Sir Roger Moore jokes about Connery, critiques 'Quantum'

JamesPageJamesPage Administrator, Moderator, Director
edited November 2011 in News Posts: 1,380
Seven-times James Bond actor Sir Roger Moore spoke at the Cambridge Union on Sunday evening, and before he addresses the audience, gave a brief and good humoured interview to the university's Varisty newspaper.

As a decidedly tongue-in-cheek Bond, he was described by one critic as “the lethal comedian”; Varsity's India Ross asked Moore how he rated Daniel Craig’s more hard-edged approach. Despite praising Craig’s portrayal of Bond, Moore was less convinced by the latest installment, Quantum of Solace, which he cuttingly describes as “a long disjointed commercial”.

Asked if any dream roles had passed him by: “I’d have loved to have played Lawrence of Arabia, and I’d have loved to have been as talented as Peter O’Toole.” On his predecessor, Sean Connery, whose portrayal of Bond is a constant source of comparison, Moore joked, “Sean is a good actor; it’s a pity I can’t understand what he’s saying.”

<a href="http://www.varsity.co.uk/lifestyle/3948"; target="_blank">Click here to read the entire interview online</a>.

Unfortunately, tabloid rags like the Daily Mail and Daily Mirror have deliberately taken Moore's comments out of context and painted the interview as bitter and critical of his Bond colleagues.

Comments

  • Posts: 1,856
    He is so right.... About QOS and Connery.
  • Posts: 5,767
    Moore joked, “Sean is a good actor; it’s a pity I can’t understand what he’s saying.”
    :-))
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    Wow. If QoS was "a long disjointed commercial" then LALD, TMWTGG, MR, TSWLM, FYEO OP, and AVTAK must have all been crappy and never ending stand-up comedy.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    Wow. If QoS was "a long disjointed commercial" then LALD, TMWTGG, MR, TSWLM, FYEO OP, and AVTAK must have all been crappy and never ending stand-up comedy.
    I believe that's unfair. Those films were put together by people who love the franchise, who understand the craft of good film making and who wouldn't merely try to buck some trends when planning out the next 007 adventure. I don't think QoS can compete with at least half of Moore's films. But of course that's just my opinion.
  • Posts: 7,653
    Wow. If QoS was "a long disjointed commercial" then LALD, TMWTGG, MR, TSWLM, FYEO OP, and AVTAK must have all been crappy and never ending stand-up comedy.
    I believe that's unfair. Those films were put together by people who love the franchise, who understand the craft of good film making and who wouldn't merely try to buck some trends when planning out the next 007 adventure. I don't think QoS can compete with at least half of Moore's films. But of course that's just my opinion.
    I fully agree with your opinion.

    QoS is the absolute worst the 007 franchise has brought us so far. imho

  • PrinceKamalKhanPrinceKamalKhan Monsoon Palace, Udaipur
    Posts: 3,262
    QoS is the absolute worst the 007 franchise has brought us so far. imho

    Ditto.
    Wow. If QoS was "a long disjointed commercial" then LALD, TMWTGG, MR, TSWLM, FYEO OP, and AVTAK must have all been crappy and never ending stand-up comedy.
    I believe that's unfair. Those films were put together by people who love the franchise, who understand the craft of good film making and who wouldn't merely try to buck some trends when planning out the next 007 adventure. I don't think QoS can compete with at least half of Moore's films. But of course that's just my opinion.
    I don't think QOS can compete with any of Moore's Bond films. Even AVTAK(which I've been very critical of) at least has a John Barry score, some Cold War-era ambience and stunts we can actually see to make it watchable.

  • Moore did have a Lawrence of Arabia moment in TSWLM you'll remember

    It's worth noting that Moore apart from playing Bond, also had some good roles in other movies of the time such as The Sea Wolves and North Sea Hijack, (and one or two in later years to forget such as the disaster that was Quest, with Van Damme)

    It's easy for Moore to berate QOS as it's chalk and cheese as to what he gave us on screen 25/30 years ago playing the character, maybe from an 84 year old perspective he wasn't mad about the last Craig effort, but a large percentage of people also didn't like the last 007 adventure

    In an ideal world I would of liked to have been present at the Union when it was underway and had a few minutes to talk with Moore, a genuine and all round good chap



  • Posts: 224
    Sir Rog has repeatedly referred to Sir Sean as the best Bond. And he has often been quoted as describing Craig as "terrific" playing Bond and as an overall actor. Yes, QOS was a POS. I know absolutely no one who thinks differently about QOS. I think Sean's and Rog's 3rd outings as Bond are generally considered their personal bests. Hopefully, Daniel's 3rd outing will be considered the same. Certainly, QOS has set the bar very low.
  • Poor Roger. He always gets moaned at by someone every time he talks about Bond.

  • SAMSAM
    Posts: 107
    Well said Roger Moore. Sometimes you should tell it as you see it.

    When you spend 200 million pound on a movie, you expect the production to be outstanding.

    Instead Quantum of Solace was arguably the biggest let down in the Bond franchise - being the sequel to the brilliant Casino Royale (a production that was on a much lower film budget)

    This is a great example that considerable film budgets do not make brilliant movies.

    Great movies are a result of good storylines, strong scripts, sound acting and directing. Not all action and special effects.

    Take note producers !!!
  • CommanderRossCommanderRoss The bottom of a pitch lake in Eastern Trinidad, place called La Brea
    Posts: 8,266
    Well, for those of you who never found anyone who appreciates QoS, here I am! It isn't the worst film by far! Moore is entitled to his own opinion, and I can see where his remarks come from, and that's it. There's no use in comparing his films to QoS. They're ages apart. But when it comes to bad Bond films: there's always DAD (invisible car? Genetecly altered villain? how many gadgets do you need and please, try at least some human-like dialogue) DAF (moon-buggy wheels crossing through the desert while all four are still on, car switching sides in an alley? anyway, a tycoon letting himself get locked in by a villain and all of a sudden all staff work on criminal plans?) and TMWGG isn't a very good film either.

    I like QoS's story, I like the way the surroundings are shot, etc. etc. The only thing I don't like is it's pace. A bit slower would have helped, but the car chase, even though in shakey cam is increadable, the Tosca scene fantastic and Bond just utterly cool. For me it's up in the top ten of Bond movies.
  • Posts: 2,341
    QoS was not in the same league as CR. The plot was too convuluted and disjointed. Had they stuck to the Quamtum storyline instead of going off on the Dominic Green caper then I think they would have had a better time of it. Oil, water, revenge for Camille...very confusing to watch. In CR Quantum was financing terrorists. Stick to that.
    Stop trying to impress us with car chases, explosions, etc and just tell a story. Go back and watch FRWL or LTK
    Take MR, DAD, DAF and burn them.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    Hands off of MR and DAF, sir. Their entertainment value is way too high for them to be burned!
  • Posts: 2,341
    I think Sir Roger really lived Bond. He is the only former 007 who looks back fondly on his Bond days. Sean has been trying to forget his, Lazenby is rarely seen, and Dalton just took it all in stride as a "day job". I doubt that he has seen a Bond movie since 1989.
    Brosnan seems detached as well.
    By contrast Roger sees all the later films and is more than happy to discuss and be quoted. Maybe because he never took it seriously and felt that to do so would not be playing the game.
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