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I don’t think any actor has fully been the character of fiction as written for any writer.
Unless the writer of the character is playing the role.
I wished Fleming played James Bond, I mean in CBS in Climax 1954, instead of Barry Nelson.
I wholeheartedly agree with you, @jetsetwilly. I remember when Dalton was at his first press conference as Bond, smoking stylishly and talking about having read the books (anyone has that video? I think it's on the dvd's special features). He definitely knows the character well. Just have a look at the 2.20m mark on this other video.
Connery's an odd one because while he was the only Bond to know Fleming personally he admitted himself that'd he'd only read two of the novels (I'm not even sure if he particularly enjoyed them) and even called Fleming 'a snob'. In a sense it was that streak of rebelliousness towards the literary character, that idea that he was going into it with a more tongue in cheek attitude (making fun of it as he himself said) that really made his Bond. Hell, it's what made the cinematic Bond and is there in all of the actor's portrayals in some form. I suspect much of that approach had to do with Young and the producers, who I know had read the novels and understood where to deviate while maintaining the essence of the novels.
Personally, I think any new actor should read the Fleming novels and try to understand the literary character, but use it as a way to help shape their own individual portrayal of Bond. And to be fair I get the sense Craig did this, much as his performance in NTTD can be a bit odd at times (I certainly get the literary Bond most distinctly with SF and bits of CR). I mean, no actor's portrayal of Bond is going to be 100% Fleming anyway and probably can't. Even Dalton's Bond deviated slightly and adopted things like the quippy one liners of the films, and indeed going on a personal vendetta which seems to be very much a motif of the post '89 Bond films. I can't see Fleming's blunt instrument doing quite the same thing in that context.
Yes, it's there too when Bond kills the Robber in LALD. I probably didn't write that as clearly as I could have though. I guess what I was trying to say was Fleming's Bond wasn't one to go 'off grid' or rogue as much as he does in the films. Even begrudgingly he was a man who essentially did his duty and followed the orders of Her Majesty's Government. Even when he transgressed from protocol often it was M who ordered this or at least gave him the go ahead (TB and OHMSS are the examples which come to mind). I think the only time he disobeyed an order was in the TLD short story. Even his decision to kill Blofeld in YOLT is very much part of his official mission (he just neglects to inform Tanaka about Blofeld's identity), as is him killing Robber.
I can't imagine Fleming's Bond going on a personal vendetta mission which would have involved him giving up his double 0 status and going on the run from his own Government. Much as Leiter is an ally of his I'm not sure if that friendship in the novels ever trumped his sense of duty. It's the same thing in CR when Bond breaks into M's flat and conducts an investigation by himself. Much as these things work in the movies they don't necessarily come from the books (which is fine).
If the literary Bond lacks swagger, how is swagger actually conveyed in a novel? I am trying to parse the comment attributed to SC.
A writer’s strike is mobilizing (I believe the contract deadline is May 1; it hasn’t been looking positive for quite some time and the drums to put pens down has been getting loud).
https://www.wrapbook.com/blog/wga-strike
So what’s the problem? Just look a Quantum of Solace; wait, scratch that.
@Bentley007 , no because the the director will also be a member of the WGA.
@talos7 — nicely played, 😂
007 In New York
Agent Under Fire
All The Time In The World
Blood And Thunder
Bloodstone
By Royal Command
By Royal Decree
Cards With A Stranger
Carte Blanche
Choice Of Weapons
Colonel Sun
Death Is So Permanent
Death Of An Agent
Death To Spies
Devil May Care
Enjoying Death
Everything Or Nothing
For Special Services
For The Sake Of Traitors
Garden Of Death
Hell Will Endure
Icebreaker
License Renewed
Mindfield (James Bond Jr.)
Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Murder On Wheels
Never Dream Of Dying
Never Send Flowers
Nightfire
No Good About Goodbye
Nobody Lives Forever
Once Upon A Spy
Per Fine Ounce
Property Of A Lady
Provocateur
Red Sky At Night
Red Underground
Resurrection
Risico
Role Of Honor
Russian Roulette
Shatterhand
Shaken Not Stirred
Shamelady
Show Of Force
Silverfin
Slay It With Flowers
Solstice
Some Kind Of Hero
Talk Of The Devil
The Belles Of Hell
The Dead Are Alive
The Death Collector
The Elegant Venus
The Eye That Never Sleeps
The Hildebrand Rarity
The Machinery Of Evil
The Nature Of Evil
The Problem Eliminator
The Richest Man In The World
The Silver Phantom
The Shadower
The Shadow War
The Writing On The Wall
To Pull The Trigger
Valley Of Shadows
Wake Up Or Die
Win, Lose, Or Die
You Know My Name
Zero Minus Ten
Otherwise, my favourites from it, really are "By Royal Command", "Choice Of Weapons", "Once Upon A Spy" and "Some Kind Of Hero". Others are quite good too, but these four are definitely my favourites.
There's a lot of promising titles in there. I think it depends on the direction they're going for with the next era. Death To Spies and Risico are my personal favourites
If Nolan is directing, it's possible the script is already finished.
Unless he has been sitting on a Bond screenplay for most of his career ;)
But I bet you are right, @peter.
Not sure how I'd feel about a Nolan Bond film to be honest, he makes impressive films, but his films lack a sexiness that the best Bond films have. His brother is a must if he were to develop his own script in my opinion
IF Nolan is actually attached, that might mean a Summer or Fall 2025 release at earliest.
I do think it’s wise that Eon didn’t simply jump the gun and have a movie ready to go for 2023. I think having four to six years between Bond actors actually helps build more anticipation and also allows audiences to embrace the new Bond more readily. Notice that prior to that, Lazenby, Moore, and Dalton kinda had growing pains in the part because they all jumped into the part just two years after their predecessors. Moore eventually secured his role by his third film, whereas Brosnan and Craig were immediately embraced by audiences from the get go.
At first, it sounded like Inception was the original script he’d been writing and sitting on for awhile. Maybe Oppenheimer is his next equivalent. As for him and Bond, I don’t know. If anyone should get a chance at writing a story at least it should be Anthony Horowitz. He did better with writing in 3 novels than P & W did in 7 screenplays.
Semantics…