Make mine a 007...The Living Daylights (1987)

The Living Daylights (1987)

Bond: “I know a great restaurant in Karachi. We can just make dinner!”

Overview: Timothy Dalton becomes the fourth actor to play 007, adopting a more serious style than that of his predecessor, and bringing back the vodka martini with a vengeance. James Bond foils a plan by the annoying Brad Whitaker (or is it Jack Wade?) and Russian General Georgi Koskov to swap opium for high-tech weapons. Possibly the best 007 film to show to a wife or girlfriend.

What does Bond drink?

After Bond parachutes from the burning jeep, he lands on a yacht belonging to a woman named Linda. He borrows her phone and calls in, telling his contact “I’ll report in an hour.” Linda offers him a glass of champagne and says “Won’t you join me?” Bond rethinks, and tells the person on the phone “Better make that two.” We do not see Bond take the glass.
At the Palais Schwarzenberg in Vienna, the concierge asks Bond “Shall I have a vodka martini sent up?” Bond answers in the affirmative with a precise “Shaken, not stirred.” The concierge responds “Of course.” (This martini is also referred to in a later scene.)
On Felix Leiter’s yacht, a bottle of Jim Beam and a bottle of Jack Daniel’s can be seen on a shelf. Leiter grabs the bottle of Jim Beam and pours Bond a drink. Bond has raised the glass to drink when the scene ends.
When Bond returns to Kara Milovy after staging the assassination of Pushkin, she says “Let’s have a drink.” Bond says “You remembered,” referring back to the martini he had at the hotel in Vienna. They move to a table holding a silver tray with a bottle of Stolichnaya vodka, a bottle of vermouth, a silver shaker and two martini glasses. She shakes the cocktail, and fills the two glasses. Bond raises his glass and says “To us.” As they clink glasses, an increasingly nervous Kara says “Na zdraví.” Bond drains his drink, at which point Kara asks “Did I get it right?” Bond says “Mmm. Perfect.” Of course, that’s before he realizes the martini has been spiked with chloral hydrate. (It is kind of funny that a guy who’s so particular about his martinis didn’t notice the taste sooner.) By the way, this is the only time during the movie that we actually see Bond drink.
When Bond and Kara stay at Kamran Shah’s Mujahadin headquarters, there is what appears to be a bottle of vodka and two glasses on a table in their room. At one point, 007 picks up the bottle and a glass to pour himself a drink, but both he and the bottle are knocked over when Kara hits him with a pillow. (It’s odd to think that devout fundamentalist Muslims would have any vodka on hand, but just remind yourself, it’s only a movie.)
At the reception following Kara’s recital, the guests are drinking glasses of champagne. Before she discovers Bond in her dressing room she finds a silver tray holding two vodka martinis (garnished with lemon peel) and a single pink rose.

Other people’s drinks:

At the safe house in Blayden, Bond brings Koskov a wicker basket of goodies from Harrods. As the Russian examines the contents, he says, “What’s this, caviar? Well, that’s peasant food for us, but with champagne, it’s OK.” When Koskov pulls out the champagne, he says “Bollinger R.D., the best! Mmm!” As he hands M the bill, Bond tells his chief that “The brand on the list was questionable...so I took the liberty of choosing something else.” Later, an MI6 employee carries the empty bottle and two glasses into the kitchen (where he encounters Necros). It is unclear whether Bond also had a glass of Koskov’s Bollinger during the debriefing session.
At Whitaker’s villa in Tangier, there is a bar cart by the pool, replete with two waiters in fezzes. Later, as Whitaker tears apart a huge lobster, there are two bottles of wine on his dinner table.
As General Pushkin walks into his room at the Hotel Ile de France in Tangier, he is holding a bouquet of flowers and a bottle of champagne.
When Necros returns to Whitaker’s villa following Pushkin’s “death,” both Whitaker and Koskov are holding glasses of champagne.

Other observations:

During the main title credits, a blond woman in a white bikini rises out of a giant champagne flute, resting her arms on the rim.
At the end of the closing credits, the two martinis and the rose are shown again in the background as the words “James Bond Will Return” appear.
During The Living Daylights, Timothy Dalton has three martinis. That’s as many as Roger Moore drank during the seven previous Bond films.

Product placement:

During the pre-credits sequence in Gibraltar, the jeep drives through tables with yellow and red umbrellas advertising J&B Rare scotch.
A green neon Carlsberg beer sign is displayed prominently in the Prater Café in Vienna.
Bollinger Champagne gets its usual plug in the closing credits.

By the book: Based on “The Living Daylights” (1962).

Total: Five. Three vodka martinis, a glass of champagne, and a bourbon.