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Craig's performance though is fine.
For me the strongsuit of Fleming is exactly this: Bond having two 'chambers'. He does have emotions (quite a lot in fact) but he only has time for them at the moments he can. It's exactly why he doesn't want to work with women they destract him from the one thing (his job) to the other (emotional involvement). Bond isn't a womanizer in the sense that he 'just likes to have sex' with the ladies, he's always more interested, but also knows his job will stand in the way. I don't think Fleming's Bond ever saw women as 'disposeable pleasures' at all. That's something put in later, as a perception of the general public.
Take his reaction after the beating in Casino Royale (book). First he breaks down towards Mathis, but only after his ordeal and after he knows Le Chiffre isn't a thread anymore. Only after that he's got time for Vesper in the way he wants. It's one of the things I love about the movie as well, Craig portrays this devision very well, getting angry with her for not giving him the money (professional) and acting on it (knife) but when there's no danger he has a place for emotions (shower).
Another example is the book MR. First he's annoyed by Gala, then he sees her as a professional, then he's annoyed by the fact that she doesn't seem interested but he puts that away when work is at hand. At the end he hopes for a romantic relationship, only to find out she's already engaged. He doesn't persue her after that, because he respects her and her fiancee.
Now coming back to Pierce's Bond, there's one example that says it all: when he chases Elektra she presumes he won't harm her because they slept together (overstating 'love' there a bit Elektra, but ok), but he's cold as ice when he pulls the trigger (I never miss). That would've been perfect (two chambers, there's a submarine to catch) but no, Bro's Bond finds time to bend over and see how she's doing (rather dead old boy). It's out of tune. Out of Bond. Same goes for Teri Hatcher's death. He knows he's in danger, he knows it's a set-up but still he prefers to mourn (what exactly is anyone's guess, but that's more because of Teri's miscasting).
Sure Sean's Bond runs towards Tilly after the hat-kill, but that's more of a defiant act as he knows he won't be able to get away. He doesn't show too much emotion, he just radiates an inner rage about her death.
Sean does these things perfectly. Same goes when he's talking to Dr. No. Yes, there are emotions, but not of loss, but of rage. And he uses it to rile up Dr. No. Even better, when he's forced to inform Domino about the loss of her brother he first puts on his sunglasses, making sure that emotions don't mix into the job.
Good post. And I agree.
Is Bond 'on duty' however in the Paris wheel in Wienna? Or is he in apparent danger in Muhajedins village? I don't think Bond's behavior towards Kara was ever out of place in relation to Fleming's depiction of him.
I don't mind him courting her, but he's a bit inconsistent at times. He's very good on the airbase ('We're free! Kara, where in the middle of a Russian airbase!'). But when he's supposed to be harsh to her when he's going after the opium and she wants to come along, he seems more confused then in control.
Character on a mission pauses to reflect on the VHS tape in his hand of the (dead) love of his life's apparent interrogation. Then quickly moves on.
Well played, tells something about the current state of the character. Bond stays on point, on mission. A quick callback to Vesper, not so different from the Fleming novels where he could share Bond's thoughts more easily. Bond is confronted by these things but doesn't wear them on his sleeve.
Connery and Brosnan had a couple of scenes in their Naval uniform, but with Roger we spend an extended amount of time with him in a Naval setting.
I will say that excellent though Craig generally is, there are elements of this in his SP portrayal as well, namely his emotional reaction and lunge at Blofeld (when his legs were taken out) after White's death tape was shown. Similarly the "Come on!!!!!" as he was attempting to recorrect the trajectory of the wingless plane as it hurtled towards the woods. A far cry (for me) from his pitch perfect ball buster scene. These are minor quibbles however. I thought he handled the Vesper tape incident just right (that whole L'Americaine scene is the highlight of his performance for me, right down to the mouse).
Indeed. Cheers!
I'd like to see Craig in the uniform before he leaves, but I feel it would be a bit out of left field now.
I know they've done a lot of delving into Bond's past but I would like to see Bond's military career play a role in a future film. Maybe he meets someone on a mission that he knew when he was serving (a villain? although bit of a Trevelayn retread) or maybe the villain could be head of a PMC and Bond goes undercover using his real military record to win his trust.
I agree with this. I don't think it's just the setting either, when you see him leading the troops into battle you really buy it. I think Moore was really credible as an ex officer sort, because of how he carries himself and his naturally commanding voice/presence. It makes sense. With Connery it was believeable too but he was always a bit rougher round the edges, and while it was a nice nod seeing Brosnan in the uniform I could never actually picture him as an RN commander. But Moore fit Commander Bond perfectly.
I'm on it.
There, I've said it. Better than Connery, who clearly comes second in this regard with some wonderful moments with Bernard Lee.
Brosnan is actually my least favorite Bond, but I can't deny his particular chemistry with Dench. It crackles more than DC's interactions IMO.
GE - the introduction of Dame Judy, and boy does she let Bond know his place. Sets the tone for their relationship and is very well handled.
TND - the trust, the faith, shown by M under pressure from the entire British Navy. She doesn't get many moments here but Dench makes every post a winner.
TWINE - the entanglment of personal and professional lives as both M and Bond come up against Elektra King. I maintain that TWINE did MI6 under attack better than Skyfall.
DAD - yes, poor film, but those trust issues rise again when Bond is left to rot in North Korea. That scene between Bond and M in the abandoned underground (before everything goes to **** with the invisible car) is first class and one of the best narrative threads in the movie. Should've been explored more.
Definitely agree. I think Dench was the best M and I loved her and Brosnan's relationship. She was good with Craig too but I wasn't a fan of the whole surrogate mum dynamic at all. Brosnan wouldn't have been so hurt by her ordering Moneypenny to shoot in SF (a terrible call but still, Bond knows he's expendable). He'd have understood as he did in DAD. They had their tense moments but there was an underlying respect there that never got too soppy/emotional, and they both understood eachother enough to never let that tension turn into a petty spat.