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Rene Mathis the Kerim Bay of the Modern Bond?

JWESTBROOKJWESTBROOK
edited December 2011 in Actors Posts: 5,745
Quantum of Solace and From Russia With Love are two of my top-re-watched Bond movies, so naturally I notice some similarities. But on re-watching From Russia With Love today, it would be an easy belief to say that Mathis' character in Craig's films was modeled after Kerim Bay.

For both characters:

-They have alot of connections, especially in their areas of operation (Bay in Turkey, Mathis in South America)
-They provide alot of information to Bond
-They act as allied contacts
-You cant call either of them 'good' people
-They both seem to be annoyed by the women in their life
-They share a very similar relationship with Bond. (For Mathis, more so in QoS)

Do you think the similarities were intentional or coincidental? Craig has said FRWL is one of his favorite Bond films, and it appears he and Mendes are using its influence on Skyfall.

Comments

  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    I don't think Mathis was modelled after Kerim Bay. They took the character from the pages of Fleming's novels and though they altered a few things, I don't think they had Kerim Bay in mind when they did.
  • JWESTBROOKJWESTBROOK
    edited December 2011 Posts: 5,745
    DarthDimi wrote:
    I don't think Mathis was modelled after Kerim Bay. They took the character from the pages of Fleming's novels and though they altered a few things, I don't think they had Kerim Bay in mind when they did.

    Forgive me for the lack of knowledge, but isn't Kerim Bay in the FRWL novel? Perhaps Fleming modeled him as a similar character. Maybe not even consciously.

    And the similarities are really quite prevalent.
  • jackdaggerjackdagger
    Posts: 498
    I don't know if they were modeled after each other, but they are similar characters that seem to be a staple in a lot of Bond movies. Draco and Zukovsky kind of fit that description too. :)
  • SAMSAM
    Posts: 107
    I'm not certain what happens to Rene Mathis in the novels, though I am dissapointed that Mathis (Giancarlo Giannini - great performances incidentally) was killed off in Quantum of Solace.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    They can always claim it was someone else wearing a Mathis mask and ... oops, wrong franchise. #:-S
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