Movie

The World Is Not Enough

Name: The World Is Not Enough
Released: 1999

1999 • Action, Adventure, Thriller

Woke Score

out of 10

Plot

James Bond (Pierce Brosnan) is back. An oil tycoon is murdered in MI6, and Bond is sent to protect his daughter. Renard (Robert Carlyle), who has a bullet lodged in his brain from a previous Agent, is secretly planning the destruction of a pipeline. Bond gains a hand from research scientist Dr. Christmas Jones (Denise Richards), who witnesses the action which happens when Bond meets up with Renard, but Bond becomes suspicious about Elektra King (Sophie Marceau), especially when Bond's boss, M (Dame Judi Dench) goes missing. Bond must work quickly to prevent Renard from destroying Europe.

Overall Series Review

The World Is Not Enough adheres closely to the classic James Bond formula, framing the conflict as an objective struggle between a patriotic British institution (MI6) and global terrorists motivated by greed and revenge. The narrative centers on a plot to control the world's oil supply, a purely geopolitical and capitalistic objective. There is no discernible political or social lecturing; characters are defined by their actions, competency, and ambition, not by identity characteristics. The film features two prominent female characters: the head of MI6, M, and the primary villain, Elektra King. While Elektra is a powerful, highly competent woman running a multi-billion dollar corporation, she is ultimately revealed to be a cold, calculating antagonist driven by personal vendetta, not a flawless 'Girl Boss' figure. The film's conclusion sees Bond dispense justice with a clear, traditional sense of masculinity. The movie is a traditional, un-woke blockbuster from the turn of the century.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics1/10

Characters are judged purely on their merit or lack thereof; the main villain is a wealthy European heiress, and the secondary villain is a white anarchist terrorist. The plot does not use immutable characteristics or intersectional hierarchy to drive the conflict or vilify whiteness. Meritocracy is the underlying principle for both heroes and villains, who are all exceptionally skilled.

Oikophobia2/10

The central conflict is Bond, an agent of British security, fighting to protect the global energy market, with the fate of Europe's oil supply on the line. MI6 and its institutions are portrayed as necessary shields against chaos. The fact that the main villain is a Western figure (Elektra King) is motivated by personal revenge and greed, not a systemic critique of Western civilization, keeping the score very low.

Feminism4/10

The score is slightly elevated because of the prominent, powerful roles for women, specifically M as the head of MI6 and Elektra King as a ruthless, multi-billionaire 'Girl Boss' villain who orchestrates the entire plan. However, the 'Girl Boss' is the villain, which undercuts the Mary Sue trope, and Dr. Christmas Jones, the nuclear scientist, is highly sexualized and criticized for her depiction as a one-dimensional love interest, preventing a high score. Masculinity in Bond remains lethal and protective.

LGBTQ+1/10

The narrative operates entirely within normative structure. Sexual interactions are strictly between male and female characters. There is no presence of alternative sexual ideologies, deconstruction of the nuclear family, or lecturing on gender theory within the plot or dialogue.

Anti-Theism1/10

The morality is objective; Bond is the agent of good fighting against clear, objective evil (a plot for mass murder and economic catastrophe). The central conflict is purely secular—a fight over oil, wealth, and power—with no commentary or hostility directed toward traditional religion or faith. Moral relativism is absent, as the villains are definitively portrayed as destructive criminals.