Synopsis - Licence To Kill
The American Drugs Enforcement Agency is mounting an operation
against notorious drug baron Sanchez and need the help of Felix
Leiter. But he's on his way to his wedding with Bond as his best
man. A Coast Guard helicopter picks up Felix and Bond, still in
their wedding suits, and whisks them off to t he action. Sanchez
has made a very rare trip outside his fortress hideaway in Isthmus
City to retrieve and punish an errant lover, Lupe Lamora, who
has fled to the arms of another man in Miami's Cray Key. A gunfight
ensues between Sanchez's goons and Leiter's men and Bond finds
Sanchez's lover while the man himself uses the chaos to escape
in a light aircraft. Bond and Leiter give chase in the Coast Guard
helicopter and Bond is winched down from the machine onto the
fleeing aircraft. There he hooks a second winch cable to the tailplane
and the helicopter is able to haul both the aircraft and Sanchez
into custody. Having saved the day, Bond and Leiter parachute
into the church and Leiter is able to go ahead with his wedding.
Later, Sanchez is being held in custody, watched over by DEA
agent Ed Killifer who the drug lord tries to bribe. Bond, meanwhile,
is enjoying himself at the wedding reception, and comes dangerously
close to getting off with the blushing bride, Della. Leiter briefly
introduces him to Pam Bouvier, one of his agents, and Leiter seems
to find it impossible to stop working even on his wedding day.
Killifer enters and Leiter congratulates him on his good work.
Killifer confirms that Sanchez is to be transferred to the FBI
headquarters at Quantico, Virginia later that afternoon. Satisfied
that things are going to plan, Leiter carries on with his reception.
Sanchez is loaded into a secure police van and shackled to the
walls. The van drives off, escorted by a truck load of armed troops
as the reception party gets into full swing. Leiter and Della
present Bond with an engraved cigarette lighter.
As the convoy escorting Sanchez crosses a bridge under repair,
Killifer suddenly attacks the guard and forces the van off the
bridge and into the sea. The van immediately sinks to the bottom
where Sanchez and Killifer are rescued by a team of frogmen. Coast
Guard divers recover the van's driver, but both Killifer and Sanchez
escape.
The reception is now over and Bond is the last to leave. Della
offers him her garter - traditionally, the person who next owns
it will be the next to marry. Clearly hurt by memories of Tracy,
Bond makes his excuses and leaves. But Leiter and Della are not
alone and, as they retire to their bedroom, they are confronted
by two men with guns. More men appear and knock Leiter out, taking
Della captive.
Sanchez is in a warehouse being readied for his escape to Cuba,
but he wants to see through a deal he made earlier. He pays off
Killifer with the two million he promised him, then hears that
Leiter and Della have been brought to him. Leiter is furious and
distraught when one of the goons suggests that Della may have
been raped and murdered and is further angered when he realises
that Killifer has betrayed him. Sanchez then has him lowered into
a tank where he is attacked by a hungry shark.
Bond is at the airport preparing to return to London when he
learns of Sanchez's escape. He rushes back to Leiter's house where
he finds Della's body and Leiter, badly injured but still barely
alive. Leiter is taken to hospital where Bond confers with some
of the DEA agents. He learns that Sanchez has vanished with all
of Leiter's files and also learns that Leiter was not attacked
with a chainsaw, as the local police suspect, but was attacked
by a shark.
Searching the immediate area, he arrives at the warehouse where
Leiter was attacked and finds that it's posing as a marine biology
research lab. As he leaves, he spots Leiter's discarded buttonhole.
That night, he returns to the warehouse and sees a small, one-man
submarine, bearing the logo of Wavekrest Marine Research, leaving.
Breaking into the warehouse with one of Leiter's men, Sharkey,
Bond is almost attacked by the same shark that did for Leiter
before gaining entry to the deserted lab. While investigating,
he's captured by a security guard but manages to overpower him
with the help of a handful of maggots. Another guard appears and
Bond plays a game of cat and mouse, eventually seeing off his
pursuer with the help of an electric eel!
But Bond is captured by Killifer who threatens to dispose of
Bond in the same way as he tried to dispose of Leiter. The timely
arrival of Sharkey results in Killifer dangling precariously over
the shark tank. He tries to bride Bond with the case of money,
but Bond coldly throws the case at him, causing him to fall into
the tank where he is killed by the shark.
The next day, Sharkey tells Bond that Wavekrest is the name of
a ship owned by one Milton Krest which is anchored nearby collecting
marine specimens. Another of Leiter's men arrives and tells Bond
that Killifer's body has been found by the local police. Bond
is menaced by local law enforcement agents who take him to a house
where a mysterious man is waiting for him surrounded by cats.
The man turns out to be M who is furious with Bond - he was supposed
to be in Istanbul the previous night and is concerned that Bond
is too emotionally involved in the Leiter case. Bond refuses to
accept his assignment and resigns on the spot. M revokes his license
to kill and asks him to turn in his weapons. Bond attacks M and
manages to escape.
On the Wavekrest, Krest visits Sanchez's Lupe who is being kept
on the ship where she can come to no more harm. His captain arrives
to tell him that the radar is picking up something large on the
monitors which turns out to be a manta ray. But in truth, it's
actually Bond, disguised under a special cowl and he manages to
sneak aboard the vessel under cover of a mini-sub as it sets sail.
On board, he finds a large consignment of drugs and discovers
Lamora sleeping in her cabin, recognising her from their earlier
meeting. He notes with disgust the scars on her back received
during her beating.
By now, Krest and his men have realised that someone has got
aboard the ship and are actively searching for the intruder. Bond
watches horrified as Sharkey's body is brought aboard the Wavekrest
and his determination to get Sanchez hardens. He shoots Sharkey's
killer with a harpoon gun and leaps overboard, escaping when he
takes the aqualung equipment from the man's body. Krest sends
his men after Bond and they give chase in both surface vessels
and a mini-sub. As the search continues, more of Sanchez's men
arrive aboard a sea-plane carrying more drugs which they transfer
into the Sentinel mini-sub in exchange for large parcels of money.
Bond breaks into the sub's cargo compartment and destroys as
much of the cargo as he can, but he's spotted on one of the surveillance
cameras. With his oxygen supply running dangerously low, Bond
flees, pursued by a team of Sanchez's harpoon wielding frogmen.
Bond puts up a valiant struggle and escapes by firing a harpoon
gun into the skis of the departing sea-plane. Water skiing at
a furious pace, Bond manages to climb aboard one of the skis as
the plane lifts off. The pilot tries to dislodge him, but Bond
proves tenacious and sneaks aboard the aircraft, throwing the
pilot out and struggling with the co-pilot. Just as it seems that
the plane is about to crash, Bond regains control and flings the
co-pilot into the sea.
That night, Bond returns to Leiter's house, sneaking past the
police guards outside. Behind a photograph of Della he finds a
CD-ROM full of Leiter's evidence against Sanchez. He also finds
a list of Leiter's contacts, eight of which have already been
killed. The last, Pam Bouvier, a former CIA contract pilot, is
due to meet with some of Leiter's men later that night at a club
named the Barrelhead.
Bond tracks her down and warns her to get away while she still
can. Bouvier spots a team of Sanchez's assassins, led by his right
hand man Dario, and she and Bond try to decide how to escape.
But Dario and one of his men come to their table and try to get
Bouvier to work for them. A fight breaks out which soon embroils
the entire bar in a brawl. In the ensuing mayhem, Bond and Bouvier
make good their escape aboard a speedboat, but Bouvier is injured
when one of Dario's men shoots her. Fortunately, she's weraing
a kevlar jacket and her injuries are superficial. They bicker
for a while over who actually saved who before the boat runs out
of gas, the fuel lines having been severed during the gunfight.
Bond and Bouvier reluctantly decide to work together, Bond looking
to hire Bouvier's skills as a pilot to take on Sanchez on his
home turf in Isthmus City. Their negotiations lead to them the
place where all negotiations between Bond and his female associates
lead...
In London, Bond's disappearance is having a serious effect on
poor Moneypenny who is worried sick about him. M assures her that
he's sending his man in Isthmus to try to stop him from taking
on Sanchez. He then gives her orders that she is to convey to
Q Branch.
Bond and Bouvier arrive in Isthmus masquerading as a businessman
and his executive secretary. Bond is financing the operation using
the money he stole from Sanchez's plane. Bond pays off Bouvier
put she refuses to leave, arguing that she won't be safe anyway
until Sanchez is dead. He sends Bouvier out to buy more clothes
[much to her disgust] then visits the Bank of Isthmus, owned by
Sanchez where he wants to deposit his stolen loot. While he's
meeting with the manager, Sanchez is showing a group of Oriental
businessmen around the premises. Bouvier arrives now fully disguised
as an 'executive secretary' much to Bond's obvious amazement and
amusement.
Later, Sanchez questions Lupe about what happened on the boat.
Bond and Bouvier, meanwhile, visit the local casino while Sanchez
uses a religious telethon staged by Professor Joe Butcher to pass
on details of his latest drugs deals to his various associates
in the States. Bond attracts attention to himself by asking to
play dangerously at the card table and Sanchez, alerted to the
presence of the man who stole his money, decides to let him play
to see what will happen - but Bond makes a quarter of a million
dollars out of his card playing skills.
Lamora arrives to deal cards at Bond's table, telling him that
he's going to lose. She also reveals that Sanchez has sent her
to find out more about him, warning that he should leave Isthmus
straight away. Bond learns that Sanchez is upstairs and is planning
a big party for his Oriental guests the following night. Leaving
a disconsolate Bouvier to drink alone in the bar, Bond gets Lamora
to take him up to meet Sanchez.
Bond passes himself off as a "problem eliminator" and
tells Sanchez that he is looking for work. He persuades Sanchez
that a man of his talents could be useful in his organisation
and Sanchez says he will think about it. When Bond leaves, he
sets his men to finding out more about him.
Bond and Bouvier return to the hotel where Bond is alarmed to
hear that his "uncle" has called to visit and is waiting
in his room. Borrowing Bouvier's gun, he bursts into the room
and finds... Q! The armourer is on leave and has called in to
see how Bond is doing. He traced him through Moneypenny and has
come to offer his help, bringing with him a suitcase crammed full
of toys and gadgets including a kit-form rifle disguised as a
camera and accessories, complete with palmprint reader; a tube
of exploding toothpaste; a laser hidden in a Polaroid camera;
and an exploding alarm clock.
While Sanchez entertains his Oriental guests, Bond again tries
to get Bouvier to leave, telling her that he "works best
alone." He masquerades as a waiter at the casino and manages
to sneak onto the roof from where he absails down to spy on Sanchez's
meeting. He learns that Sanchez is trying to expand his drugs
empire into the Pacific and is offering his guests exclusive franchises.
He offers to take them to see the main production and distribution
plant the next day.
Bond uses the toothpaste explosive and a timer disguised as a
packet of cigarettes to line the reinforced windows of Sanchez's
apartment, then return to collect his high power rifle, taking
up position in a building opposite the casino. While Sanchez is
paying off - and threatening - the President, Bond is about to
trigger the explosive when he spots Bouvier apparently handing
over an envelope to one of Sanchez's men. Bond triggers the explosive
but is attacked and captured by a gang of ninjas.
When he comes to, Bond is being held captive by the Orientals
who turn out to be agents from Hong Kong who have been tracking
Bond for some time. With them is one of M's men who plans to have
Bond shipped straight back to London. But a huge explosion rocks
the Chinese agents' headquarters when the local military, working
under orders from Sanchez, attack. Bond is discovered in the ruins
by Sanchez and taken back to Sanchez's luxurious home.
When he comes to, Bond is greeted warmly by Sanchez but is warned
by Lamora that the Wavkrest is due to arrive that night. Bond
claims that the Chinese were a freelance hit team out to get him
and reveals that he used to work for the British secret service.
Keeping up the pretense, Bond tells Sanchez that he learned from
the Chinese that someone inside his organisation is trying to
kill him and drops enough hints to make Sanchez suspect Krest.
Sanchez insists that Bond stay at the mansion.
Wth Lamora's help, Bond is able to sneak away from the mansion
hiding beneath a powerboat she is driving. He returns to the hotel
where he tells Q for the third time that he should leave and confronts
Bouvier about seeing her in Sanchez's apartment. She explains
that Sanchez has bought four Stinger missiles from the Contras
is threatening to shoot down a civilian airliner if the DEA doesn't
leave him alone. Bond saw her delivering a letter to one of Sanchez's
men, Heller, from Leiter offering him immunity if he helps to
get the missiles back. Bond's intervention ruined the plan and
has now put Bouvier's life in even greater danger. Bond recruits
a delighted Q to help, then heads for the bank to withdraw all
his money.
That night, Bouvier, disguised as the harbour pilot, get aboard
the Wavekrest as it approaches Isthmus and she rams it into the
dockside. Bond sneaks aboard through the mini-sub entrance while
Sanchez contronts Krest. His ridiculous - though truthful - explanation
of how he lost the money to a man who got away with the ski-plane
only lends credence to Bond's hints that he is double crossing
Sanchez. Bond and Bouvier, meanwhile, have deposited the money
in the Wavekrest's vaults and Sanchez, on discovering it, is furious.
He throws Krest into the pressurised vault and murders him by
increasing the pressure, casuing him to explode. Back on the quayside,
Bond makes Q and Bouvier leave, telling him that he'll be safer
on his own.
Bond returns to Sanchez' mansion where the drugs baron gives
him money, rewarding him for the information leading to Krest.
But Bond reasons that no-one would be stupid enough to take on
Sanchez alone. Sanchez tells him that he is taking Bond to show
him something important but doesn't say what. Lamora arrives and
tells him that he'll be seeing the drugs production lab with the
Chinese. She ends up seducing Bond while Sanchez is downstairs
entertaining the Chinese.
Later, Lamora goes to Q and Bouvier and tells them that Bond
is in danger, that Sanchez is checking upon him. Bouvier believed
that Bond had left the country and is jealous when she hears that
Bond spent the night with Lamora.
Q and Bouvier mount their own operation to help Bond, but Bouvier
discovers her plane being dismantled, apparently on Sanchez's
orders. Bond is driven to what appears to be a meditation centre
run by the Joe Butcher but which is fact the vast production and
distribution centre at the heart of Sanchez's operations. He learns
from Sanchez's yuppie sidekick Truman-Lodge that the drugs are
dissolved in gasline to aid distribution.
Bouvier has managed to hitch a ride to the institute carrying
a basketful of money she uses to get in to see Professor Joe.
Meanwhile, Bond's tour of the manufacturing and distribution process
continues. Bouvier pulls a gun on Butcher, locks him in his private
meditation chamber and, disguised as a client of the institute,
begins looking for Bond.
He meanwhile has tried to escape, causing chaos in by starting
a fire in the lab before before being captured and identified
by Dario. Sanchez orders four gas tankers full of drugs to be
evacuated and sends Bond along a conveyor belt into the drugs
processing machinery. But before he gets there, Bond reveals that
he knows about the Stingers and tells Sanchez that he's seen the
last of both them and the Stingers. As the huge processing plant
goes up in flames, Bouvier frantically searches for Bond while
Sanchez and his men abandon ship. Bouvier shoots and injures Dario
and Bond drags, clinginging precariously to a handrail, throws
him into the guts of the machinery. Bouvier switches the machine
off and rescues him.
Sanchez's plant is now well and truly alight, the flaming ruins
rocked by explosions. They find Heller dead, murdered by Sanchez
while he was trying to steal the missiles and set off in pursut
of Sanchez and his tankers aboard a light aircraft. Bond lowers
himself onto one of the tankers and precariously clambers around
it as Sanchez fires at him. He manages to get into the cab and
tries to make off wth the tanker.
Bond manages to run one of the other tankers off the road, but
Sanchez's men, armed with a Stinger missile, have headed him off
and are lying in wait. Bond tips the truck up on one set of wheels
and the missile passes beneath him, destroying the wreck of the
tanker behind. But Bond loses control of his tanker when Sanchez's
men shoot out the tyres and it ends up perched over the edge of
a cliff.
Bouvier crop-dusts the pursuing hoods, allowing Bond to topple
the tanker over the edge, straight onto a third tanker on the
road below. He uses the cab to escape as Sanchez and his surviving
guns make off with the last of the tankers. Another team is pursuing
Bond and loses them by doing a spectacular 'wheelie' through the
flaming wreckage.
Bond sets off after Sanchez and uses the cab's cruise control
to get aboard the last tanker and begins to empty the contents
into the road where flames from the pursung vehicle set it alight.
Bouvier has a narrow escape when the flaming wreckage of the car
is flung into the air, over the edge of a cliff and straight into
her flight path!
Sanchez fires a missile at Bouvier's aircraft, blowing off its
tailplane and tries to dislodge Bond from the roof of the tanker.
Bouvier makes a safe if bumpy landing while Bond and Sanchez battle
it out on the tanker which ends up plummeting down an incline
and overturning. Bond, badly battered and broken, is about to
be hacked to death when Bond burns Sanchez with the lighter that
Felix and Della gave him at the wedding, detonating the remaining
fuel in the tanker. Bond escapes and Sanchez is left to die in
the flames. Bouvier arrives in one of the tanker cabs and picks
up Bond.
Later, Bond calls Leiter to tell him the news and he, Q, Bouvier
and Lamora [who now has her eyes on the President] visit a party.
Bouvier rushes off in a jealous rage when she sees Bond kissing
Lamora, but he pursues her, dragging her into a swimming pool
where they kiss, watched by a flumoxed Q.