Recommend a 1st Bond film to a Newbie to the Series

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  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    edited June 2012 Posts: 28,694
    If you're new to the series then I would recommend Dr No first followed by FRWL and then continue in order as they should be. I do see however that some people would be more likely to prefer to start with the modern CR (current generation) as a stating point as they maybe otherwise put off by being expected to watch a fifty year old movie. Dr No for me has aged really well though and is a movie anyone of any age can appreciate.

    If they don't like watching old classic films, they are ignorant to the best cinema has to offer, outside of Bond.
  • Posts: 4,762
    For those who like to be constantly entertained without ever a dull moment on screen, I'd recommend any of the Brosnan movies, and particularly Tomorrow Never Dies and Die Another Day, since they're less plot-focused. For those who want to see some hard-core spying, I'd recommend Dr. No, From Russia with Love, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, or For Your Eyes Only. For those who like camp and fun, I'd recommend Goldfinger, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, The Man with the Golden Gun, or Moonraker.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    00Beast wrote:
    For those who like to be constantly entertained without ever a dull moment on screen, I'd recommend any of the Brosnan movies, and particularly Tomorrow Never Dies and Die Another Day, since they're less plot-focused. For those who want to see some hard-core spying, I'd recommend Dr. No, From Russia with Love, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, or For Your Eyes Only. For those who like camp and fun, I'd recommend Goldfinger, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, The Man with the Golden Gun, or Moonraker.

    I think GF still has some dark meat on its bones that steers it clear of "campy" territory. To each his own.
  • Posts: 5,634
    If ever I wanted to recommend a Bond movie to someone new to the series, I would go about my business in the following manner and keeping it short -



    Dr No - where it all started, exotic, exciting, serious, entertaining

    FRWL - Even more serious, epitome of the Fleming creation, dips in places

    GF - Boring, Mundane, lack of action, an all round disappointment

    TB - Great recovery, entertaining, action, Bond back to how he was before, gets a bit dull in places

    YOLT - Disappointing, static, and lack of fresh ideas

    OHMSS - One for all ages, new Bond, keeps the interest, goes off course every now and again

    DAF - Stale, tired, desperate, a few moments of humor here and there, nothing special

    LALD - a Masterpiece, Highly recommended, some very special ingredients

    TMWTGG - Lively, Frantic, Entertaining, one to see

    TSWLM - Fast Paced, Tangible, Some exciting sequences, awful title track

    MR - Fun, Lively, Belligerent, Never a Dull Moment, Borderline Insane

    YOLT - serious, fast paced, proper Bond, goes on too long, one of the better releases

    OP - Adolescent nonsense, too much emphasis on unwanted humor, good in parts

    AVTAK - An unmitigated disaster, an embarrassment to all concerned

    TLD - Bond makes a recovery, steely, serious, straight faced, technical, although a bit mundane every now and again

    LTK - Adult Bond, not for kids, too far detached from James Bond, goes so far of course sometimes, but a worthwhile watch, lack of adventure

    GE - Straight faced, some absurd humor, lots of exciting locations, disappointing ending, belligerent music

    TND - Boring, Dull, lacks excitement, poor characters, an 1990s variation of Goldfinger

    TWINE - Superb opening, great Bond, Fleming creation, excitement, not all one way traffic

    DAD - see A View to a Kill

    CR - Bond begins, more adult focus Bond, serious, lack of humor, straight faced, good action sequences, fine music track, awful main Villain, sometimes a bit of an embarrassment, overall worthwhile watch

    QOS - Blair Witch Project, Vomit inducing, hard to keep track of events, lively in places, poor characters, poor music, serious, action, ambiguous chain of events and character motives, one to avoid


    Skyfall - ?
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    @Baltimore, you have YOLT where FYEO goes.
  • Posts: 5,634
    That just illustrates how tired I am, mistakes will have to be alllowed

    I meant For Your Eyes Only of course, (in between Moonraker and Octopussy)

    You read fast Brady..
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    That just illustrates how tired I am, mistakes will have to be alllowed

    I meant For Your Eyes Only of course, (in between Moonraker and Octopussy)

    You read fast Brady..
    I am betting I'll be seeing you post this soon:
    I-)
  • A starting point?

    Well after taking mates to see QOS, they were anti Bond (QOS being there first film). I don't know why but I decided to show them AVTAK and there opinion changed instantly. They enjoyed it, thought it was good and Roger Moore was great. Just goes to show that to outsiders, films like AVTAK are the ones they want to see and not serious movies like QOS

    I would recommend AVTAK based on experience
  • Posts: 1,817
    Am I the only one who remembered Dr Cox after reading "newbie"?
    In that case, I'll say he would recommend LTK. Dr Kelson one that takes place in Asia like YOLT or TMWTGG and Turk LALD, I think.
  • Posts: 224
    I like to show CR to my mates who haven't watched Bond films.
  • edited December 2012 Posts: 546
    I would let one my freinds watch Goldeneye. (Since it's the Bond film)
  • Posts: 15,106
    I would say either DN, TB or CR.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    It seems like many who aren't Bond fans in the slightest have been drawn to theaters for Skyfall. Who knows how many new fans it has made.
  • It depends on the person. When I recommend a Bond film to someone, I always ask first if they want a more campy movie or a darker movie. Normally I recommend CR to those who want to see dark Bond movies, or, if they want funnier movies, I recommend GF and TSWLM.
  • edited December 2012 Posts: 11,189
    If you want "Classic Classic" Bond then I'd go for FRWL or GF. If you want "modern Bond" I'd go for GE, CR or SF. Honorable mentions go to the PTS for TLD and TSWLM. On their own they personify what Bond is about and would make great "previews" for new fans.
  • Posts: 183
    Generally i'd say either Dr No ( because it's where it all started) or Casino Royale (because, looking at it from a different perspective, it's where it all started!).
  • KerimKerim Istanbul Not Constantinople
    Posts: 2,629
    I think Skyfall wouldn't actually be a bad place to start for a new fan. Skyfall gave us a glimpse into the awesomeness of the past 50 years and set the foundation for future Bond films.
  • Casino Royale
  • Posts: 4,762
    00Beast wrote:
    For those who like to be constantly entertained without ever a dull moment on screen, I'd recommend any of the Brosnan movies, and particularly Tomorrow Never Dies and Die Another Day, since they're less plot-focused. For those who want to see some hard-core spying, I'd recommend Dr. No, From Russia with Love, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, or For Your Eyes Only. For those who like camp and fun, I'd recommend Goldfinger, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, The Man with the Golden Gun, or Moonraker.

    I think GF still has some dark meat on its bones that steers it clear of "campy" territory. To each his own.

    You are correct there, that is true; there are some dark instances, like the deaths of the Masterton sisters, gassing the American hoods, the fight with Oddjob, and the the opening pre-title sequence. However, for even those moments, the camp and light-hearted instances tend to prevail a little bit more in the third release.
  • 00Beast wrote:
    00Beast wrote:
    For those who like to be constantly entertained without ever a dull moment on screen, I'd recommend any of the Brosnan movies, and particularly Tomorrow Never Dies and Die Another Day, since they're less plot-focused. For those who want to see some hard-core spying, I'd recommend Dr. No, From Russia with Love, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, or For Your Eyes Only. For those who like camp and fun, I'd recommend Goldfinger, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, The Man with the Golden Gun, or Moonraker.

    I think GF still has some dark meat on its bones that steers it clear of "campy" territory. To each his own.

    You are correct there, that is true; there are some dark instances, like the deaths of the Masterton sisters, gassing the American hoods, the fight with Oddjob, and the the opening pre-title sequence. However, for even those moments, the camp and light-hearted instances tend to prevail a little bit more in the third release.

    Very good point even in the light Bonds there are dark moments. I remember as a child watching my first Bonds on TV and being really scared by parts of Octopussy and Moonraker, but those moments actually made those films the most memorable for me. I think because these films (Moore/GF/DAF) are predominantly light-hearted that the darker scenes have more of an impact on kids. They're almost like the Disney films in that sense so for a young first time viewer I'd show one of those types of Bond. Craig/Dalton and early Connery are best left as gem's to be discovered later in life :)
  • Posts: 161
    Casino royale,skyfall, Goldfinger, OHMSS, TLD and FYEO

    if you don't come out loving those then its a lost cause
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    edited December 2012 Posts: 28,694
    I would say both DN and FRWL should be essential to any newbie to the series. You can't fully understand the impact Bond has made in history until you see his magnificent introduction in DN, and FRWL is pure espionage thrills that has some of the best content the series has to offer in locations, allies, action, drama/thrills, and dialogue (same to DN).
  • edited December 2012 Posts: 12,837
    TLD or TSWLM have everything you'd expect from a Bond film and are two of the very best in the series imo. So I'd go with either of those.
  • Posts: 11,189
    TLD or TSWLM have everything you'd expect from a Bond film and are two of the very best in the series imo. So I'd go with either of those.

    Spy's a difficult one for me. I like it, the photography is beautiful but Barbara Bach :-t She's attractive but I've realised her performance is ear-gratingly wooden at times.

    I'd say GF is a better example.
  • edited December 2012 Posts: 12,837
    BAIN123 wrote:
    TLD or TSWLM have everything you'd expect from a Bond film and are two of the very best in the series imo. So I'd go with either of those.

    Spy's a difficult one for me. I like it, the photography is beautiful but Barbara Bach :-t She's attractive but I've realised her performance is ear-gratingly wooden at times.

    I'd say GF is a better example.

    GF has lots of what makes Spy a classic but I think Spy is faster paced and more exciting than GF.
  • edited December 2012 Posts: 11,189
    BAIN123 wrote:
    TLD or TSWLM have everything you'd expect from a Bond film and are two of the very best in the series imo. So I'd go with either of those.
    Spy's a difficult one for me. I like it, the photography is beautiful but Barbara Bach  :-t She's attractive but I've realised her performance is ear-gratingly wooden at times. I'd say GF is a better example.
    GF has lots of what makes Spy a classic but I think Spy is faster paced and more exciting than GF.
    I love the photography in Spy. The shots of Egypt and the Austrian Alps. Moore isn't annoying like he is in MR either ;)
  • Major_BoothroydMajor_Boothroyd Republic of Isthmus
    edited December 2012 Posts: 2,722
    Ok, ive gotta assume they're aware of Craig era movies especially CR and SF but after that it depends on the person. If someone was genuinely interested in getting into Bond I'd suggest the first three in order. If they like them then continue on in order. If they were too 'old fashioned' I'd put them straight onto LTK and follow it with TLD, GE, TND. I think it'd be difficult to just throw them straight into YOLT, DAF or any of the Moore films because they really are the fodder for parody like Austin Powers etc. and I think they've dated the most savagely of the bond franchise. To answer the question overall - start at the start. Dr No.
  • edited December 2012 Posts: 1,497
    BAIN123 wrote:
    TLD or TSWLM have everything you'd expect from a Bond film and are two of the very best in the series imo. So I'd go with either of those.

    Spy's a difficult one for me. I like it, the photography is beautiful but Barbara Bach :-t She's attractive but I've realised her performance is ear-gratingly wooden at times.

    I'd say GF is a better example.

    I think people on this site have come to that assumption because it has been beaten over our heads so much on this site by certain members. I was never of that opinion, and am not now. How is she any worse of an actress than Lois Chiles or Claudine Auger? If anything one gets a taste of what the Bond women at that time were like: all lousy actresses, many of whom were overdubbed by Nikki Van der Zyl (Ms. Bach I don't believe was). I would most certainly recommend SPY to any newbie for it's big, over the top production, always cheeky Rog', big stunts, and iconic moments such as the parachute jump, the submerging Lotus, Jaws, and the incredible locations.
  • @JBFan626 I agree with you, I never thought there was anything wrong with Bach. I thought she had some really good scenes in TSWLM (like when she tells Bond she'll kill him when the mission is over).

    And I also agree with you on the film. I think it's a classic because of the reasons you listed, I think it's Moore's best and it's one of the most iconic, popular Bond films that for some reason is fairly underrated on here.
  • DB5DB5
    Posts: 408
    A lot depends on the person's age. Kids today generally don't want to watch a movie they consider old. And for a teenager today, Pierce Brosnan's films are considered "old!" So as much as I love Goldfinger, I'd probably recommend either Casino Royale or The Living Daylights.
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