Even Grace Jones couldn’t help this Bond franchise nadir.
‘A View to a Kill’ may be one of the worst James Bond films. But while the film was set in the 1980s, with a plot involving horse racing, it was inspired by a short story about motorcycle riding.
Ian Fleming created the James Bond character in a series of novels and short stories. From a View to a Kill was one short story in an anthology titled ‘For Your Eyes Only’.
Spy novelist Ian Fleming worked in the British Naval Intelligence Division during WWII. He was involved in the creation and oversight of 30 Assault Unit – an elite commando group. The plot of A View to a Kill is fairly similar to some of the things that the commandos of 30 Assault Unit actually did.
In the story, Bond investigates the murder of a motorcycle dispatch rider, who was killed while delivering secret documents in France. To catch the killer, Bond impersonates a courier on similar mission. The assassin tries to kill Bond but (of course) the spy is ready for him. Bond kills the killer, and then uncovers his hidden base of operations.