AFTER a delay in its premiere due to the coronavirus pandemic, the long-awaited No Time To Die – Daniel Craig’s final outing as 007 – finally reached cinema screens last week.

Craig’s sure-footed tenure as Bond has been moulded heavily on the Jason Bourne saga, jettisoning any vestiges of charm or emotional warmth from the MI6 operative to fixate on bone-crunching hand-to-hand combat and turbo-charged automobile carnage.

Director Cary Joji Fukunaga wrings the living daylights out of action sequences in this film including a showdown at sea and screeching car chases that barely touch the brakes.

Every female character is well rounded, proactive, self-sufficient and serves a purpose beyond simply furthering the plot.

It’s surely no coincidence that a richness of female characterisation, coupled with a far more emotionally satisfying storyline for Bond, coincide with the acclaimed Phoebe Waller-Bridge becoming only the second female screenwriter in the franchise’s almost 60-year history.

No Time To Die is the most emotionally satisfying chapter under Craig’s guardianship and the subtle nods to the past 20 years of his reign sever some ties to the past and provide exciting opportunities for reinvention in the future.