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Comments
Yeah, I've got the Bond 50 set.
DN's story is too simple, too low-key.
At the same time though, it sticks rather close to the Fleming source material - which is never a bad thing - and adds an extra layer of SPECTRE and a slightly more modern 'evil' project from the villain. Bond's obstacle course with a giant squid and whatnot might have been so cool it would have frozen the Atlantic, but even on a 1 million dollar budget choices had to be made. Unless we wanted them to do a cheap 50's sci-fi thing with the squid... The simplicity of the story is actually what appeals most to me. TWINE tried to seduce us with an intricate plot and layers of complexity but ended up hitting that wall were not much made sense any more and many interesting questions were left unanswered or answered in an unsatisfying way. At least DN produced a linear sequence of events, logically moving from A to B, from B to C, etcetera.
DN is boring.
You and me have got issues, sir. Connery is exquisite, the pacing is turned up to eleven as compared to many contemporary films, at least 85 % of all the dialogues produce memorable and infinitely quotable lines and Ursula turned us, boys, into men - don't even try to deny that. So anyone who thinks of DN as a boring film, clearly forgets to experience it in a time capsule, which is the only way to do it.
The music is deplorable.
The music is only deplorable in the shadow of the great maestro John Barry's later efforts. Granted, Monty Norman's score is arguably among the weakest in the series but he was bold enough to explore the local flavours of Jamaica, something many other composers at the time would have refused to do, and the apparent lack of sophistication in the music is mostly just the "fault" of the series' sudden rise in overall quality and success. Compared to other film scores of the day, DN isn't vomit inducing bad. Yet I have heard people go ballistic on this score. That's like telling Lucas Star Wars was bad because Empire was better.
The production quality is extremely low.
Yes, and so was the budget. People should learn to put things in perspective. DN had ambitions but it also had limited resources. Bad films are made when the ambitions exceed the available tools, better films are made when filmmakers evaluate what they can do and proceed to make the best of it. The production actually travelled abroad and blew stuff up. While a seemingly trivial fact nowadays, in '61 - '62 it wasn't. I actually like to watch and re-watch what they managed to do with what little money they had.
Conclusion: DN is only half the film the latter Bonds are.
Any statement in the spirit of this sentence, used as a slam against the film, gets me pretty angry. DN had no template, no previous Bond film to learn from. Yet it managed to put 95 % of the Bond formula firmly in place. FRWL had twice the budget of DN, GF and TB even a lot more, and those films could study the previous entries, keep the elements of success, add new and fresh spins, push the barriers even further and ask for more money. But already DN was a vibrant film, progressive and slightly controversial. Many of its contemporaries did little more than have people talk for two hours. DN initiated a brand new genre of action films. It's a hidden gem in a series whose fans tend to forget that it too had to start small one day. But had it not been for DN being such a great film, there might never have been a GF, OHMSS, TLD or CR...
The Eric Serra score in GE.
Yes, even the car chase music.
I can't imagine the film without it. Serra's score, though very hit and miss, gives the film some atmosphere.
Should I do one for The World Is Not Enough? Hmmm
It fits perfectly with the other early films. I like it a lot.
Blu Ray makes the dodgy rear screens look a good deal better IMO.
It looked like Miami Vice.
It was filmed in part where Miami Vice was filmed, so, yeah. :P
Taliso Soto couldn't act.
Garbage. She played a beauty pageant airhead with clinical precision.
Dalton had Dracula hair.
During his infiltration he was trying to look like a 'bad' man, and I for one think he succeeded.
A laser in a Polaroid?
It's all about the lasers. Wherever one is worked in somehow is fine with me.
...That also takes X-ray pictures??
Ummm...uh... okay I got nuthin' for that; I just ignore it. X_X
That bar fight looked so 80's.
It was, umm, the Eighties.
How exactly does one hide cocaine in gasoline?
That would be telling.
Wayne Newton takes me right out of the movie.
Genius casting doesn't work for you?
Felix is in a good mood seeing as he lost a Wife & leg...
Amazing things, these modern pain killers.
The fish winking offends my sensibilities.
Wow, you offend easy, don't you? A water-flow activated wink every other minute from a ceramic poolside statue is nothing compared to...well, most things. ;)
I'll add one:
Carey Lowell couldn't act, either. But she does have one of my favorite, bust out laughing moments in the entire Bond film canon:
As she and Bond are sitting in a dive bar, waiting for Dario and his men, she asks, "Are you packing?"
He shows her his Walther.
She looks at it with pity, shakes her head, and does a "tsk tss tsk" and then shows him her sawed-off, as if to say: "This what packin' really looks like."
I am laughing just typing it!!!!!!
We had fresh-faced Connery first appear on our screens as a rookie agent in Dr. No, who would then go on to age naturally throughout the rest of his tenure (exception DAF, but he was just having...you know, a bad day). That same Bond would then be portrayed by Roger Moore, who would continue until AVTAK, where he is a seasoned agent, nearing retirement. And, if I might say so, he looks very well for 57 years old. Sure, his eyes look a bit vacant at times, but he still retains his charm, suaveness and good sense of humour that we have become accustomed to ever since Moore's debut in Live and Let Die. Then the ageing process would then be reversed with Dalton in 1987, you see.
Throughout the film, Bond displays some patriarchal tendencies, owing to his age, but nevertheless he maintains his ability to do a bit of Rogering. Who can blame him? It didn't stop Sean "caterpillar brows" Connery indulging in Plenty O'Toole!
Stunt doubles! Stunt Doubles a plenty!
Yeah...can't argue with that. Ya know, non Blu Ray versions of the film do help though...they do!
Bond shouldn't be canoodling with women old enough to be his daughter
I thought Kimberley Jones (aka "five days to Alaska" woman) was perfectly fine age wise...I'm sure she'll be grateful of a bit of Rogering to make the days go by.
As for Pola Ivanova...well, Moore and Fullerton had great chemistry. I love the nice little scene between the two in the spa.
And, of course, the elephant in the room, a Miss Stacey Sutton: Moore never advances on her throughout the film, and acts more the patriarch- surprisingly, despite the age difference, I think they get on nicely together. It's only at the very end of the film, which ok, it wasn't needed, when Bond finally fondles with her. But what could be a more fitting ending for the longest serving James Bond actor?
JAMES! JAMES! Geez...
Oh come on, it's really not that bad! How else would she react in such a situation (in a burning elevator for pete's sake!!)?? Oh, alright, I'm a sucker for dumb blondes...
Tibbet was killed too early
As we all should know, somebody has to be the sacrificial lamb in a Bond film. Once the ally has served his/her purpose, they are bound to be knocked off in a most elaborate fashion. Tibbet fits this bill: he's helped Bond uncover Zorin's racehorse doping scheme, and so the story now needs to move on. Plus, Tibbet's death prompts some of RogBond's best lines- "Killing Tibbet was a mistake".
How did Sutton not realise the huge blimp creeping up behind her?
Well, bear in mind that she was only a couple of yards away from an explosion beforehand, and so naturally she would have suffered from temporary hearing loss.
Bond and Mayday...in bed? Good God, who dreamt that up?
Is this scene meant to be sexy in anyway? No! He's doing what he has to do for England- he was about to get caught by Zorin and Mayday themselves. It's obvious that he wasn't enjoying the Jones treatment, what with that look of horror on his face. Jones also remains strong- when she drops those robes, I can't help but think she would be thinking "oh, let's get this over with". There's also a great line afterwards: "a little restless, but I got off eventually".
Mayday and Zorin are terrible villains
Woh woh woh. The duo are the wackiest, most bizarre duo of villains to have braced the Bond films. I love it. The best Bond villains, period.
Great dialogue, Walken brings his A game, and they both go out with a bang. What's not to love?
The action scenes are tired
There's some pretty impressive snowboarding stunts in the PTS (I'll get to this later), and the fire truck chase is a fun romp, with some good stunts and action revolving around the draw bridge. The action in Paris is also pretty good, with the jump off the Eiffel Tower and the Renault taxi jump onto the bus roof being highlights. Then of course, you have the excellent City Hall scenes, the horse chase and the climatic finale upon the Golden Gate Bridge. Great stuff.
California Girls in the PTS- completely undercuts any tension
I never understood why people completely disregard the PTS due to a ten second inclusion of a pop song. Sure, it's a bit unnecessary, but there are some pretty cool shots of snowboarding across the water, and doing flips and what have you...
If you want undercutting tension, turn to the machine gun toting granny in the Goldfinger car chase.
It's not quite my favourite release, but there is so much to love in this film!
& great explanation of her not hearing the blimp.
I cannot argue with this one. I own the DVD, and I only saw seven stunt doubles.
Casino Royale
(Note: Most of these criticisms come from my friend, who hates the movie)
The movie's too long
Y'know what, some people sat through all three Lord of the Rings films. Think about that. All. Three. You can sit through a measly two hours and forty minutes.
There's not enough action
Except for the bomber chase scenes (there are two of them), the fight in the stairwell, the shootout in Venice, and let's not forget the excellent PTS. Yeah, I guess there really isn't enough action.
The card game goes on too long
Considering we get a reference to how much time has passed occasionally during the card game, no, it really doesn't go on too long. Besides, the card game is a game of wits, what Bond does all the time in the books and only occasionally in the films. It was welcome.
Craig's a boring Bond, I can't even call him Bond
What is this, I don't even...? Craig's Bond is anything but boring.
(This friend looked upon Quantum of Solace far more fondly.)
=D>
I'd add:
The cigarette smoking hard drinking Bond I know wouldn't have chased that parkour dude like a world class triathlete.
Hello, do you know the definition of 'reboot'? The Bond of old wouldn't have a cell-phone either (Or should I say 'mobile'?). ;)
@MayDayDiVicenzo As a fellow AVTAK lover it's nice to hear your comments. Also excellent explanation for Stacey "Snuck up on" Sutton's infamous moment. That's actually a perfect explanation.
:-O