James Bond Retrospective: The World Is Not Enough (1999)
Gadgets 
The World Is Not Enough was the final film in car manufacturer BMWs three picture deal. As was the case with the BMW Z3 in GoldenEye, the car that was to be provided for the film was not fully ready in time for the production. Instead, the BMW Z8 that appears in the film was merely a working mock-up and features in only a few brief scenes, the most significant of which takes place on the raised wooden platforms of Zukovskys caviar factory. In this scene Bond has the opportunity to use some of the cars gadgets including ground to air missiles launched from panels either side of the bonnet as well as key chain that acts as a remote control for the car implying an advance on the technology used in his BMW 750i in Tomorrow Never Dies. Despite the cars gadgets it quickly succumbs to a five bladed buzz-saw operated from beneath a helicopter which unceremoniously cuts the BMW in two, not only destroying Bonds car but the perfect way to bring his involvement with the German car maker to an end paving the way for his return to Aston Martin in the next film. Other gadgets supplied for his mission include x-ray spectacles, used in a casino scene to identify those carrying concealed weapons, a protective jacket that when deployed encloses the wearer inside a Zorb-like ball protecting Bond and Elektra from an avalanche and an Omega wrist watch with a grappling hook. 
The film also marks the final appearance of Bonds longstanding gadget maker Q, played by Desmond Llewelyn in seventeen films throughout the series. Llewelyn made the part his own going on to become one of the most recognised and best loved characters in cinema history. Having worked with the five lead Bond actors to date, he had developed an inimitable chemistry with each one leading to extended roles in a number of the films. In his scenes with each different Bond, there is an obvious air of respect and camaraderie between the actors and an infectious element of fun in the scenes set in Qs workshop. 
The film introduces Qs apprentice, R played by John Cleese, who would go on to inherit the title Q in the following film. While Cleese is undoubtedly a brilliant comic actor, his pratfalls and slapstick style is totally out of place in the film and fails to match the subtle brilliance of the original Q. While Llewelyn had no real intention of retiring from the role in 1999, his final scene in The World Is Not Enough has a sad poignancy given that several weeks after the film was released he was killed in a car accident. Llewelyn will always be associated with the role and has thus far proven a hard act to follow. James Bond Will Return.. Opening to decidedly mixed reviews and with much attention heaped on the casting of Denise Richards, the first Bond actress to win a Golden Raspberry for Worst Supporting Actress at the annual awards ceremony, the film still managed to go on to become the 20th Centurys most successful entry of the franchise taking over $360 million at the box office. With the dawn of the new millennium fast approaching, cinema was fast developing a digital revolution with more and more films utilising CGI special effects to seamlessly blend the unreal with the real. While the Bond series has always been renown for its preference for physical stunt-work, CGI had already made its first significant appearance in The World Is Not Enough but could the series really move and adapt with the times and successfully embrace the digital age?......... 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 was the final film in car manufacturer BMWs three picture deal. As was the case with the BMW Z3 in GoldenEye, the car that was to be provided for the film was not fully ready in time for the production. Instead, the BMW Z8 that appears in the film was merely a working mock-up and features in only a few brief scenes, the most significant of which takes place on the raised wooden platforms of Zukovskys caviar factory. In this scene Bond has the opportunity to use some of the cars gadgets including ground to air missiles launched from panels either side of the bonnet as well as key chain that acts as a remote control for the car implying an advance on the technology used in his BMW 750i in Tomorrow Never Dies. Despite the cars gadgets it quickly succumbs to a five bladed buzz-saw operated from beneath a helicopter which unceremoniously cuts the BMW in two, not only destroying Bonds car but the perfect way to bring his involvement with the German car maker to an end paving the way for his return to Aston Martin in the next film. Other gadgets supplied for his mission include x-ray spectacles, used in a casino scene to identify those carrying concealed weapons, a protective jacket that when deployed encloses the wearer inside a Zorb-like ball protecting Bond and Elektra from an avalanche and an Omega wrist watch with a grappling hook. Classic Line
Q: Ive always tried to teach you two things. First, never let them see you bleed.
James Bond: And the second?
Q: Always have an escape plan.
The film also marks the final appearance of Bonds longstanding gadget maker Q, played by Desmond Llewelyn in seventeen films throughout the series. Llewelyn made the part his own going on to become one of the most recognised and best loved characters in cinema history. Having worked with the five lead Bond actors to date, he had developed an inimitable chemistry with each one leading to extended roles in a number of the films. In his scenes with each different Bond, there is an obvious air of respect and camaraderie between the actors and an infectious element of fun in the scenes set in Qs workshop. The film introduces Qs apprentice, R played by John Cleese, who would go on to inherit the title Q in the following film. While Cleese is undoubtedly a brilliant comic actor, his pratfalls and slapstick style is totally out of place in the film and fails to match the subtle brilliance of the original Q. While Llewelyn had no real intention of retiring from the role in 1999, his final scene in The World Is Not Enough has a sad poignancy given that several weeks after the film was released he was killed in a car accident. Llewelyn will always be associated with the role and has thus far proven a hard act to follow. James Bond Will Return.. Opening to decidedly mixed reviews and with much attention heaped on the casting of Denise Richards, the first Bond actress to win a Golden Raspberry for Worst Supporting Actress at the annual awards ceremony, the film still managed to go on to become the 20th Centurys most successful entry of the franchise taking over $360 million at the box office. With the dawn of the new millennium fast approaching, cinema was fast developing a digital revolution with more and more films utilising CGI special effects to seamlessly blend the unreal with the real. While the Bond series has always been renown for its preference for physical stunt-work, CGI had already made its first significant appearance in The World Is Not Enough but could the series really move and adapt with the times and successfully embrace the digital age?......... 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