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2. Craig
2. Dalton
3. Moore
4. Lazenby - Albeit OHMSS is an amazing Bond film.
5. Brosnan
Rewatching the films, even Brosnan fans must surely accept that he was never the new Connery (the best Bond), but rather a sort-of strangely flat Roger Moore – without even the charm, screen presence and natural gift for comedy that old raised eyebrow delivered in spades.
What has happened since shows just how much time can colour perceptions. Craig's starker, more human, more Fleminesque take on the character has brought Bond a newfound cultural relevancy. While the older 007 movies were routinely spoofed in jokey outings such as the Austin Powers series, few have tried to send up 2006's Casino Royale or its successors. The new Bond has even more puff than the rival Bourne series, from which it stole much of its early style. After a bland blip with 2008's middling Quantum of Solace, Craig starred in the best-received Bond movie since the 1960s, and the highest-grossing film of all time in UK cinemas, Skyfall, last year. So most people don't agree with you at all (neither does the £1b+ takings for Skyfall at the box office).
But it is not just Craig's portrayal of the secret agent that has cast 1990s Bond into shadow. Rewatching the films now, Brosnan's performance is flat and lackadaisical to the point of blandness. What once appeared to be insouciant cool now comes across as sheer laziness.
Barry Nelson (American Jimmy Bond??!) and computer game portrayals! Ha ha. They simply just don't count.
Even in GoldenEye, generally considered to be the best of Brosnan's films, his 007 is smug and smarmy in a way Connery and Roger Moore never were. The movie is only saved by a decent storyline, strong direction from Martin Campbell (later to take the reins for Casino Royale) and a decent villain in Sean Bean's multi-layered Alec Trevelyan.
I was going to post mine, but yours is identical.
Moore
Dalton
Lazenby
Craig
Brozza
Connery
Craig
Moore
Brosnan
Dalton
Lazenby
The subjective list:
Craig
Connery
Brosnan
Moore
Dalton
Lazenby
Great to find someone in agreement! After all, it is not the most common ranking.
But of course you do, @peter.
(I ❤️ u both, love @peter).
Jack of all trades, but master of none. Brosnan didn't nail the characteristics of any of the previous Bond actors, IMO.
I don't feel like he came across overly smug in Goldeneye, although I feel his performance is the weakest element of an otherwise great film, IMO. In Tomorrow Never Dies and The World Is Not Enough he definitely comes across smug, which has never been a characteristic of James Bond. There's a fine line between self-assurance and arrogance and he crosses it in these films. It's only in Die Another Day where I feel that Brosnan comes across as confident in himself.
The scene in TWINE where Brosnan confronts Elektra, accusing her of having Stockholm Syndrome is by far one of the worst moments in the franchise.
There's no denying that Brosnan is a fine actor, but unfortunately he never nailed Bond and didn't attempt to bring anything new the character.
Craig
1973-1979 Roger Moore
Brosnan
1981-1985 Roger Moore
Lazenby
Dalton
Lazenby and Dalton are somewhat interchangeable. Depends on my viewing of the three films. Tim was great in the first half of TLD and the second half of LTK. George was just too inexperienced and it hard for me to hold it against him. One moment he's great, such as the initial meeting with Draco and the final scene but moments such as before in the car trip to meet Draco and some of the acting with Diana Rigg left something to be desired.
I broke up Moore into the two segments since he really started to show his age after Moonraker..
Connery
Craig
Moore
Dalton
Brosnan
Moore
Connery
Dalton
Brosnan
Lazenby
002) Tim Dalton
003) Roger Moore
004) George Lazenby
005) Dan Craig
006) Pierce Brosnan
Rog
Tim
George
Dan
Pierce
Connery
Craig
Brosnan
Dalton
Lazenby
2. Connery - easily the most iconic. No other actor can balance comedy and seriousness, or be as magentic a screen presence as Sean...in his first four films. Unfortunately, his performance takes a dive in his last two (or three, if we're acknowledging the existence of NSNA) and he ages significantly. Still, we wouldn't be where we are now without him.
3. Moore - Fun, suave and the best at humor. His understated manner in more emotional moments is severely underrated. The quintessential ladies's man. He also ages surprisingly well, up until the weird mess that is AVTAK. Sadly, he hung around for one film too many.
4. Craig - Not as Fleming accuarate as Dalton, but he does maintain the intensity and hard edge. The only flaw is that the Bond Begins/Old Man Bond angle is used too much, especially when Craig himself is neither particularly young nor old in any of his films thus far.
5. Brosnan - A Moore tribute act, but an enjoyable one. Bond does feel a little too superhuman in this era though. The scripts don't give Brosnan much to sink his teeth into, but he does well with the slightly flanderized 007.
6. Lazenby - good at fight scenes and the emotional moments, mediocre at the rest. In his defence, he only got one film, and I'm sure he would've improved with time. His agent definitely robbed him, that's for sure.
2. Roger Moore
3. Timothy Dalton
4. Peirce Brosnan
5. George Lazenby
6. Craig
1. TIMOTHY DALTON (-)
I can't imagine this will ever change. Beyond his perfect portrayal of Fleming's character, I love the reality of Tim's Bond. He can show warmth, have fun, care for friends. He laughs more than any other Bond. His scene with Kara at the fair is one of my favorites in the series, believe it or not. And of course, he's a killer. His job is generally to kill, and he doesn't necessarily love it, but he's bloody good at it. The depth to his character, and the believability it lends, makes Tim the deadliest Bond as far as I'm concerned.
2. ROGER MOORE (+1)
When I looked at my old post, I couldn't believe Rog was in third. He's amazing, and I don't know if any other set of films are more rewatchable than his seven. He does Sean's untouchable superman stuff perfectly, and also adds some humanity in his disgust at his villains and concern for his allies. I don't know how he did it, but he could take some pretty big tonal inconsistencies in his films and glue it all together and make it work.
3. DANIEL CRAIG (-1)
He's now number three on my list, but I don't love him any less. My favorite films and performances of his are in Spectre and Quantum, where to me he's just a perfect Bond. Absolute confidence and badassery. His relationships with women in those films are also excellent. I love his scene chatting with Camille on the plane, or his redundant explanation of how to use a gun with Dr Swann. I'm less a fan in principle of the brutish, 36-year-old Rookie Bond, or the 43-year-old Elderly Bond, but that's in the writing. Craig killed in Casino Royale and Skyfall as well.
4. SEAN CONNERY (+1)
I like Sean a lot. He's pretty undeniably the coolest guy on Earth in most of his films (sorry, YOLT), but while that gets you pretty damn far, I'd have to say he's little more than that. As far as I can see, none of his relationships come off as all that meaningful, and I don't think he'd have pulled off OHMSS. And I don't quite buy that he's any deadlier than anyone else who's played Bond--Sean wouldn't have done the Pushkin confrontation as well, and I can't think of any scene of his that Roger couldn't have done. Sean's Bond just doesn't seem to care all that much about his missions. I can't imagine him being as outraged as Roger was with Orlov or Zorin. That said, he was the coolest guy on Earth, and I think he's gone up for on the strength of DAF and NSNA. His comic skills are really right up there with Sir Roger much of the time.
5. GEORGE LAZENBY (-1)
Looks awesome in some pretty questionable clothing, knows how to fight, has perhaps the best chemistry with Lois Maxwell, there's much to love. But as we all know, he wasn't an actor. I think he brought it when it counted, but it was actually the more mundane dialogue that tripped him up. Well, that and the line, "My name is Bond. James Bond." But the fear on his face at the skating rink is as good as anyone else's work in the series.
6. PIERCE BROSNAN (-)
I actually like him more than I used to. Most of the time, he does well enough with his material. But his movies are generally not very good, and he can't manage the tonal shifts like Roger. He just overdoes it. And when he's not overdoing it, he's performing well, but his Bond is just a pastiche of what people who have never seen a Bond movie think James Bond is like.
Lazenby
Dalton/Moore
Craig
Brosnan
007 Dalton
002 Connery
003 Lazenby
004 Moore
005 Brosnan
006 Craig
2. George Lazenby
3. Sean Connery/Pierce Brosnan
5. Roger Moore
6. Daniel Craig