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Comments
Yeah. This had potential to be the most atmospheric and cold Bond film ever, but it just couldn't nail it. Maybe if it were a standalone Bond film, it would have accomplished that.
Yes, this part of the film fell down a bit for me. I did enjoy the film but the script still needed some work I feel to make it tighter and the the villain's motivations post the purge of the Spectre leadership clearer. All films start at the writing stage and any problems in the script really need to ironed out there before proceeding with anything else. Sadly the writing in Bond films these days seems to be the thing Eon spend the least money and attention on. That's a shame as everything in the film springs from the writing so if there are issues there they will show up in the film too.
Exactly! We can only hope for better execution of scripts, from here on out.
But compare it to OHMSS. That script is so much stronger and tighter. (And Fleming himself was not the best plotter.)
OHMSS has a pretty solid script and even improves on the book (ie. Getting Tracy involved in the climax). But again, not everything about a great script works onscreen. Bond handing in his resignation in that film works on paper for example, but Lazenby’s bizarrely wooden acting in that segment makes it seem silly for me. Same for the tension during the Bray scenes (I feel Lazenby goes a bit too full on playing Bray we lose Bond slightly, which undercuts the tension).
I think with Safin’s dialogue in much of the later scenes of NTTD there’s an element of ‘you can type this sh*t but you can’t speak it’. A lot of it becomes a bit flowery and heavy handed even though it’s probably fine on paper.
Yes and no. I think OHMSS can be criticised. When does Tracy fall in love with Bond? They don't really write it, they just put a bit saying 'insert montage here'. Where's the threat of Blofeld's plan? It's not even really established if he can do what he says. It's a good story but I think there are flaws.
I think NTTD's story holds up remarkably well. There are flaws there too; -for me there's not enough of a story for Nomi- but there's a lot going on and it all works.
Well, SPECTRE has the same issue. The threat is quite vague.
I miss the bombs and the lasers.
To be honest, with all its problems, Spectre had a lurking villain in Mr. Hinx..and that memorable train fight and the film is more Bondian. Also, strangely...in NTTD, although, Bond travels, I don't really get the sense he's travelling.
Cue the commentary on why NTTD is all a dream.
I feel the travelogue aspect of SP in a way we hadn't since QoS.
But I wish they had spent a lot more time in the desert crater. I wanted a lot more DN and creepy hotel rooms and staff, and Bond and Madeleine falling in love...and a lot less people running around London doing whatever it was they were doing.
Perhaps C and M should have shown up at the crater. You could still give Ralph Fiennes a proper showdown.
SP is uniquely frustrating in the franchise.
True. I agree. For me, though...I still prefer it to NTTD, even with those absent improvements you mentioned.
That could be good. Or even intercutting from Bond in the crater to M confronting C in London, with Bond having cut the Nine Eyes feed from the crater to allow M to make his move or something, I don't know.
I quite like M having his own baddie to deal with, I think that works.
But then, I think about it and if someone said you could have the climax inside the old MI6 building about to be demolished, and that means Bond and M can be kind of in the same place and M can take Blofeld away etc. , I'd probably go for that! The problem with Spectre always seems to be that when I look at it on paper it's quite good and I can't think of anything better, but it doesn't quite come off onscreen for some reason! :D