Hall and was attended by cast and crew as well as former Bonds Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and George Lazenby. As Die Another Day marked a return to a time of extravagant excess not seen since the late seventies another literary spy was emerging and about to shatter Bonds confidence. Jason Bourne was about to change the face of Bond for the better... To catch up on previous installments of the James Bond Retrospective click here: Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majestys Secret Service, Diamonds Are Forever, Live And Let Die, The Man With The Golden Gun, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker, For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, A View To A Kill, The Living Daylights, Licence To Kill, GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough
After his introduction in The World Is Not Enough, John Cleese stepped into the role of Q for Die Another Day. While his debut appearance had been a little too slapstick and out of place, his role here is much more reined in and more befitting of the character made so popular by the late Desmond Llewelyn. His laboratory in an unused underground railway station is filled with gadgets from throughout Bonds screen history as well as his latest toys for the mission ahead. Classic Line
James Bond: (On seeing the Aston Martin Vanish for the first time) You must be joking.
Q: As I learned from my predecessor, Bond, I never joke about my work.
Following a three film deal with BMW, Die Another Day marked the return of Aston Martin to the world of Bond. The Aston Martin Vanquish used in the film would quickly become Bonds most talked about gadget. Dubbed the Vanish by Q, the car is capable of making itself invisible with the aid of tiny cameras on all sides that project the image they see onto a light emitting polymer skin on the opposite side making the car almost invisible to the naked eye. While the concept is not entirely unfeasible, it perhaps stretched believability to the limit for many. In addition to the invisibility feature, the car was fitted with an ejector seat, front firing rockets and hood mounted machine guns. The Aston Martin was used during the films most memorable scene, the car chase in Iceland. With Zao in hot pursuit in a green Jaguar XKR with rear mounted machine gun and mortar launcher, Bond tries to outrun him across the ice in his Aston Martin. The chase is a thrilling high octane race across the frozen lake superbly edited and choreographed taking full advantage of both cars gadgets, the signature moment being when Bond flips his car over when sliding on its roof by firing the ejector seat into the ground to land the car back on four wheels. Bonds other significant gadgets in the film include his surfboard with a hidden compartment of C-4 explosives, a Walther P99 gun and GPS equipped knife. He also uses his watch to trigger explosives in his briefcase full of diamonds and a ring, capable of emitting a high pitched sound that shatters glass. James Bond Will Return.. Despite mixed reviews the film went on to become to the most successful of the Brosnan era films and up until 2006, the highest grossing Bond film ever, taking almost $432 million at the box-office. To mark the 40th Anniversary celebrations, the film premiered at the Royal Albert Hall and was attended by cast and crew as well as former Bonds Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and George Lazenby. As Die Another Day marked a return to a time of extravagant excess not seen since the late seventies another literary spy was emerging and about to shatter Bonds confidence. Jason Bourne was about to change the face of Bond for the better... To catch up on previous installments of the James Bond Retrospective click here: Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majestys Secret Service, Diamonds Are Forever, Live And Let Die, The Man With The Golden Gun, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker, For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, A View To A Kill, The Living Daylights, Licence To Kill, GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough