Die Another Day
He's never been cooler.
Country
Production
Budget
$142 000 000
Box office
$431 971 116
Director
Actors
Scenario
Producer
Barbara Broccoli, Michael G. Wilson, Anthony Waye
Camera operator
Composer
Artist
Audition
Editing
Short description
James Bond is sent to investigate the connection between a North Korean terrorist and a diamond mogul, who is funding the development of an international space weapon.
What's left behind the scenes
- The scenes of Halle Berry swimming were filmed in Cádiz in southwestern Spain, and it was not nearly as hot there as it appears on screen. On the contrary, between takes, the actress had to be wrapped in thick, fluffy towels.
- The filmmakers received a total of $70 million from 20 companies through so-called product placement (a stealth advertising technique where on-screen props have real commercial counterparts). At the time of the film's release, this was a record sum. This detail sparked a wave of criticism and comments along the lines of "Buy, but not now" (a pun based on the phonetic similarity between "Buy" and "Die," playing on the film's title). For this reason, it was decided to reduce the number of products advertised in this manner to eight for Martin Campbell's 2006 film, the next installment in the franchise, "Casino Royale."
- The actor Roger Moore's daughter appears in the film as a flight attendant.
- During the duel scene between Pierce Brosnan and Toby Stephens, the filmmakers slowed down the film speed to create the illusion that the actors were moving faster than they actually were.
- Bond receives a briefing at an abandoned subway station, and a warehouse of gadgets used in previous Bond films is shown. Specifically featured are the BD-5 Micro aircraft and the crocodile-shaped mini-submarine ('Octopussy'), the jetpack for flight ('Thunderball'), a women's shoe with a retractable poisonous spike, and the suitcase with a pop-out knife ('From Russia with Love').
- At one time, a spin-off starring Halle Berry's character (named Jinx Johnson) was planned. Die Another Day screenwriters Neal Purvis and Robert Wade spent two months developing the script, and Stephen Frears was appointed as the director of the future spin-off. Ultimately, MGM shut down the project before it had even properly begun due to the unsatisfactory box office returns of other female-led action movies, such as director McG's action-comedy Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003) and Jan de Bont's adventure film Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life (2003).
- Rosamund Pike was cast as Miranda Frost just five days before filming began. Her first scene in the film was with the renowned Judi Dench as M, and Pike was understandably very stiff, which was quite predictable and explainable.
- Q hands Bond a watch and mentions that it is the 20th watch in a row. A subtle hint that 'Die Another Day' is the 20th film in the Bond series.
- In Cuba, in a former agent's office, Bond first looks at and then takes a copy of 'Birds of the West Indies'. This is the same book whose author, ornithologist James Bond, gave his name to the main character when Fleming wrote the first Bond novel. Later, while meeting the heroine Halle Berry, he introduces himself as an ornithologist.
- To film some of the captivity scenes, Pierce Brosnan spent three hours in the makeup chair before the start of each shooting day, where, among other things, a fake beard and overgrown hair were glued to him.
- During the filming of an intimate scene in Cuba, actress Halle Berry choked on a date, and Pierce Brosnan had to perform an abdominal thrust, or the Heimlich maneuver (a first-aid procedure for choking caused by foreign body obstruction of the upper airways).
- To film certain scenes in captivity, Pierce Brosnan spent three hours in the makeup artist's chair before the start of each shooting day, where, among other things, a false beard and grown-out hair were glued on.
- At one point, a spin-off starring Halle Berry (her character was named Jinx Johnson) was planned. The screenwriters of 'Die Another Day,' Neil Purvis and Robert Wade, spent two months developing a script, and Steven Frears was appointed director of the prospective spin-off. Ultimately, the film company MGM shut down the project, which hadn't even properly begun, due to the unsatisfactory box office results of other action films with female protagonists – such as McG’s action comedy 'Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle' (2003) and Jan de Bont’s adventure action film 'Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life' (2003).
- It took approximately 6 months to build the ice palace.
- A quarter of the film's action takes place in Iceland, but none of the main cast were in Iceland. Only the second unit and stunt performers flew there.
- During the fight with Graves at the club, Bond receives at least four punches to the face and one kick. Yet, only a thin trickle of blood flows from his nose. If this were real, his nose would be broken, and possibly his jaw as well.
- Initially, it was planned that Catherine Kingsley (Gala Brand in the radio adaptation of 'Moonraker') would play Bond's girlfriend, and Jinx would be a traitor. Everything changed when Halle Berry was cast as Jinx. She became Bond's girlfriend, and Frost, played by Rosamund Pike, became the traitor.
- In the duel scene between the characters played by Pierce Brosnan and Toby Stephens, the filmmakers slowed down the film speed to make it seem as though the actors were moving faster than they actually were.
- Bond's car becomes invisible because “…it is fitted with tens of thousands of tiny liquid crystal displays.” It is unclear how these displays were installed on rubber tires.
- During filming, a fragment of a smoke grenade hit Halle Berry in the eye. A thirty-minute surgery was required to remove it.
- In Cuba, at a former agent's office, Bond first looks at and then takes a book titled 'Birds of the West Indies'. This is the very book whose author, ornithologist James Bond, gave the protagonist his name when Fleming wrote the first Bond novel. Later, while meeting Halle Berry's character, he introduces himself as an ornithologist.
- The filmmakers received a total of $70 million from 20 companies through product placement (a form of hidden advertising in which props shown on screen have real commercial counterparts). This was a record amount at the time of the film's release. This nuance sparked a wave of criticism and comments along the lines of 'Buy, but not now' (a pun based on the phonetic similarity of 'Buy' and 'Die,' using the film's title). For this reason, the number of advertised products was reduced to 8 when working on the next film in the franchise, Martin Campbell's 'Casino Royale' (2006).
- During the filming of the opening hovercraft chase scenes, Pierce Brosnan injured his leg. This injury aggravated an old one, leading to a 7-day halt in filming. This was the first time in the history of the Bond films that work on a film had to be suspended due to an actor’s injury.
- Rosamund Pike was cast as Miranda Frost just five days before filming began. Her first scene in the movie was one where her co-star was the famous Judi Dench playing M; Pike acted very stiffly, which was entirely predictable and understandable.
- Scenes of Halle Berry bathing were filmed in Cadiz, southwestern Spain, and it wasn't as warm there as it appears on screen. On the contrary, the actress had to be wrapped in thick, fluffy towels between takes.
- Fencing coach Verity tells Bond that her student, Miranda Frost, won gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. In reality, Italian Maria Valentina Vezzali won gold at those games, and she was never caught doping. During the same conversation, Verity calls Frost 'the club's best foil fencer,' even though at that moment she is fencing with epees. Her (as well as Graves' and Bond's) fencing skill is at a beginner's level and clearly does not match what is stated. During the fencing scene, Bond is wearing a left-handed suit, judging by the fastener on his shoulder, although he fences with his right hand. The club's equipment (outdated fencing masks, epees with smooth grips) does not match the status of the characters.
- The heroine, frozen in icy water, is immersed in hot water to warm up. Instead of (the inevitable in this situation) a wild scream of pain, she smiles blissfully.
- Bond undergoes briefing at an abandoned subway station, where a warehouse of gadgets used in previous Bond films is shown. Specifically, the BD-5 Micro plane and a crocodile-shaped mini-submarine ('Octopussy'), a jetpack ('Thunderball'), a women's shoe with a pop-out poisonous spike, and a suitcase with a pop-out knife ('From Russia with Love') are featured.
- During the filming of the opening hovercraft chase scenes, Pierce Brosnan suffered a leg injury. This injury aggravated an old one, leading to a seven-day hiatus in filming. This was the first time in the history of the Bond franchise that production had to be suspended due to an actor's injury.
- During the fight on the plane, when Vlad is ejected through the doorway, several soldiers are also ejected. Almost every time this happens, the lower part of the doorway either breaks or returns to its original state.
- The film claims the North Korean army numbers 80,000 personnel + 1,000,000 reservists. In reality, the army consists of approximately 1,200,000 active duty soldiers + 4,000,000 reservists. This makes it the fourth largest army in the world, after the United States, China, and Russia.
- While escaping from the MI-6 'infirmary', Bond slows his pulse to almost a standstill, forcing a woman and two men – the latter he causes to convulse on the floor with a cardioversion device – to enter the resuscitation ward. The defibrillator doesn't work as it should, and a separately applied electrode cannot harm a person.
- A fragment of a smoke grenade got into Halle Berry's eye during filming. It took a half-hour operation to remove it.
- During the filming of an intimate scene in Cuba, Halle Berry choked on a date, and Pierce Brosnan had to perform what is known as an abdominal thrust, or the Heimlich maneuver (a first aid procedure for choking due to foreign body airway obstruction).
- The 'Space Mirror' featured in the film is repurposed and colorized footage from a documentary recording of a Soviet experiment on light reflection, conducted on the Salyut-7 station. Unlike the fictional weapon, the experiment was much smaller and had a peaceful purpose.
- Some scenes of the car chase were filmed on the ice of a lake in Iceland, which rarely freezes naturally due to its proximity to the sea and the high salt content of the water. When problems arose with the ice, the filmmakers even considered filming the chase scenes on ice in New Zealand. To rectify the situation in Iceland, the river connecting the lake to the sea was dammed, and within two days, the ice on the lake exceeded two meters in thickness, so filming proceeded in Iceland as planned.
- It was originally intended that Catherine Kingsley (Gala Brand in the radio play "Moon Racer") would play Bond's love interest, and Jinx would be the traitor. Everything changed when Halle Berry was cast as Jinx. She became Bond's love interest, and Frost, played by Rosamund Pike, became the traitor.
- None of the film's characters exhale visible breath in the cold winter air of Iceland. The air temperature in Iceland in winter ranges from -5 to -15 degrees Celsius.
- The airplane in which Graves is flying and where the final showdown between him and Bond takes place is the An-124 'Ruslan' transport aircraft.
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