007 Chronological Viewing Order

[Dallas Kinard]

Yesterday I was able to watch the comic book movie "Die Another Day". Not one of the best 007 flicks, but I had fun with it. This one had a bunch of timeline clues so let's get into Brosnan's final go as James Bond!

At around the 03:25 mark, James Bond's watch shows "16" as the date. I believe this is 01/16/2001 due to later timeline evidence. I couldn't find a screenshot, but it's during this scene:



It is revealed on-screen that James Bond was in North Korea for “14 months”. That places us in March of 2002 if James entered North Korea in January of 2001.



At 40:47 an admission paper dated "1st March 2002, 8:00 a.m" can be seen. This document is what I believe places Bond's return from North Korea in March of 2002.



At around the 43:11 mark, a check dated "11.11.2002" can be seen. The same check can be seen at the 43:47 mark. So we've jumped eight months.



At the 43:47 mark, Jinx's date of birth, 08.08.73 can be seen. At the same time stamp, a document dated 03.03.02 can also be seen.



At the 44:34 mark, a computer screen contains the following text: "Therapy plan 5T active from 16.12.03." This would be December 16th, 2003. I'm not sure how to interpret this so any thoughts would be helpful. I'm going to assume the treatment plan will be completed on that date, but not sure.



It appears to be Spring when James Bond returns to Britain. Tulips can be seen in full bloom. Tulips season runs from the end of March until mid-May. So we've jumped about four months.



At the 01:07:48 mark, a case report dated "1/4/01" can be seen. This lines up with the beginning of the film being set in January of 2001.



A document dated "6.2.02" can be seen at the 01:08:11 mark. At the same time stamp Miranda Frost's dob can be seen. "7.3.73"



At the 01:37:40 mark, a license plate can be seen with "02" as the renewal year. This has to be out of date though, since we are in Spring of 2003 by this point.



So that's it for the timeline. I think we can safely say that the film opens on January 16th of 2001, then jumps to March of 2002. Then we jump to November of 2002 a bit later. Finally, we land in March/April of 2003 where the film ends.

 

[Dallas Kinard]

Some more random notes from "Die Another Day".

Several gadgets from “Octopussy” are seen in Q's lab: the AcroStar MiniJet, the crocodile submarine, the "magic rope" and the five-pointed knife, cementing that we are still in the same timeline as the Roger Moore Era.



007 picks up the Dagger Shoe from "From Russia With Love" and seems unfamiliar with it, lending credibility that this isn't the same 007 agent that was featured in the 1963 film and that we have been following the same continuity since the first movie "Dr. No".



The briefcase that contains a hidden knife from “From Russia With Love” is seen in Q's laboratory.

The Bell Rocket Belt from “Thunderball” is seen in Q's laboratory. Bond asks Q if it "still works" suggesting he's at least heard of it and knows it's old.



The yellow diving helmet from “For Your Eyes Only” is visible in Q's lab.

The electronic snooper from “A View To A Kill” is seen in Q's lab.

All very cool nods to the previous films.

 

[Dallas Kinard]

Over the weekend I was able to binge four of the five Daniel Craig 007 films. Let's start with "Casino Royale", which had a TON of timeline clues!

At the 10:15 mark, a cell phone shows the date being "06/07/06". This same phone can be seen at the 19:26 mark.




At the 20:58 mark, a webpage copyrighted 2006 can be seen. The calendar seen on the page lines up with November of 2006, but due to other evidence, this can be ignored.




At the 23:27 mark, a newspaper headline reads "A shocking assassination of an unarmed prisoner was captured yesterday on CCTV at the embassy of Nambutu, Madagascar." This place is this scene on June 8th, 2006.



At the 28:15 mark, a cell phone can be seen with the date "06-July-06".



At the 28:38 mark, a security camera archive disc dated "July 6 - 2006" can be seen.



At the 28:48 mark, a cell phone can be seen with the date "06 July 06".



At the 42:19 mark, a cell phone can be seen with the date "06-Jul-06".



A webpage can be seen with the text "MIA Stock Price...On 28 June".

 

[Dallas Kinard]

Continuing "Casino Royale":

At the 47:47 mark, a cell phone can be seen with the date "09-Jul-06".



A calendar can be seen at the 02:03:03 mark that matches both April and July of 2006. Since the previous and next months can be seen (March 31st and May 6th), it must be April. However, due to previous timeline evidence placing this film in July of 2006 it must be July.



At the 02:06:57 mark, a cell phone can be seen with the date "04-Aug-06". This can also be seen at 02:18:50.




And that's it for the fan favorite "Casino Royale"! We can confidently place this one in August of 2006. It begins months before that at an un-specified time.

 

[Dallas Kinard]

And now for the divisive "Quantum Of Solace". Not much timeline evidence, but the narrative makes it pretty clear when it's taking place. This film picks up immediately after the events of "Casino Royale: Uncut Version".

Some of this 007 agents career info is revealed in one quick shot. He served in the Royal Navy from 1986 - 1995. He was in the RNR Defence from 1996 - 1999. He then began his career in MI6 in 1999. This means he was active in MI6 during the tenure of the previous "James Bond" 007 who was first introduced in "Goldeneye".



At the 35:28 mark, James Bond's date of birth can be seen. It's "APR 13 1968".



Camille Montes Rivero's driver's license can be seen at the 35:31 mark. It was issued "23-10-04" and expires "23-10-09". I couldn't find a pic of this shot, but it's from this scene:



By the end of the film, it's clearly winter due to the snowfall in Russia, meaning this film spans from August to November or December of 2006.



And that's it for this quite brief Bond flick. It picks up where the last one left off, on August 4th, 2006 and ends a few months later in the winter of the same year.

 

[Dallas Kinard]

Next up we have the excellent "Skyfall", infamous for featuring the franchises first F-bomb! M sure has a filthy mouth doesn't she?

The bulk of "Skyfall's" narrative takes place just three months after the film's opening scene due to the following dialogue: "Three months ago, you lost the computer drive containing the identity of almost every NATO agent embedded in terrorist organizations across the globe." The rest of the film takes place in the Autumn and Winter of 2011.

At the 01:42:29 mark, a car inspection sticker can be seen dated "30 04 12", which translates to April 30th, 2012.



And that's it! For a nearly two and a half hour film, there isn't much in the way of timeline info, but enough to place this one firmly in 2011, five years after the previous two.

 

[Dallas Kinard]

Next up with have "SPECTRE". I'm still processing this one. The same feeling I had after seeing "The Last Jedi".

Not much to go on this one, in fact, I wasn't able to figure out the exact year. But the season is pretty easy to nail down.

The opening scene takes place on the Day of the Dead. The Day of the Dead is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November first and second, though other days, such as October 31st or November sixth, may be included depending on the locality.



At the 22:25 mark, a order of temporary guardianship dated "21/01/1983" is seen.



So with that, we land in the month of November for the events of this film. If anyone can find any clues on what year it is, I'm all ears!

Update: I didn't realize this, but we have a year due to the next film's timeline. "No Time To Die" director Cary Joji Fukunaga has stated that his 007 film is set in 2020 and takes place exactly five years after "SPECTRE".