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How do we define who "Our Bond" is?
BondStu
Moonraker 6
As I'm now showing my youngest the Bond movies I've been sharing with her my experiences of being a Bond fan from way back before she was born.
She asked me what the best Bond film was - and I said there's no such thing. I said it's not been made yet and never will be. It spans generations, means different things to different people. Since 1962 cinemagoers all over the world have had "their own" Bond.
But what defines exactly what that is?
The first Bond movie released in my lifetime was "Moonraker" - and in my formative years Moore was making the last movies of his run. I remember the Timothy Dalton films coming out when I was a kid. In fact, I begged my parents to take me to see The Living Daylights but that never happened. And of course I was too young for Licence To Kill (not that I cared - 89 was about Batman to me).
During the six year hiatus after LTK I remember watching Bond films on TV but they were like a relic of the past. Didn't really think too much of them really.
When I was 17 Goldeneye came out. And to be completely honest I sort of shrugged it off. Thought "They're making a new one of THOSE?!?" But I wasn't expecting it to be the huge hit it was - nor indeed did I suspect it would usher in a new era for these movies.
Anyway - there was a buzz about it and I was spending a Saturday with my then girlfriend. So we went to see it simply because it was on.
The interesting thing about GE is that for the first time it reflected the world I lived in. I don't think I saw it that way then, but I definitely think I picked up on it subconsciously. Surprisingly - it was mainly centred around Judi Dench as M.
My Mum was a big career woman, and M's always reminded me of her. My Mum very much had to prove herself in a predominantly man's world - AND succeeded.
Plus I can remember seeing the Berlin wall come down on the TV and the end of the Cold War. I was growing up in a world that was recovering from that era.
Also - it was the first one I actually paid to see in a cinema.
GE feels like the first Bond film that was made for ME. And it planted the seed from where my Bond fandom would grow. Yeah, I was aware of Connery, Lazenby, Moore and Dalton and had seen those movies... but it's Pierce Brosnan's Bond who's up there with the likes of Luke Skywalker, Indiana Jones, Batman and Superman as pop culture icon from my childhood.
So even though I lived in a world where Moore and Dalton had new Bond films out (AND Connery if we're counting NSNA) - I consider myself of the Brosnan/Goldeneye generation of Bond fans.
So who's YOUR Bond - and how did you come to that conclusion?
She asked me what the best Bond film was - and I said there's no such thing. I said it's not been made yet and never will be. It spans generations, means different things to different people. Since 1962 cinemagoers all over the world have had "their own" Bond.
But what defines exactly what that is?
The first Bond movie released in my lifetime was "Moonraker" - and in my formative years Moore was making the last movies of his run. I remember the Timothy Dalton films coming out when I was a kid. In fact, I begged my parents to take me to see The Living Daylights but that never happened. And of course I was too young for Licence To Kill (not that I cared - 89 was about Batman to me).
During the six year hiatus after LTK I remember watching Bond films on TV but they were like a relic of the past. Didn't really think too much of them really.
When I was 17 Goldeneye came out. And to be completely honest I sort of shrugged it off. Thought "They're making a new one of THOSE?!?" But I wasn't expecting it to be the huge hit it was - nor indeed did I suspect it would usher in a new era for these movies.
Anyway - there was a buzz about it and I was spending a Saturday with my then girlfriend. So we went to see it simply because it was on.
The interesting thing about GE is that for the first time it reflected the world I lived in. I don't think I saw it that way then, but I definitely think I picked up on it subconsciously. Surprisingly - it was mainly centred around Judi Dench as M.
My Mum was a big career woman, and M's always reminded me of her. My Mum very much had to prove herself in a predominantly man's world - AND succeeded.
Plus I can remember seeing the Berlin wall come down on the TV and the end of the Cold War. I was growing up in a world that was recovering from that era.
Also - it was the first one I actually paid to see in a cinema.
GE feels like the first Bond film that was made for ME. And it planted the seed from where my Bond fandom would grow. Yeah, I was aware of Connery, Lazenby, Moore and Dalton and had seen those movies... but it's Pierce Brosnan's Bond who's up there with the likes of Luke Skywalker, Indiana Jones, Batman and Superman as pop culture icon from my childhood.
So even though I lived in a world where Moore and Dalton had new Bond films out (AND Connery if we're counting NSNA) - I consider myself of the Brosnan/Goldeneye generation of Bond fans.
So who's YOUR Bond - and how did you come to that conclusion?
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Comments
My favorite Bonds are Connery, Dalton and Craig. But it's not that simple.
Going by this criteria, I was born when Connery was still Bond, DAF was my first Bond film when it was new, although I'd seen the others on rereleases as a young kid. Moore was Bond from when I was in kindergarten and AVTAK was released a week before I graduated from high school, so it could be said he was the Bond for my generation, but I never really look at him that way.
Going by the Bond made for me criteria, it could be Dalton. TLD had a fresh feel and was released when I was an adult and his films definitely hit on current affairs of the time. He was also closest to my image of the Bond of the novels.
Brosnan took over when I was a newlywed and became a dad, then Craig in CR came a few weeks after I hit 40 and is the first Bond actor close to my age.
So I'll stay with my trifecta of my first Bond, one who had the most impact and one closest to age with Dalton being the one who had that impact described above.
-- in 1973-- during Moore's tenure...
I'm first generation Canadian-- my Dad and Mum are from the UK, Chingford, Essex (to which we flew back to every late/spring or summer to see the family)... and Dad LOVED Connery...
The first film I was allowed to stay up and see to the end was Thunderball-- on television...-- This was my first Bond film.
I fell in love. The music and suits and The Man, and, and, and... I'd never seen anything like it (Looney Tunes, the Bionic Man and (Adam West) Batman re-runs were my regular servings of entertainment (and I love them all, but, Bond was a giant leap ahead);
I would eventually see the Moore films (post- Spy) in the cinema, and I enjoyed them; we rented all we could of 007 on VHS...
But, while growing up in the 80s, Connery was the best. The. Best.
I loved Roger for being cheeky Roger, and saw glimpses of Bond in him.
And, by that time, I was falling in love with the Fleming novels...
But, my Bond was still Sean and, his first four were top drawer...
In that time, I finally saw OHMSS (a film Dad dismissed on the evidence that this was not Bond/Connery... (although he later could at least enjoy Moore), and I loved it; and, for a time, I thought Dalton was the next coming-- but felt uncomfortable with some of his scenes and, no matter how good he was, he, to me, lacked the physicality/presence that I always thought Bond needed (if he had a third film, though, I think he would have passed Moore for me);
I was not a fan of the Brosnan era-- but never begrudge those who are.
At that point in time, my rankings for Bond would be:
Connery
Moore/Dalton
Lazenby
I just never took to Brosnan, although I enjoyed some of his films to varying degrees...
Then Craig came.
Less than a year after Dad passed, but this was his, and my, James Bond. Masculine-- with no apology-- swagger, cockiness, arrogance, and duty... After the first scene of CR I could care less about height and hair color... This man was capturing something I wanted from a cinematic 007 (Connery's cool with Fleming's grounded and fallible agent). I saw the film three times that first day... I haven't looked back since.
Simply put: Connery/ Craig are, and will be, the cream of the crop...
I was 10 when MR came out and I guess Moore was my Bond. Though I liked the Connery films better. I think it came down to the action. I could believe Bond fighting tooth and nail with Grant or Franks in the elevator. I never could buy Moore fighting. To me it always felt off for me. Like when he fights Sandor in Spy. The ooh and ahh as each punch lands. I discover Lazenby while watching VHS tapes and as a younger person I always viewed OHMSS as a novelty. Always wondering how Connery would have handled that script.
Then Dalton comes along and I am reminded of Connery in the looks and the danger. But the humour is gone and so to is the charisma. Brosnan comes along and I find myself enjoying Bond again. He's got the cheek of Moore and can pull off the fights. The fight with him and Alec in the dish is intense.
Finally we have Craig who seems close to Dalton except he had some charisma and while he's not as complete as Connery in nailing the character. His humour and delivery aren't as good as some of the other gents who've played the role.
Brosnan is my Bond, Craig is my childrens' Bond.
I would define Moore as 'my' Bond. I was born in 1982, my parents and older brothers where huge Bond fans. My first memory of Bond was my Dad bringing back AVTAK, OP and FYEO from the video shop (god that shows my age). Following on a couple of years later, TLD and LTK, again on home video. Then gradually I saw the earlier Moore's and Connery's, plus OHMSS as they where shown on ITV (naturally I recorded them all).
I think by the time I was 10 I had seen all the Bond films up to LTK at least five times.
Of course, even at my tender age, I saw the excellence of Connery. I never took to Dalton as a youth, but looking back objectively, I appreciate him and his films much more.
I do have a soft spot for the much maligned Pierce Brosnan too, as Goldeneye was my first Bond at the cinema, when I was 13.
I still have yet to fully take to Daniel Craig, I was as impressed as everyone else on my first viewing of CR, but I have started to be more ambivalent to him as time has gone on.
I suspect it's also an age thing; I'm in my early 40s and started watching Bond in the early '90s, when Dalton's looked the most up-to-date. But I love all things 1960s retro, so it's surprising I sided so hard with him instead of Connery.
On the other hand, Brosnan was Bond while I grew up and became a fan, so he’d be my third Bond.
Jokes aside, I consider Craig to be "my" Bond. Not just because he's the first actor I've consiously seen come and soon go or because he's my favourite (Sir Rog holds that honour), but I remember downloading a bootleg copy of You Know My Name and not liking it at first, not being able to pay attention at high school on a Friday because I'd go and see Quantum of Solace that night with friends, taking a train for the press screening of Skyfall, and correcting my bowtie for the premiere of Spectre. All completely different points in my life, with different people, and different cities, but Craig's Bond was there. I think, whichever way NTTD will turn out to be, I'll always have a sweet spot for Craig's films, much like the "OG" Bond fans have for Sean or my dad has for Sir Rog.
For me it is mostly generation and nostalgia that makes Moore my Bond - first movie I saw at cinema (MR), most of the movies I remember watching as a child were Moore’s. However I also really like Brosnan as he was the Bond that ‘got me back into Bond’ when I had drifted away in my early adult years.
I think also it is the type of Bond films you like that plays a part. I do enjoy the films with emphasis on gadgets, humour, action, over the top villains with over the top ideas of world domination, so again that fitted in with the types of films Moore/Brosnan were in (TSWLM, MR, DAD, TND, AVTAK etc).