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Is From Russia With Love Connery's best performance ???

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  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    MajorDSmythe wrote: »
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    Does he lack an edge in GF?
    I wrote:
    in Goldfinger / Thunderball / You Only Live Twice he lacked that edge that Bond needs

    Yes, yes he does. In From Russia With Love, it's there, but stating with Goldfinger, that edge has gone.

    A shocking statement! ;)

    GF being my second Bondmovie I ever saw after MR, I found Connery more of a caged tiger who burst out several times during the movie.
  • ThighsOfXeniaThighsOfXenia
    edited November 2014 Posts: 1,596
    MajorDSmythe wrote: »
    He was rough around the edges in Dr No (even with the help he was given by Young), in Goldfinger / Thunderball / You Only Live Twice he lacked that edge that Bond needs, in Diamonds Are Forever he waddled around and in Never Say Never Again he looked redder in the face than a raddish. But in From Russia With Love, he was at his speak, it is his best movie and performance, and it's the one film of his that I would want to watch, if I were not having a Bond season.

    The edge is in Thunderball. I would perhaps agree with you concerning Goldfinger but I strongly disagree about Thunderball. And I just watched the film two weeks ago.

  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    I don't think Connery has lost his edge in GF. May be settled into the role a little more. But saying he'd lost his edge is a bit OTT. Even in DAF there's a danger about him. And I'd argue that even Connery's 'worst performance' (not sure which film I'd even nominate for that tbh) still stands up to pretty much any other performance in the series.
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited November 2014 Posts: 11,189
    Getafix wrote: »
    I don't think Connery has lost his edge in GF. May be settled into the role a little more. But saying he'd lost his edge is a bit OTT. Even in DAF there's a danger about him. And I'd argue that even Connery's 'worst performance' (not sure which film I'd even nominate for that tbh) still stands up to pretty much any other performance in the series.

    I don't think he's particularly dangerous AT ALL in that film. Physically he's a porker.

    Diamonds-Are-Forever-05.jpg

    Who ate all the pies!!
  • MayDayDiVicenzoMayDayDiVicenzo Here and there
    Posts: 5,080
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    Getafix wrote: »
    I don't think Connery has lost his edge in GF. May be settled into the role a little more. But saying he'd lost his edge is a bit OTT. Even in DAF there's a danger about him. And I'd argue that even Connery's 'worst performance' (not sure which film I'd even nominate for that tbh) still stands up to pretty much any other performance in the series.

    I don't think he's particularly dangerous AT ALL in that film. Physically he's a porker.

    Diamonds-Are-Forever-05.jpg

    Who ate all the pies!!

    I don't think this is the picture you were meaning to post, @BAIN123?
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    Posts: 11,189
    It was, him turning off the light looking bloated :p
  • GetafixGetafix
    edited November 2014 Posts: 11,425
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    Getafix wrote: »
    I don't think Connery has lost his edge in GF. May be settled into the role a little more. But saying he'd lost his edge is a bit OTT. Even in DAF there's a danger about him. And I'd argue that even Connery's 'worst performance' (not sure which film I'd even nominate for that tbh) still stands up to pretty much any other performance in the series.

    I don't think he's particularly dangerous AT ALL in that film. Physically he's a porker.

    https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=sean+connery+diamonds+are+forever&biw=1366&bih=643&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=5FpaVIvmN8-N7AbdxIHACg&sqi=2&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAQ#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=I1dd4EbwsIuJzM%3A;Q7QJyOSXJv-JFM;http%3A%2F%2Fwww.allouttabubblegum.com%2Fmain%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2009%2F12%2FDiamonds-Are-Forever-05.jpg;http%3A%2F%2Fwww.allouttabubblegum.com%2Fmain%2F%3Fp%3D4287;547;259

    Who ate all the pies!!

    He looks in similar shape to Brozzer in DAD here. I.e. a bit past it.

    Infact, are Brozza's hospital and hotel scenes in DAD a homage to DAF? I've never gone through checking all the 40th anniversary references, but might this not be one right here?
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited November 2014 Posts: 11,189
    To be honest I think Brozza looks a bit healthier than Connery does in DAF.
  • GetafixGetafix
    edited November 2014 Posts: 11,425
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    To be honest I think Brozza looks a bit healthier than Connery does in DAF.

    Lame. Who wants to look healthy anyway.

    I think Conners looks on top form. He looks like he drinks, smokes and shags a lot.

    Must have taken a lot of method acting preperation to get in shape.
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited November 2014 Posts: 11,189
    Getafix wrote: »
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    To be honest I think Brozza looks a bit healthier than Connery does in DAF.

    Lame. Who wants to look healthy anyway.

    I think Conners looks on top form. He looks like he drinks, smokes and shags a lot.

    He looks like a fat ageing dad (and he was only 41 at the time).

    He looked far better in The Rock 24 years later
  • GetafixGetafix
    edited November 2014 Posts: 11,425
    A fat ageing dad bedding Lana Wood though ;)
  • ThunderpussyThunderpussy My Secret Lair
    Posts: 13,384
    He looked far better and fitter in the Rock.
  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    I have a great fondness for the Rock. Sean's last performance as Bond?
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    Posts: 11,189
    Getafix wrote: »
    A fat ageing dad bedding Lana Wood though ;)

    He doesn't even bed her. The gangsters throw her out the window before he gets the chance ;)

    He does bed Jill though. Bastard!
  • doubleohdaddoubleohdad
    Posts: 1,146
    Awesome in all, but to a lesser degree in DAF, a sad sunset for his interpretation of his character.
  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    Getafix wrote: »
    A fat ageing dad bedding Lana Wood though ;)

    He doesn't even bed her. The gangsters throw her out the window before he gets the chance ;)

    He does bed Jill though. Bastard!

    No I mean Sean was bedding Lana - for real! ;)
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited November 2014 Posts: 11,189
    Really? What a dick! Apparently Laz had a fling with Jill St. John too

    I stand by what I say though. Sean isn't convincing enough as a ruthless spy in Diamonds for me. He gets some good lines but something just seems off to me. You wouldn't think he's the same man from DN and FRWL.
  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    The Sean and Lana thing is quite famous. Think they were at if before they even started filming. Why does that make him a dick though, apart from in the literal sense?
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited November 2014 Posts: 11,189
    Getafix wrote: »
    The Sean and Lana thing is quite famous. Think they were at if before they even started filming. Why does that make him a dick though, apart from in the literal sense?

    I was joking. Should have put a face at the end. #veryjealous (the fact she's old enough to be my mother is irrelevant).

    Looking back at the Daily Mail article I vaguely remember her talking about it in 2012 now.
  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    Getafix wrote: »
    The Sean and Lana thing is quite famous. Think they were at if before they even started filming. Why does that make him a dick though, apart from in the literal sense?

    I was joking. Should have put a face at the end. #veryjealous (the fact she's old enough to be my mother is irrelevant).

    Oh I see. But I bet you still rank her below Izabella Scorupco?
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited November 2014 Posts: 11,189
    Getafix wrote: »
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    Getafix wrote: »
    The Sean and Lana thing is quite famous. Think they were at if before they even started filming. Why does that make him a dick though, apart from in the literal sense?

    I was joking. Should have put a face at the end. #veryjealous (the fact she's old enough to be my mother is irrelevant).

    Oh I see. But I bet you still rank her below Izabella Scorupco?

    Yes I do. Plenty's pretty much eye candy. At least Natalya actually seems like a real person.

    Jill St. John would have been higher if she hadn't been an annoying bimbo in the second half.
  • MayDayDiVicenzoMayDayDiVicenzo Here and there
    Posts: 5,080
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    It was, him turning off the light looking bloated :p

    I mean, it just shows up on my screen as a "no hot linking" notice, with an expletive and a picture of, well...
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    Posts: 11,189
    Oh...well I didn't know that.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,804
    Does anyone here find FRWL to be really slow & kind of uneventful? That's my recollection. I haven't seen it very recently, but I'm getting it on Blu Ray soon to refresh my memory. I fear that I'll find it beautiful, yet still travelling at sub-light.
  • bondjamesbondjames You were expecting someone else?
    edited November 2014 Posts: 23,883
    "chrisisall wrote:
    Does anyone here find FRWL to be really slow & kind of uneventful? That's my recollection. I haven't seen it very recently, but I'm getting it on Blu Ray soon to refresh my memory. I fear that I'll find it beautiful, yet still travelling at sub-light.

    Yes, it is slow and perhaps uneventful compared to more fast paced Bond movies. Some of that is reflective of the time it was made (movies are much faster paced now).

    However, I think that really is part of its charm and to its credit. It takes time to breathe if you will... It's deeply atmospheric in a good spy thriller kind of way and quite romantic in the way it's photographed and in its use of locations and ambience.

    I definitely would say that fast paced is not an adjective that would normally be used to describe it, but again, I think that's to its credit. There are plenty of fast paced Bond movies for those so inclined. When I'm in need of a quick, intense Bond fix, I go to QoS, with its short running time & quick edits. It's a speeding bullet. When I want to lay back and quietly savour Bond excellence, I go to FRWL. As I said on another thread, I normally watch this with Hitchcock's North by Northwest masterpiece. They both give me a great feeling and make me proud of classic movies.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,804
    @bondjames, thanks, that was most well written, and good to hear. I think the last time I saw it I just wasn't in the right place for slow & atmospheric.
  • bondjamesbondjames You were expecting someone else?
    Posts: 23,883
    NP. I get your point totally.

    You have to be in the right frame of mind to sit through & really enjoy it, including its pacing. When you are, it's great
  • ThunderpussyThunderpussy My Secret Lair
    Posts: 13,384
    As with DR NO, there is a raw, less polished feel to it, as if the film makers
    Were still finding their way. Which they did with GF.
  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    FRWL makes one of the best uses of location of any Bond movie. Istanbul is so much better used here than in SF.
  • ThighsOfXeniaThighsOfXenia
    edited November 2014 Posts: 1,596
    Getafix wrote: »
    FRWL makes one of the best uses of location of any Bond movie. Istanbul is so much better used here than in SF.

    The atmosphere Young creates in Istanbul is palpable. One of the best Bond locations. Nassau in Thunderball is amazing as well.

    edit: @DrGorner I disagree. While unpolished is not a negative in my book (I rank Dr. No VERY high) I think FRWL is very slick for what it is. Just because it doesn't have the budget of Goldfinger does not make it unpolished, in my opinion.
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