Top 7 Scenes of Pierce Brosnan's James Bond

Pierce Brosnan as James Bond 007

Pierce Brosnan was originally slated to play Bond after Roger Moore retired in 1985 but the producers of the NBC show 'Remington Steele' pulled him back for another season. When Bond went on hiatus due to legal issues in 1990, there was no Bond films for 6 years, during which Timothy Dalton was asked to be released from his contract, so the search for another James Bond was on. Pierce, during the shooting of 1993's Mrs. Doubtfire, was asked by director Chris Columbus if he would be up for playing Bond as he thought he'd be perfect, Pierce believed the ship had sailed. But he was wrong. He was cast in 1994 for the next installment in the franchise. He only played the role for four movies before being fired from the role in 2004. Here are Pierce Brosnan's Top 7 Scenes as James Bond.



1. The Pre Titles Sequence (GoldenEye, 1995)

After a six year hiatus, this sequence was a thrilling return to the Bond franchise, with 007 on a mission with fellow agent 006 to blow up a Soviet facility in Archangelsk, Russia. With 006 seemingly killed, Bond sets the timer for 3 minutes as opposed to the original 6 and high tails it out of there with a platoon of Soviet soldiers hot on his heels. The sequence ends with a thrilling free-fall to get into a pilot-less plane and then flying over the exploding facility. James Bond is back!



2. The Tank Chase (GoldenEye, 1995)

When Natalya is captured by General Ouromov from an interrogation by Defence Minister Mishkin, Bond gives chase in a tank through the streets of Moscow, destroying most of its streets and monuments in the process. This scene caused a bit of an uproar with the Russian government who actually believed that the producers were going to do this for real. Of course, it's just a film.


3. A Good Squeeze (GoldenEye, 1995)

Xenia Onatopp's final showdown with James ends with her being squeezed to death by a downed Helicopter. Prompting Bond to remark "She always did enjoy a good squeeze"


4. The Showdown with Alec (GoldenEye, 1995)

Alec and James' final showdown is one of the great moments of GoldenEye, it's tense and thrilling and the part where James grabs Alec's boot to stop him from falling to his death is a great part. "For England, James?" Alec asks. "No, for me." James responds and lets go, letting Alec fall to the bottom of the dish.


5. The Printing Press (Tomorrow Never Dies, 1997)

When James is breaking out of Carver's Hamburg HQ, he gets caught up with two security guys at the printing press who James neatly dispatches, the final one into the press itself. "They'll print anything these days!" he quips before heading off.


6. Come In 007, Your Time's Up! (The World Is Not Enough, 1999)

This is one of the best opening scenes of all the Pierce Brosnan Bond films. After an explosion at MI6 HQ, Bond gives chase to Cigar Girl (as she's known in the credits) down the River Thames in Q's retirement boat, which, of course, has a few optional extras installed. The chase tears down the winding waterway and ends with Bond rolling down the newly finished Millennium Dome, which is now the O2.


7. Just Surviving, Mister Chang. (Die Another Day, 2002)

 

This scene from one of the most dire of the whole franchise is a good moment. Bond, having been traded back from North Korea, he escapes his MI6 holding ship to swim ashore, discovering he's in Hong Kong, he heads for the nearest hotel, which happens to be a 5 star one of course. The sight of Bond casually strolling through the lobby looking like he'd just escaped from an asylum and then asking for his usual suite, is something that makes James Bond cool for me. Many fans deride this movie as being the worst in the Brosnan series and some even say it's the worst in the whole franchise. Considering it's supposed to be the 40th anniversary Bond film, it is let down by Madonna's theme (and cameo) and some of the plot elements were a little too over the top, even for Bond.