What did the other Bond actors think of this film?

"you're not on the stage now Timothy!"

Yep, you took the words straight out of my mouth. I applaud Dalton for wanting to bring the character back to his literary roots by portraying a darker, grittier version of Bond but for me, his acting had a tendency to feel a bit too theatrical and exaggerated in places. The way he conveyed Bond's wrath with that constant firey look and intense gaze in his eyes, felt way too broad and out in the open, especially for a man who's job is to blend in and not draw suspicion.

I suppose one can argue that Bond only behaved the way he did in this film because it was a personal vendetta and all, but really, why is he so damn tense and on edge in the casino with Pam? Bond has done this sort of thing practically hundreds of time now, it should feel like routine at this point and not make him so blatantly jumpy. The fact that he's doing this on his own accord and not under the orders of M shouldn't make him forget all his years of training and experience on the job. In real life, a guy behaving and acting the way Dalton does in this film, would probably make for an absolutely terrible spy, given how bad he seems to be at maintaining his cool.

I think Dalton showed in The Living Daylights that he had it in him to make a great Bond, as that film managed to balance the darker, angrier side of the literary character with the humor and charm of the movie version still largely intact. Here however, it feels like Glen and the writers simply gave too much free reign for Dalton to just let loose and go all out with his thespian tendencies and in doing so, gave us a rather one-note, slightly hammy, borderline unlikable portrayal of Bond.

Plus (and I was talking about this the other day or would never have thought of it), Moore is one of only two Bonds to actually kill a woman directly. In Spy Who Loved Me, he blows the female chopper pilot up with a missile. Maybe not super ruthless, but he is one of two Bonds to directly do it. Brosnan directly shoots Elektra King in World Is Not Enough (and I do not count Xenia in Goldeneye as he shot the chopper, not her, and though it caused her to die, the direct result was simply that she was pulled off him - the death was actually just a happy and somewhat BS coincidence).

Cheers mate!