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| 408 - No One Lives Forever |
| Writer/Director |
Peter Lenkov / Brad Turner |
| Michael's POV Onscreen:
9 minutes |
Nikita is allowed to leave
Section as an experiment, on condition she makes no contact with other operatives. Just as
she is packing up, Michael, who has been in Senegal, comes to her apartment to say goodbye
for the last time. Several weeks later she contacts him one night via his car radio, and
arranges a meeting in a coffee shop on the following day. The message is intercepted and
Nikita is captured and brought back to Section in disgrace. Nikita suggests to Michael
that she has got herself recaptured to be with him, but in fact she has been planted by
George to kill Operations. In an enigmatic exchange with Nikita, Michael doesn’t
disclose whether he is the inside contact who’s supposed to be helping her or not.
This is followed by another verbal skirmish, this time with Madeline, who also thinks
Michael is colluding with George to overthrow Operations. Michael’s position remains
a mystery as he doesn’t feature in the climax of the story. |
| Michael Moments |
The expression on his face at
Nikita’s door (see Performance Rating)
What is it about Michael and falling snowflakes? (see also Time to be Heroes).
Delicious! |
| Words of Wisdom |
"Came to say goodbye"
"Unglued"
(3,886k) Real Player required |
Performance Rating
 |
Oh my! Only 9 minutes of
screen time, much of which is taken up by the two cat-and-mouse conversations with Nikita
and Madeline. Against both Peta’s heavy cloak and dagger approach, and Alberta’s
confrontational one, Roy plays Michael’s non-committal card with the same even tone
that neither professes ignorance nor suggests any knowledge of a plot against Operations.
In other words, trademark Michael blankness. But it is not always thus! Compare the first 10 seconds of his performance. As Nikita opens her door
we see a look of such emotional intensity that it’s unbearable to watch. Nikita has
to drop her eyes and catch her breath under its power, and in moving to show this the
camera takes the pressure off us too. An inspired Blaine Johnson matches the mood
perfectly with the heart-rending Unglued. A spectacular example of what Roy can
produce from within, and project through his eyes. Worth 5 bullets for those 10 seconds
alone. |
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