James Bond: The Ultimate Collection (1962-2012) + Volume Collections

[BrickWaters]

Originally Posted by imsounoriginal

TWINE especially has aged well and was kinda ahead of its time. Female villain, M getting a bigger role, a character from M's past comes back to exact revenge. Plus it has great action and probably David Arnold's best Bond score. People just focus too much on the badly miscast Richards.

Honestly I don't think she's that bad. There's been far worst casting in the Bond series. #TanyaRoberts

[BrickWaters]

Originally Posted by Yojimbo68

Plus in one scene they but her in sneakers. A Bond girl should never, ever be in sneakers!

Another Bond girl in sneakers, and Bond too!

[Markgway]

For me Pierce Brosnan is the quintessential 007.

If you put all of Bond's (cinematic) qualities into a computer it would come out with Brosnan as the nearest match.

I actually think we've been lucky that each actor cast as Bond has done a great job and made the role their own.

Lazenby is undoubtedly the least of the pack, but even he wasn't bad, and brought a raw physicality to the part.

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by HDvision

I think Dalton didn't really connect with the populace at large because he looks obviously a first class snob, and this was clear in his portrayal of Bond.

I love him and in fact LTK is one of my fave. But clearly, Dalton looks superior, which neither Sean nor Rog nor Broz ever did. Roger was a kinda snob, but he loved to send himself off, so that made him relatable to the the main viewer. Dalton is classy and above. You can't have him drinking pints at the pub with workers whereas Sean, Rog, Broz and Dan and even Laz are/did this.

A friend of mine told me he was in NY eating dinner at a counter, and some guy get to his left comes and orders the same, and they start to sympathise, and after a couple of seconds, he realise he's talking to James Bond. That's Dan in essence, a regular guy. Dalton would never eat at the counter.

I don't want Bond to be drinking pints at the pub with the lads, so if that's your rationale behind Dalton's appeal (or lack thereof in some circles) then that's fine by me because he's meant to be a cold, intense bastard and a bit of a snob. It's not like you actually see 007 walking into a deli ordering a pastrami on rye in any of the films.

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by Markgway

For me Pierce Brosnan is the quintessential 007.

If you put all of Bond's (cinematic) qualities into a computer it would come out with Brosnan as the nearest match.

I actually think we've been lucky that each actor cast as Bond has done a great job and made the role their own.

Lazenby is undoubtedly the least of the pack, but even he wasn't bad, and brought a raw physicality to the part.

Even though Brosnan is my least favourite, I still like him. When I saw Worlds End I didn't realize he was in it, so I thought it was great to see him pop up. It's an exclusive club and they're all cool guys. I really wish someone would cast a couple of them in a film together, even if it's just cameo appearances or as a gimmick. It's amazing to think that no two Bonds even costarred together (other than Moore and David Niven but that doesn't really count).

[ChromeJob]

Originally Posted by BrickWaters

Honestly I don't think she's that bad. There's been far worst casting in the Bond series. #TanyaRoberts

Britt Eklund?

I don't think Bond in the books was a snob so much as just disdainful of some things. Well, maybe that IS a snob.

Dalton seemed pretty posh perhaps because he spent years, decades, doing Shakespeare. Connery had years of, well, rugby? Under Terence Young's direction, he certainly was large and in charge, and superior. When Guy Hamilton and particularly Lewis Gilbert were at the helm, he was more of a funny, affable guy. Obviously, I like him better under Young's wing.

What maybe seemed snobby about Dalton was his reserve. He was a quiet Bond who kept his thoughts to himself. His face doesn't light up very easily (someone, Michael Caine, said Roger Moore is a very sunny fellow who could become dark when he needed to, the opposite of Connery). When he really is smiling it seems like he has to open his eyes up more (like meeting up with Leiter in TLD, "Let's talk shop…"). This made him the least accessible Bond up to then. Which I liked, and wanted more of.


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[SuperFlyHighGuy]

^That's a good analysis of Dalton; I'd agree he isn't as affable as Bond and maybe alienated viewers. Moore is whom I first watched as a kid and when The Living Daylights came out, I was just the right age for a more intense, slightly brooding Bond. Kind of how I was at the age that responded intensely to Burton's Batman film (and Frank Miller's comic portrayal). Plus, I was in love with Mariam D'Abo.

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by SuperFlyHighGuy

^That's a good analysis of Dalton; I'd agree he isn't as affable as Bond and maybe alienated viewers. Moore is whom I first watched as a kid and when The Living Daylights came out, I was just the right age for a more intense, slightly brooding Bond. Kind of how I was at the age that responded intensely to Burton's Batman film (and Frank Miller's comic portrayal). Plus, I was in love with Mariam D'Abo.

Dalton's was fitting for the times. As wonderful as Moore was, frankly by 1985 James Bond in A View To A Kill was getting kind of lame as an action star in the face of such competition as Rambo or Commando, and later stuff like Lethal Weapon. More adult oriented R-rated movies were what audiences thought were cool. With the Dalton films they tried to keep pace with that sort of competition while also still hanging on to some of the tropes that made Bond popular to begin with. I was also the right age when those films came out which is why I like Dalton so much (and that's the same reason Brosnan is so popular with many users here). Dalton is also a studied actor, he's not method, but he did go back and try to incorporate some of Fleming's character back into his portrayal, hence the brooding nature of his performances. He even made Bond smoke cigarettes again which hadn't been done since OHMSS.

I also liked Maryam d'Abo. Did you ever see the Playboy pictorial she did at the time of the film's release? If not, you owe it to yourself to track it down.

[SuperFlyHighGuy]

Yes good point about AVTAK; I loved it when it came out but I wasn't allowed to see R-rated films growing up (except those I saw at friends', etc.). When I watch it now it seems pretty tame, Grace Jones aside. It's almost surprising that it is from 1985 and not 5 years earlier.

I think besides the Connery era, that run that John Glen had as director is my next favorite run. There's certainly a major shift once he left, though it was inevitable, and like you said - for those that grew up with the Brosnan era, those will always hold a similar nostalgic heart.

Thanks for tip on the lady d'Abo material. I did not know that but will definitely "research" this development.

[Petey Parker]

Originally Posted by ChromeJob

I think Dalton gets a bad rap because those in teh know were all set for Pierce Brosnan then the US TV network scuttled that. He was quiet, internalized things,…*all the things I want from a Bond.

Dalton was also Michael G. Wilson's first attempt to get dark, really dark. License To Kill really was a dark, Othello-tinged psycho drama with some Bond trappings. LTK was somewhat conventional compared to all the other 80s action movies, so I think it got lost in the mix. I watched again recently and had forgotten the love song at the end. Blech.


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It certainly didn't help matters that it came out in the summer of 89, which was extremely competitive. It was out a week after Lethal Weapon 2 and only a few weeks after big films like Batman, Ghostbusters II, and Star Trek V.

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by Petey Parker

It certainly didn't help matters that it came out in the summer of 89, which was extremely competitive. It was out a week after Lethal Weapon 2 and only a few weeks after big films like Batman, Ghostbusters II, and Star Trek V.

That's a big reason why all subsequent Bond films have been released later in the year, usually late October-November. 1989 was a crazily competitive summer though, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade also came out that summer.

[home888]

James Bond - Hate the series!!!!

Although, I do like Goldeneye with Pierce Brosnan. The opening is cool at the facility and there are a few things to like.

Goldfinger!!!! Kind of hell no! I don't want James Bond captured and tortured by some old geek of 75! Just doesn't work for me.

Casino Royale was ok too!

Guess I'll stick with Strikeback Season 3/4 on Cinemax. Better action, better plot of wiping out scumbags world wide, and better sex and action. Looking forward to Season 5 in that series!

Lethal Weapon - A-ok too!

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by home888

James Bond - Hate the series!!!!

Although, I do like Goldeneye with Pierce Brosnan. The opening is cool at the facility and there are a few things to like.

Goldfinger!!!! Kind of hell no! I don't want James Bond captured and tortured by some old geek of 75! Just doesn't work for me.

Casino Royale was ok too!

Guess I'll stick with Strikeback Season 3/4 on Cinemax. Better action, better plot of wiping out scumbags world wide, and better sex and action. Looking forward to Season 5 in that series!

Lethal Weapon - A-ok too!

Thanks for that valuable contribution to the discussion. I bet you really miss the IMDB message boards.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by imsounoriginal

TWINE especially has aged well and was kinda ahead of its time. Female villain, M getting a bigger role, a character from M's past comes back to exact revenge. Plus it has great action and probably David Arnold's best Bond score. People just focus too much on the badly miscast Richards.

That's partly why I never quite got the love for Skyfall, it had M under attack from a disfigured nutter that she'd left for dead years ago and I was all like "have these people never seen TWINE?".

[imsounoriginal]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

That's partly why I never quite got the love for Skyfall, it had M under attack from a disfigured nutter that she'd left for dead years ago and I was all like "have these people never seen TWINE?".

I'll admit Skyfall does do that element better, but yeah, it's not new. Frankly the movie has a lot of Goldeneye and TWINE in it. (Although I still prefer Goldeneye a little bit over Skyfall, mainly for nostalgia.)

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

That's partly why I never quite got the love for Skyfall, it had M under attack from a disfigured nutter that she'd left for dead years ago and I was all like "have these people never seen TWINE?".

To paraphrase Liam Neeson in THE DEAD POOL: "It was a hummage!"

[Geoff D]

GoldenEye is the BALLS. Best Brosnan flick by a long way and one of the best Bond films in general IMO. It's new but old, fresh but clichéd, I love it to bits INCLUDING the eurotrash pop-synth score from Eric Serra (in case Peter is reading this). As Film Critic Hulk said in his/her epic review of the series, the bestest Bonds tend to be love affairs between JB and someone else, even if it is a dude in GoldenEye's case.

[imsounoriginal]

Yeah it's a top five for me. Also one of the most purely rewatchable movies ever, Bond or otherwise. I can pop that on just about whenever and enjoy the hell out of it.

[tob]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

GoldenEye is the BALLS. Best Brosnan flick by a long way and one of the best Bond films in general IMO. As Film Critic Hulk said in his/her epic review of the series, the bestest Bonds tend to be love affairs between JB and someone else, even if it is a dude in GoldenEye's case.

Agree.

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

GoldenEye is the BALLS. Best Brosnan flick by a long way and one of the best Bond films in general IMO. It's new but old, fresh but clichéd, I love it to bits INCLUDING the eurotrash pop-synth score from Eric Serra (in case Peter is reading this). As Film Critic Hulk said in his/her epic review of the series, the bestest Bonds tend to be love affairs between JB and someone else, even if it is a dude in GoldenEye's case.

Bezants.