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Comments
I feel Pleasence tried to portray Blofeld as insane. He may have been that, but not in the traditional sense of the word.
Bang on
You're judging Blofeld as a comic villain, although I'm doing a disservice to comics as a lot of comic book villains are more than just a deformity.
The Fleming Blofeld was an enigma, a force of nature. The early Dawson/Pohlman version embodied this. Think about how threatening he is in that seminal scene opposite Klebb and Kronsteen, or how ruthless he is in the TB meeting. Pleasance doesn't come close to this level. He's a visual icon, but not a character.
'they told me you were assassinated in Hong Kong'
'we're now impregnable'
'extortion is my business'
delivery is everything.
Have you noticed how he tends to speak in soundbites? Very deliberate.
Sometimes I wonder if Pohlman could have played Blofeld in the flesh. But voice actors are not always good actors in the flesh. Would his face have matched the voice?
Agreed. Blofeld was basically the Satan of the Bond universe. Like Tanaka said (and I paraphrase), a demon with a human face. The novels were great to depict him, a monster with a superior intellect and perfectly capable of being a physical match for Bond, in spite of his age.
False. In the novels Blofeld can get into a fist fight with Bond, a trained 00 agent, and reasonably expect to get on top. Blofeld is an experienced weightlifter and very strong, he himself executed some traitors in his organization, including at least once by garrot. For a man of his age, he is very much a physical threat.
Menace. Sadly Charles Gray got the " campy" Blofeld, no disrespect to him
He was a fine actor and could be really nasty, when called upon, but I think
Both script and Director with DAF, were going for laughs and fun.
That seems to describe Moonraker more than anything else. It makes no sense to go for laughs and fun right after Bond's wife dies and the series is set up for one of the best revenge movies of all time. Don't know how intentional it was, but they really introduced the camp that Roger Moore often gets blamed for.
Wasn't in it. :)) As for actors playing characters, we all have our favourites and
Perhaps, that helps cloud our judgement. ;) as I love Savalas in anything. :)
Early films are fantastic, Infact I think Craig needs the same type of " Cruel"
One liners, not the "fun" humour of Roger Moore.
No other actor has.
DP is a pantomime Blofeld -
1) A cat
2) Telly Savalas
I love his FRWL and TB portrayal, but Telly takes the cake every time.
Not at all. I share the same opinion. :)
Im with you guys on this one.
1. Savalas
2. Waltz
3. Dawson/Pohlmann/Wiseman
4. Pleasance
5. Von Sydow
6. Gray
7. Hollis/Rietty
1. Telly Savalas (OHMSS)
Savalas' Blofeld is my personal favorite on-screen Bond villain. He matches 007's cool, and also isn't afraid to get his hands dirty! I love that Telly's Blofeld is the most hands-on; I'm glad we got an actual brawl between Bond and Blofeld in OHMSS. Anyways, great voice, great look, and certainly a force to be reckoned with - Savalas' Blofeld tops my list!
2. Anthony Dawson/Eric Pohlman (FRWL, TB)
The original, unseen Blofeld is a darn good one. The voice is really good, and the whole mystery factor is extremely beneficial. You don't have to see his face to know this guy means busines. There aren't many, but his scenes from FRWL and TB are some of the best in the two movies.
3. Christoph Waltz (SP)
Waltz provides a solid, new Blofeld for a new century. Though I prefer a cooler, more menacing Blofeld (sorry but I thought Waltz lacked menace), this incarnation is still good in its own right. Waltz's quirkiness made it unique, while still presenting the character as a major threat. Not quite my favorite, but still a good one.
4. Donald Pleasence (YOLT)
I think Pleasence used to be my favorite Blofeld a long time ago. Anyway, I've placed him in the middle, which definitely reflects my current opinion of him. The scene where is face is finally revealed is excellent; they definitely got the look right. Unfortunately, he's just not intimidating; his voice is meh, and he just isn't remarkable other than the look.
5. Max Von Sydow (NSNA)
Really forgettable. If I'm not mistaken NSNA barely gave this Blofeld any scenes, right? I've only watched it once.
6. Charles Gray (DAF)
Didn't care for Gray's Blofeld at all. He wasn't remotely menacing or interesting to me. Having him dress in drag is just a big face-palm moment for me, and all of his other humor fell flat to me. Can't really think of any redeeming qualities.
7. John Hollis/Robert Rietty (FYEO)
This one is last pretty much by default, if nothing else than for the constant annoying laughter. Mind you I still really enjoy FYEO's PTS; if anything, making Blofeld obnoxious here made it more enjoyable when Bond finally offed him. Still, the actual character is just made ridiculous here. From the dumb laughs to the delicatessen line, it just has to be last place. On the bright side, the cat they got for this scene is my favorite of Blofeld's cats.