No Time To Die is special in a few ways: not only is it the last time Daniel Craig plays James Bond, but also this time Bond is married (I know!) and retired (which seems to happen a lot) and working for (or maybe “with”) the CIA. Those clues may seem to suggest that this movie is a broad departure from previous films, but it really isn’t. In fact the continuity is so strong that I really should have rewatched the previous instalment, Spectre, before going to the cinema (that’s right, in-theatre baby!) to catch Craig’s swansong. I spent early parts of the movie a little confused since I recognized (but didn’t really remember much about) Léa Seydoux’s character, Madeleine Swann, who was featured in Spectre and became the aforementioned “Mrs. Bond” in between the two films. Spectre (the terrorist organization) and its top villain, Blofeld (played again by Christoph Waltz), are again a thorn in Bond’s life, however another new mysterious villain is lurking behind the scenes, along with a terrible bio-weapon which becomes the MacGuffin of this movie.

I hope it doesn’t sound like I’m giving away too much of the plot, because the studio did place a “no spoilers” request at the beginning of the movie (which I don’t think I’ve ever seen before). However, I’m pretty positive that these little non-spoilers are not what they had in mind (yes, I’m hinting that much bigger things happen). In any case, another quirk of this Bond movie is that we don’t begin with a spectacular stunt-filled opening prologue. Instead, what starts the film is a tense, dramatic, and traumatic flashback to what turns out to be Madeleine’s childhood encounter with the creepy masked man who kills her mother (again, not much of a spoiler–trust me). Rather than a disconnected action sequence, this relatively dark opening sets a much more personal tone to the movie. We’re going to be tugging on some emotional scars. I’ve really enjoyed how, starting from Casino Royale, the current era of Bond has been more dramatic and less tongue-in-cheek with its scripts. This film does a nice job bringing that tune to a grand finale.

That is not to say that the classic elements of a Bond movie are absent. There are fewer gadgets, but there’s still an EMP-discharging watch and an impressive two-person glider/submersible (and the bad guys have a really cool magnetic elevator shaft thingy that you have got to see because I can’t even explain it). There is the requisite tuxedo scene (this time in Cuba), which has no cards or roulette, but it’s got martinis and does feature Ana de Armas as a gorgeous Bond girl agent who kicks serious butt in a slinky backless gown. Finally, Rami Malek does a suitably creepy turn as the over-the-top villain with the crazy-name-that-seems-like-a-typo of Lyutsifer Safin, whose hideout is what you might imagine a Shogun-era missile silo would look like. I gotta say I wasn’t crazy about his character and I always hate it when the raspy-voice villain reveals some big plot point and I can’t quite hear it (What? You want to do what to world? Can you clear your throat and repeat?) — but I guess that’s all part of their trauma. Also, I felt a bit that Lashana Lynch, who played the replacement 007, was kind of wasted. She had a few snarky exchanges with Bond, and she did fine as an MI6 agent, but she had none of the intelligence, savvy, presence, or charisma to replace Bond by any stretch. She made a point of playing by the book, and it only served to make us all wish for Bond back.

As much as I like the emotional depth that it added, the idea of James Bond having trouble with wedded bliss was a bit out of place and distracting. Plus, if we’re trying to be a bit less sexist in this woke era, why is the male hero still finding true love with someone almost 20 years his junior? There was a callback at the start of the movie to the Vesper Lynd character from Casino Royale who was a bit more age-appropriate and definitely more of a match for Bond. It was an odd detail for anything other than continuity, and only served to outline how much more formidable Eva Green’s Vesper had been compared to Léa Seydoux’s Madeleine (who always looks on the verge of tears).

Quibbles aside, the most important element to this grand finale to the Craig era is that Daniel Craig played Bond with his easy assuredness and fluid strength that has made him my favourite Bond (and I have actually watched all the Bonds). He (with the help of the various production teams, of course) did a great job reviving the franchise in this new millennium. Though I think it’s a good time for him to hang up his tux, I’m definitely sad to see him go. 4 out of 5