Influential but flawed

Rating: 7/10 (21 May 1999)

Some people talk about this film as if it's one of the all time best. It's certainly been very influential, but let's not overlook some of the flaws. Too much time is spent on stupid supporting characters who don't believe what's going on. It detracts from what should be a breathless pace. Keeping all the action in one locale is kind of boring. I liked the sequel better because the action shifted around a lot. Hans is a villain in the Bond tradition, but the fact that he goes through this much trouble just for some money wasn't very convincing to me, nor did it make him despisable enough. STILL, I do like this film, but I just prefer action heroes who are larger than life. Three dimensional action heroes tend to come across as unbelievable to me.