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It's so easy to blame Brosnan for being a bad Bond because of Die Another Day. Die Another Day wasn't Brosnan's fault. It was Lee Tamahori's fault. The man who believed in the codename theory and wanted Sean Connery to play Bond's father. Much like Roger Moore, Brosnan is unfairly crucified for being the worst when he's not. Yes it's sad Dalton couldn't do more than two movie but that's not Brosnan's fault, nor is Die Another Day. You don't blame the actor for the poor quality film. That usually goes to the Director and Producers. Neither Lazenby or Brosnan are perfect actors but they each did their thing and left.
It's called trends. One decade won't be the same as the last. 70's Bond wasn't the same as 60's Bond. 90's Bond sure wasn't 80's Bond either. Things change.
They changed his background a bit for Craig's rebooted Bond but Bond was always meant to be a special forces operative as a young man. To which point he moved up the ranks in the Royal Navy and was eventually recruited by MI6.
I've never once blamed Brosnan for the quality of his films. However I do hold him accountable for what I consider to be 4 of the dullest and most uninspired performances in the entire series. His was the only Bond I just flat-out didn't like on screen. Bond was a badass spy who just so happened to have tremendous amounts of style. Brosnan played him as a snarky, unlikable, effeminate pansy who had to try to be cool rather than let it flow naturally. Again just my opinion.
Even Moore, in his younger appearances(i.e. LALD and TMWTGG), when he wanted to came off as more threatening than Brosnan. Maybe it was Brosnan's thin and soft voice, his scrawny build, or just his lack of gravitas as an actor. Whatever the reason I found him to be far and above the worst casting decision in the franchise.
That pretty much sums it up for me.
Vesper calls Bond an "SAS type" when they first meet in CR but his background is never actually confirmed until SF when M is writing his obituary. In it, we have confirmation that Bond is a Commander in the British Navy. I was really pleased about this as I hated the thought that Bond was an SAS commando.
In 2006 they released an updated military record for Daniel Craig's Bond that stated he was a Special Forces operative for 3 years before moving onto defense intelligence. I'll post the link below. I'm pretty sure Fleming's Bond also served in Special Forces during WW2. Either way Bond was always envisioned as a badass man of action. Not just an armchair commander.
http://www.mi6-hq.com/sections/articles/bond_21_007_dossier2.php3
Yes but even with the updated bio for Bond, the Special Forces unit he was a member of is still part of the Royal Navy.
The SAS are attached to the British Army and are based out of Hereford, for which the rank of Commander does not exist (I think the army equivalent is now Lieutenant Colonel).
Bond has never been assigned or seconded to the army.
In the bio for Craig's Bond, he was supposed to be ex-SAS. Which I find hard to believe, given his problems with authority.
That comment has just made me realise that that phrase applied to Moore through and through. Yes Moore has a fairly commanding physical presence onscreen but he doesn't really come off quite well as a "man of action" (though I did like his leadership in TSWLM during the climax).
Out of interest @Doubleohhseven have you seen The Fourth Protocol with Brosnan in which he plays a KGB agent? It's not bad.
The bio makes no mention of SAS.
I've always seen these as the other way around. For me, Bond is a guy who revels in the finer things in life. Whether it's food, cars, women, drinking, gambling, he's a bon vivant, much like his creator. It's what gets him through the day and helps him with the filthy task of killing. He's certainly not what you define as a cliched SAS type.
That said Moore and Brosnan ARE charismatic likeable actors, which make up for their overall lack of physical edge.
Doesn't it, I thought it did. :-? Either way, that does change Craig's Bond being ill though out.
EDIT:
You are right it doesn't:
http://jamesbond.wikia.com/wiki/James_Bond_(Daniel_Craig)
But my point still stands, not matter what he served in pre-MI6.
Any chance to stick the knife into Craig eh @Major? ;-)
EDIT: I actually blame the writers (probably Purvis & Wade) for the whole "former SAS type" line in CR. That's where the confusion lies. It should have been "former Special Forces/Royal Marines"
I know I stand corrected. But he was still Special Forces which still makes him, as Sir Roger said in Boat Trip " a badass MoFo".
I still think Moore trumps Brosnan in being a man of action. He got softer as he got older but in his first 3 films Moore was a force to be reckoned with. The best example is the way he quickly adapts to field commander after he frees the troops in TSWLM. No jokes but all business. That's one of the reasons I love TSWLM. It showed us more of the military James Bond than any other film.
No I never saw The Forth Protocol but I'll have to give it a watch one of these days.
I guess it comes down to perception. I saw Bond as a tough soldier as a young man who got into the finer things a little later in life. To me Bond works best when the "perfect gentleman" image he is associated with is a facade hiding the nasty bastard boarder-line thug he is underneath. Connery and Craig perfected this.
Don't even get me started with Brosnan and those damn machine-guns that had 1000 round clips. The difference was Moore had a dozens of troops backing him up in TSWLM. Brosnan would take on armies by himself. Atleast in Skyfall Craig's Bond had to rely on boobie-traps and home field advantage. Plus he wasn't up against nearly as many men as say Bond in TND.
And in terms of physical action Brosnan doesn't hold a candle to Connery, Craig, Lazman, or even the Daltonator.
I kinda like that as his nickname. Maybe it'll stick. ;)
I'd say in terms of running Broz is on par with Dalton but not so much with Laz, T1000 Craig or (early) Connery.
One of my biggest gripes in TND is how Brosnan handles guns. From the sideways shooting in the PTS to the twin handed and, later on, one handed shootout on the stealth boat.
I suspect someone on set was saying "hold the gun sideways Pierce, that looks brilliant" :D
He does it again during TWINE at the caviar factory.
I don't blame Brosnan for this before anyone thinks I'm sticking the boot in just for the sake of it. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of both the director and, more importantly, the stunt co-ordinator to make it look as realistic as possible. It all comes across as cartoonish. Almost like playing a game of COD where you're continually shooting from the hip.
The climax of SF at least gets it right in this respect. Craig is shouldering the gun correctly and takes aim down the sights when firing.
I there was a thread a couple years ago where members stages the 6 man battle-royale. I wrote a pretty in depth sequence. Brosnan gets demolished by the other 5 actors after complaining about his paycheck, followed by Moore getting knocked off, followed by Dalton. Leaving the three "physical Bonds". Craig and Lazman double team Connery and kill him. Then it's mano-e-mano. Even though I prefer Craig infinitely over Lazenby I gave it to Lazman. The underdog gets his day. I think I'm gonna look up that thread.
Did anyone ever find evidence of Brosnan having a pop at Lazenby, when he was hired for GE? I know @DoubleOhhSeven said he saw/heard/dreamt it, but I feel until we have evidence I'm going to have to stick with the notion it was George who kicked it off. The ruddy scallywag.
The lengths some people will go to defend their favorite actors never ceases to amaze me. I know what I saw and heard. Google it if you're going to get so defensive. The Sun Nov. 10th 1995.