Two XF saloons weave through the twisting city streets in pursuit of James Bond (Photo: Jaguar/Eons Production)
The release of No Time to Die might have been postponed here, but James Bond fans eager to see the franchise’s 25th installation might enjoy a taste of high-speed action in a new short film by Jaguar. Inspired by Bond’s penchant for fast cars, Jaguar Racing’s Formula E driver Mitch Evans gets behind the wheel of a Jaguar XF — which will steal a scene or two in No Time to Die — to race across London to be among the first to watch the latest Bond movie.
So far, so ordinary, but here is the twist. In a battle of man versus machine, Evans and his sleek speedster — the Santorini Black XF R-Dynamic HSE model, to be precise — are pursued by free runner and parkour athlete Lynn Jung. She had noticed Evans dropping his tickets to the exclusive screening and immediately takes off after him, tickets in hand, as he pulls away from the curb and zips through the city.
The Shard, Tower Bridge, City Hall and Millennium Bridge whiz by as Jung flips, tumbles and sprints towards the cinema, tackling every hurdle with almost nonchalant nimbleness in her determination to catch up with Evans. Her furious chase is all the more striking when juxtaposed with Evan’s obliviousness as he sinks into the luxury of the XF.
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He is in a cocoon of comfort here, concealed from the outside world thanks to the car’s Active Noise Cancellation and Cabin Air Ionisation technology while enjoying the intuitive steering and responsiveness of the 300PS Ingenium engine. As he pulls up outside the cinema on Baker Street and makes his way to the entrance, he is surprised to find Jung somersault to a halt next to him, clutching his tickets.
True 007 fans will notice a few Jaguar faces along the route from past Bond movies, including the C-X75 and the XKR Convertible. Extra props if you can name the films they made an appearance in without help (for the uninitiated, the models are from Spectre and Die Another Day respectively).
Check out the adrenaline-fuelled action below:
This article first appeared on Oct 4, 2021 in The Edge Malaysia.
