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Differences in acting between Timothy Dalton's Bond and Daniel Craig's Bond

Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
edited October 2012 in Actors Posts: 11,119
I...I find it hard to find. Actually Timothy and Daniel both did the same before the start of the production of their first Bond pictures: They read all Ian Fleming novels and they both said that James Bond is a cold-hearted, ruthless assassin. Also, they insisted on doing most of their own stunts. I recall Cubby was quite frightened of Tim doing all his stuff by himself. Barbara and Michael on the contrary give him enough creative breathing space.

Anyway, what are the differences in style between Tim and Danny's Bond? I...I can hardly find any :-S
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Comments

  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    Dalts was a softer take IMO, especially in TLD. And more human.

    DC feels a bit indestructible.
  • Signed_By_RogerMooreSigned_By_RogerMoore
    Posts: 643
    Dalton's Bond has a more 'wolfish' quality about it. Menacing, more convincing as a man on the edge
  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    edited October 2012 Posts: 11,119
    Getafix wrote:
    Dalts was a softer take IMO, especially in TLD. And more human.

    DC feels a bit indestructible.

    More human?? I think Danny was very human in 'Casino Royale'. Both Tim and Danny couldn't care less about her majesty's secret service when their loved ones got killed or got hurt severly (For example, Della, Felix, Vesper)...

    Both Danny and Tim have real stage acting experience. Both actors did plays.
  • LeChiffreLeChiffre
    Posts: 1,548
    Daniel Craig is alot harder and more human. But I still like TD's portrayal.
  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    Posts: 12,837
    They are similar and it rubs me the wrong way a bit when people praise Craig for stuff Dalton did nearly 20 years before (darker Bond, went back to the books, did his own stunts, etc).

    I prefer Dalton but Craig is cool too.
  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    DC comes more across a the tool that Flemings M would use in order to solve a situation. And 007 does so in a cruel and inhuman way.

    With TD I always feel it is a second away from having him starting to quote Shakespeare or even recite Good old William.

    I prefer DC easily over TD.
  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    Gustav_Graves wrote:
    Getafix wrote:
    Dalts was a softer take IMO, especially in TLD. And more human.

    DC feels a bit indestructible.

    More human?? I think Danny was very human in 'Casino Royale'. Both Tim and Danny couldn't care less about her majesty's secret service when their loved ones got killed or got hurt severly (For example, Della, Felix, Vesper)...

    Both Danny and Tim have real stage acting experience. Both actors did plays.

    Dalton's Bond IMO feels more like a real person. But that is not necessarily a good thing I suppose.
  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    Both are great and are cut from the same cloth but I think Craig commands the screen more, does a better job at marrying literary and cinematic Bond and I suppose is more fun to watch.
  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    Posts: 11,119
    thelivingroyale wrote:
    They are similar and it rubs me the wrong way a bit when people praise Craig for stuff Dalton did nearly 20 years before (darker Bond, went back to the books, did his own stunts, etc).

    I prefer Dalton but Craig is cool too.

    Exactly. I also think..the Bond franchise wasn't ready for a tougher Bond in 1987, 1989. There was Die Hard and Lethal Weapon and people more or less wanted Bond to be British and suave. I think, Tim had not the luck on his side. His movies were not that succesful, the public was too much used to Roger's jokes and on top of that United Artists got in big trouble.

    Tim would have had better chances if he did 'Casino Royale' in 2006. Honestly? I'm curious if Timothy and Daniel have some nice discussions about this during the royal premiere upcoming week ;-). Would love to see such a discussion.

  • forgotmyusernameforgotmyusername
    Posts: 2,782
    Ironic that DC wants to ape SC but he ends up aping TD. TD is still the man who would be king...
  • battleshipgreygtbattleshipgreygt
    Posts: 1,220
    They're very similar, but I think Craig has a touch of that charisma and swagger from Connery's Bond that Dalton didn't quite have.
  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    Posts: 12,837
    I honestly don't see the whole DC/Connery thing everyone bangs on about.

    Craig seems to me like a mix of Lazenby and Dalton. Dark Bond, some humour but doesn't crack many one liners, does his own stunts, good in the fight scenes, etc.
  • Master_DaharkMaster_Dahark
    edited October 2012 Posts: 4,813
    I would say they are just about the same exact Bond character, the biggest difference being that Craig's Bond was just given OO status and feels the need to prove himself-- whereas Dalton's Bond seems like someone who's had the job for years and it's taken its toll. He will do the job but as shown in TLD, he doesn't care like he once did.

    A fun and interesting experiment would be to watch CR & QOS, then immediately follow up with TLD & LTK. Keeping what I've mentioned in mind, they definitely feel like the same character; one actor being the beginning of the journey- the other being the end.
  • battleshipgreygtbattleshipgreygt
    Posts: 1,220
    thelivingroyale wrote:
    I honestly don't see the whole DC/Connery thing everyone bangs on about.

    Craig seems to me like a mix of Lazenby and Dalton. Dark Bond, some humour but doesn't crack many one liners, does his own stunts, good in the fight scenes, etc.
    It's very subtle, but it's there. In my opinion, at least.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,801
    Master_Dahark wrote:
    I would say they are just about the same exact Bond character, the biggest difference being that Craig's Bond was just given OO status and feels the need to prove himself-- whereas Dalton's Bond seems like someone who's had the job for years and it's taken its toll. He will do the job but as shown in TLD, he doesn't care like he once did.

    ^^^THIS!! Spot on IMO! L-)
  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    Posts: 11,119
    Master_Dahark wrote:
    I would say they are just about the same exact Bond character, the biggest difference being that Craig's Bond was just given OO status and feels the need to prove himself-- whereas Dalton's Bond seems like someone who's had the job for years and it's taken its toll. He will do the job but as shown in TLD, he doesn't care like he once did.

    A fun and interesting experiment would be to watch CR & QOS, then immediately follow up with TLD & LTK. Keeping what I've mentioned in mind, they definitely feel like the same character; one actor being the beginning of the journey- the other being the end.

    One thing I also like about both Daniel and Timothy: They seem to really go into the deep with this character James Bond. They both did lots of research on it. And....on top of it, the producers gave both Tim and Danny much more creative freedom on their movies than their predecessors.

    Pierce Brosnan? Did he actually mention the Ian Fleming novels? I always felt that he just 'did' Bond out of his own pocket, without real research. I saw the 'Everything or Nothing' documentary....and the way he got handed the job in 1994......it seems like one happy kid that stays happy but kinda forgets through his cycle of films who Bond really was.

    Daniel being Sean? Well, I think his face looks very similar to Sean's face. Having seen the trailer...I do think Daniel's performance must be the perfect mix of Connery and Dalton.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,801
    Gustav_Graves wrote:
    Having seen the trailer...I do think Daniel's performance must be the perfect mix of Connery and Dalton.
    Just 4 inches shorter....
    :P
  • ShardlakeShardlake Leeds, West Yorkshire, England
    Posts: 4,043
    Craig just feels far more comfortable in the role. I was one of Dalton's biggest advocates and still rate both his films and they reside in my top ten. Dalton did do the darker more psychological Bond first granted but there are moments where he doesn't feel entirely comfortable in the role.

    I agree he probably presents the closest to Fleming's Bond there has been but playing the role all round, handling the humour he's not the best, most of all the humorous lines in his films feel forced and he's not comfortable saying them.

    DC on the other hand seems to deliver them much more comfortably, it's a shame because Tim is hilarious in Hot Fuzz but Bond seems really stilted in both TLD and LTK.
    Craig nails it pretty much straight away, from the moment he says "Yes Considerably" you know he's got his vibe for how he's going to play it, Tim never really settled into it, to completely fair he never really got a chance to but the films he appeared he left enough of a mark even if his Bond wasn't that accepted at the time,

    I guess we'll have to wait till Skyfall but I get the impression that he is going to leave Dalton behind and present that damaged darker Bond far more effectively than Tim ever did, maybe if he's had the scripts but Craig for me is just a better actor, anyone who's seen Our Friends In The North can't deny that, no Bond actor has delivered a performance as good as that period, if Craig can channel that into a Bond performance then he'll leave the competition behind.
  • KerimKerim Istanbul Not Constantinople
    Posts: 2,629
    Dan has better hair.

    Dan also seems to emotionally connect better than Dalton. Perhaps it's because Craig is at the beginning of Bond's career while Dalton is towards the end of Bond's career.
  • SPECTRESPECTRE
    Posts: 51
    Dalton was definitely a colder, harder Bond especially in LTK. Even the way he delivered the typical Bond quips was harsh. Dalton was basically the opposite of Roger Moore. Craig was tough but he definitely has a softer side.
  • 002002
    Posts: 581
    Dalton is less woodern between the two...no offence
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,801
    In LTK, Dalton was a cold, calculating, woman-using machine.
    Perfect Bond.
  • Baltimore_007Baltimore_007
    Posts: 5,634
    Both have real Fleming qualities, but Dalton was closer to Connery in that respect than Craig ever was. Dalton also seems more humane or benevolent at times, and doesn't have the same ruthless agression of the most recent Bond. Dalton felt slightly uncomfortable with the women, and so did Craig for his immediate debut, but worked very well with the Camille Montes character, although that was a strictly professional relationship, and nothing sexual, and to that extent - it worked

    I think there was more room for humor with Dalton, it's a rare occasion if Craig ever smiles, but that's what I like about them both. Simply a no nonsense approach and just get on with the job with a straight face. You can't ask for anything more

  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    Timothy_Dalton2-260x300.jpg

    I wouldn't want this man hunting me.
  • actonsteveactonsteve
    Posts: 1,492
    Both are similar but Craig is at the start of his career and has something to prove.

    While Dalton is at the end of his and is brittle, jaded and a little burnt out.

    Both gamechanging portrayals though...
  • Jones_The_BondJones_The_Bond
    Posts: 344
    I think Dalton was more faithful to Fleming's Bond. I love Craig's version, but I have great sympathy with those who see him as a little too 'indestructible'. Having the ability to beat up everybody in the room is not, in fact, Fleming's Bond. In the novel FRWL it is made very clear that a fair one-on-one fight between Red Grant and James Bond would be a complete mismatch.

  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    Well, going by that, Roger Moore as Bond defacates on what Fleming envisioned.
  • Jones_The_BondJones_The_Bond
    Posts: 344
    Little harsh, don't you think? Eon Bond is different from Fleming Bond, we all know that. I think parts of the spirit of Fleming lived on in all versions of Bond. That's a good thing. Connery had the swagger, Moore had the elegance and sophistication, Craig the "blunt instrument". Times change.
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited October 2012 Posts: 11,189
    Craig isn't as theatrical as Dalton.
  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    Posts: 12,837
    BAIN123 wrote:
    Craig isn't as theatrical as Dalton.

    He's not as badass either ;)
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