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He sure did. Don't forget the shawl collar cardigan, desert boots combo when he's with Mathis at his villa. Classic McQueen.
Now that's a controversial opinion around here...
But i'll go with that. He's definitly the most influential to me in that regard.
I realise in SF he is supposed to look haggard but they took it too far IMO. The only part where he looks quite cool is towards the end, in his hunting gear in Scotland.
I really enjoy this scene.
Always love the side-eyes glance he gives as his car pulls away from the airport in Austria. Bug-eyed and creepy.
I love him-- slimy as hell. And he's a cornered rat at the end. He lashes out wildly and dangerously.
Indeed, if Mathieu Amalric had been much larger in size, he’d be a pretty spot-on Le Chiffre as described in the CR novel.
For me the Craig era has had the best fashion, though I suppose the 70’s and 80’s fashions looked good at the time and the Craig era will similarly age.
For me though the introduction of Tom Ford into the series, starting with QoS, has been great and has brought some nice outfits:
QoS - PTS and Sienna Suit, Third Act Harrington Jacket
SF - The gorgeous midnight blue Tuxedo, Scotland Outfit
SP - PTS suit, Rome Suit, Morocco Desert Brown Suit.
Obviously havent seen NTTD but so far the third act “tactical” outfit and the Jamacia “retired” outfit look best. I do want one of the N Peal Tactical Sweaters but at £345 for an item I will wear maybe once or twice, I cant justify it.
I personally love the more casual looks from Quantum of Solace as I'm not a fan of the Tom Ford Regency suit which Craig wears throughout the film. The Tom Ford O'Connor suit which was introduced in Skyfall is superior and more in the ilk of Connery's suits in the 60's, IMO.
Quantum of Solace's introduction of Tom Ford was without question where the Craig era began to elevate in relation to fashion. However, their incorporation of other brands like Brunello Cuchinelli, Chuches, Barbour and J.Crew have been instrumental in creating these iconic looks. I think that Bond's upcoming Jamaica looks awkward from a colour perspective and his jeans look like they need to be altered, but I assume that's done purposefully. Aside from that No Time To Die may be one of the most stylish Bond films from a fashion standpoint we've seen, IMO. They've brought back the tab collar from Skyfall and Bond seems to be heavily wearing the Tom Ford O'Connor suit to much the same vain.
EDIT: Bolivian army guys it looks like. Cuaron was the helicopter pilots voice? Cool.
That was new to me. Awesome.
If the flaws I have listed continued to bother me, I realized that there are far fewer things that I would have liked to have seen changed than in my memories. I keep regretting that Fleming's short story was not explicitly included in the plot (I read somewhere it was planned to be told by Mathis to Bond on their flight to South America, is there any truth in this rumor?), that its title was used for an organization that could have gone unnamed, and I would have preferred more stable and clearer editing. Still, the qualities seemed to me this time undeniable and allowed me to put aside the regrets. With a few tweaks here and there, it could ultimately have been one of my favorite film in the series.
Quick question, why isn't Mathis a very good cover name! I've never understood that line.
Oh, also I HATE the story decision to have Bond put him in a dustbin. Why would Bond do something like that to a valued contact? He just wouldn't.
It just needed a lot more work, and I also think a longer running time would've benefited.
This! If they just spent a little more time fleshing out the characters and the action, it would be a top tier Bond film. It’s an amazing first draft I would argue.
Don't know the full story about the Mathis cover name but my guess is he's obviously Italian with a cover name that doesn't match. The dustbin thing, my take is he needed to dispose of the body quickly where they wouldn't know he'd discovered it as they were still onto him and the authorities would've had questions and Bond was on the run.
Besides that, it kind of fits the Craig Bond's character at the time. There's been discussion on one of the Skyfall threads as to Bond's lack of emotion when Severine gets killed by Silva and that applies here too. He's a hard man who can't let emotions overwhelm him when he's on a mission.
Mathis: Yes.
Bond: Not a very good one, is it.
Mathis: (Laughs painfully.)
My take: it's the darkest humor between Bond and Mathis. Mathis didn't use a cover name, he used his own name. It was the death of him.
I've half-jokingly defended this on other forums. It's practical misdirection for the police and Quantum, making the scene look like a mugging gone wrong.
And Bond couldn't leave Mathis on the street, on the same level with the bad guys. So symbolically he elevates Mathis above them--literally top of the heap.
Lastly, the "he wouldn't care" line links to the the theme later expressed as "I don't think the dead care about vengeance". It also recalls Mathis's line in the previous film "being dead doesn't mean one can't still be helpful."
But of course it's not required to like that bit.
I guess it's specific to everyone's sensibilities, but personally I'm really fond of this short story. Especially since its is both very bitter but also quiet would have been ideal at this point in the film, to bring down the pace. If we add to this that the sequence takes place in an airplane, the starting point of the discussion, about marrying an air hostess, would come organically. Gemma, Mathis's girlfriend, could even in this context replace the character of Rhoda Llewellyn.
Sure, it's obvious that I cannot imagine Mathis telling anything else than an abridged version of this tale, summarizing it in a few sentences and allowing its beautiful title to be explained, without diminishing it to name the organization. The movie as a whole would have benefited from such a moment which, in this case, would have been more than just an Easter egg.
I quite agree with this view, although I find that the script has from the start a problem in its representation of Bond which seems to have regressed since the end of Casino Royale. It seems to me that it would have been more logical to have a colder character, at the height of his nature as a blunt instrument, professional to the point of being dehumanized. He would not commit the same recklessness as in the previous film, nor would he be careless, but it would nonetheless be worrying for M who would see his consideration for human life disappear. In this context, Bond would have gradually relearned to express compassion, finding a balance between sentimental vulnerability and inhuman coldness.
I love how it feels extremely Fleming .
I’ve also never had an issue with the editing.
Now while I know there have been fan edits that have done this before I decided to tweak the opening to my taste. Admittedly I have tried three different musical tracks over the gun barrel. The CR end credit Bind theme, the choral version from CR’s trailers and the orchestral YKMN from BBC proms.
I also (as others before me) have replaced AWTD with No Good about Goodbye. Previous edits of the song haven’t quite blended together well to fit the run time of the title sequence so I attempted to improve this. I also removed the end Gun Barrel and title card and played Bassey over the end credits too. Oddly the full length version of the song fits the entire credit crawl perfectly.
Short story long here’s my opening complete with Gun Barrel.
I had to re jig the sound, timing and edit of the start of the car chase.
Enjoy!
Loved that, great editing.
Here’s the proof of concept. Fan ideas more than welcome. It’s ambitious and we might not even get it done but it’s something I’ve always wanted to try.