Tomorrow Never Dies, the latest MGM/UA installment in a film series that seems to have developed an allergic reaction to subtlety, intrigue, and suspense, delivers a moderately enjoyable action-packed thrill ride for the better part of two hours.

While it may be true that the Bond films are no longer cutting edge when it comes to the action genre, they still have a cultural hold on a huge segment of moviegoers who feel that nobody does it better. Opening night last Fall at the Kabuki Theatres in San Francisco seemed to prove that true: two screens, sold out, every showing.

Though I'm a big fan of the work of Maurice Binder, I found the opening title sequence for TND an outstanding piece of graphic design, one of the most memorable in too many years. Unfortunately, the voice of Sheryl Crow provided the background. Michael and Barbara should stop watching MTV for their musical casting. Thankfully, k.d. Lang's superior vocal talents left us with a strong version over the closing credits.

Pierce Brosnan is growing into the role, making it much more his own than Timothy Dalton ever did (Of course, Brosnan hasn't yet been saddled with a mundane script that forces him to battle pedestrian drug lords in Mexico). I count Brosnan right up there with Roger Moore in his first two Bond roles, before he hit his "sleepwalking-through-the-part-cash-the-check-before-Cubby-puts-a-stop-payment-on-it" stage.

While Pierce seems to have bulked up sufficiently for his "shower scene" with Michelle Yeoh (a little something there for everyone in the audience) and wears black tie quite well, he still comes across as physically less-than-believable when the script calls for beating up countless thugs and villains. But he has that dry humor down, and delivers the lines of Bruce Feirstein's well written script with a deft and clever interpretation.

Speaking of Yeoh, while the jury is still out on the politically correct Bond-chick-sidekick-as-equal, I found her to be an excellent choice for the role of Wai Lin. She is a strong actress who played off Brosnan with believable resolve, and for the first time in ANY 007 film I actually felt there was a spark between the two characters during the now obligatory end of the movie kiss. I thought Michelle Yeoh was one of the bright spots of the film.

Then there is the big screen exposure of Teri Hatcher's talents. One could almost get lost in the revealing cleavage of her on-screen presence but the depth of her acting abilities will have to be discovered by another director. Here she was little more than window dressing - albeit the kind you find in the main window at Saks Fifth Avenue - and won't have to worry too much about what to wear on Oscar night. Although I'm sure whatever she might wear she'll look super in.

As an adversary, Jonathan Pryce is a great luxury car salesman.

An enthusiastic nod to David Arnold's soundtrack, one of the best in the last 15 or 20 years. While it may be sacrilege in some circles to elevate any Bond soundtrack to the same level as that of John Barry's extraordinary body of work, this one more than holds its own. Why? Because a great deal of it was lifted directly from Barry scores! An effective mix of orchestral and electronic arrangements make this soundtrack worth a second listen.

One would have to be severely media deprived to be unaware of the advertising tie-in's and product placements associated with this film (another example of lack of subtlety on the part of the producers). But there is one industry out there missing the mark on corporate sponsorship: the ammunition manufacturers of America. I can't recall the last movie I saw that utilized so much gratuitous gun fire, most of which did nothing for the plot and did little more for the film than keep a crew of special effects wizards employed. True, this smooth, suave, gentleman agent has a license to kill from Her Majesty's government, but must he do it with an automatic machine gun in hand?

Tomorrow Never Dies is a fun romp through the world of James Bond. Were there problems? Yes. Would I have cast and directed it differently? Yes. Is it better than the last half dozen or so Bond films? Yes. Should you own a copy? Absolutely.

- R.J.