THE CAST: Roger Moore (James Bond); Tanya Roberts (Stacy Sutton); Grace Jones (Mayday); Patrick Macnee (Tibbett) Christopher Walken (Max Zorin)

THE SUPPORTING CAST: Willoughby Gray (Dr. Mortner); Patrick Bachau (Scarpine); Robert Brown (“M”); Lois Maxwell (Moneypenny); Desmond Llewellyn (“Q”); Allison Doody (Jenny Flex); Daniel Benzali (Mr. Howe); Fiona Fullerton (Pola Ivanova); David Yip (Chuck Lee)

CREDITS Produced by Albert R. Broccoli; Directed by John Glen; Screenplay by Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson; Music by John Barry; Edited by Peter Davies; Title Song by Duran Duran; Lyrics by John Barry and Simon Lebon; Filmed on location in Iceland, France, California and Pinewood Studios, England; Running Time 2 hours and 12 minutes

VILLAIN`S IDIOSYNCRASY: Certifiably insane

BEST LINES: Zorin, to business men who have just watched one of their own thrown out a blimp: “So, does anybody else want to drop out?” Bond to Zorin`s inquiry about how well he slept during the night: “A little restless at first, but I got off eventually.

BOX OFFICE: $152,400,000 worldwide gross; $237,135,494.95 in 1999 dollars adjusted for inflation

This film is considered to be, by most Bond fans, the lowest point of the series (though one could persuasively argue `Golden Gun` deserves that distinction). Moore was showing his age, and perhaps the series was as well. While it isn`t the best Bond film, it does have everything most people have come to expect in a Bond film: lavish locations, breathtaking stunt work, outrageous villains, beautiful women and more. The highlights:

The movie is essentially a remake of Goldfinger, with new villain Max Zorin wanting to corner the world market on microchips, even if it means murdering the competition. To this end, he`s enlisted the aid of a wide variety of colorful villains.

First is his trusted mentor Dr. Carl Mortner. It turns out Dr. Mortner used to perform bizarre steroid expirements on pregnant women in Germany during World War II. The CIA believes Max Zorin is the byproduct of a Nazi experiment gone wrong, which makes Max an even greater oddity when you consider his girlfriend/bodyguard/personal trainer, Mayday, is black. As Zorin, Walken brings his trademark psychotic bent to the role and with great effectiveness. Disco diva Grace Jones lets her looks do the talking. She`s a menacing prescence, and a formidable foe for 007.

The stunt work for A View To A Kill is simply amazing. From jumping off The Eiffel Tower to slamming an airship into The Golden Gate Bridge, `View` offers it all. Or at least attempts to. The money is definitely up on the screen. And the titles, by Maurice Binder, rank among his best. Another great score is turned in by John Barry and Duran Duran, providing us with one of the most memorable scores and theme songs in the series.

Despite all of the excellent points mentioned above, there are still some problems. Roger Moore was too old for the role at this point, and you need look no further than the scene where he climbs on top of the bomb/crane for proof of that.

And then there`s Tanya Roberts. The less said about this performance, the better. Mrs. Roberts seems to want to forget the role, and so does most everyone else. Suffice it to say, the character of Stacy Sutton fails to see or hear a blimp coming up behind her, which pretty much summarizes the depth of this character.

The direction lags at times as if the film just never quite gets rocking and rolling. Putting a Beach Boys theme right in the middle of a tense action sequence is a real mood killer. And not using Pola Ivanova as THE Bond girl was a missed opportunity. She`s much more interesting and effective in five minutes of screen time than Stacy Sutton was in 60, and one could reasonably argue that she was more integral to the plot.

`View` may not be the best Bond film, but it`s definitely a pleasant way to kill some time.