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This is very rough and quite quickly concocted.
Thoughts??
We have discussed the theme of age on other threads and with age comes frailty and mistakes plus a certain cynicism with "the system". I was trying to drag up a scene in my memory from another movie where the hero makes a mistake that indicates to the audience the hero is not perfect and, perhaps due to age, makes mistakes and is being out gunned by his younger colleagues.
Then it came to me: the shooting competition scene in Magnum Force where Harry, on the shooting range, loses the competion (in front of all his colleages and friends) to a younger officer. (its a great scene IMHO), both exciting and a metaphor for ageing. Harry goes on to make serious decisions re his stance on his future, the morals of killing and it's place within the criminal justice system.
It then struck me that the plot would be perfect if enlarged/re-interprested onto the global stage (rather than San Fran). The moral issues and personal challenges are the same for the characters but the ramifications are at a much higher level.
An internal unofficial team of renegade agents within MI6 and MI5 etc (bemused and disgusted by the delays, passiveness and political ellements to UK gov target allocations,) assisinating global bad guys. (tin pot dicatators, drug dealers, arms dealers, slavery trade etc)
Bond uncovers the plot (initially not beleived by M and the "establishment") and is invited to join the group (being reminded of previous cases and how much better it would have been if the targets were "taken out" far earlier than the formal decision making process allowed) rather than turn them in. Although he has some sympathy with their intentions , he refuses to join them (his loyalty is to M and "Queen and Country") and the climax sees Bond prevent the latest assasination and take on the ring leader of the team: a fellow double O agent.
This type of plot, although still with action scenes, would focus on character and enable Bond and the audience to look back at his career and appraise his role as the "trigger puller" within "the system" and also look at the pros and cons of "intervention" - both possibly too early or too late.
Also, just once, really just once in a while I would like to see James Bond fighting side-by-side with his own service. A concept sufficient for several decades.
+1
Agree entirely hence this: is a terrible idea.
Here's an original notion - about Bond totally on his own and saving the world from destruction with no earpiece or smartphone umbilical cord to London?
Remember when Blofeld was going to release virus Omega and the only bloke who could stop it escaped on skis at night with the whole of SPECTRE on his tail and John Barry smashing it out of the park with the soundtrack? Is there anyone out there who would seriously prefer another episode of the Scooby Gang to that?
Compare that to the series some think is stealing Bond's fire, the Mission Impossible films, and you'll find the heroes have truly gone rogue in every film but one of the six. Truly innovative.
Perhaps they are better at it. Craigs 007 seems to be very roguish in all of his movies also in QoS where he might work for MI6 but does not take any commands at all.
It's actually quite annoying all this 'pathological rejection of authority based on unresolved childhood trauma' crap they are foisting on us. That's not the character at all.
He wouldn't last very long in the navy or the service if he kept disobeying orders.
Good post, Wiz. I agree wholeheartedly with this. Bond is on his own and cornered at Piz Gloria, then in the Alpine Village. Or in CR when Le Chiffre kidnaps him and Vesper.
Bond needs those kinds of stakes again, not the constant checking-in ("Are you all right, James?" "Where are you, James?" "Just a sec while I check my milk carton for the expiry date, James.") by random MI6 members.
And also with this. Mendes damaged the franchise starting in SF (it would become evident in SP) with the deeply personal angle on every story. All Mendes seemed to want to do is to revisit LALD imagery, awkwardly grafted onto a backward-looking Bond. (There's a reason why flashbacks are used very sparingly in the series. The Bond character is forward-looking.)
Whatever its faults, QoS got Bond in a way that SF and SP did not. "I never left" says it all about Bond.
I do agree that I miss Bond acting on his own. It just ups that stakes and also, would make it more Bondian and create clear water away from MI.
Very true.
I guess for the first act you are stuck with it but once Bond encounters the villain for the first time you have a scene where he gets frisked (some sort of line like 'We value our privacy here Mr Bond') and they take away his phone and give him a fresh set of clothes.
Ultimately something like that comes down to suspension of disbelief, like why doesn't the villain just kill Bond at the first opportunity?
The trick is (which the Craig era got completely wrong imo) is to not follow reality too closely to where that stuff becomes a problem. Take yourself too seriously and the audience will hold you too that, stick to a playful, fun tone and they won't feel the need. It's all a matter of lightness of touch, which they have completely abondoned lately in favour of hamfisted melodrama.
And no doubt is saved by an Aborigine ally old son?;)
Walkabout is a great film but Bond wandering round the bush really doesn't do a lot for me but neither does him being tethered to MI6 constantly either.
Couldn't we just have him going in as deep cover 'You'll be totally on your own here 007. Nothing from Q branch to fall back on and no contact with HQ'?
True. I think if they don't mention smart blood or have Bond with an earpiece people would miss it. OK these days it would be ridiculous if he didn't have a phone but that can easily be disposed of.
Indeed :-)
Gadgets are obviously a key part of the Bond heritage and they provided the audience an ellement of escapism plus a glimpse into the future (sat nav in the Aston) now sat nav in a Ford Ka,
the big developement re tech is comms which previous Bonds never had: reality for us would have seemed OTT/pure silly fantasy if portrayed in Goldfinger for example. Rather than see this issue and push back, modern writers have pushed further and used tech IMHO to push the plot forward (DNA on a ring?) but it takes away from Bond's individuallity and cleverness (I loved the scene where he puts a hair across the door frame) but CCTV puts and end to this. This also can take away tension where Bond uses cold reading to identify the bad guy (red wine with fish) rather than DNA
Stripping Bond of all this help is going to be tough.
To be fair I'd love to see a Q branch boomerang. Or maybe a henchman with a razor sharp boomerang a la Oddjob?
Villain: "So, you have heard of the middle of nowhere? Well, this is it"
He throws Bond one small bottle of water and gets back into his helicopter.
"What's the phrase? A chance to get away from it all? Goodbye, Mr Bond"
I think not having him wear an earpiece (which absolutely makes sense for a SECRET agent) would go along way to solve that problem. Since he couldn't have a phone at his ear while being in pursuit of whoever ( or breaking into offices or whatever suits your fancy ) it would be very close to the good old times again. Also it is worth mentioning that technique was also very well developed during Brosnan's tenure and still they didn't feel the need to have him act as a puppet.
Bond and Madeline are broken up. His drink problem and inability to fully commit was the deciding factor.
Bond is living out in East London. He’s older and more jaded than we’ve ever seen him. He spends his days drinking and earns money from taking falls in underground cage fights. He’s a far cry from the man he once was.
A young activist hunts Bond down. She’s heard rumours that Bond used to be in the secret service and may have government connections. The activist has knowledge that a pregnant refugee hiding out Paris may have intel that she needs. The activist is a criminal and can’t get safe passage on her own. She needs Bond. I suggest Gugu Mbatha-Raw for the role:
Bond reluctantly agrees and travels with the activist to France. It becomes clear that Bond must protect the pregnant woman as she has intel that could cause a scandal in the British government.
Meanwhile, M begrudgingly sends the new person with the codename '007' out to ensure this information doesn’t leak out. Throughout the film, Bond and the new '007' should have numerous tussles. She should be played by Claire Foy:
The information should pertain to high-level operation that could expose senior governmental figures. This should be a timely issue that shakes Bond’s faith in Britain and makes him question the life choices. The villain of the piece has to be Gary Oldman:
The film should have a very European flavour and only take place in cities. The action needs to be brutal and the whole tone of the picture must be gritty. There will still be moments where Bond frequents glamorous casinos, etc. But these should be countered by scenes set in more urban and tougher districts.
Then you should WANT Hardy for Bond. He's a good choice, and there are much, much worse out there.
There have been reports of minor tremors in the Sevenhampton area. One local believes it’s the corpse of Ian Fleming rapidly spinning in his grave.
Haha, no, trust me. It'll be terrific.
We're talking a post-modern interpretation of the character. What happens to an icon once their time has gone?
Someone like Bond can't just drive off into the horizon and think he can lead a normal happy life. He's been taught his whole life to be paranoid killer. What happens to a man like that once they're out of the fight?
I want Bond to have his Alec Lemus moment. Anyone who has seen the film of The Spy Who Came In From The Cold will know that great moment where Lemus talks about government corruption and the role of the spy.
I want that.
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I also suspect you don't like the idea of a female 00. Well considering Bond isn't working at Mi6, I doubt they'd retire the number entirely. Someone is going to have to take his desk.
we would need to establish the motivation for Bond helping? the refugee is a stranger to him, why would he get involved. (could the villain be the father?)
Claire Foy as 007? it answers media speculation and deals with the Me Too issues cleverly but how that will fit in with a new Bond in the next movie? Can Claire be 008?
Bond as a bodyguard rather than assassin worked well in SF and protecting a pregnant girl would have fatherly overtones which would resonate with an older Bond (close to the themes of Logan where he operated as a protecter )
It would divide the fans big time but as a one off, it could work and clear the deck for a new, young, conventional Bond.
Overall, this type of thriller is the right tone for an older Bond IMHO but it's too bold for them to take on.
With the idea of an ‘activist’, a ‘pregnant refugee’, a ‘direct female replacement for Bond’... it sounds like the beginnings of a liberal wet dream. Add in the idea of Bond cage fighting and living in the East End (laughable) and it becomes the fantasy of liberal iconoclasts everywhere.
All for a female 00, but no one can replace Bond as 007. I know it’s the bleeding will of the hard left, but we don’t have to bastardise every cultural icon.
@patb I actually prefer the idea that Bond is involved in the illegal gambling scene a lot more than cage fighting - let's go with that. (Also, the East End has come a long way since Del Boy. Gangs, drugs and gentrification have taken over)
@RC7 I think what would make the idea of having an activist character work is precisely the reasons you're suggesting. Bond is far from a bleeding heart liberal and the idea of him having to interact with someone devoted to their cause would make for an interesting dramatic conundrum. We'd have a character who needs Bond, but disagrees with him profoundly. Also, there was a time where Bond was equally as devoted to a cause he would have died for.
I'll admit the ‘pregnant refugee’ idea is me stealing from Logan without outwardly plagiarising it. But it would still be an interesting conceit. I'm all for killing the character off in her first scene or you could use her as the Macguffin throughout. I don't know. It could be a good role for Taraneh Alidoosti from The Salesman:
Also, I can't see a problem with a woman playing '007'. I understand that people are precious that the number belongs to Bond but I doubt there are any bleeding heart liberal iconoclasts at MI6 who will forever retire that code-number for a bloke who worked for them for around 8 years. Just as Ronaldo took the iconic number 7 from Beckham who took it from Best.
Plus, it be fun to have a female 00 agent. If the character works, there is always the potential to give her a spin-off. Also, when I heard Claire Foy's name, she instantly made sense as a female 007