Things i would have changed in...... Thunderball

SzonanaSzonana Mexico
edited October 2016 in Bond Movies Posts: 1,130
I don't know if it has been done but i thought of making this thread where we would tell the things we would change to each Bond film.
without changing the Bond actor that's the only unvalid change.

Now its turn for Thunderball to make some changes.


So here my Changes to Thunderball :

Making the last battle a bit shorter and maybe instead of Army VS Army just Bond vs Largo. That would mean he kills Largo instead of Domino so that means Domino should have freed herself and change the course of the Yacht to latter hlep Bond to gte into the yacht and have that ending there with Domino and James makingout.













Goldfinger
Id change the Main Bond Girl giving the lead to Tilly Masterson sister of Jill ( the actress who would play Tilly Be someone else)
I think Pussy Galore stays as a Femme Fatale second henchwoman to Goldfinger.

Tilly would be the one rescuing Bond in that farm and takes Bond's messge to Mi6 and the end well it would be Tilly who ends up in Bed with James.


From Russia with love

I would have taken out the fight between the two Gypsy girls, i think it adds nothing to the plot
I would have Add a second Bond girl its so strange this is the only Bond flick with Connery where he seduces only one girl maybe just use one of the Gypsy women as a Bond conquest.

Dr No
I would have made the last fight between Dr No and Bond a little longer or put Bond a bitt more in danger in that last fight.
Make the three mice scene as a pre tittles sequence and then the main Bond theme.
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Comments

  • Better Car chase without as much back projection.

    Remove the distracting sped up dialogue in Pussfellers bar

    Longer and better fight between Bond and Dr No.
  • Mendes4LyfeMendes4Lyfe The long road ahead
    Posts: 8,400
    Remove the piece of music that plays over "THE END" with Honey and Bond on the boat.
  • edited September 2016 Posts: 1,817
    -Redo the music of the title sequence; three different themes is too much. Its classic stuff with the dots but then there's drums and dancers and no competent direction.

    -Cut some of the fluff in all the beginning scenes before the casino scene in which Bond is introduced.

    -Remove the part where the Three Mice are about to shoot Bond unawares and lucky for him a car just happens to pass by and save him. That was just dumb it did nothing for the film.

    -Redo the car chase.

    -Develop the plot point about Honey's father being killed by Dr. No or remove it altogether.

    -Change the method by which Bond escapes. I don't care how the book was written; you come here and you tell me escape by ventilation isn't among the worst and tired cliches in fiction. Ever.

    -The fight with Dr. No quality-wise is fine actually, but quantity wise there needed to be more. It's over before it starts.

    -Put Honey in more danger at the end. She's sort of dying but sort of isn't, the film doesn't even know what peril Honey is supposed to be in.

    Most of these are minor gripes because I rather like the film and its sense of minimalism. So it is all small potatoes.
  • Major_BoothroydMajor_Boothroyd Republic of Isthmus
    Posts: 2,722
    I would have included the obstacle course from the novel. It gives a reason for the ventilation escape from the prison cell. Dr No is testing Bond's endurance. The villain is fascinated with the limits of human strength and tolerance for pain - also explains his weird checking out of a naked Bond while he's unconscious. But the shaft escape route is designed by Dr no to challenge Bond. I always thought it was inventive and crazy - rather than the random elements it appear in the film.

    I would remove the scrubbing of radiation from Bond and Honey. It's both long and unnecessary - and of course hilariously inaccurate. Oh how little they knew about radiation effects in 1962!
  • Posts: 16,169
    Not much I'd change about DR NO. I even like the dodgy back projection during the car chase- without that we might not have gotten those great facial expressions by Sean Connery.
    The obstacle course, though probably would have been cool. Still, I like the heating vent sequence. I suppose a little more involvement with John Barry might spruce things up a bit...although I do like a lot of Monty Norman's score.
  • Posts: 1,296
    Pain endurance test, crabs all over Honey at the end, ummmmmm more Barry music...
  • w2bondw2bond is indeed a very rare breed
    Posts: 2,252
    Not much I would change. Main one is 'fetch my shoes'
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,351
    The back projection car chase for the most part and I'd cut out the part where Bond, Quarrel and Honey wander around the Island and hide underwater. It's a good moment but I'd rather they get caught and taken to Dr. No sooner and bring him in a good 20 minutes earlier so we can have more of him and make the fight between him and Bond more intense. I'd also have John Barry do the entire score over Monty Norman.
  • Posts: 1,296
    Also please don't chop up the Bond theme into little fiddly zero bits.
  • SzonanaSzonana Mexico
    Posts: 1,130
    -Redo the music of the title sequence; three different themes is too much. Its classic stuff with the dots but then there's drums and dancers and no competent direction.

    -Cut some of the fluff in all the beginning scenes before the casino scene in which Bond is introduced.

    -Remove the part where the Three Mice are about to shoot Bond unawares and lucky for him a car just happens to pass by and save him. That was just dumb it did nothing for the film.

    -Redo the car chase.

    -Develop the plot point about Honey's father being killed by Dr. No or remove it altogether.

    -Change the method by which Bond escapes. I don't care how the book was written; you come here and you tell me escape by ventilation isn't among the worst and tired cliches in fiction. Ever.

    -The fight with Dr. No quality-wise is fine actually, but quantity wise there needed to be more. It's over before it starts.

    -Put Honey in more danger at the end. She's sort of dying but sort of isn't, the film doesn't even know what peril Honey is supposed to be in.

    Most of these are minor gripes because I rather like the film and its sense of minimalism. So it is all small potatoes.


    I think Honey's story on Dr No was fine it enhancedwhy people were so scared of him and gave her character a 2nd dimention.
    But i agree on putting honey on a bigger danger and give more suspense to their escape from the island.


  • w2bondw2bond is indeed a very rare breed
    Posts: 2,252
    I'm sure you're aware but there were supposed to be crabs crawling where Honey is tied up but they were half dead so they weren't used
  • saunderssaunders Living in a world of avarice and deceit
    Posts: 987
    I'd of rather had a John Barry score and definitely got rid of the percussion accompaniment to Bond smashing the spider with his shoe.

    As has been mentioned the tunnel escape should of been the pain endurance test of the novel, and likewise a giant squid at the end would of been great.

    I like the padding of the film and it's colonial 50s feel but it did need more action (I could never understand why Bond didn't take the sten gun from the guard in the river, it would of made the dragon tank confrontation more dramatic).

    Honey's entrance, I'd hate to sound all pervy but in the book she was naked, the image perfectly encapsulates Honey's character of vulnerability and sexual allure, it could of been tastefully done (though I wouldn't be too cross if it wasn't).
  • pachazopachazo Make Your Choice
    Posts: 7,314
    I would have included the obstacle course from the novel. It gives a reason for the ventilation escape from the prison cell. Dr No is testing Bond's endurance. The villain is fascinated with the limits of human strength and tolerance for pain - also explains his weird checking out of a naked Bond while he's unconscious. But the shaft escape route is designed by Dr no to challenge Bond. I always thought it was inventive and crazy - rather than the random elements it appear in the film.

    At the very least, he could have had an armed guard or two at the other end.
  • BennyBenny Shaken not stirredAdministrator, Moderator
    Posts: 15,138
    No need to change perfection. It's a film of its time, and needs no tweaking in my opinion. One of the most re-watchable Bond films there is.
  • w2bond wrote: »
    I'm sure you're aware but there were supposed to be crabs crawling where Honey is tied up but they were half dead so they weren't used

    Yes I know, but since we don't see any she doesn't look like she's in much peril.
    Szonana wrote: »
    -Redo the music of the title sequence; three different themes is too much. Its classic stuff with the dots but then there's drums and dancers and no competent direction.

    -Cut some of the fluff in all the beginning scenes before the casino scene in which Bond is introduced.

    -Remove the part where the Three Mice are about to shoot Bond unawares and lucky for him a car just happens to pass by and save him. That was just dumb it did nothing for the film.

    -Redo the car chase.

    -Develop the plot point about Honey's father being killed by Dr. No or remove it altogether.

    -Change the method by which Bond escapes. I don't care how the book was written; you come here and you tell me escape by ventilation isn't among the worst and tired cliches in fiction. Ever.

    -The fight with Dr. No quality-wise is fine actually, but quantity wise there needed to be more. It's over before it starts.

    -Put Honey in more danger at the end. She's sort of dying but sort of isn't, the film doesn't even know what peril Honey is supposed to be in.

    Most of these are minor gripes because I rather like the film and its sense of minimalism. So it is all small potatoes.


    I think Honey's story on Dr No was fine it enhancedwhy people were so scared of him and gave her character a 2nd dimention.
    But i agree on putting honey on a bigger danger and give more suspense to their escape from the island.

    Honey's story is a good concept, it just needed to be developed more, i.e. we should really feel that Honey hates Dr. No and wants to avenge her father. We don't get this. Therefore you could remove this plot point and the plot would be exactly the same.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    Szonana wrote:
    Make the three mice scene as a pre tittles sequence and then the main Bond theme.

    Interesting idea. My only concern is we'd have the GB with a snippet of the Bond theme and then the full version as the main theme would we? Or use Underneath the Mango Tree as the main theme? (Pretty sure Harry wanted to do this.)
    -Cut some of the fluff in all the beginning scenes before the casino scene in which Bond is introduced.

    This 'fluff' of checking all the radio frequencies is great stuff.
    -Remove the part where the Three Mice are about to shoot Bond unawares and lucky for him a car just happens to pass by and save him. That was just dumb it did nothing for the film.

    Fair enough.
    -Redo the car chase.

    Were there any films with better car chases at this time? Then again GF was only two years later so something better is possible I guess?
    I would have included the obstacle course from the novel. It gives a reason for the ventilation escape from the prison cell. Dr No is testing Bond's endurance. The villain is fascinated with the limits of human strength and tolerance for pain - also explains his weird checking out of a naked Bond while he's unconscious. But the shaft escape route is designed by Dr no to challenge Bond. I always thought it was inventive and crazy - rather than the random elements it appear in the film.

    It would be nice but is too extreme for audiences of the time. If it was made today we might well have got it. Actually it would've made a nice scene in SP if Franz had got his petty revenge on Bond by putting him through it. Cut the torture scene and the finale in MI6 and just have Bond go through the torture obstacle course and then blow the crater up. Although we would be getting very close to a remake of DN then and the nods to DN in those scenes are already very obvious as it is.
    I would remove the scrubbing of radiation from Bond and Honey. It's both long and unnecessary - and of course hilariously inaccurate. Oh how little they knew about radiation effects in 1962!

    It's actually a pretty accurate depiction of dealing with low level contamination which is all they had been exposed to.

    Watch Silkwood for a somewhat more realistic (not to mention harrowing) version of how the industry deals with such contamination and still does to the best of my knowledge.
    Murdock wrote: »
    The back projection car chase for the most part and I'd cut out the part where Bond, Quarrel and Honey wander around the Island and hide underwater.

    Cut a scene lifted straight from Fleming? Yeah that's certainly the way to improve most Bond films.
    Benny wrote: »
    No need to change perfection. It's a film of its time, and needs no tweaking in my opinion. One of the most re-watchable Bond films there is.

    This pretty much sums things up I think.
  • M_BaljeM_Balje Amsterdam, Netherlands
    edited September 2016 Posts: 4,520
    Dr NO lair scene's take to long. I wil take a look or be possible to cut 6 minutes of Krabb Key/Les Professor Dent. It's like QOS hotel scene and Spectre lair scenes are to short and have liked to see more Mr White. The thing is iam more in to Quantum and Spectre is already to long. But there only show us moving room and rock and control room. Whyle i understand it is a ''show off'' and like that. But overall scene's in Marocco are to short.
  • SzonanaSzonana Mexico
    edited September 2016 Posts: 1,130
    @incompetenthenchmen: you have a good point on giving her story more development but the short explanation gave her a connection with James in some way he admired her after she told him how she killed her uncle.

    I think there was admiration from Bond and at the same time felt slightly sorry for her that so young she had to defend herself in those ways.
    I liked that part of the film it made Honey and Bond have a connection and we understand why he did care for Honey

    @ThewizardOfIce
    Well they could just have changed the music in that scene for the Mango tree so we could get the Bond theme as the titles sequence.
    Its a great that for the first film the film opened with the original Bond theme years would be a classic with all its variations.
  • edited September 2016 Posts: 1,817
    Oh and I forgot - make it clearer that the Three Blind Mice are actually inside the car.

    @Szonana I like that scene too, for the emotive responses you outlined.
  • Mendes4LyfeMendes4Lyfe The long road ahead
    Posts: 8,400
    Benny wrote: »
    No need to change perfection. It's a film of its time, and needs no tweaking in my opinion. One of the most re-watchable Bond films there is.

    100% agree, my favourite by far.
  • Posts: 1,296
    It's a great Bond movie.
  • SzonanaSzonana Mexico
    Posts: 1,130
    Oh and I forgot - make it clearer that the Three Blind Mice are actually inside the car.

    @Szonana I like that scene too, for the emotive responses you outlined.


    I like the whole film in general its actually my favorite from Sean Connery but if i had to change a few things were the two i mentioned in my original post.
    and i thought i saw more in that scene at crab key than it was, im glad you did notice the same feelings. Maybe reading too much into it

  • I think Miss Taro could've been a more interesting villain. The fact that she just got arrested after being slept with really bored me, although very Connery's Bond, I still think her exit from the film could've been made more interesting.

    It would've been interesting if she was asleep when Dent arrived, and Bond used her as bait to be shot instead of filling the bed with pillows. A bit violent, but could've been an interesting twist on what actually happened.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    Benny wrote: »
    No need to change perfection. It's a film of its time, and needs no tweaking in my opinion. One of the most re-watchable Bond films there is.

    I couldn't agree more. Although I'm not sure how it would've looked at the time, a novel-to-film adaptation change I would have enjoyed seeing is Bond fighting the giant squid toward the end of the novel.
  • SzonanaSzonana Mexico
    Posts: 1,130
    I think Miss Taro could've been a more interesting villain. The fact that she just got arrested after being slept with really bored me, although very Connery's Bond, I still think her exit from the film could've been made more interesting.

    It would've been interesting if she was asleep when Dent arrived, and Bond used her as bait to be shot instead of filling the bed with pillows. A bit violent, but could've been an interesting twist on what actually happened.

    Never thought about this before but Miss Taro's exit is quite bland compared to Fiona Volpe's death or Helga brandt.
    And i like the idea of Dent shooting Miss Taro confusing her with Bond

  • Posts: 676
    First thing that comes to mind: rejig things so Bond doesn't escape the "obstacle course" so easily.
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,351
    Murdock wrote: »
    The back projection car chase for the most part and I'd cut out the part where Bond, Quarrel and Honey wander around the Island and hide underwater.

    Cut a scene lifted straight from Fleming? Yeah that's certainly the way to improve most Bond films.
    What does it contribute to the film and the overall story? Sure it's good tension but what does it set up? At first Honey is horrified at him then the next scene she's okay. What's the point?
  • SzonanaSzonana Mexico
    Posts: 1,130
    Birdleson wrote: »
    I've often thought of creating a thread such as this one. To be clear, I don't ever want to see an already existing Bond film tampered with in anyway, aside from cleaning up damaged film stock and faded colors, i.e. restoration. But if I had been in on the original production (which I believe is the original poster's intent), I have plenty to say. Not really so much with the early ones. It's easy to say, scrap most of the film and follow Flemibg's book to a T, but that's not the spirit I'm taking this in. How could the existing film been improved with a few tweaJD.

    DR. NO -
    1. Lose most of the rear projection. This goes for most all of the '60s entries. The stunts are fine. The audience understands it's supposed to be Bond driving the car in the chase scene. What little enhancement the audience's experience may get by jump cutting to a close-up of Bond behind the wheel is more than outweighed by the jarring inclusion of the rear projection shots.

    2. More measured use of the James Bond Theme.

    That's really about it. I find it to be near perfect as it is. The other minor flaws are better left in, as the mark the period in which they were mad.

    Yes the main intention is what would you have changed if you were in the original production.
    And i was doubting of doing it since i wasn't sure if it was already donr but it seems like it wasn't.

    So when i get to two pages i will change the film

  • w2bondw2bond is indeed a very rare breed
    Posts: 2,252
    Birdleson wrote: »
    DR. NO -
    1. Lose most of the rear projection. This goes for most all of the '60s entries. The stunts are fine. The audience understands it's supposed to be Bond driving the car in the chase scene. What little enhancement the audience's experience may get by jump cutting to a close-up of Bond behind the wheel is more than outweighed by the jarring inclusion of the rear projection shots.

    Was it jarring back in the 60's? Was rear projection the norm back then, or a cost cutting measure?
    Birdleson wrote: »
    That's really about it. I find it to be near perfect as it is. The other minor flaws are better left in, as the mark the period in which they were mad.

    Agreed, otherwise you may as well remake the whole bloody film!

  • WalecsWalecs On Her Majesty's Secret Service
    Posts: 3,157
    I'd hire someone else to do the score (possibly John Barry); I'd keep Norman and Barry's theme as The James Bond Theme, but I wouldn't use the original arrangement everywhere (for example when Bond enters his hotel room and when he enters Miss Taro's house.
    -Remove the part where the Three Mice are about to shoot Bond unawares and lucky for him a car just happens to pass by and save him. That was just dumb it did nothing for the film.

    -Develop the plot point about Honey's father being killed by Dr. No or remove it altogether.

    -The fight with Dr. No quality-wise is fine actually, but quantity wise there needed to be more. It's over before it starts.

    -Put Honey in more danger at the end. She's sort of dying but sort of isn't, the film doesn't even know what peril Honey is supposed to be in.

    This.
    I would have included the obstacle course from the novel. It gives a reason for the ventilation escape from the prison cell. Dr No is testing Bond's endurance. The villain is fascinated with the limits of human strength and tolerance for pain - also explains his weird checking out of a naked Bond while he's unconscious. But the shaft escape route is designed by Dr no to challenge Bond. I always thought it was inventive and crazy - rather than the random elements it appear in the film.

    Also this.
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