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Yes, there are millions of ways they could have done this. The whole sequence smacks of Purvis and Wade and their utterly moronic plot devices. Fortunately there is a good Fleming story at the core that saves the movie. The action also looks and feels like it's straight off the mid-80s action movie conveyor belt - best before date: 1987.
I was reading an interview with Maibaum the other day from TLD and it was fascinating the way in which he talks about the stunts - everything was very collaborative and it was always important that stunt sequences were different from what was going on elsewhere. I think the opening CR chase achieves this very will, but the airport sequence is generic and dull.
The action in CR was Beautiful to the say the very least . Its poles apart from Skyfall.
It's a Bond movie for pete's sake , Action is part of the package.
I agree with all these points. The Miami action sequence was my least favourite in CR. Plus they have Czech Airlines aircraft in the background (and they don't even fly to Miami) ...as the sequence was filmed at Prague airport. For me every action sequence in SF is way above anything that was in CR. Despite having the same 2nd Unit Director it just proves how a strong director is also required. While I think the finalé in Venice is well handled I think that Mendes and his team deliver a better finalé in SF. For me the end of SF is one of the best action set pieces in the entire series. Not only is it exciting but its also very dramatic and suspenseful. This is why it is important that a strong replacement is found for Bond 24 and why Mendes departure is such a dissapointment.
Action is certainly part of the package, but you make it sound like a can of beans that you can buy off the shelf. Bond action has to special and the Miami airport chase isn't. The rest of the action sequences are fine though.
I felt the Istanbul sequences were rather weak and plodding - like something you'd seen a hundred times before. London passed me by in a blur of machine guns, explosions, dodgy running and fire extinguishers. I loved the idea of the final showdown at Skyfall but actually thought it was really poorly executed. But I seem to be in a minority of about 3 or 4 on SF.
Fixed that for you.
Getafix, I completely agree with you on Skyfall. But I wonder, If you didn't like the action of Skyfall nor Casino Royale which was superbly executed , what action is in your taste?
Oh and Kudos to you :) , its wonderful to see a person who steps out of the heard and speaks for what he believes in. Although me and you don't exactly see things in the same light . I have nothing but respect for you.
I never bothered seeing it as I knew it was going to be awful. However, I hate Temple of Doom and yet Last Crusade is a classic IMO, so he can recover from a poor film. Equally, I loved more recent films of his - Munich, Minority Report - both excellent. Lincoln is also very good.
I've got to agree with Bondbat07 on that one, We've all watched the same movie. Such points should be easily visible to us.
@Skyfail, I never said I disliked the action in CR - I just singled out the Miami airport chase, which I found very generic, over-long and dull.
One of the things about action these days is that it's very difficult to top what has been done before or find new and fresh ways to do things. Sometimes it's best just to do things the old fashioned way and not try to be too fancy, which is I think the approach Mendes took with SF. On one level I commend that, but if you're going to take that route, you have to make your action scenes perfect. And at the end of the day I just don't think the SF action works all that well. The finale at Skyfall Lodge is a great idea but I just found it very run of the mill in the way the sequence was edited and directed - it just moves forward with no real sense of excitement or danger. I felt Mendes was referencing several films and for me there were reminders of Hitchcock's 39 Steps, but without any of Hitch's suspense or sense of fun.
I do like my action scenes to be beautiful and with a sense of the surreal. There is a moment in YOLT when Bond is being chased by goons across the roof of a dock building. The shot pans out and you just see Connery doing his cat moves as he takes out goons and makes his escape. It's not long and it's not particularly complex, but it has a visual style and beauty (and perhaps more importantly a Barry soundtrack) that makes it one of my favourite in the series. By contrast, the action in TLD's PTS is a classic chase and fight sequence in a traditional vein, but done so well and with so such an infectious sense of fun that you cannot help but love it.
When I see Daniel Craig's face CGI'd onto a stunt biker riding across plastic rooftiles in Istanbul I just don't get the same thrill.
Exactly !!! You took the words right out of my mouth. I returned from Skyfall an extremely disappointed viewer and I started questioning the reason's I like Bond , in spite of having watched all the Bond movies numerous times It was Daniel Craig's Bond that made me a loyalist to the series. I really enjoyed that adrenaline ,heart pounding action that Casino Royale and Quantum delivered on ,which was pretty much non existent in Skyfall.
Just a few days later I happened to watched TLD again (The last time I had watched it was 7-8 years back) . I was blown away by the PTS ! It isn't as intense as the PTS in CR or QoS , but boy, does it get the point across ! It's just a lot of fun, something which Skyfall's action wasn't .
Glen never topped his 2nd unit on OHMSS, none of Dalton's or Rog's films have anything to top that, to think Cubby thought Spielberg wasn't experienced after Jaws but put a journey man 2nd unit in charge of 5 films, I'm sorry but Sam Mendes is much more talented all round director than John Glen.
Don't get me wrong I liked the SF PTS but in no way does it top the parkour/embassy bit in CR for me. Now THAT is an action sequence.
I don't agree with @Skyfail but I do see where he is coming from. I liked most of the action in Skyfall but the fight scenes seemed less brutal than CR or QOS.
precisely ! :)
Agreed.
I most definitely would say that the PTS in TLD is better than any of the action scenes in SF. Without a moment's hesitation. I'd add the cargo net fight to that list as well.
No one would claim Glen is a genius, least of all himself I expect. However, the man knew and understood Bond thoroughly, and 4 of his 5 films are regularly ranked amongst the best in the series by many fans.
I simply don't understand the knocking that Glen gets around here.
definitely !
I most definitely would say that the PTS in TLD is better than any of the action scenes in SF. Without a moment's hesitation. I'd add the cargo net fight to that list as well.
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This comment I don't agree with at all. TLD is a top Bond film but to say that the opening PTS and the cargo net fight top anything in SF is just mad. (everyone though is entitled to their opinion)...Earlier aswell you made this comment
"When I see Daniel Craig's face CGI'd onto a stunt biker riding across plastic rooftiles in Istanbul I just don't get the same thrill"
So you do get a thrill when you see Timothy Dalton clinging to the top of a land rover while a dodgy back projection is running in the background? (in certain shots)...
The TLD PTS is better than the SF intro. It's pacy, well shot, great soundtrack, and it tells a story succinctly without a need for any superfluous moments. The SF PTS is overly long for no other reason than to shoehorn in action. I also love the way it sets up 'smiert spionam'.
As beautiful as the SF PTS is, it's basically a linear chase from the get go. With TLD there's a build before Dalts launches himself into action. The other thing that grates on me with SF is the completely 90's notion of chasing down a computer drive, not only that, but one that fits snugly on a little necklace so the villain doesn't lose it. In an age of cloud storage and featuring a villain who can hack the gas mains in MI6, why are we seeing such a redundant mcguffin?
TLD is so slick, a perfect opening to a brilliant film.
As for the cargo net scene, it's up there as one of the most iconic scenes in the series. I don't think any of the action moments in SF deliver anywhere near the originality of this moment.
Oh look, it's Bond and a frenchman fighting on top of a train, and it was done for real. Pretty cool.
But then in TLD we have Bond and a Russian battling on a cargo net dangling from a plane. Done for real. It's not just an "oh, that's cool" moment, it's bloody awe inspiring. You can't keep your jaw from dropping when they slide out of the back.
It's one of the all time great film stunts imo. SF has a stuntman riding a motorbike across roofs with a CGI version of Craigs face, Bond reinacting LALD with a CGI Komodo dragon, Bond jumping onto a tube, and Bond having a fight on a train (not even the first time that's happened), none of these stunts even come close to TLD's cargo net sequence.
Then there's the PTS which @RC7 summed up brilliantly. As well as having brilliant stuntwork (lots of it done by Dalts himself), it also has some genuine tension, a real sense of danger and a girl in a bikini. SF doesn't come close.
Earlier somebody suggested Nicolas Winding Refn, the guy who did the wonderful "Drive". I would be very interested in his take on Bond, but it might be too extreme for some of you!
So, my list, for now:
Wright - stylish action and character driven movies - perfect for Bond!
Bigelow - suspense, suspense, suspense!
Refn - could be the most minimal and stylish Bond yet, but might be too experimental for some
Nolan - would be awesome, but is not gonna happen, I guess.
Tom Tykwer - I am German, so I'm maybe a little biased, but I really liked the style of "The International"!
My list of no-no's:
Campbell - In my very humble opinion, CR was very good, but not because Campbell did it, rather because it was a reboot, the old team was at its best etc.
Ritchie - oh, please, if there is a god in heaven - please no!
@RC7 Nailed it !!
It wasn't on a good pace and wasn't very original.
I really hope we get back to the violent , fast paced , intense action that CR and QoS brought to the table
If Bond 24 delivers this type of brutal , fast paced , heart pounding action
I am afraid I may squeal like a little girl :)