--- title: "The Living Daylights" year: 1987 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-living-daylights" fi1m_score: 74 critics_score: 65 critics_reviews: 12 published: "2026-09-18T11:35:41.263334+00:00" updated: "2026-09-18T11:35:52.188505+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." --- # The Living Daylights (1987) Directed by John Glen · 2h 10m · MPA PG · Action, Adventure, Thriller **Fi1m score: 74** · Critics 65 from 12 reviews *In a sentence:* A milkman raids a safe house, Bond takes a cellist to Vienna, and nobody makes a joke about either > Timothy Dalton’s first Bond is a proper spy story with the jokes taken out, and the best-made entry in years. Its villains are small and its Afghan detour is long, but the first hour is as tense as the series has been since the sixties. ## Synopsis Gibraltar, 1987. A training exercise for the 00 section ends with an agent dead and a tag on the body reading Smiert Spionam, death to spies. In Bratislava, James Bond (Timothy Dalton) covers the defection of General Georgi Koskov (Jeroen Krabbé) during a concert interval, with Saunders (Thomas Wheatley) of the Vienna station fretting at his elbow. The sniper waiting across the street turns out to be a cellist, Kara Milovy (Maryam D’Abo), and Bond shoots the rifle from her hands rather than her. Koskov is smuggled to England, where he tells M (Robert Brown) that General Leonid Pushkin (John Rhys-Davies) has revived an old Soviet murder programme. Then a killer dressed as a milkman (Andreas Wisniewski) takes Koskov back. Bond is ordered to kill Pushkin, does not believe a word of it, and goes looking for the cellist instead. ## Review John Glen’s fourth Bond film in a row, and the fifteenth in the series, is the one that had to introduce a new man. After seven Roger Moore films the jokes had grown longer than the fights, and Timothy Dalton arrives as a correction: a Bond who frowns, who has read the file, and who is plainly annoyed to be handed a job he thinks is wrong. Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson give him a proper spy story to be annoyed in, a defection, a sniper, a suspected purge of British agents, and for its first hour *The Living Daylights* is as good as the series had been in twenty years. It runs 130 minutes, and it does not all hold. The pre-credits sequence, three 00 agents parachuting on to the Rock of Gibraltar for an exercise and one of them meeting a real killer, is cut by Peter Davies and John Grover with no slack in it. Alec Mills shoots Bratislava in wet greys and the concert hall in stuffy gold, and the defection, run from a rooftop with a rifle and a stopwatch, is staged as a job of work. Then Koskov is taken from a country safe house by a man dressed as a milkman, with exploding bottles and a length of headphone flex, and we jumped, properly, which we had not done at a Bond film since we were children. Andreas Wisniewski’s Necros is the film’s best villain and he barely speaks. Dalton is the point, and he is good. He plays Bond as a man who was tired before the film began and whose kindness, when it comes, surprises him. Ordered to kill a sniper, he shoots the rifle out of her hands instead, and the look he gives Saunders (Thomas Wheatley) afterwards, daring him to put it in the report, is the whole new approach in a second. Maryam D’Abo’s Kara Milovy is a cellist who has wandered into a spy film, and the script gives her more wide-eyed innocence than a grown woman needs. But her scenes with Dalton in Vienna, at the fair and on the big wheel, have a sweetness the series had not tried since 1969, and Emma Porteous puts her in the coats a musician would own rather than the ones a Bond girl is issued. The villains are the problem. Jeroen Krabbé’s Koskov is charming and never once frightening, a man who kisses everyone on both cheeks, and Joe Don Baker’s Brad Whitaker is an American arms dealer who keeps a private museum of great generals in a Tangier villa and refights old battles with toy soldiers. Peter Lamont builds that villa handsomely, and it tells you everything about Whitaker in one shot; the man himself adds nothing to it afterwards. John Rhys-Davies gives General Pushkin more weight than either of them, and he is the one we are meant to suspect. Then the film goes to Afghanistan, and it stays there. Art Malik’s Kamran Shah is likeable, an Oxford man in a turban leading the mujahideen, and the escape from a Soviet airbase is well built. But the desert stretch runs long, the plot, which by now involves opium, diamonds and the Soviet army, has more parts than the script bothers to fit together, and somewhere past the hundred-minute mark we found ourselves waiting for it to end. It wakes up for one fight, late and at altitude, that we will not describe beyond saying we held the arm of the chair and were glad nobody made a quip at the end of it. John Barry’s score, his last for the series, holds the two halves together. He gives Kara a cello theme that is allowed to be pretty, scores the Bratislava rooftop almost in silence, and lets the brass out only when the action has earned it. The title song by a-ha sounds like a pop group and a composer disagreeing in the same room, and both sides are audible. Against the series’ own standard this belongs with the harder ones, [*From Russia with Love*](https://film.one/film/from-russia-with-love) and *On Her Majesty’s Secret Service*, and it is not as good as either, because its villains are not worth chasing. Some critics at the time thought Dalton too serious; we think they had grown used to a Bond who did not mean it and did not recognise one who did. Watch it for the first hour and for Dalton, and forgive the desert. It carries a PG, and the milkman would not get one now. *Fi1m score 74, published 18 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics come down in favour, and the praise clusters on Timothy Dalton. The reviews welcome his flinty, serious Bond as a corrective to the later Roger Moore films, and several describe a return to proper espionage, with real jeopardy and a Cold War setting that grounds the action. The pre-credits sequence draws the most consistent applause, along with the aerial finale; Variety also singles out John Barry’s score and the practical locations. The spread is wide, from those who call it a high point of the series to those who find it flat. Reservations cluster on the villains, which even admirers call colourless, on a convoluted plot that wanders between locations, and on a leading lady more than one critic finds irritating. The split is partly by date: the American reviews from 1987 are cooler, with Roger Ebert arguing Dalton lacks the humour the role needs, while later reappraisals are warmer. Slant Magazine dissents outright, saying Dalton never owns the part. ### Reviews we read (12) - **The Telegraph** (90/100, inferred): The piece argues The Living Daylights is one of the series' high points as a proper espionage thriller, praising Dalton's instinctive and devious Bond in quieter dramatic moments. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/underrated-007-timothy-daltons-living-daylights-still-nastiest/) - **Time Out**, BC (80/100, inferred): Despite a confused plot and globe-trotting digressions, this is the best Bond in years thanks to Timothy Dalton's emotionally committed take on 007 as a romantic hero. Specific praise for the gripping pre-credits sequence, the milkman raid, and the inventive final shoot-out; complaints about seedy villains and unmemorable Afghanistan scenes. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-living-daylights) - **Variety**, Peter Debruge (80/100, inferred): Debruge argues the film holds up better than prior entries in retrospect, restoring elegance and seriousness to the character through practical locations, a strong John Barry score and a more grounded approach. [Read](https://variety.com/2012/film/reviews/revisiting-1987-s-the-living-daylights-1118059667/) - **Empire**, Kim Newman (70/100, inferred): The critic welcomes Dalton’s Bond for bringing a fresh, grittier tone and proper intrigue after the later Moore entries. The real-world 1987 setting, credible villains, and strong set-pieces are singled out as strengths. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/living-daylights-review/) - **The Guardian** (70/100, inferred): The critic highlights Timothy Dalton's two underrated Bond films as now available on DVD with extras. It notes the first film's colourful villains and safe-sex Bond flitting across locations. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2001/feb/25/dvdreviews.reviews) - **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (70/100, inferred): Maslin finds the film scenic, engrossing and well-cast, with Dalton bringing a fresh edge. She notes the formula remains intact and the pace can tire, but it keeps the series afloat. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1987/07/31/movies/film-living-daylights-with-the-new-bond.html) - **Radio Times**, Mark Braxton (3/5): Timothy Dalton's flinty, serious Bond is a refreshing change from the late Roger Moore era, delivering a human, romantic adventure with strong set pieces like the prologue and aerial sequence. Villains are colourless and the finale is lame, but overall an underrated escapade. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-sbzyv7/the-living-daylights/) - **Los Angeles Times**, Sheila Benson (40/100, inferred): Benson sees the new Bond entry as more of the same pop-pop action and gadgets, with Dalton fitting the role but the overall formula feeling tired and forgettable after 25 years. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-07-31-ca-170-story.html) - **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (40/100, inferred): Ebert finds Dalton deficient in the humorous tone essential to Bond, making the preposterous elements fall flat. He praises some stunts but criticizes the uncharismatic lead actress and weak villain. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-living-daylights-1987) - **Slant Magazine**, Ted Pigeon (35/100, inferred): The film is flat and fails to generate consistent energy or memorable set pieces beyond its opening. Dalton never fully owns the role and the convoluted plot and shoddy screenplay smother any smaller delights. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/summer-of-87-the-living-daylights/) - **Film Stories**, Mark Harrison (80/100, inferred): The critic praises Timothy Dalton's back-to-basics portrayal of Bond as restoring jeopardy and fortitude to the series after Roger Moore's lighter tone. The film's strong action sequences and more vulnerable Bond are singled out as highlights. [Read](https://filmstories.co.uk/features/the-living-daylights-and-what-timothy-dalton-brings-to-james-bond/) - **Den of Geek**, Max Williams (65/100, inferred): The critic finds the film strong if uneven overall, praising its return to a harder-edged Bond with Dalton's lean, cold performance, solid plot elements, memorable henchman Necros, and Cold War atmosphere, while noting issues with weak central villains, an irritating Bond girl, and pacing that prevents it from fully taking off. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/the-living-daylights-how-timothy-dalton-made-james-bond-serious-again/) ## Details - **Director:** John Glen - **Director:** John Glen - **Screenplay:** Michael G. Wilson, Richard Maibaum - **Novel:** Ian Fleming - **Cinematography:** Alec Mills - **Editor:** Peter Davies, John Grover - **Music:** John Barry - **Production design:** Peter Lamont - **Costume design:** Emma Porteous - **Producer:** Albert R. Broccoli, Michael G. Wilson, Tom Pevsner - **Cast:** Timothy Dalton as James Bond; Maryam D'Abo as Kara Milovy; Joe Don Baker as Brad Whitaker; Art Malik as Kamran Shah; John Rhys-Davies as General Leonid Pushkin; Jeroen Krabbé as General Georgi Koskov; Andreas Wisniewski as Necros; Thomas Wheatley as Saunders - **Runtime:** 2h 10m - **Certificate (MPA):** PG - **Release (the US):** 29 June 1987 - **Genres:** Action, Adventure, Thriller - **Budget:** $40 million - **Box office:** $191 million ## Where to watch in the US - Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, hd - Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd - Apple TV: buy $14.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: 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 - *From Russia with Love* (1963), Fi1m 84: The Bond this one is reaching for: trains, borders and a killer who says little. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/from-russia-with-love.md) - *Licence to Kill* (1989), Fi1m 70: Dalton’s second and last, harder still, with a villain finally worth his frown. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/licence-to-kill.md) - *The Fourth Protocol* (1987): Same year, same Cold War, Michael Caine and Pierce Brosnan playing it entirely straight. - *Ronin* (1998), Fi1m 80: Frankenheimer’s spies-for-hire thriller with the best car chases since the seventies. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/ronin.md) - *Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy* (2011), Fi1m 84: What a defection looks like when nobody has a gadget and everyone is tired. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/tinker-tailor-soldier-spy.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. 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