After a break that extended from five to six years due to pandemic-related delays, the franchise’s 25th installment will finally hit U.S. theaters this Friday. “No Time to Die” concludes Daniel Craig’s tenure as James Bond in spectacular fashion, tying together threads that have been woven throughout his five-film run as the storied spy all while offering a fresh take on the franchise and a glimpse towards the future of Bond. 

Recently, the Fordham Ram had the opportunity to speak with director Cary Joji Fukunaga, who also directed “True Detective” and “Maniac,” and series newcomer Lashana Lynch, who was also in “Captain Marvel,” about the film. They each expressed excitement about the film’s thrice-delayed release, especially since it will be shown in theaters after its fate was in limbo for well over a year. Right now, “it’s mainly just relief and gratitude,” said Fukunaga.

When moviegoers do enter theaters, they’ll have to remember to use the bathroom before getting comfortable, as the film clocks in at a hefty 2 hours and 43 minutes. Despite its extensive runtime, “No Time to Die” is so plot heavy that finding an ideal minute to exit the theater will be a tall task for audience members. 

“There was a lot to wrap up,” Fukunaga explained. The film begins with Bond in retirement following the events of 2015’s “Spectre,” but before long he’s thrust back into the world of international espionage surrounded by the familiar faces of MI6 colleagues M (Ralph Fiennes), Q (Ben Whishaw), Moneypenny (Naomie Harris) and Tanner (Rory Kinnear). Also returning are Jeffery Wright as Bond’s CIA buddy Felix Leiter, Christoph Waltz as now-imprisoned villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld and Léa Seydoux as love interest Madeleine Swann, whose relationship with Bond gives the film a rewarding level of emotional depth

Joining the returning cast are a number of notable newcomers, with Ana de Armas turning in an all-too-brief performance as suave CIA agent Paloma and Rami Malek serving as Bond’s main foe, Lyutsifer Safin.

But none of the new faces shine brighter than Lashana Lynch, who plays 00 agent Nomi. Her character serves as a contrast to Bond, a sign that the world he inhabits is moving just a bit faster than he is. “She challenges Bond’s way of thinking, and helps to usher in this new era of how women are viewed and represented in the franchise,” Lynch said. The chemistry between the two characters is competitive, yet playful and filled with refreshingly witty banter, something Craig’s Bond has sometimes lacked — perhaps an effect of Phoebe-Waller Bridge’s (“Fleabag”) work on the script.

Indeed, Waller-Bridge’s mark is felt throughout the film — in its more fleshed-out female characters (though Naomie Harris’s Moneypenny is disappointingly scarce), in a few notable scenes that directly challenge the notion of the Bond girl and in the humor injected throughout the film.

Despite the presence of that humor, though, “No Time to Die” is not a lighthearted affair. In fact, its emotional weight is consistently felt through Bond’s relationship with Swann, the presence of past demons that continue to haunt him and, most of all, through the impressively nuanced performance of Daniel Craig, who dispels any remaining doubt that he was the right choice for the job back in 2005. The film benefits massively from being the fifth installment of the interconnected Craig era, as his character is afforded a degree of depth that would have been impossible to create with just one movie — even one that is nearly three hours long.

Of course, while the film is not chock full of humor, it is by no means a dramatic masterpiece. “No Time to Die” is an action movie, and a Bond movie on top of that: there is no shortage of eye-popping set pieces, ridiculously fun fights and chases, and perfectly over-the-top stunts throughout the film. Overall, Fukunaga does an excellent job incorporating these classic Bond ingredients with the fresh and unexpected plot elements that accompany them.

But with a movie as full of plot as this one is, it is difficult to make each and every facet shine. The dullest component of “No Time to Die” is Rami Malek’s villain Safin. While Malek’s performance is solid enough, the script simply does not give enough to make him interesting or really worth caring about at all. The result is a third act that falls somewhat flat on a story level, though the set pieces, action scenes and emotional payoff mostly make up for it.

On the whole, “No Time to Die” is a decidedly unique entry in the Bond pantheon, even while staying true to most of the things that make Bond movies great. When it deviates from the usual, almost every risk it takes pays off, and through this combination of the classic and the unexpected, nearly every minute of the film’s runtime commands attention. Daniel Craig’s final run as James Bond will be remembered as one of the finest moments of his tenure, and most fans will be satisfied with his send off, even as speculation around his successor begins to mount.