--- title: "Licence to Kill" year: 1989 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/licence-to-kill" fi1m_score: 70 critics_score: 66 critics_reviews: 13 published: "2026-09-18T11:43:14.816866+00:00" updated: "2026-09-18T11:43:15.315071+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Licence to Kill (1989) Directed by John Glen · 2h 13m · MPA PG-13 · Adventure, Action, Thriller **Fi1m score: 70** · Critics 66 from 13 reviews *In a sentence:* Bond hands back his licence, keeps his temper for about a minute, and the stunt team does the rest > Timothy Dalton’s second and last Bond sacks him early and lets him spend the rest on a grudge, and it is the toughest the series had been in years. It also looks like television, the score is thin, and the jokes keep wandering back in. ## Synopsis Key West, Florida. James Bond (Timothy Dalton) is best man at the wedding of his oldest American friend, the CIA agent Felix Leiter, when word comes that the drug baron Franz Sanchez (Robert Davi) has surfaced within reach, chasing his runaway girlfriend Lupe Lamora (Talisa Soto). Bond and Leiter take him from the air on the way to the church. Within a day Sanchez has bought his way out through a DEA agent, Killifer (Everett McGill), and taken his revenge on Leiter among the sharks kept by the marine dealer Milton Krest (Anthony Zerbe). Bond’s own service orders him off the case; he refuses, and his licence to kill is revoked. He goes after Sanchez alone, helped by Leiter’s friend Sharkey (Frank McRae) and a pilot, Pam Bouvier (Carey Lowell). ## Review John Glen’s fifth Bond film begins with a wedding in Key West and has the groom lowered into a shark tank before the honeymoon. We flinched at it. Glen cuts away before the worst and the film is nastier for the restraint. Michael G. Wilson and Richard Maibaum’s script does something the series had never done: it takes Bond’s job away. His superiors tell him the drug baron Franz Sanchez is an American problem; he refuses and spends the remaining two hours as a private citizen with a grudge. It is a Bond film built like an American cop picture, and for long stretches it works. Dalton is the reason to watch. He plays Bond as a man barely holding his temper, jaw set, eyes wet, saying as little as he can get away with, and the film gives him proper grief to carry rather than a quip to hide behind. When he walks out on his own service he does it quietly, and we believe the man would never have been let back in. What he is instead is frightening, and Bond had not been that for a long time. Robert Davi’s Sanchez is a fair match for him: a drug lord who talks about loyalty the way other men talk about God, played as calm, courteous and not quite sane. The script’s best idea is to let Bond get inside Sanchez’s household and turn that loyalty into suspicion, so the middle hour is less about shooting than about a man being talked into wrecking his own organisation. Benicio del Toro gives the henchman Dario a knife and a grin and little else, and is memorable anyway. Wayne Newton turns up as a television preacher, Professor Joe Butcher, fronting Sanchez’s operation, and we could have done without him. The craft is uneven. Alec Mills lights Florida and the Latin American locations in flat, hard sunshine, and the result too often looks like a well-funded episode of American television: everything is visible and none of it has been arranged as a picture. Peter Lamont’s sets are better, particularly Sanchez’s headquarters dressed up as a meditation retreat, stone temple at the front and laboratory behind. Michael Kamen’s score is the film’s real weakness, thin and anonymous where John Barry’s had been rich, and it makes the film sound cheaper than it looks. John Grover cuts the action cleanly and the conversations less so; dinners and briefings run a beat too long. And then there is the last twenty minutes, on a mountain road, with a convoy of petrol tankers, a light aircraft and a great deal of fire. We will not say how it comes out. We will say that we sat forward, and had not expected to, because the tankers are real, the road is real, the stunt drivers are doing things with an articulated lorry that nobody sensible would attempt, and Glen knows exactly where to put the camera so we see all of it. It is the best sustained action in the series for a decade. Carey Lowell’s Pam Bouvier is the most capable woman the films had allowed themselves in years, a pilot who saves Bond as often as he saves her, and Lowell plays her with a hard impatience that suits Dalton’s mood. The trouble is that the film cannot quite commit to its own grimness. Desmond Llewelyn’s Q turns up with a suitcase of exploding toothpaste, and it is a pleasure to see him, but every time he arrives the grim film we were watching turns back into the old one. The 15 certificate is earned; the wisecracks feel carried over from the previous film. Most critics now rate it higher than they did in 1989, on the grounds that it foresaw where the series would go. True, and it does not make the film any better. It is a tough, occasionally clumsy thriller with a lead actor taking it more seriously than anyone around him, and Dalton was not given a third go. Watch it for Dalton, for Davi and for the tankers. Skip the preacher. It runs 133 minutes, carries a 15, and opened in British cinemas on 13 June 1989. *Fi1m score 70, published 18 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics come down in favour, and the praise gathers in two places. The first is Timothy Dalton, whose lean, brooding, physical Bond is widely seen as a deliberate break from the Moore years and a good fit for a plot built on personal revenge against a drug baron. The second is the stunt work, with the closing tanker-truck chase named again and again as the film’s high point. Several later reviews add that its grittier tone and heavier violence look ahead of their time, anticipating the direction the series took with Casino Royale. The spread is wide. The mixed notices find the film still a little too conventional under its updates, and less witty than The Living Daylights. The Hollywood Reporter calls it a noble misfire, too grim for the audience it was made for. The sharpest dissent comes from Empire, which finds the whole thing dull and Dalton wooden. Critics revisiting it decades on are, on the whole, kinder than those who saw it first. ### Reviews we read (13) - **Los Angeles Times**, Michael Wilmington (85/100, inferred): The critic calls it one of the five or six best Bond films, noting a darker, more somber tone and Dalton's desperate one-man vendetta against a cocaine czar. The elaborate, gag-filled stunt sequences, especially the truck chase, are singled out for praise. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-07-14-ca-3849-story.html) - **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (80/100, inferred): The critic finds the film one of the best recent Bonds, with Dalton delivering a lean, tough contemporary Bond who favors action. The standout element praised is the exhilarating closing stunt sequence involving gasoline trucks, a helicopter, and a light aircraft. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/licence-to-kill-1989) - **The Telegraph** (80/100, inferred): Licence to Kill pushed Bond into darker territory with Dalton's intense performance, a revenge plot against a ruthless drug lord, and groundbreaking violence and stunts like the truck chase. It was subversive and ahead of its time but underperformed at the box office. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/bond-broke-bad-drug-crazed-cold-blooded-licence-kill-pushed/) - **Variety**, Variety Staff (80/100, inferred): The review praises the high-octane action, spectacle, and drama, crediting Dalton's vigorous, physical performance for revitalizing the series. The superbly orchestrated thrills-and-spills chases through South Florida and Central American locations are highlighted. [Read](https://variety.com/1988/film/reviews/licence-to-kill-1200427927/) - **The Guardian** (70/100, inferred): Timothy Dalton's two Bond films directed by John Glen are underrated and now on DVD with extras. Licence to Kill features a ferocious foe in a Latin-American drug baron and is the first Bond to get a 15 certificate for violence. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2001/feb/25/dvdreviews.reviews) - **Time Out**, CM (70/100, inferred): The review notes it is not as witty as The Living Daylights but delivers on effects, gadgetry, locations, and a feisty Bond girl. It praises the pacy plot and hi-tech elements despite straightforward plotting. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/licence-to-kill) - **Radio Times**, Jeremy Aspinall (3/5): The critic finds Dalton's second Bond outing a tougher, grittier affair well suited to his brooding style, more aligned with visceral 80s action films than Moore-era silliness. It is a watchable adventure with impressive action sequences and a fiery climax, though Dalton deserved another chance. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-qwslvl/licence-to-kill/) - **The New York Times**, Caryn James (60/100, inferred): The review notes Dalton remains the element of surprise in the series and praises the mix of villains, women, and effects, but concludes the film is still a bit too conventional despite clever updates and stylish action. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1989/07/14/movies/review-film-dalton-as-a-brooding-bond-in-license-to-kill.html) - **The Hollywood Reporter**, Phil Pirrello (30/100, inferred): The critic calls the film a noble misfire that was too gritty and serious for 1989 audiences, who preferred escapist fare, and notes it led to a six-year Bond hiatus amid studio issues. They single out its grounded revenge plot and Dalton's brooding, violent 007 as ahead of its time and influential on later entries like Casino Royale. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/how-licence-kill-almost-killed-james-bond-franchise-1224180/) - **Empire**, Tom Hibbert (10/100, inferred): The critic finds the film dull and outdated, criticizing the watered-down villains and especially Timothy Dalton's wooden performance as Bond, calling him an utter bore. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/licence-kill-review/) - **Den of Geek**, Ryan Britt (85/100, inferred): The critic views Licence to Kill as a solid, ahead-of-its-time Bond entry whose gritty revenge plot and realism prefigured later films in the series and the spy genre. They single out its close adherence to Ian Fleming’s source material and character spirit, including deep cuts to the books and film lore, for particular praise. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/license-to-kill-grittiest-james-bond-movie-that-changed-series-forever/) - **Collider**, Reid Goldberg (80/100, inferred): The critic praises Licence to Kill for bringing gritty realism and increased violence to the Bond series, highlighting Timothy Dalton's intense portrayal and the film's departure from formula as a revenge story that foreshadowed later entries like Casino Royale. [Read](https://collider.com/licence-to-kill-timothy-dalton-james-bond/) - **Film Stories**, Mark Harrison (80/100, inferred): The critic calls Licence to Kill a terrific film and the best of director John Glen’s five Bond outings for its spectacle, suspense and satisfaction. It stands out as one of the flat-out best action movies in the series because it takes place beyond the usual rules of Bond films. [Read](https://filmstories.co.uk/features/licence-to-kill-and-james-bonds-special-relationship-with-america/) ## Details - **Director:** John Glen - **Director:** John Glen - **Screenplay:** Richard Maibaum, Michael G. Wilson - **Cinematography:** Alec Mills - **Editor:** John Grover - **Music:** Michael Kamen - **Production design:** Peter Lamont - **Costume design:** Jodie Lynn Tillen - **Producer:** Michael G. Wilson, Albert R. Broccoli - **Cast:** Timothy Dalton as James Bond; Carey Lowell as Pam Bouvier; Robert Davi as Franz Sanchez; Talisa Soto as Lupe Lamora; Anthony Zerbe as Milton Krest; Frank McRae as Sharkey; Everett McGill as Killifer; Wayne Newton as Professor Joe Butcher - **Runtime:** 2h 13m - **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13 - **Release (the US):** 14 July 1989 - **Genres:** Adventure, Action, Thriller - **Budget:** $32 million - **Box office:** $156 million ## Where to watch in the US - Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, hd - Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, hd - Apple TV: buy $14.99, hd *Checked 2026-09-18.* Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HU, ID, IE, IN, IT, JP, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *The Living Daylights* (1987), Fi1m 74: Dalton’s first go, lighter on its feet and better shot; the same director, more jokes — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-living-daylights.md) - *Point Blank* (1967): Lee Marvin’s revenge, stripped to the bone; the film Dalton’s Bond wishes he were in - *Scarface* (1983), Fi1m 79: De Palma’s cocaine baron at full volume; Sanchez is the quiet, better-dressed cousin — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/scarface.md) - *Sicario* (2015), Fi1m 80: The cartel thriller done without a hero; Villeneuve makes the border itself the villain — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/sicario.md) - *The Long Good Friday* (1980), Fi1m 88: Hoskins watches his empire come apart in a day; Sanchez should have taken notes — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-long-good-friday.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. 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