The Best of BOND; Let's get this over with - Page 185

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Originally Posted by Stale Elvis 

...better?

 

 

 

...love that new PPK (but as someone else stated, there will probably be a scene where someone points it at Bond and ...'click, click, click' - not assigned to their handprint and Bond will off them somehow)

Dreadful

If they make one called "Chav Another Day" this would be a perfect poster. 

The Spy Who Loved Me poster is better than the actual movie. It's so dynamic, big, and colorful.

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Originally Posted by Arjen Rudd 

Holly Goodhead has fantasic legs! While this isn't a deep comment, it is 100 percent true.

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Originally Posted by Art Decade 

A few of the pre-1970 posters were pretty awful too:

 

 

OHMSS had Lazenby (rhymes with Laser Beam) skiing AND posing non-chalantly for camera as if he were leaning against a wall! With a gun!

 

Art, while we agree on a lot of things here, this isn't one of them. I like that poster for exactly the reasons you don't. To each his own I guess.

"Kiss my grits, Blojangles!!"

This is the one I was thinking of.

Here is a good Japanese one I found while doing the search.

While there's alot to be said about "simplicity"..

...this poster ALWAYS captures my eye & fires up my imagination:

Reading Live and Let Die, and Bond's disgust with the very idea of Florida is cracking me up. "For heaven's sake, what sort of place are we going to?"

Heineken launches "CRACK THE CASE".

With Bond Girl Bernice Marlohe.

Someone commented on that link that I hadn't actually thought about: the lack of the classic Bond theme being used in the Craig films. Which- I hate to say-does make them feel like a Bourne Identity, Misssion Impossible-type of movies...

Watched LIVE AND LET DIE the other day. Over the years it has fast climbed to the top of the pile for me, certainly ranking in the top 2 Moore films IMO. It's overstuffed and the Blacksploitation backdrop works for Bond in fits and starts, but I really love it overall. I need to revisit SPY WHO LOVED ME and see how it compares, but as far as Moore's run goes, this SPY and FOR YOUR EYES ONLY are the definite high-water marks. Coincidently (or not), they also have the best songs of the Moore run. 

P.S. I'm sure I'm adding nothing to the conversation here that hasn't already been said, just on a Bond kick as I become unreasonably excited for SKYFALL.

If I was FORCED possibly at gunpoint to pick a Roger Moore Bond film, I'm almost certain the only ones I could manage would be The Spy Who Loved Me and For Your Eyes Only.

Mostly because if I close my eyes and replace Roger Moore they kinda rock.

LIVE AND LET DIE has one of the best lines ever uttered in a Bond film: "Mr. Big? You have a honky on your tail"

Kills me everytime.

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Originally Posted by LaurenOrtega 

If I was FORCED possibly at gunpoint to pick a Roger Moore Bond film, I'm almost certain the only ones I could manage would be The Spy Who Loved Me and For Your Eyes Only.

 

Mostly because if I close my eyes and replace Roger Moore they kinda rock.

My problem with FOR YOUR EYES ONLY is that Moore just looks too damn old at that point for me to believe him as a tougher Bond, which the film presents him as. There's real dissonance there, despite the film actually being quite good. Had it been Dalton's first Bond film, the world would be a different, better place.

I so totally agree with that.

Actually if Dalton was in For Your Eyes Only it'd probably stand as his best movie as the character.

Hell, even the intro is TLD is more or less a play-by-play reenactment of FYEO's climactic mountain assault.

It's sort of a domino theory question. If Dalton had a long and successful run as a darker, grittier Bond, would there be a need for Daniel Craig 20 years down the road? Though I would make the argument that while Dalton and Craig are similar in tone, there is an edge and physicality to Craig that Dalton never had. And there would have still likely been Brosnan in between. It's tough to say, I guess we should be grateful for the way things panned out because I wouldn't trade Craig for anything. 

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Originally Posted by Sebastian OB 

It's sort of a domino theory question. If Dalton had a long and successful run as a darker, grittier Bond, would there be a need for Daniel Craig 20 years down the road? Though I would make the argument that while Dalton and Craig are similar in tone, there is an edge and physicality to Craig that Dalton never had. And there would have still likely been Brosnan in between. It's tough to say, I guess we should be grateful for the way things panned out because I wouldn't trade Craig for anything. 

Brosnan would've taken it in 1990 & a hungry Clive Owen would've taken in 1998/1999. Craig would appear as henchman Mr. Sparkle in Owen's 2002 outing.

Owen would have been scruffier. I could see him doing the more undercover, pre 00, type events. Like the early scenes of Craig in South Africa in Casino Royale. Craig, especially in those scenes, looks like a paramilitary, mercenary security type, as compared to Owen's blackmarket operator look. I could see Owen blending into different seedy underbellies. It would be a nice to have a Bond who has to slip into the role of wealthy jet-setter, rather than that be his more natural state. 

(Yes, I have seen Croupier. Even then, he doesn't look dashing enough to make the tuxedos look like a natural part of him.)

Clive Owen's name has been mentioned forever and honestly nothing about the guy screams James Bond to me. He's like a slightly less prettier version of Brosnon....

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Originally Posted by Mr. Stockslivevan 

Forget Owen, the best possible choice for the 1990s would have been Jason Isaacs.
Sadly, this is probably as close as we'll ever see him in a Bondian role... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHAOLihH58s

He also had a small role as a bad Spec. Ops agent in the Matt Damon film The Green Zone...

And I think Jennifer Love Hewitt is the only reason I would ever sit down and watch The Tuxedo...., maybe....

Clive Owen's cool as shit. He'd have been a terrific Bond, though a different from what we've got now.

But like Sebastian says I wouldn't trade Craig for anybody. The sheer battering-ram physicality he brings to Bond is everything I want out of the character.

Does anyone think Craig is suave enough? I'm not talking about swagger, because he has buckets-full of that, but does he have that quintessential Bond suaveness?

Thing is, I think he's great in the roll (well in CR certainly, not so much in QoS - but that's opening another can of worms), but is he missing that suaveness that Connery and Moore had that was just on the right side of not being creepy. Moore more than Connery had something that was a 70's cheesy suaveness - it became a bit of a cliche/pantomime in the end.

With Craig's Bond, you want to be that self-assured cool/tough motherfucker, but he's yet to descend into the cliche one-liner-get-them-into-bed Bond yet. His 'help me find the stationary' line from QoS was dreadful.

Have we lost the cheesy/creepy suaveness from modern Bond? Do we need it?

Jason Issacs is too close to Dalton with his dark hair and blue eyes. He would have felt redundant, even more so in the 90's.

Craig is the Bond I never knew I wanted. He is transcendent. 

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Originally Posted by Stale Elvis 

Does anyone think Craig is suave enough? I'm not talking about swagger, because he has buckets-full of that, but does he have that quintessential Bond suaveness?

 

 

Have we lost the cheesy/creepy suaveness from modern Bond? Do we need it?

Sam Elliot really knows everything.

I just watched The Living Daylights in prep for Skyfall (I'm going through all the modern Bonds, starting with this one). And I'm struck that it's actually not too dissimilar from For Your Eyes Only. It has a lot of similar sequences, and the central Bond dilemma is which older character actor to trust. In both cases, the one who dimes on the other is obviously and clearly the bad guy. Both have a very efficient creepy silent assassin whom Bond kicks to his death. 

Living Daylights is awesome, by the way. License To Kill is much easier to remember, because it's so 80s actiony, but TLD is one of the more structurally weird entries, with Bond several steps ahead of everyone for most of the run time. The bad guys are kind of inept dummies (except for that assassin, he's not bad at all). It's nice to see John Rhys Davies show up. Dalton, as always, looks like a cartoon fox. Also, I can't be sure about this as the movie plays a bit fast and loose with the exposition, but I think Bond teams up with Al Quaeda for a little while. Anyways, I hadn't seen it in a while and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I also like Bond's relationship with this particular Bond Girl, the cellist. As is his wont, Dalton seems to form a more emotional connection with her than Bond typically does. He doesn't even look at another girl, and continually defies the plan or his orders to keep her safe, which practically counts are true love for Bond. Granted, the actress doesn't do much at all to warrant this, but Dalton has chemistry with everyone. I wish he got more films under his belt, as I think he would have been one of my favorites if he had.

Mr Stockslivevan, To me the only...Underwhelming Roger Moore Bond Film was...A View To A Kill!  I am glad Roger was 007 in 2...Moore Awesome Bond Films For Your Eyes Only and Octopussy!  It is a shame that Dalton didn't get to be 007 a few more times.  He is a far better Bond than Daniel Craig.

Not that it matters, but now that I've delved into the books, Dalton seems the closest of the movie Bonds to what Flemming wrote. He has that air of bitter British priggishness, while also being the closest to what Flemming describes physically. Craig has been said to be like Flemming's take but really he's more of a bruiser and doesn't seem to care fuck all about being British, he's just wants to get the job done. Anyway, just an observation, I'm not really concerned how close the character is to the novels.

Sure enough, but also how well integrated this characterization was in Casino Royale. That movie is so goddamn good. It's really a toss up whether that or FRWL is my favorite.

Just to give a little credit where credit is due, Casino Royale is the best Bond novel, and the 2006 movie follows it pretty closely.

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Originally Posted by Arjen Rudd 

Sure enough, but also how well integrated this characterization was in Casino Royale. That movie is so goddamn good. It's really a toss up whether that or FRWL is my favorite.

It's interesting because at the time Bond was totally in the shitter after Die Another Day. Casino Royale caught me by so much fucking surprise when it came out. I mean, I was pumped for it and all after seeing the trailers but it's not just a great Bond film but a great film in general.

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Originally Posted by Arjen Rudd 

They're all making the new poster look like creamed shit.

When you're right, you're right.

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Originally Posted by History Buff 

Someone commented on that link that I hadn't actually thought about: the lack of the classic Bond theme being used in the Craig films. Which- I hate to say-does make them feel like a Bourne Identity, Misssion Impossible-type of movies...

I think it's intentional on the filmmakers' part.  CR and QOS really are one big film about James Bond becoming JAMES BOND, hence the traditional gun barrel sequence not appearing until the end of QOS.  And judging on some rumors about the new one, that ascension will be 100% complete by its end. 

While I could be wrong, don't be surprised if the Bond theme is used a lot more in Skyfall.

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Originally Posted by Mr. Stockslivevan 

Timothy Dalton definitely would have been perfect to take over for FYEO, but I would have especially preferred Peter Hunt to return directing, as he was offered FYEO.

Please elaborate!  I never knew that Hunt was offered FYEO and have always wondered why he didn't do at least one more film in the series.  In fact, he's the only pre-Brosnan director to not helm multiple entries.  While I'm sure I've forgotten a lot of Bond trivia over the years, I don't recall every reading about this.

Watching QUANTUM OF SOLACE again and still struggling to see why people hate it so much. 

I think the movie zips by a little quickly, there's a few action sequences that are a little too hacked up, but on the whole I feel like I'm supposed to hate the movie a lot more than I actually do.

Hearing this news is crushing. The thought of another Hunt helmed Bond film has my salivating. I was just watching OHMSS last night and concluded that not only is it my favorite Bond film but it might be one of my all time favorite movies. I just love every bit of it. 

Does anyone know if any of Hunt's other films are worth a look? Looking at his filmography I see Shout at the Devil with Roger Moore and Lee Marvin which I've heard good things about before. 

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Originally Posted by Odo19 

Does anyone know if any of Hunt's other films are worth a look? Looking at his filmography I see Shout at the Devil with Roger Moore and Lee Marvin which I've heard good things about before. 

I've heard good things about both SHOUT AT THE DEVIL and DEATH HUNT.

Wasn't too impressed with GOLD. Here's a review I wrote in another thread ("Your Year of Living OCD"):

GOLD (1974)

Newly appointed general manager of a South African mine learns the director has conspired with financiers to flood the mine and drive up the market price of gold. Based on a novel by Wilbur Smith, I’m not sure for what audience this was intended. Several names involved from the James Bond family -- Roger Moore, director Peter Hunt, John Glen, main credits designer Maurice Binder -- and the advertising promise an action thriller. It’s basically a drama and pretty blah. Too much time is spent with Moore’s character romancing the wife (the late Susannah York) of the managing director (amusing, germphobic Bradford Dillman). Potentially exciting moments are mostly confined to dimly lit mine interiors. Hunt was not on his A-game at this point. Ray Milland steals the movie as the cranky mine owner. Also with John Gielgud, literally phoning in much of his role.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arjen Rudd 

 

Living Daylights is awesome, by the way. License To Kill is much easier to remember, because it's so 80s actiony, but TLD is one of the more structurally weird entries, with Bond several steps ahead of everyone for most of the run time. The bad guys are kind of inept dummies (except for that assassin, he's not bad at all). It's nice to see John Rhys Davies show up. Dalton, as always, looks like a cartoon fox. Also, I can't be sure about this as the movie plays a bit fast and loose with the exposition, but I think Bond teams up with Al Quaeda for a little while. Anyways, I hadn't seen it in a while and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

I also like Bond's relationship with this particular Bond Girl, the cellist. As is his wont, Dalton seems to form a more emotional connection with her than Bond typically does. He doesn't even look at another girl, and continually defies the plan or his orders to keep her safe, which practically counts are true love for Bond. Granted, the actress doesn't do much at all to warrant this, but Dalton has chemistry with everyone. I wish he got more films under his belt, as I think he would have been one of my favorites if he had.

THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS is really, really good. I think it tends to get lost in the shuffle between the end of the Moore era, the Lethal Weapon-ization of Bond in LICENSE TO KILL and the long drought before the Brosnan era. But it's a solid, pretty Fleming-esque adventure, despite the creampuff villain combo of Jeroen Krabbe and Joe Don Baker (soon to be resurrected as a CIA agent!). And that assassin you like is really just a (very) poor man's Red Grant. Still, it works, and Dalton is fucking awesome in it.

As has surely been pointed out here before, Bond's closer-than-usual relationship with D'Abo's character was a sort of reaction to AIDS, an effort to make Bond more monogamous and responsible. On the other hand, I'm pretty sure this is the last film where we get to see Bond smoking a cigarette. It really is a late-80s time capsule!

And on that, THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS gets some extra Cold War points from me for touching on the actual conflict in Afghanistan... Though to be more precise, I think Bond would've been teaming up with the Taliban or some other Afghan groups. Not to get nerdy about it, but the Afghans fighting the Soviets generally considered the Egyptian/Saudi, future-Al Qaeda-types to be meddlesome dilettantes. 

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Originally Posted by Dr Harford 

The use of the Bond theme in Casino Royale is just perfect. It might just be the best moment in the film.

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Originally Posted by Sebastian OB 

Watching QUANTUM OF SOLACE again and still struggling to see why people hate it so much. 

Personally, I rag on QOS a lot, but I don't hate it. It's nowhere near the bottom of the Bond pile. But Dr Harford above mentions how the James Bond theme was used at the end of CR, and it reminds me how pumped I was walking out of that movie and how much I was looking forward to the next one. I have my issues with QOS, but it's biggest flaw is the steep decline in quality after the genius that was CASINO ROYALE... Maybe I'm being unfair to QOS. I can't help it.