Brosnan-Era Bond Ranked - Franchise Rankography (James Bond 007)

Mainely Movies ranks all four Brosnan-era James Bond films, from worst to best. With the upcoming release of No Time to Die, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to continue my 007 video series.

What is a rankography you ask? A rankography is my ranking of a filmography - whether that be a director's output, an actor's appearances, or a franchise. Rankographies are my special brand of a ranked list.
This video features my personal ranking of all four Brosnan-era Bond films and, of course, some discussion of each film in which I give my reasoning for its placement in the rankography. Please remember: this is just my ranking, not THE ranking, so be sure to post your own ranking in the comments below!

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Film Clips Courtesy of MGM Distribution Co.:

Campbell, Martin, director. GoldenEye. MGM Distribution Co. 1995.
Spottiswoode, Roger, director. Tomorrow Never Dies. MGM Distribution Co. 1997.
Apted, Michael, director. The World Is Not Enough. MGM Distribution Co. 1999.
Tamahori, Lee, director. Die Another Day. MGM Distribution Co. 2002.

Fair Use Disclaimer: I do not own any film stills or clips used within this video.

"Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976: allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use."

[ParallaxDG]

My ranking is controversial but here it is:

1. The World Is Not Enough (Not only my fav Brosnan film but my favorite film in the entire series. Elektra is one of the best villains, the first 30 minutes of the film is exhilarating, David Arnold's score is top notch; also my favorite Bond score in the series, also Brosnan gives his best performance. Great plot with more emotional depth)
2. Tomorrow Never Dies (This one switched places with GoldenEye on my last viewing simply because this movie is so much fun. Jonathan Pryce makes a great villain while the car garage scene is fantastic. Best moment of the film is one small scene between Brosnan and the Dr. Kaufman character)
3. GoldenEye (Ok, so objectively this is the best Brosnan film. One of the best if not the best ensemble of villains and henchmen/henchwomen with some of the greatest action scenes in the series. Alec Trevelyan is my favorite villain in the series. There are some moments in the middle that slow the film down for me and overall I just find myself having more fun with TND and TWINE, but like I said this is objectively the best)
4. Die Another Day (Oh boy, such wasted potential. Very bold opening with Bond being captured. First act is great, after the sword fight the film just plummets into absurdity. Miranda Frost is a cool character; pun entirely intended, but besides her I don't see much else that redeems this one. It was the first Bond film I seen in theatres when I was 9 so you would think nostalgia would boost it for me but it doesn't)

[freddylowe]

Great ranking! I think lots of people would agree with yours - mine is something of an unpopular opinion:

1) Tomorrow Never Dies
2) The World is Not Enough
3) Die Another Day
4) GoldenEye

I love the Brosnan era so all four films are excellent in my eyes. He’s definitely my favourite Bond. Thanks for the fab video!

[MPB]

1)Goldeneye- Brosnan’s best bond and one of the best bond movies ever, Famke Janessen as Xenia is sexy and scary. Sean Bean is 006 is one of the best villains in the bond series in general(spoilers: one of the best bond death too. “For England, James? No, For me!” and Tina Turner opening song.
2)Tomorrow Never Dies- very good, Michelle Yeoh is the best Bond girl in the Brosnan period, very action oriented, Elliot Carver death with the sea-vac drill is my favorite Bond villain death “You forgot the first rule of mass media, Elliot! GIVE THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT!”
3)The World is not enough- Decent but Dr. Christmas Jones is the worst Bond girl all time, great action especially the opening with the boat chase.
4) Die Another Day- Worst one of the Brosnan period, Halle Berry sexy, but annoying, uneven tone from start to finish, overuse of CGI, Rosamund Pike good Bond girl villain, good action sequences

Overall, I think Pierce Brosnan is one of the best actors that played James Bond. Brosnan version of the character was classic to Sean Connery, funny like Roger Moore, and cold like Timothy Dalton, but I always appreciate that he added a vulnerability and sensitivity to his role as 007. Goldeneye is my favorite Brosnan Bond movie because it had that classic feel from the original Bond movies. I feel like if he had better scripts, I would think he would’ve surpassed Sean Connery as the best bond.

[belloq]

Solid ranking! I flip TWINE and TND in mine, but our first and last are the same.

[jacobmartin]

My ranking:
4. Die Another Day (the biggest embarrassment of the entire franchise)
3. The World is Not Enough (the most forgettable film of the whole franchise, though Brosnan's great)
2. GoldenEye (a classic for sure, though I think the film would have been better as Dalton's swan song)
1. Tomorrow Never Dies (the movie where Brosnan is the most confident in the role)

[Smile-hkvd]

1 & 4 are the most memorable in the franchise for their respective reputation. 2 & 3 are not bad but people doesn't talk about them much, sometimes i can't remember which scene is in which movie

My ranking :

01. GoldenEye (1995)
02. The World Is Not Enough (1999)
03. Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)
04. Die Another Day (2002)

[thunderstruck]

I like Brosnon it’s the writing and direction the usual suspects he’s one of them good actors that maybe needs a different agent getting him roles or needs to be part of an ensemble cast not the star anyway I’m sure he doesn’t need any suggestions from me thanks for the reviews I reckon you are my favorite movie reviewer and no cussin Siskel and Ebert were the best and didn’t need it thanks!

[holosbachstudios]

4 die another day 4/10
3 goldeneye 7/10
2 the world is not enough 7/10
1 tomorow never dies 10/10

[TheHorrorMiserMontyG]

My ranking for the Bronson ear is the same as yours Alyssa. We both have the same opinions when it comes the Bronson era of James Bond.

[gvt]

Hi it’s grant from Philly! I think you should react to the terror train scary movie! Your reaction is awesome!

[Qualimar]

Nice overview, even if I'm much more of a fan of this era than you are. Pierce Brosnan will always be my Bond, and I hate the way he has become the fandom's punching bag (and the franchise's - I understand Barbara Broccoli Michael G. Wilson are running a business but they treated Brosnan pretty shabbily at the end. 'Recasting' Brosnan's Bond with Craig in the 2010 version of the 'GoldenEye' game was particularly disrespectful.) That said I know these films aren't without their flaws.

My ranking:

4. 'Die Another Day' (I like it more than you but undoubtedly a mess. What hurts the most is not the invisible car or the chemistry implosion between Halle Berry and Brosnan but that they completely wasted the great Samantha Bond, who had excellent chemistry with Brosnan in the first three films. Her last appearance as Moneypenny and she doesn't even interact with the 'real' Bond, just the holodeck version!)
3. 'Tomorrow Never Dies' (A decent Bond movie with a miscast Teri Hatcher and a superb Michelle Yeoh. It loses points for me by being by far the least visually appealing of the Brosnan Bonds - far too many scenes in offices or factories or other industrial looking places.)
2. 'The World is Not Enough' (Hard disagree on being the least memorable, and I really loved Sophie Marceau and Robert Carlyle. Also as I said in the film review proper I think this Brosnan's best performance and the whole film crackles with the weight of Bond history, especially 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service'. And then we have Christmas Jones. Okay well I guess there is a reason I wouldn't rank this above 'GoldenEye'.)
1. 'GoldenEye' (A thrilling, gorgeously shot film with a great first performance by Brosnan, an excellent supporting cast and villain and a sense that the franchise has adapted with the times without cutting out everything from the past. One of my personal top 5.)

In my own rewatch I'm about to start the Daniel Craig era and dreading it - remember I'm a Brosnan fan with a chip on his shoulder - but these reviews really are great even if I don't always agree. :)

[JustinWilliams]

Goldeneye
Tomorrow Never Dies
The World Is Not Enough
Die Another Day

[stephanerichard]

no. 1 and 4 speak for themselves, , 2 and 3 are interchangeable.

1- Goldeneye
2- The world is not Enough
3- Tomorrow never dies
4-Die Another Day

[HarryThomasPictures]

Awesome ranking Alyssa, while I don’t like any of the Brosnan Bond movies LOL my ranking would be
1 Goldeneye
2 Tomorrow Never Dies
3 The World is Not Enough
4 Die Another Day
Can’t wait for your thoughts on my favourite era of James Bond the Daniel Craig era!

[sgtdayam]

It was hard to figure how you would rank these (just kidding). My ranking matches yours. The question would be: is it better to be memorably bad, but be memorable (DAD), or be not as bad but forgettable (TWINE)? Who was in that third one? ( I look at a picture), oh yeah, Elektra and Christmas, now I remember.🤣

[JohnSmith-jnnc]

1. Goldeneye
2. Die Another Day
3. The World is Not Enough
4. Tomorrow Never Dies

[TheClagga]

Here’s mine!
1. Goldeneye (easily the best and highly investing throughout)
2. The World Is Not Enough (good film and could be better)
3. Tomorrow Never Dies (Average and also bland in some areas)
4. Die Another Day (A real mess)

[vitzky]

Brosnan is a great Bond with bad scripts and plots IMO

1. Goldeneye
2. The World is Not Enough
3. Tomorrow Never Dies
4. Die Another Day