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Yep I thought so as well. I remember a thread about this, and I think if you want to really reach and connect OP's PTS to the rest of the film, I believe Polo is played in both.
Damn, that's true. That PTS is much clearer in my mind and I can't see anything at all that connects it to the film.
I think the implication is that Bond is on holiday in Miami after his mission in the PTS. From what I recall Felix says something along the lines of 'must be slipping letting them get that close to you' or something which I think is meant to be a vague reference to it.
I haven't watched it in a while though, so I must admit I'm not 100%.
FYEO and OP are the only two.
The factory Bond blows up has no relation to Goldfinger’s scheme. Bond’s killing of Jaques Bouvier doesn’t pan out in Operation: Thunderball. Destroying the Arms Bazaar doesn’t any impact on Carver’s plans. And Dryden being a traitor that sells secrets of MI6 never factors in Le Chiffre and the organization.
This feels like it’s veering into “thinking way too hard about it” territory.
Yes of course, great point.
Okay yeah, fair point. It's quite a strange choice for the film really as it makes Bond look like a total hypocrite when he tells her to 'dig two graves'! :D Almost makes you wonder if linking the two was unintentional.
In CR's case especially though the film is a story about Bond himself, so that we're introduced to him, his (new for this film) rather nasty world, and that he's earning his double 0s, is very much part of the story.
I think my definition would be whether you could take the PTS in question and stick it onto another film, or swap it with another 'unconnected' one, and for it to be impossible to tell (apart from differences in lead actor, music etc. of course! :) )
I think you could swap FYEO's with, say, OP's and not spot the change; whereas if you swapped TB's and GF's then you'd have some hanging references to Bouvar and Miami not quite connecting up. And CR's wouldn't fit on any other film. TND's wouldn't either, because although it's not massively connected, you are introduced to the GPS, the MI6 situation room and the characters of Gupta and Admiral Roebuck.
Someone here pointed out that Blofeld was the one setting out for revenge, not Bond. So it actually fits.
That's actually true to be fair... It's still somewhat negated by the fact that Bond later on in this same film kicks someone off a cliff to avenge Luigi, possibly the most forgettable ally in the entire series...
Not that I think much thought was put into the FYEO script, but still...
It is funny that in the climax as she’s about to kill Kristatos, Bond says “be prepared to dig those two graves”, someone should have reminded him that she already killed people, one of them to save his ass on the cliff.
To be fair, while the line is in the short story the sentiment on Bond's part is very different. He's basically being sarcastic to Judy, and while it's clear he doesn't necessarily want her to be there, it's not due to wanting to 'save her soul' but due to how it will impact him. Actually if anything the fact that it becomes more directly a revenge mission probably makes it easier for him to go through with the whole thing, knowing Fleming's Bond.
It's amazing how much Fleming material FYEO adapts, and yet how little it actually understands the character. Even if they wanted to lean into the idea of Bond warning the Bond girl about the pitfalls of revenge, why go about it like that? Bond's still a trained killer after all. He'd more likely be sympathetic to Melina's desire for revenge in this scenario, and would even say so. Perhaps he might not want her to get involved due to the fact that it might kill her ultimately (and maybe him too), but I don't think any other incarnation of Bond would start waxing lyrical and blabber on about the pitfalls of killing someone.
Richard Maibaum said that about the execution of FYEO as well. He said only Connery could make it seem real. I think he’s a bit too blame as well, he didn’t write much memorable things for the movie.
While I understand that Moore was given things to do in his first two movies that were more 'Connery-esque' than what his Bond would later become, I really think he was capable of leaning into that harder edge needed for such a scene to work properly. Actually if the writing had been stronger he could have done something very interesting with it. His Bond was distinct in many ways from Connery's, but he was still a man who killed people for a living, and understood when it had to be done. I mean, look at the scene in TSWLM when Anya figures out that Bond killed her boyfriend. Moore's Bond still has that hard edge to him, that 'it was kill or be killed' mentality, and yet ultimately the script has him say outright that he did kill him, so there's still that sense of humanity there. Moore plays it so well too.
Again, there are so many more interesting ways that the scene, and ultimately this subplot of the film, could have been written. Moore could have great in a FYEO that actually had a well thought out script.
Typical Richard Maibaum: blaming others for his writing shortcomings.
Writers tend to do that sometimes, haha. That said I respect Maibaum for his contributions to Bond. I just think FYEO is a terrible film.
Yeah, QOS is actually closer to that book with Bond trying to help prepare Camille for what to expect when she makes her kill.
Good point. It's difficult because they're both getting revenge in a way, but Blofeld is indeed the one who actually sets out to get it.
Also a good point! :)