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The 'What If' thread

BondWillReturnBondWillReturn
edited August 2012 in Bond Movies Posts: 816
A lot of times I come up with 'What if' scenarios: What if Dalton had gotten his third Bond film, What if M hadn't been changed to a female character, and a lot of times I feel like I should discuss these with my fellow Bond fans.
Sometimes I can find an appropriate thread, and it's briefly discussed. Sometimes I might feel I need to start a new thread for this, but it usually doesn't result in much heat.

A few minutes ago I had another 'what if' scenario, but no idea where to place it. That's when I came up with the idea of just making this thread, where everybody can post their 'What if' scenarios. Let's try to give everybodies 'what if' the attention it deserves, so if someone had just posted one that's still being discussed, be respectful and hold off posting your own.

I'll start us off with the one I just came up with: Watching Haphazardstuff's amazing review series again, I got to the point where at the end of Spy, it says Bond will return in For Your Eyes Only.
Ofcourse, because of the SciFi-craze, that didn't happen and we got Moonraker instead. FYEO was made after that, and literaly brought Bond down to earth. It was more serious, less silly.

After the success of Spy, if they'd made FYEO, how do you think it would look? Much like it does today, more over the top. Would it even follow the same plot? Let me hear what you guys think.

Comments

  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,480
    Don't know if the mods will want this on another thread, but here are my first thoughts.

    I really like FYEO the way it is, but I feel sure it would have been different if immediately following TSWLM (my fav film). For one thing, I think they would have put Jaws into; how is anybody's guess. I think there would have been more humor and perhaps a different location.

    I think FYEO is quite good and I even enjoy the really silly ending (a lot of folks don't) but overall it had some serious tone and plot and was well acted. I think it would not have been the same - how could it? The more OTT Jaws would have been put into it due to the popularity of that character from TSWLM - maybe instead of the killer who plants a dove symbol on his victims (forget his name at this moment) we would have had Jaws - so Jaws would have been a serious threat, at least at first in the film. If they wanted to make him turn into a good guy, my mind implodes with the possibilities of how they would do that in FYEO.

    So overall, yeah I think it would have been different - but not in a good way.
  • BondWillReturnBondWillReturn
    Posts: 816
    4EverBonded wrote:
    The more OTT Jaws would have been put into it due to the popularity of that character from TSWLM - maybe instead of the killer who plants a dove symbol on his victims (forget his name at this moment) we would have had Jaws - so Jaws would have been a serious threat, at least at first in the film.

    I now imagine Bond kicking Jaws' car over the cliff instead of that guy's, that would have been an awesome way to kill him off!
    Still: I agree with you FYEO would not have benefitted from being made right after Spy. I wonder if there was ever a script written for it during that time.

  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,480
    I'd love to see any script that was in the works then! Interesting ...
  • DouglasQuaidDouglasQuaid
    Posts: 115
    BondWillReturn wrote:
    I now imagine Bond kicking Jaws' car over the cliff instead of that guy's, that would have been an awesome way to kill him off!

    No doubt Jaws would've come back to fight Bond at St. Cyril's in the place of the large blonde heavy.
  • M_BaljeM_Balje Amsterdam, Netherlands
    edited August 2012 Posts: 4,516
    M and old friend is now yused in Twine, but the idea comes from the FYEO novel. If Moonraker haven't been made FYEO have yused that plot and that FYEO have been Bernard Lee his last movie. Then possible Moonraker have been the next one if not Octopussy, but not released in 1981 but 1982, 3 years after FYEO and a litle bit les then 2 years after the death of Bernard Lee. Robert Brown be M, what be one movie earlier for him. Bernard Lee dies in January 1981 whyle filming FYEO.

    FYEO as it been made have a lot of humor, drama and some good/funny action scene's there whant more back to earth after MR. Stil there also be a lot of things taken from TSWLM in to FYEO (and Moonraker) what also there take with Octopussy. Mabey there have choosen AVTAK after FYEO and let MR be Roger Moore his last movie or there make AVTAK with Dalton after LTK and MR with Brosnan after Twine.
  • Agent007391Agent007391 Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start
    Posts: 7,854
    What if Goldfinger never happened? Peace on Earth.
  • BondWillReturnBondWillReturn
    Posts: 816
    Moonraker as Moore's last Bond movie would have been cool! Whatever you say about it, it's still one of his more epic adventures (more so than AVTAK) but on the other hand: older Bond in MR wouldn't really work.

    If Goldfinger had never happened, then we wouldn't be talking right now. I know the film get's a lot of hate around here, but it's still the film that launched Bondmania, and without Bondmania the films might not have continued after FRWL, or only a few other entries would have been made.

    If they had made Thunderball instead of Goldfinger, I think Bondmania would still have been launched, because Thunderball is even more epic than Goldfinger. And then the general favorite right now would be Thunderball.
  • Lancaster007Lancaster007 Shrublands Health Clinic, England
    Posts: 1,874
    I don't get the hate for Goldfinger, it is not my favourite, not even in the top 5, but as BondWillReturn pointed out it was the start of Bondmania which reached it peak with Thunderball. But what if Terrence Young and not Guy Hamilton had directed it? Would it have been a better film? I think it may have been, I think it would have been less of Bond the SuperSpy and a bit more grounded in reality…what if…
  • BondWillReturnBondWillReturn
    edited August 2012 Posts: 816
    That's a nice 'What if' , @Lancaster007.

    I think it could have worked better that way, I have great respect for Young, especially after seeing one of the features on the UE dvd's that I believe was completely dedicated to him! (I was rather shocked when I found out about his death, and actually dreamed I met him) He seemed to have bene responsible for creating the Bond and the Connery we know. Yeah, I think Goldfinger would have even more class, a more engaged Connery, and indeed a more grounded 007.
  • SJK91SJK91
    edited August 2012 Posts: 1,310
    Goldfinger is my second favorite Bond film and one of my favorite films of all time. Never understood the hate it gets on these forums, and my God have I tried disliking it after reading all the comments. Never could do it.
  • 007RogerMoore007RogerMoore
    Posts: 1,082
    What if Moore was Bond 1962-1993? In the films after AVTAK, the script could in some ways acknowledge his age. But for me personally, I liked that Bond could still do whatever stunt he wanted to, like in OP & AVTAK, even though he is not far from 60. I'd like that in later movies also. He may look old, but an old James Bond is capable of anything.

    After this, the cycle starts again with Brosnan in 1995, who leaves the series in...I don't know, 2014?
  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    Posts: 12,837
    GF gets more love than hate on these forums, but me and others don't like it that much because it's boring. I used to love GF, but I started rewatching the films and now I think FRWL, TB and YOLT are better Connery films.
  • Agent007391Agent007391 Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start
    Posts: 7,854
    007RogerMoore wrote:
    What if Moore was Bond 1962-1993? In the films after AVTAK, the script could in some ways acknowledge his age. But for me personally, I liked that Bond could still do whatever stunt he wanted to, like in OP & AVTAK, even though he is not far from 60. I'd like that in later movies also. He may look old, but an old James Bond is capable of anything.

    After this, the cycle starts again with Brosnan in 1995, who leaves the series in...I don't know, 2014?

    What if Moore was Bond from '62 to '93? I would not be a Bond fan. I don't hate Moore, but he is in no way the best Bond. And then Brosnan going from '95 to '14, we'd be getting far too many DADs. It would be like living in hell coated with a fresh helping of excrement.
  • X3MSonicXX3MSonicX https://www.behance.net/gallery/86760163/Fa-Posteres-de-007-No-Time-To-Die
    edited August 2012 Posts: 2,635
    Not too many DAD's imo. If he stayed, Brosnan would have made Skyfall Around 2006, and maybe Bond 22 around 2008.
  • Agent007391Agent007391 Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start
    Posts: 7,854
    How, if Brosnan had remained, would Skyfall still have been made?! And Bond 22 was made in 2008!
  • X3MSonicXX3MSonicX https://www.behance.net/gallery/86760163/Fa-Posteres-de-007-No-Time-To-Die
    Posts: 2,635
    Agent007391 wrote:
    How, if Brosnan had remained, would Skyfall still have been made?! And Bond 22 was made in 2008!

    Well, but Isn't this the What If thread? IF he stayed, in my point of view, he'd have made SF in 2006.
  • BondWillReturnBondWillReturn
    edited August 2012 Posts: 816
    It does seem like SkyFall is where 'classic' Bond picks itself back up. This is what GoldenEye: Reloaded and 007 Legends acknowledge: Craig's Bond has now been on all or most of the missions, just updated to these times (also acknowledged by M in the trailer when she says 'If you'd had worked with 007 as long as I have), so then i'd make sense Brosnan would have made SkyFall in 2006.

    But I don't think they would have came up with the ideas ect. probably we would have gotten a modern adaptation of Casino Royale with an aged Bond (which is not a bad idea)

    Also: I really don't like the idea of Moore hanging around any longer. I liked him as Bond, even if I can't take him serious as 007 with the exception of LALD and FYEO, and maybe TSWLM but he left when he should have. Plus: We got Dalton, who is still the best Bond IMO.
  • emilbertilloemilbertillo
    Posts: 153
    What if Brozza picked up the series after Moore, instead of Dalton? Would there be a six-year hiatus too, would EON flop? Personally I think they won't, but had the hiatus not happened, it certainly could have ended the franchise. Which leads to a bigger, more explosive scenario:
    :conspiracykeanu: What if EON intended the hiatus so that the people would miss Bond and go crazy for him in GoldenEye?
    I think the six-year break is a hidden blessing for the franchise. They didn't produce a Bond film for over half a decade and when they did, BOOM! Welcome back Mr. Bond. Kinda like Disney, don't you think?
  • 007RogerMoore007RogerMoore
    Posts: 1,082
    Agent007391 wrote:
    What if Moore was Bond from '62 to '93? I would not be a Bond fan. I don't hate Moore, but he is in no way the best Bond.

    That's your opinion. I think he is by far, easily, without a doubt the best Bond.
    emilbertillo wrote:
    What if Brozza picked up the series after Moore, instead of Dalton? Would there be a six-year hiatus too, would EON flop? Personally I think they won't, but had the hiatus not happened, it certainly could have ended the franchise.

    I think Brosnan's movies would have done better than the ones we got, especially LTK, but the question is what MGM (or whoever the owner at the time was) wanted to do. They could easily had done a third Dalton movie in 1991 (from what I've read) but as attendance figures for every movie (apart from TLD) had dropped since MR they chose not to. Perhaps with Brosnan this wouldn't have happened, I can't tell.
  • Lancaster007Lancaster007 Shrublands Health Clinic, England
    Posts: 1,874
    007RogerMoore wrote:
    What if Moore was Bond 1962-1993? In the films after AVTAK, the script could in some ways acknowledge his age. But for me personally, I liked that Bond could still do whatever stunt he wanted to, like in OP & AVTAK, even though he is not far from 60. I'd like that in later movies also. He may look old, but an old James Bond is capable of anything.

    After this, the cycle starts again with Brosnan in 1995, who leaves the series in...I don't know, 2014?

    There is no way old Rog would have made that many Bond films, not only would he have got bored with it, so would've the producers and public. I could imagine him making the first six, maybe even seven, but by then he would have had enough. And if he had what order would the films have been made in? That is probably a more intriguing 'what if', chances are they would not have made them in the order they did. Dr No, FRWL, OHMSS, TB…who knows?
  • 007RogerMoore007RogerMoore
    edited August 2012 Posts: 1,082
    This movie was filmed in 1989, and I think based on his looks he could easily be Bond at that time. I know he was 61, but ignore that for a second. He looked basically the same as in AVTAK. I'll make you no secret that I'd rather seen Moore or Brosnan than Dalton in 1987, even though he was good too IMO.

  • Agent007391Agent007391 Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start
    Posts: 7,854
    007RogerMoore wrote:
    Agent007391 wrote:
    What if Moore was Bond from '62 to '93? I would not be a Bond fan. I don't hate Moore, but he is in no way the best Bond.

    That's your opinion. I think he is by far, easily, without a doubt the best Bond.

    I never said any different. I just don't think he's the best Bond. Then again, I prefer the book Bond, which is nothing like the sarcastic joker of the Moore era.
  • LeChiffreLeChiffre
    Posts: 1,548
    Agent007391 wrote:
    What if Goldfinger never happened? Peace on Earth.

    What if, this ludicrous suggestion never existed?
  • Agent007391Agent007391 Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start
    edited August 2012 Posts: 7,854
    Obvious: Hell on Earth.

    As I've said before: My hate of Goldfinger is well documented all over these forums. I just don't find it a good Bond film. Worthless plot, forgettable Bond girls, crappy henchman, stupid villain, Bond captured for half the movie. The DB5, "I never joke about my work." and "No Mr. Bond, I expect you to die!" are probably the only three good elements this film had. I've watched (and enjoyed) Never Say Never Again more.
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