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Bond movies that used their locations to full effect
AceHole
Belgium, via Britain
One of the aspects I always find most interesting when any new 007-outing is in the works is where it will take place.
Some of the films have used their locations well (or even made them iconic to the point that they are forever tied to the Bond universe (e.g. Bahamas, Jamaica, Swiss mountaintop hotel), and others… well, not so much
:-\"
Which do you think used their locations best / worst..?
(Before anyone screams bl**dy murder, these are not my opinions on the films as a whole, or how good they are as Bondfilms)
GF - for me the locations are the one weak point. Nothing stands out, really, and Switzerland is used sparingly. Makes up for it with great set design.
MR - one of the worst offenders of the lot, this one seems to serve as a globetrotting tourist information film, chiefly for Venice and Rio. It’s just set-piece after set piece, location wise. I have a soft sport for MR however, as it IS still very pretty to look at :D
TLD - ok, I love this film, it's one of my favorites. Gibraltar & the English countryside make a great appearance and the 'sniper scene' in Bratislava (it was actually filmed in Vienna - the sniper sequence was shot just outside the smaller Viennese city-operahouse on the Wäringerstrasse - as was all of the action in Slovakia) is, for me, one of the highlights of the whole 007 series.
But Vienna, one of my favorite cities in the world, is criminally underused. Just the Prater (fairground) and some exterior shot of people waltzing about with the Royal gardens for a background?! Are you kidding me EoN??
Not using Vienna's atmospheric, baroque beauty that just oozes history is SUCH a waste. One of the great missed opportunities of the series, I feel.
TND/TWINE/DAD - I lump these together because they really don't use locations at all. They all go like this:
Exterior shot(s) of some place Bond has supposedly arrived, but other than the odd foreign sounding accent you could be forgiven for thinking Brosnan had been on a Pinewood sound stage all along...
The ones that I thought did well with their surroundings are:
FRWL - uses Istanbul & the Bosporus beautifully to set the atmosphere - filmed not just in the standard tourist places but some of the more everyday streets as well. You really get a sense of Bond being isolated if it were not for his one ally, Kerim Bay.
TB - takes it's time to really immerse you (no pun intended) in the Bahamas, I feel, with great aerial shots, secondary locations and gives us more than just 'beach/hotel/bad guys hideout'
FYEO - I thought Corfu and the Cortina locations were used really well, giving us more than just sets & establishing aerial shots. You really feel that Bond is there, trying to piece together the info. Arguably the best use of locations in the franchise...
Some of the films have used their locations well (or even made them iconic to the point that they are forever tied to the Bond universe (e.g. Bahamas, Jamaica, Swiss mountaintop hotel), and others… well, not so much
:-\"
Which do you think used their locations best / worst..?
(Before anyone screams bl**dy murder, these are not my opinions on the films as a whole, or how good they are as Bondfilms)
GF - for me the locations are the one weak point. Nothing stands out, really, and Switzerland is used sparingly. Makes up for it with great set design.
MR - one of the worst offenders of the lot, this one seems to serve as a globetrotting tourist information film, chiefly for Venice and Rio. It’s just set-piece after set piece, location wise. I have a soft sport for MR however, as it IS still very pretty to look at :D
TLD - ok, I love this film, it's one of my favorites. Gibraltar & the English countryside make a great appearance and the 'sniper scene' in Bratislava (it was actually filmed in Vienna - the sniper sequence was shot just outside the smaller Viennese city-operahouse on the Wäringerstrasse - as was all of the action in Slovakia) is, for me, one of the highlights of the whole 007 series.
But Vienna, one of my favorite cities in the world, is criminally underused. Just the Prater (fairground) and some exterior shot of people waltzing about with the Royal gardens for a background?! Are you kidding me EoN??
Not using Vienna's atmospheric, baroque beauty that just oozes history is SUCH a waste. One of the great missed opportunities of the series, I feel.
TND/TWINE/DAD - I lump these together because they really don't use locations at all. They all go like this:
Exterior shot(s) of some place Bond has supposedly arrived, but other than the odd foreign sounding accent you could be forgiven for thinking Brosnan had been on a Pinewood sound stage all along...
The ones that I thought did well with their surroundings are:
FRWL - uses Istanbul & the Bosporus beautifully to set the atmosphere - filmed not just in the standard tourist places but some of the more everyday streets as well. You really get a sense of Bond being isolated if it were not for his one ally, Kerim Bay.
TB - takes it's time to really immerse you (no pun intended) in the Bahamas, I feel, with great aerial shots, secondary locations and gives us more than just 'beach/hotel/bad guys hideout'
FYEO - I thought Corfu and the Cortina locations were used really well, giving us more than just sets & establishing aerial shots. You really feel that Bond is there, trying to piece together the info. Arguably the best use of locations in the franchise...
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Comments
Here are some of my favorite films location wise:
For Your Eyes Only
As you say, this is probably the film that more than any other really stands out for its use of locations. They are all beautifully shot and used to their full potential. The car chase in the "Spanish" (but in reality Greek) countryside is a superb example of a location used to full effect. And the settings are so varied, from greek agricultural landscape, to coastline, underwater scenes (convincingly filmed in studio), the spectacular Italian Dolomites in snow contrasting the sunny mediterranean greek Mountains… Its pure brilliance! And this variety is formidably used to provide a great array of different action scenes.The Greek monastery is probably one of my favorite finale settings in the franchises history.
Octopussy
Its in no way the most realistic and trustworthy portrayal of India, but that's not necessarily an obligation with Bond. And the Indian locations provide a fantastic and colorful backdrop that elevates the film to a whole new level for me. The German countryside is neither spectacular or particularly beautiful, but just because of that it provides a very effective contrast.
Quantum of Solace
A film that is almost entirely filmed on location. From Italy, to Haiti, Austria and Bolivia, the locations seem to be designed to match the tone of the film. Not every setting is particularly beautiful, but have a gritty, realistic feel to them, which gives the film a unique appearance and style.
Casino Royale
The shots of Italy (beautiful Lago di Como and Venezia) and Montenegro are perfectly picturesque and glamorous. Bahamas does also look fantastic, both in the foot chase (which is supposed to resemble Madagascar) and the scenes at the beach hotel.
You Only Twice
The Japanese locations can be seen both as this films greatest asset and its biggest problem. The film does occasionally feel more like a travelogue and tourist commercial than a spy story at times, which hurts the flow of the film. The settings still give the film a fantastically beautiful and enjoyably exotic backdrop though.
The Man With the Golden Gun
One of the sole reasons why I find pleasure in rewatching this film, is because of Scaramangas brilliant hideout in Phuket! I certainly wouldn't mind living there myself!
From Russia With Love
As you said, the locations of Istanbul and the Bosporus, together with Balkan is perfectly used to provide the film with an atmosphere that oozes espionage. Venezia is glamorous as always.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Piz Gloria and the surrounding mountains in Switzerland is a coop for this film. Absolutely breathtaking! And the ski chases and action scenes in and around cosy mountain village Murren, are some of the best in the series. The Portuguese coastline isn't too bad either.
I will moderate myself to only one dishonorable mention, although there are many candidates:
Diamonds Are Forever
I apologize to any American reading this, but I find gray Las Vegas and its even grayer desert surroundings very boring and unappealing. Makes the entire film seem even more pale and dated than it already is...
- Thunderball (those underwater pictures are just grrrreat)
- Die Another Day (Cuba and Iceland <3)
- You Only Live Twice (Japan (sadly they did not take the novel location (Blofelds castle))
- For Your Eyes Only (Corfu and the Cortina locations)
- The Man With The Golden Gun (Scaramangas island)
When a location is used (in a 007 film) as a 'main' location it should do a few things:
- Not merely stage the scene(s) in the tourist areas. This is MR's biggest sin.
- Make the place look and feel genuine, with some kind of atmosphere (See FRWL, OHMSS, FYEO, CR). At the opposite end, DAF, TND and TWINE really just feel like they were set in or outside a film studio, for the most part.
- Bond is a spy, right? So let him snoop around some of these great cities and investiate his surroundings before jumping into the next action set piece (which is mostly filmed on a sound stage anyway), we should have seen far more of Tokyo, Caïro, Rio, Paris, Vienna and Shanghai, to name but a few...
You are spot on. I would add CR and TB to your grand list.
DAF, DAD, TWINE could have been just as easily shot on a backlot at Pinewood. And MR does feel like a travel brochure.
I feel SF could have done a bit more with Shangai (and Macau...), we don't really see any of the city and apart from the establishing shot over central Shangai it could have been almost anywhere.
That's what I like about Istanbul in FRWL & Cortina/Corfu in FYEO - you really felt as though Bond was there.
There are a number of things to enjoy about the sixties Bond movies, not least because they made one feel that one was travelling the world, alongside 007.
From, "James Bond - The Legacy" by John Cork and Bruce Scivally;
"Like Bond himself, the films would have a unique stamp. The textures would be well defined, with high-quality colour cinematography. The films would be sleek, and virtually unadorned with pretence, in the same way that Bond dresses. The camera would not intrude like a voyeur...but would move with and around James Bond, creating a sense of intimacy with the character.....
Cinematically, Young and Ted Moore knew they had to exploit Jamaica’s natural beauty, (the same goes for a lot of Bond films), but they also knew they needed to avoid any of the travelogue feel of many location films. Bond had to move through the local culture, not be distracted by it......
(All of the sixties movies)... the efficiency of a studio movie, but featured the rich authenticity which only could be found by filming on location."
Pg 37/38 of James Bond the Legacy, Cork/Scivally.
Thus DR, FRWL, TB, OHMSS would feature locations, which gave the films a unique stamp. When I think of DN I see Laughing Waters, or TB with it's sun drenched beaches in Nassau, or OHMSS with it's Alp's or Portugal.
YOLT, with it's more traveloguely feel would be the exception, but in the case of that particular film, what with it being set in Japan, I'm happy that the film-makers decided to go down this route. Be it Tiger's Ninja Castle, the dockyards at Kobe or the wedding ceremony, one feels that one is actually there. The customs and culture are a big part of my love for YOLT.
With the early seventies, DAF, LALD and Golden Gun, one has an almost oppressive, sweaty urban landscape; think Vegas in Diamonds, grimy Harlem in 'Die or Bangkok in Gun. Of the trio, I would say Golden Gun makes best use of it's locations the best. Be it the humid streets of Hong Kong or the desert Island of Phuket, this particular film has great cinematography.
The duo of Spy and 'Raker are really top drawer stuff, I especially like MR. With it's visually arresting style, MR is a joy to behold, as least from a cinematography standpoint, anyhow. And unlike QoS, there is just enough time to properly indulge in the countryside. This trend continued on into the eighties with FYEO. My favourite segments from that particular release are the Ionian/Adriatic/Aegean shots.
The three Bond films of Craig have given us a real treat, in regards to their cinematography. Both CR and SF are stunning to look at, but QoS is for my money at least, the best looking Bond film. The colours are so sharp, and Forster and Roberto Schaefer use great colour palettes; crisp white and black in Bregenz, or the blue of the sky and arid, bleak deserts. Kudos to Dennis Gassner as well. But QoS doesn't allow the countries to fully express themselves.
FRWL does however. Byzantium. Constantinople. Istanbul. Three names, for one beautiful city. In fact, Istanbul lent itself perfectly to a James Bond novel/film, what with it being so full of intrigue, romance and atmosphere. A perfect setting for the most perfect Bond film.
I like all the Bond films. I don't mind TND and Hamburg and GE with St Petersburg (DAD I toss aside)
But
I have a problem with TWINE
Its just not very interesting. Azerbaijan just doesn't work. The drive through of him with the Oilfields seems so unBondian. The caviar factory didn't work and when we get to Istanbul there is a ridiculous plot to blow the place up. I have been to Maidens Tower and not much happens there. They rush through Istanbul
There needs to be more focus on Istanbul. With all the ridiculous plotting and scripts by Michael Apteds wife the tension to Istanbul needs to be ramped up
Re Octopussy, I think the 'German countryside' was actually the English countryside. Certainly the train sequences were shot in the UK.
Btw, went to see The Two Faces of January last night, and it uses its locations in Greece and Turkey very well. I was watching the scenes in Istanbul in the Grand Bazaar and thinking how much better they used the city than in SF... much more atmospheric. In fact, while watching it, I was thinking 'why can't they make a Bond movie like this'? And then I realised it was set in 1962... The tension and danger that exists in a world without mobile phones and the internet is so much more fun than the hi tech world Bond has to exist in today. You have a much greater sense of the characters being alone and adrift in their own nightmare world, without constant electronic surveillance. I think that's what a lot of people love about the earlier Bond movies - the sense of Bond alone in this exotic other world.
They also used Istanbul in Taken 2. Though in that case the story and action are both pretty laughable.
Yes, I know what you mean about FRWL. Perhaps it was partly thanks to it being a small production with a small film team. The same goes for Dr No, to a certain extent, although I think they could have made a little more of Kingston. The style of shooting must have been almost documentary like, rather than the huge road show a big movie entails now, with every shot and location massively dressed up and detailed. You lose a lot of authenticity these days I think.
That might very possibly be true. Eon seem to have had a habit of cheating like that. In addition to the examples I already mentioned (quite a few of them), the most obvious ones I can think of in recent times are the "Cuba scenes" in DAD shot in Cadiz, Spain, and the CGI/soundstage version of "Iceland", the "Macau" and "Shanghai skyscraper" scenes in Skyfall shot on sound stages and on location in London respectively, the "La Paz, Bolivia scenes" in QoS shot in Haiti (i think), "Cuban satelite dish" from Goldeneye shot in Puerto Rico, "Afghanistan" in TLD, of course shot in Libya, and countless other examples… Its often so convincingly done though that you get fooled by it, and its not necessarily a bad thing if its done well and works for the film.
With the 'Shanghai skyscraper', because I've walked past that building in London many times, it slightly takes me out of the moment. But generally speaking, these 'cheats' are not too annoying and are almost part of the films' tradition. How many times has Ascot race course stood in for an exotic airport location?!
That said, it's nice to see Bond in real locations, with a real relevance to the story. I'm hoping that Bond 24's trip to Scandinavia really gives us a taste of old fashioned location work and really imbues the film with a sense of place.
As much as I like QoS, it made abysmal use of its locations. They look beautiful, but could almost have been anywhere. I want to really sense the place. There are still so many amazing locations around the world Bond hasn't visited. You sometimes feel EON needs a bit of an originality shot in the arm - something to reawaken the excitement of the early films.
The one location that was used well in QoS was the Bregenz opera sequence.
I suspect it was money. And the temptation of using CGI instead of the real thing.
That's true. But then why are they so obsessed with having a Scandinavian actress? If it HAS to be a Scandinavian, then surely there must be some connection. I know it's not a guarantee that the film is going to head there, but I do hope so. I've certainly been picking up indications that Mendes wants this film to have a mountain and skiing element (he recently went on his first ever ski holiday). So I am thinking there will be some action in the wilds of Norway. A chase through the snow-capped peaks and fjords of the Norwegian coast would be amazing.
Any hints on where you've picked that up? The holiday destination could be a coincidence… Sounds interesting though, and I certainly wouldn't mind some Bond action in my home country... if done well… But it would be expensive though, so they'd probably film it in Scotland pretending it to be Norway, like is the usual norm with films where the plot has a Norwegian connection. Would be typical, wouldn't it… ;)
Agreed. Norway has a lot to offer a 007 film. It possesses an understated kind of ethereal beauty.
And if any skiing is required from the plot then Scandinavia is the perfect setting...
Personally I would LOVE to see Bond in wintersport-mode once again, but then I'm biased as Skiing is a real passion of mine...