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Comments
FYEO is pretty much a commando movie.
I enjoy the raw, back to basics approach. After the excessiveness of MR, Bond needed to be brought back to earth. Literally.
In two words: no, no... in 3 words... (for the Mitchell & Webb sound fans \:D/ )
For Your Eyes Only is my second favorite Bond film after only Goldfinger.
Although like what I've said, it's not a perfect Bond film by any means like the cinematography which was very low key, and the soundtrack, although why the chase scenes in FYEO were mixed in with comedy? It's hard to feel the thrill of the Car Chase and Ski Chase because they're both comedic that the soundtrack didn't helped.
There are no boring Bond films but surely there are slow ones, I think the only Bond film that's so slow that I could no longer comprehend the plot is The World Is Not Enough, it was slow in the second act that I've got lost in the plot, particularly concerning Renard.
Thunderball, it's fine, I think, but just been dragged by the very long underwater scenes, in this, I prefer the third act of Never Say Never Again.
Terms like 'dated' get thrown around easily, but I don't think it's a bad thing if you feel the mood and vibe of another era.
Moreover, nevermind the music; the cars, the fashion, the Cold War plot, hell even phones date this one too. I don't mind, I find it an arbitrary argument to be perfectly honest.
Moore does a fine job but this isn't playing to his strengths. Frequent substitutions from stunt men takes us out of the action. The age gap between both leading ladies removes any chance of romance which I think the movie is going for. Maibaum hinted in an interview that Moore changed some of the dialogue in this film and weakened it. Even his hesitance to kick the car says a lot about the actor not fitting the material.
I always feel like if this film had been the first of a Dalton series of films we'd see it's true potential.
That's a great observation and you're totally right. The older Bond films were better for what you might call local colour. That dates back to Fleming. It also lets the film breathe a little by showing the distinctive sights and sounds and the local people milling about. It's better than just clinically cutting from location to location or set piece to set piece. Even the Brosnan Bond films had those little moments like the mime artist in GE or the local people Wai Lin interacts with in TND.
Yeah what I don't like about a film like SF for example is that the Shanghai or Turkey scenes could be shifted to different countries and literally nothing would change. I don't think Bond even meets any locals in either of those.
Yes, you've got stuff like the skyscraper neon billboards or the deserted Japanese island, but I'm not sure there's a huge amount of local colour going into that.
I think it needs to be done delicately, you can't just stop the film for a new Kerim Bay to give Bond a tour around the local restaurants, but I think encountering some local people is kind of bare minimum. At least Matera in NTTD had the burning memories thing which felt kind of believable, and Mexico had the Day of the Dead thing which was pretty cool.
It's a slightly different thing, less about local colour than interchangeable locations, but the most bonkers one to me remains the opening of TWINE which was clearly intended to be in Switzerland but switched to Spain, presumably because of a nice building that Bond just walks past(!).
Audience sensibilities change I can't remember which director said it but he observed the golf match in GF would not make the film today or if it did would be considerably trimmed if it was made today. I could see what he is saying. You might even say the same about Bond heading to the gypsy camp, the only story purpose it serves is to give Grant a chance to save Bond's life.
For it's short run time QOS attempted to do local flavour within the film they succeeded in some points but failed in others.
I am not sure the whole story point of watching Bond and Melina purchase food for the crew but it is a nice visual. If it was gone would the audience miss anything? Not sure. The film overall is indeed a lean cut as I can't think of too many superfluous scenes.
I don't know, you just substitute some other landmark for the grand bazaar. It's not intrinsically part of the concept of the thing, everything's pretty generic. We don't even know of any particular reason Ronson is there, could be anywhere.
Yeah, I agree about the golf match; it's hard to see something like that being in a Bond film today, and that's kind of a shame. I like the silence in that sequence, it feels nice and airy, not rushed at all, and it really works.
The gypsy camp is kind of one those local flavour bits which I'm not sure entirely works for me, feels slightly forced as part of a 'local tour' if you know what I mean. I don't hate it or anything, just not my favourite.
One on my biggest complaints with the modern films, Theres dialogue scenes and action scenes, but no sightseeing.
Agreed. I like to "smell the flowers", I miss that in modern (action) films. They might consider it a waste of time or a potential 'losing the audience's attention' moment. I remember one of those 'Honest Trailers' on YT about the early Bond films mocking the part where Bond checks into hotels. For me personally it's that kind of stuff that I appreciate a lot about the earlier films. It's like you are on a trip with Bond, takes you to another world.
Bond shouldn't really have a relationship with Melina, and it's scenes like these which prove it. He couldn't be more of a gent, could he, and consoles her in the evening when she becomes stressed.
For him to be riding her later, considering the obvious age difference, isn't right. Should be buying her and Bibi an ice-cream.
The Skyfall Generation.
I watched his Harry Potter film the other night and was impressed by his London scenes.
However, Cuaron can be a bit of an effects director. Films like Gravity and Children Of Men are great concepts, but ultimately are sacrificed in favour of spectacle. Superficial.
Which feels more like continuity Craig-era than anything else.
Time for something new (ish).
Same here. I think Bond movies are made in the quiet moments: Bond talking to Largo, sitting down with Blofeld to speak of ancestry, playing golf against Goldfinger and yes, checking in. Getting a feel of the place. And not only for Bond: what would The Godfather be without the wedding sequence, or the moment when Clemenza cooks the sauce and explains to Michael how it's done?