Brad Whitakeris a fictional character in theJames BondfilmThe Living Daylights.He was portrayed by American actorJoe Don Baker.[1]Baker also appeared asJack Wade,Bond's CIA contact, inPierce Brosnan's first two Bond films,GoldenEyeandTomorrow Never Dies.[2]Steven Rubin describes Whitaker as a "smarmy bad-guy arms trader."[3]
| Brad Whitaker | |
|---|---|
| James Bondcharacter | |
 Baker as Brad Whitaker | |
| Portrayed by | Joe Don Baker |
| In-universe information | |
| Occupation | Black marketarms dealer |
| Affiliation | General Georgi Koskov |
| Classification | Villain |
| Henchmen |
|
Background
editBrad Whitaker is an internationalblack marketarms dealer. He is fascinated by war, but has no actual military experience, so he turns to arms dealing to organize his own personal military force. Expelled fromWest Pointfor cheating, he spends a short stint as amercenaryin theBelgian Congobefore starting to work with various other criminal organisations that would help organise his very first arms deals.[4]He loves military history and it is implied that hewargamesvarious historical conflicts using automated miniature figures and effects, such as the battles ofAgincourt,Waterloo,andGettysburg.In a conversation with Bond during their confrontation, Whitaker says that he believes thatPickett's Chargeshould have been made upLittle Round Topand that, ifUlysses S. Granthad been in charge of the Union at Gettysburg, he would have crushed theArmy of Northern Virginia,thus ending the rebellion. He says "Meadeshould have taken another 35,000 dead at Gettysburg! ".
Whitaker has a personal pantheon of "great military commanders" in his headquarters, which includes some of history's most famous and infamous figures, such asAdolf Hitler,Napoleon Bonaparte,Genghis Khan,Julius Caesar,Alexander the Great,Oliver Cromwell,andAttila the Hun.Whitaker holds these men in high regard and calls them "surgeons who removed society's dead flesh". All representations of these "surgeons" (or "butchers" as Bond's ally, Pushkin, describes them) are sculpted to resemble Whitaker himself, which is highly noticeable when Whitaker hides among the statues waiting for Pushkin to visit him.
In the film
editBrad Whitaker joins forces with rogueSovietGeneral Georgi Koskovto secure a large shipment ofopiumfrom the Snow Leopard Brotherhood inAfghanistanfor $500,000,000 worth ofdiamondsthat he had obtained from an arms deal with the Soviets.[4]Once the opium is sold, Whitaker will have enough money to continue arms deals far into the future. At the same time, they attempt to use James Bond and MI6 to eliminate Gogol's replacement as the new Soviet head of secret operations,General Pushkin,on the basis that he has re-instituted an ongoing operation called "Smiert Spionom" (meaning "Death to Spies" in Russian). Actually, it is Koskov and Whitaker's men, especially their special henchmanNecros,who are involved in killing the British agents.[5]
After thwarting Whitaker's plans inAfghanistan,Bond returns toTangierto hunt him down at his headquarters, a plan which evolves into a game of cat-and-mouse in Whitaker's gaming room, with him using high-tech weapons, such as an 80-roundlight machine gunrifle with an integralballistic shield,abulletproof vestand a loaded antique battlefield cannon, while Bond has only his 8-roundWalther PPK.[5]
After Bond hides behind a bust of theDuke of Wellington,he primes hiskey-ring finderbehind it; and when Whitaker gets right in front of it, Bond activates it. Triggered by Bond'swolf whistle,the key-ring finder explodes, toppling the bust and podium on top of Whitaker, crushing him through a glass display case containing one of hisminiaturedioramasetups resemblingWaterloo,which makes Bond ironically quip to Pushkin, "He met his Waterloo."[5]
Reception
editSteven Rubin describes Whitaker as a "smarmy bad-guy arms trader".[3]Jeremy Black says of him; a "mad American pseudo-general, Brad Whitaker, the arms dealer, yet another figure with aNapoleon complex."[6]Baker himself called his character "a nut" who "thought he wasNapoleon."[7]Paul Simpson describes Whitaker as "paunchy", and says that it is fortunate that he doesn't get much screen time.[8]Lee Pfeiffer and Dave Worrall say of him, "this egotistical US arms dealer models himself on history's most notorious dictators. In between orchestrating international arms deals, Whitaker enjoys re-creating battles with his vast dioramas and toy soldiers."[9]They believe that Joe Don Baker, although amusing, was miscast in the role as Whitaker.[9]They also criticized his believability as a villain, describing him as an "oaf" from the American South who nobody would doubt could easily be defeated by James Bond.[9]
References
edit- ^Lane, Andy; Simpson, Paul (2002).The Bond Files: An Unofficial Guide to the World's Greatest Secret Agent.Virgin. p. 253.ISBN978-0-7535-0712-4.Retrieved11 December2012.
- ^Barnes, Alan; Hearn, Marcus (1 November 1997).Kiss kiss bang bang: the unofficial James Bond film companion.Batsford. p. 177.ISBN978-0-7134-8182-2.Retrieved11 December2012.
- ^abRubin, Steven Jay (2003).The complete James Bond movie encyclopedia.Contemporary Books. p. 476.ISBN978-0-07-141246-9.Retrieved11 December2012.
- ^ab"Brad Whitaker".Mi6-hq.Retrieved11 December2012.
- ^abcBond v Brad Whitaker.YouTube.7 October 2011.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-12-21.
- ^Black, Jeremy (2005).The Politics Of James Bond: From Fleming's Novels To The Big Screen.Lincoln, Nebraska:University of Nebraska Press.p.150.ISBN978-0-8032-6240-9.Retrieved11 December2012.
- ^Joe Don Baker.Inside The Living Daylights(DVD). MGM Home Entertainment.
- ^Simpson, Paul (2002).The Rough Guide to James Bond: The Films, the Novels, the Villains.Rough Guides. p. 1.ISBN978-1-84353-142-5.Retrieved11 December2012.
- ^abcPfeiffer, Lee; Worrall, Dave (1 April 2003).The Essential Bond: The Authorized Guide to the World of 007.Channel Four Books. p. 153.ISBN978-0-7522-1562-4.Retrieved11 December2012.