It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
^ Back to Top
The MI6 Community is unofficial and in no way associated or linked with EON Productions, MGM, Sony Pictures, Activision or Ian Fleming Publications. Any views expressed on this website are of the individual members and do not necessarily reflect those of the Community owners. Any video or images displayed in topics on MI6 Community are embedded by users from third party sites and as such MI6 Community and its owners take no responsibility for this material.
James Bond News • James Bond Articles • James Bond Magazine
Comments
Bond Marathon.....
;-)
Skyfall review video:
Final marathon overview reflections video is being uploaded to Youtube now - will link it on here as soon as I can. Have had 14 hours sleep today following about 62 hours with no sleep!
=)) It used to be good!
Now, finally from the marathon, something a bit special that my partner has worked on with me... enjoy and thanks for all your support guys.
And although I enjoy it, but for the witty dialogue only, Diamonds Are Forever is probably my weakest film of the series as well. Just a poor entry imo.
Once again well done on your achievement and thank you for sharing it with us along the way.
Now rest....rest......rest.
James Bond marathon – full report – James Clark
It’s the middle of the Christm
James Bond marathon – full report – James Clark - February 2014
It’s the middle of the Christmas holidays! After what feels like many days of self indulgence and plenty of turkey and trimmings, I decided, with mild trepidation, to conquer my Everest. I’d been thinking for a while about completing the Ultimate James Bond Marathon. This was an idea that I originally roped my film friend Sean into when we were both at University in 2007. We managed at the time to watch from Dr No (1962) up to Casino Royale (2006), all 21 official films; we ignored the unofficial entries, and despite some mild dozing in the small hours we managed 46 ½ hours of 007. This time I wanted to go one better. In the 50th anniversary since the publication of Fleming’s Casino Royale I wanted to try the lot!
On Friday 27th December 2013 at 3pm I started with Everything or Nothing, Stevan Riley’s excellent 2012 commemorative Bond documentary summarising the series’ success and popularity. I’ve watched this a few times since its release (including on cinema release in the UK) and whilst it’s a biased account of Bond history from most involved it’s also deeply insightful, often filled with amusing anecdotes from the ever amusing George Lazenby and legendary designer Ken Adam who recalls how the first ideas that came to his mind for Dr No reminded him of the excitement of having an orgasm; the power of Bond evident from the very early days. It’s also wonderful to see Timothy Dalton muse about parents’ horror when Licence to Kill was released that they couldn’t take their children to see the new Bond anymore. Almost verbatim from Fleming, Dalton correctly identifies that James Bond was never intended for children. The only absence in person in this documentary is the man who was the sixties Bond, Sean Connery. The most poignant moment in the documentary involves Barbara Broccoli recalling how Connery rang her father just before he died to say that he loved him.
As M implores to Bond that she needs him back and the credits roll over Carly Simon’s timeless Nobody does it better, I segued into the first Bond ‘adaptation’, in the loosest form of the word. American television’s Climax series produced a teleplay of Casino Royale after garnering the rights from Fleming himself and transmitted the show on October 21st 1954. Fleming and his avid Bond readers quite rightly felt disappointed by the adaptation. Character names were changed: Felix to Clarence Leiter, characters were introduced (Dorothy Mathis) and Bond is beaten up in a bath tub. You couldn’t really make it up. Above all this, as an American production, James is now called Jimmy Bond. The 50 minute feature is largely a disaster. The acting is abysmal, the dialogue is worse and you’re left with a sour taste in your mouth.
Come 5.30pm, two and a half hours into this marathon I over excitedly inserted my bluray copy of Dr No into the player ready to watch Connery’s debut. What a start! The image is crystal clear, the narrative is fast and engaging and the characters are entertaining. Bond’s introduction eight minutes into the film is still thrill inducing as the cigarette lighter is flicked and assertiveness is stamped on the screen. Dr No isn’t a perfect film. There are some slightly dodgy back projection shots: Bond’s drive to Miss Taro seems to stand out here, and some of the overuse of the Bond theme by editor Peter Hunt can get a little grating but these are redeemed by beautiful Jamaica, the stunning Ursula Andress emerging from the sea and a confident debut for Connery. The series looked like it would be staying indefinitely.
Ask the casual Bond fan for the film that epitomises the 007 character and 99.9% will go for Goldfinger. Whilst the film boasts some now iconic moments and delicious scene stealing from Oddjob, it’s From Russia with Love that remains essential Bond viewing. It’s a proper cold war thriller with a brilliant narrative and the best set of villains in the series. Robert Shaw and Lotte Lenya are inspired casting as Klebb and Grant, particularly Shaw as he remains a silent, lurking presence until he gets his moment in the spotlight and fools Bond in the film’s final third. The claustrophobic train carriage brawl is still one of the finest action sequences in this franchise. This is the film that gave us John Barry’s first play of the alternative 007 theme, the first properly playful title sequence and the first pre-credits sequence that sets the adrenaline pumping for another 2 hours in the dark with 007. 5 star Bond in my opinion and certainly one of the best in the series.
I came to Goldfinger just after 9pm, 6 hours into the marathon and I should have been pumped. Goldfinger is never a let down; it’s bombastic with a larger than life villain with the ultimate dastardly plot, so why did I feel bored? The film, on my latest viewing, feels ploddy and quite flat. The characters are uninspiring, the story is very basic and I just found myself becoming disinterested, despite the fact that this is the third shortest film in the series. To give it its credit the film boasts a brilliant title song by the legendary Shirley Bassey, the iconic Shrley Eaton smothered in gold, the playful golf match between Bond and Goldfinger and the name Pussy Galore but aside from this it feels run of the mill which is a disappointing feeling to have only three films into the series. There’s no denying that by Goldfinger in 1964 Bond had become a phenomenon; I only wish that the story were tighter and more engaging this time around.
Every time I settle down to watch Thunderball I always tell myself “This time you’re going to love it!” and every time I’m left unfulfilled. Again, there are some great sequences in Thunderball and Lucianna Paluzzi is the screen villainess to beat in the series but the film feels incredibly laboured and the narrative is too complex for its own good; perhaps to compensate for the fact that Goldfinger was so simple. Connery also seems very uninspired by this film. Gadgets are starting to play a bigger part in the series and Bond is starting to become the superhero that Fleming so vehemently stated he wasn’t. Former Miss France Claudine Auger is beautiful as Domino albeit your archetypal Bond bimbo and the choice of the Bahamas is exotic for Bond but for these good elements the film then scuppers its potential by spending more screen time than desired trying to explain the plot and filming extensively underwater. Thunderball was so hyped in 1965 when it received its Christmas release that people flocked to see the new 007 adventure. At the time, audiences felt this one had it all but in hindsight it falls short.
Around 2am I was mid-way through the mish mash that is spoof Bond Casino Royale. If you can watch this film without even mildly smirking at the crass quips from David Niven and co., you are made of more steel than me. If you take the film for what it is you might enjoy it. Take it seriously and you’re in for a rough 2 hours. Sellers is on sparkling form as ever and even Andress is here as Vesper and From Russia with Love’s Kronsteen (Vladek Sheybal) makes a cameo. It’s a convoluted mess but its fun after a couple of middle of the road Bond adventures.
4am means back to Connery Bond. Japan is an inspired location for the series and for a moment it seems all too fleetingly that new life is being brought back into the series. Bond is with a girl, he’s shot and killed “on the job” and post credits he’s alive and well again. It’s an intriguing start if nothing else and John Barry’s music and Nancy Sinatra’s vocals are a beautiful combination for the title song but You only live twice quickly descends into parody. The emphasis on gadgetry has all but taken over and Connery looks like he’s waiting for the paycheck. Five years and five Bond films later, Connery set his stamp on the series. Many believe him to be the best Bond. I beg to differ.
Early Saturday morning, December 28th 2013 and the sun is beginning to rise in Surrey as I stick George Lazenby’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service on the telly box. Having dismissed the film and the Bond actor for years claiming it to be one of the worst entries in the series, my opinions have since shifted. No, Lazenby isn’t your desired successor to Connery. Famous only as a model and television commercial star, Lazenby additionally seemed very young for Fleming’s naval Commander but where his acting chops and his delivery of the dialogue sometimes leave a lot to be desired, his physical presence in the action sequences is excellent. Just take the brawl in the hotel room after Bond and Tracy’s re-encounter in the hotel Casino, or the new Bond’s introduction in the beach fight. The film boasts one of John Barry’s finest music scores ever and an inspired pairing of Lazenby and Diana Rigg. Telly Savalas makes an intimidating Blofeld and Ilse Steppat’s Irma Bunt is great villainous support. The dialogue in the film is often best between Bond and M; the latter is particularly cold towards Bond in the film. It’s one of the longest films in the series to date and yet it never drags in the same way that three of Connery’s films did. It seems, in hindsight, a great shame that Lazenby didn’t choose to continue in the role as by the end of the film and the last scene with Tracy, Lazenby cements himself as an engaging 007.
After such a brilliant re-invigoration of the series from director Peter Hunt with OHMSS, Connery is prised back to the series for perhaps the single worst film: Diamonds are Forever. I say worst as mainly it’s just a case of wasted potential. Bond quickly appears to forget that Blofeld is responsible for the death of his wife and he starts hot footing around with Tiffany and Plenty. Jill St John is one of the most irritating of Bond’s women, Charles Gray is an embarrassment as the new Blofeld and the less said about Wint and Kidd the better! If only Lazenby had given his future as 007 a little more thought, things could have been very different.
The 1970s brought comedic excess to Bond largely due to Tom Mankiewicz’s flair for writing comedy dialogue in the film’s screenplays. Live and Let Die is superior to Diamonds as its characters are more intriguing, Roger Moore seems to be enjoying himself in his Bond debut, the theme song is one of the series’ best and everything seems to gel here, aside from the overly long boat chase before the denouement and also the irksome Sheriff J W Pepper.
I came to The Man with the Golden Gun feeling hungry come Saturday lunchtime. After a confident debut Moore doesn’t slip with his second film. His performance remains one of the most convincing and assured in a film that is largely hit and miss. There are many irrelevant and some stupid characters (GOODNIGHT!) in this but Golden Gun ultimately gets a harsh deal from Bond fans. It is not THE worst film in the series. It’s near the bottom of the pile but there are worse ones. The film, for all its problems, boasts another strong, enigmatic villain in Christopher Lee’s Scaramanga. A fleeting character, he generates fear mainly through his steely expressions, his nonchalance at putting a bullet to the chest of his lover and his elation at destroying Bond’s means of escaping his fun island. It’s largely played for laughs and the ideas aren’t original but for all intents and purposes, The Man with the Golden Gun is another fun watch.
1977 not only celebrated the first 15 years of the Bond series but it also saw the 10th film get its release with Cubby Broccoli now the sole producer following Harry Saltzman’s bankruptcy. The Spy Who Loved Me is larger than life. The locations – Egypt, Sardinia – are breathtaking, the Lotus Esprit is an iconic Bond car, the Bond girl is much more of an equal to Bond for the first time in the series thus far and of course we are treated to Rick Sylvester’s extraordinary Union Jack parachute jump segueing into the best James Bond theme from Carly Simon, the title alone summing up James Bond 007 for millions of fans: Nobody does it better!
The end credits of The Spy who loved me read: “James Bond will return in For Your Eyes Only” and this would have been true had it not been for George Lucas’ Star Wars of 1977 and the influence it had on Cubby to release Moonraker as the next Bond picture. There’s no denying that some of the film’s locations are beautiful and the visual effects for the scenes in space are brilliant but these things alone do not make a good film. For me, Moonraker is the most tired and uninspired of the Moore Bond films. Everything seems formulaic even when Bond and co have their feet firmly on the ground. Hugo Drax is a frustratingly banal villain, giving Jaws a girlfriend and making him Bond’s ally was the nail in the coffin and even John Barry’s score seems flat. It’s certainly the weakest of the Shirley Bassey fronted Bond themes. If I’d wanted to see so much of space I would watch Star Trek or Star Wars. Bond is fantasy but this is excessive and unnecessary.
For Your Eyes Only is a welcome return to form. From the pre-credits reminder of Bond’s past with Tracy to the intriguing characters to the stunning Greek landscapes, Bond’s 12th adventure is a success. The film is somehow largely forgotten by those less ardent fans of 007. This seems bizarre to me because the narrative is tight, the film ticks all the right boxes for Bond trademarks and the final act, though significantly downbeat alongside Spy and Moonraker, is one of the most nailbiting moments in Bond history; you’re with Bond up the mountain every step he takes. Carole Bouquet’s Melina Havelock is one of the most beautiful of Bond’s ladies in the series and the arc of her character plays out convincingly on screen. Topol is great support for Bond – another memorable ally in the Tanaka, Quarrel, Kerim Bey vein, and the film allows Moore to show a serious side to the character so rarely seen during his Bond tenure. Whilst at first it seems unlikely of Moore’s Bond, the forcefulness in kicking Locque’s car off the cliff edge is one of Moore’s stand out Bond scenes. In my opinion, For Your Eyes Only represents the best of Moore’s Bond and it was great to watch this again.
At about 30 hours into the marathon it was time to watch Octopussy. I was looking forward to this because of all the films in the series I often forget about this one. As the members of the MI6 message boards who followed my marathon progress will be aware, Octopussy was perhaps my biggest surprise. On watching this again I can appreciate how enjoyable the film is. Whilst it’s not Bond’s ‘all time high’ as the theme song would have us believe, it is still a fine addition to the series and another of Moore’s best. Moore looks in good shape still as Bond and his conviction with Maud Adams’ Octopussy when he’s grilling her about her operations and his conversation with Orlov on the train are two memorable scenes. India is an inspired location for Bond and one that they need to return to in future films; the culture is so vibrant, intense and visually arresting. Vijay is one of Bond’s best allies. The Tuk Tuk chase (which could have been completely comical) is an entertaining action sequence and the villains are one of the strongest sets in the Roger Moore era. The eeriness of the death of 009 scene is still a highlight in the Bond series in my opinion. With the right balance of humour and sincerity, Octopussy is begjnning to ascend in my best Bond films list.
Following Octopussy it was Sean Connery’s time to return for his swansong in the Bond series with the unofficial Bond remake of 1965’s Thunderball fromrival Bond producer Kevin McClory. Connery is clearly too old and out of shape to make a convincing 007 but some of the set pieces are very good and Fatima Blush is a great, campy villainess. In many respects it’s a more enjoyable and watchable film than the original it is trying to emulate.
I’ve always considered A View to a Kill to be an entertaining watch and despite the fact that almost everyone, including Moore, is hamming it up to the max I still stand by my original analysis. Yes the plot isn’t original, yes, Stacey Sutton is perhaps one of the most irritating Bond girls in the series and yes, May Day on top of Bond is more than anyone needs to see, and yet, Christopher Walken proves to be one of the series’ most enigmatic villains. He’s intelligent, cunning, devious – all the characteristics one expects from the memorable Bond heavies. A View to a Kill seems to be a steady finale for Moore’s Bond despite the fact that, as Moore notices in the film’s commentary, it is very sadistic for a Bond film, let alone a Moore Bond.
June 1987, the month and year I was born, saw the fourth incarnation of James Bond on screen. With the mantle having slipped from Pierce Brosnan’s grasp (he had made a deal with the studio before TV series Remington Steele reclaimed him back to his contract), Bond was now in the hands of Welsh Shakespeare thespian Timothy Dalton. In my mind, and through close examination of his films, Dalton provides the best portrayal of Fleming’s Bond on screen to date. Bond takes his job seriously; there’s little enjoyment and certainly little time for quips and crass remarks. He is sophisticated, conscientiously minded, ruthless and dedicated to seeing the job through. Some of Dalton’s facial expressions and reaction shots in his debut The Living Daylights aptly demonstrate Dalton’s grasp on the character from the get go. Daylights is a satisfying, confident debut for Dalton. The story is one of the better ones in the series despite one of the weaker sets of foes Bond has had to face, the title song is entertaining and John Barry is back on form with a terrific score that showcases his final Bond score in the series. The film moves along at a good pace which was welcomed by me as I watching this around 4am on the Sunday morning after sitting through 14 hours of Roger Moore’s tongue in cheek flippancy. The relationship between Bond and Saunders is also developed nicely on screen, allowing audiences to empathise with Bond as he inspects Saunders’ dead body. Richard Maibaum and Michael Wilson’s script is well written and structured and the final act of the film in the desert is as thrilling as any Bond finale.
Another Bond film that sits comfortably in my Top five is Dalton’s final film in a too short Bond tenure, Licence to Kill. Lifting some key plot points from Fleming’s novel Live and Let Die, Licence to Kill is still the grittiest and one of the most engaging Bond films to date. Dalton takes the character and turns it up to 100%. His Bond is dangerous yet also a charmer, attracting the attention and admiration of two beautiful women played brilliantly by Carey Lowell and Talisa Soto. Not since Robert Shaw’s Red Grant in my other favourite Bond film, From Russia with Love, do we feel that Bond might have truly met his match against the villain. Robert Davi plays Sanchez with such conviction that seeing the two together on screen is always electric. The film is fast paced, violent and it also knows how to get some laughs (Professor Joe Butcher the televangelist being a prime example). It’s also great to see David Hedison return as the best Felix Leiter in the series to work with his second Bond actor. Ultimately, Dalton’s Bond tenure was too brief and honestly it’s one of the biggest disappointments of the Bond series.
1995. Bond has been off screen for six years and now the fifth actor has the chance to make the role his own. Pierce Brosnan finally received his chance to play Bond with Goldeneye, the film that would truly decide Bond’s future for the nineties and his longevity into the 21st century. Goldeneye is an explosive return for Bond and Brosnan does light up the screen. He’s the Bond I grew up with yet in hindsight he’s one of my least favourite Bonds. Martin Campbell was a strong choice to direct Bond’s return to the screen and many aspects of the film are excellent: Sean Bean, Famke Janssen, Tina Turner’s title track, Daniel Kleinman’s revised gun barrel and credits sequence, the stunt work....but these are occasionally undermined by frustratingly banal characters like Wade and Boris. The film also finds it difficult to strike the right tone and maintain it throughout. For these reasons I don’t agree that it’s Brosnan’s best Bond film.
The end of the marathon is in sight. By late morning on Sunday 29th December 2013 after a burst of caffeine I came to Tomorrow Never Dies, my favourite of the Brosnan films. The film is one of the more entertaining Bonds with some good characters, some great action sequences and plenty of Brosnan charisma. Again the film doesn’t even come close to the best Bond films but there are many things to enjoy about Brosnan’s second film if solely for the fact that Brosnan himself seems now to have relaxed into the role after an often under-confident portrayal of the character in Goldeneye. The villain is probably the weakest element of Tomorrow Never Dies, Jonathan Pryce truly hamming it up as the media megalomaniac.
We said goodbye to Bond in the 20th century after 37 years with the 19th film The World is not Enough. After 18 official films you wonder what’s left for Bond to conquer and amazingly screenwriter newcomers Neal Purvis and Robert Wade deliver the goods. From the exciting extended pre-credits boat chase, inserting as much of London’s River Thames and South Bank as possible, to the introduction of Renard (one of the most intriguing of Bond’s foes), The World is not Enough is an entertaining watch. Although the film demonstrates more focus on character it doesn’t disappoint on the action. It’s good to see Judi Dench’s M getting more involved in the story thus garnering more screen time as well, and a return for Robbie Coltrane’s Zukovsky after his satisfying scene stealing introduction in Goldeneye. There are some weak elements: even Bond fans who can clearly leave their brains at the door and become enveloped by Bond’s many fantasy worlds must find it incomprehensible to imagine Denise Richards as a nuclear physicist!
Whatever your feelings of Brosnan’s time as Bond, things were about to get undeniably worse. Die Another Day, the 20th film released on the series’ 40th anniversary, suffers from trying to pack too much in. Whilst occasional nods and winks to the series’ longevity are fine, the film feels like it depends on them to tell the story, a story which is incidentally one of the most ludicrous concepts in the series. A Korean man stuck to the engine of a hovercraft which careens off the edge of a dam undergoes such a physical transformation that he returns to Bond’s world as a hammy Englishman played with little subtlety by Toby Stephens apparently modelling himself on Bond. This isn’t the worst aspect of this mess of a film. Zao returns with his face embedded with diamonds and frankly looks about as intimidating as Mr Bean. There’s an invisible car, Bond and Moneypenny ‘get it on’, Madonna sings the title track and even cameos in the film and the film cannot even be saved by Oscar winning actress Halle Berry whose character Jinx gets some of the most appalling dialogue ever written for a central or even minor Bond character. Not enough bad elements? How about the scene where all Bond aficionados cringed and thought “They’ve killed James Bond” – the CGI tidal wave surf!
There are, amazingly, some redeeming features in Die Another Day. The first half of the film , though a mixed bag in terms of narrative, holds up fairly well and the fencing fight scene between Bond and Graves is well choreographed and engaging. The idea of Bond failing a mission and being tortured is also a bold direction to take, yet even this is undermined by the fact that the torture sequences themselves are reduced to appearing over Madonna’s dirge title track and Daniel Kleinman’s graphics. After the more audacious steps towards barrier breaking Bond in films like Licence to Kill, why are we now reduced to such nonsense? Not since Diamonds are Forever had I truly felt that a Bond film was such a categorical waste of potential all round. Ultimately not the swansong that Brosnan deserved.
The series died for a short time once again in 2002. Although Die Another Day was an enormous commercial success, Bond had now become a pastiche of itself; Bond was an indestructible superhero in the Superman vein. A little like after the success of Moonraker, Bond needed to return to basics. With three films remaining in this epic marathon I switched on Casino Royale. What a breath of fresh air, at last. After almost ten years of mediocre films, Bond is back with a vengeance with Daniel Craig and the producers taking Bond back to his roots. Martin Campbell appears to rectify all mistakes made on Goldeneye and brings us one of the most invigorating films in the Bond canon. Craig’s Bond is a machine that needs taming in his debut, the character in the early days of his career as a 00 and he finds that he can’t even be trusted by M played once again by the ever brilliant Judi Dench. The film is one of the longest in the series and it’s relentless. Even the slower poker table scenes bristle with tension and energy. The standout for me in Casino Royale is the inspired casting of the stunning Eva Green as one of the most inspirational women in Bond’s life, Vesper Lynd. The chemistry between Green and Craig is terrific to watch making her betrayal heart wrenching to watch. Craig gives one of the best and most assured debuts of a Bond in the series.
Bond was back but it seemed that following the huge success of Casino Royale, producers Broccoli and Wilson were having trouble meeting fan’s high expectations for the follow-up film, the 22nd film in the series and the first official Bond ‘sequel’. Set immediately after the conclusion of Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace launches the audience into the action immediately. The film continues at break neck pace and remains the shortest Bond film to date. The characters here are largely one dimensional particularly the villain, Dominic Greene. Some of the film’s dialogue is also often difficult to understand. The title song is a big disappointment after the strong You know my name from Chris Cornell and the hotel in the desert with a confrontation which the film has been leading to is ultimately lacklustre and painfully brief. All this aside, Daniel Craig is once again on top form as 007. The best moments of the film are the quieter, reflective moments between Bond and Mathis, Bond and Camille and Bond and Vesper’s ex-boyfriend in the final scene of the film. The mystery remains: will Quantum return to the series in the future a la SPECTRE or has Bond’s relationship with this new villainous organisation been disbanded? It’s certainly reassuring to see Bond let go of Vesper as the film closes to allow the next film to bring us Bond without the emotional baggage. As always, James Bond will return.
It’s about 9.30pm on Sunday evening. Having started this beast of a marathon at 3pm on Friday afternoon it’s with mixed emotions that I headed into the final hurdle of my Ultimate Bond marathon with the film that’s freshest in the minds of Bond’s most ardent fans; the 50th anniversary delight that is Skyfall. After Quantum of Solace failed to live up to many an expectant fan’s ideals, Skyfall had its work cut out. Hiring Academy Award winning director Sam Mendes was the first big coup. The promise of a strong narrative involving M and the return of Q and the injection of some fresh humour to the series were big selling points. Furthermore this film was released in the franchise’s 50th year; a half century milestone for the British secret agent created by a British author intending to write “the spy story to end all spy stories”. All the elements were undoubtedly set in place to ensure that Skyfall would be an anniversary film that fans could look back on in years to come with pride! Ultimately it is. The film takes the audience by the jugular from the get go and refuses to let go, even as Bond returns to his family home to defend his past and protect matriarchal figure M. This is Craig and Dench’s film and both excel. The council session with the PM with M’s Tennyson quotation with the following attack by Silva sets things into motion for one of the most affecting, entertaining Bond finales in recent memory.
As the film drew to a close with Bond promising to return to work “with pleasure” before the new M and the eternal Bond theme re-awakening the viewer to the normality of their own lives, my marathon came to its conclusion. Finishing just before midnight on Sunday 29th December 2013 I gave my final video thoughts about the film and the marathon as a whole and thought about the best way I could some up my experience. It’s a brilliant thing to do and the sense of achievement of being the first person solo to achieve this record in the world (I believe; I’ve seen many failed attempts on You Tube) just made me feel more proud of this achievement. From 1999 when I sat to watch my first Bond film Dr No on British television as an impressionable 11 year old, fast forward 15 years and my love for 007 grows daily and with the coming of each new film. My thanks to all the members of the MI6 boards who tracked my progress and gave me encouragement. 57 hours is a long time to deprive yourself of sleep, even for Bond, but you guys were great company. This is just a good story to add to the Bond book that I’m starting to write this year. As long as Bond returns, as a faithful, life long fan I’ll be along for the ride to share the girls, guns, gadgets and the adventure.
James Bond marathon – full report – James Clark - February 2014
It’s the middle of the Christmas holidays! After what feels like many days of self indulgence and plenty of turkey and trimmings, I decided, with mild trepidation, to conquer my Everest. I’d been thinking for a while about completing the Ultimate James Bond Marathon. This was an idea that I originally roped my film friend Sean into when we were both at University in 2007. We managed at the time to watch from Dr No (1962) up to Casino Royale (2006), all 21 official films; we ignored the unofficial entries, and despite some mild dozing in the small hours we managed 46 ½ hours of 007. This time I wanted to go one better. In the 50th anniversary since the publication of Fleming’s Casino Royale I wanted to try the lot!
On Friday 27th December 2013 at 3pm I started with Everything or Nothing, Stevan Riley’s excellent 2012 commemorative Bond documentary summarising the series’ success and popularity. I’ve watched this a few times since its release (including on cinema release in the UK) and whilst it’s a biased account of Bond history from most involved it’s also deeply insightful, often filled with amusing anecdotes from the ever amusing George Lazenby and legendary designer Ken Adam who recalls how the first ideas that came to his mind for Dr No reminded him of the excitement of having an orgasm; the power of Bond evident from the very early days. It’s also wonderful to see Timothy Dalton muse about parents’ horror when Licence to Kill was released that they couldn’t take their children to see the new Bond anymore. Almost verbatim from Fleming, Dalton correctly identifies that James Bond was never intended for children. The only absence in person in this documentary is the man who was the sixties Bond, Sean Connery. The most poignant moment in the documentary involves Barbara Broccoli recalling how Connery rang her father just before he died to say that he loved him.
As M implores to Bond that she needs him back and the credits roll over Carly Simon’s timeless Nobody does it better, I segued into the first Bond ‘adaptation’, in the loosest form of the word. American television’s Climax series produced a teleplay of Casino Royale after garnering the rights from Fleming himself and transmitted the show on October 21st 1954. Fleming and his avid Bond readers quite rightly felt disappointed by the adaptation. Character names were changed: Felix to Clarence Leiter, characters were introduced (Dorothy Mathis) and Bond is beaten up in a bath tub. You couldn’t really make it up. Above all this, as an American production, James is now called Jimmy Bond. The 50 minute feature is largely a disaster. The acting is abysmal, the dialogue is worse and you’re left with a sour taste in your mouth.
Come 5.30pm, two and a half hours into this marathon I over excitedly inserted my bluray copy of Dr No into the player ready to watch Connery’s debut. What a start! The image is crystal clear, the narrative is fast and engaging and the characters are entertaining. Bond’s introduction eight minutes into the film is still thrill inducing as the cigarette lighter is flicked and assertiveness is stamped on the screen. Dr No isn’t a perfect film. There are some slightly dodgy back projection shots: Bond’s drive to Miss Taro seems to stand out here, and some of the overuse of the Bond theme by editor Peter Hunt can get a little grating but these are redeemed by beautiful Jamaica, the stunning Ursula Andress emerging from the sea and a confident debut for Connery. The series looked like it would be staying indefinitely.
Ask the casual Bond fan for the film that epitomises the 007 character and 99.9% will go for Goldfinger. Whilst the film boasts some now iconic moments and delicious scene stealing from Oddjob, it’s From Russia with Love that remains essential Bond viewing. It’s a proper cold war thriller with a brilliant narrative and the best set of villains in the series. Robert Shaw and Lotte Lenya are inspired casting as Klebb and Grant, particularly Shaw as he remains a silent, lurking presence until he gets his moment in the spotlight and fools Bond in the film’s final third. The claustrophobic train carriage brawl is still one of the finest action sequences in this franchise. This is the film that gave us John Barry’s first play of the alternative 007 theme, the first properly playful title sequence and the first pre-credits sequence that sets the adrenaline pumping for another 2 hours in the dark with 007. 5 star Bond in my opinion and certainly one of the best in the series.
I came to Goldfinger just after 9pm, 6 hours into the marathon and I should have been pumped. Goldfinger is never a let down; it’s bombastic with a larger than life villain with the ultimate dastardly plot, so why did I feel bored? The film, on my latest viewing, feels ploddy and quite flat. The characters are uninspiring, the story is very basic and I just found myself becoming disinterested, despite the fact that this is the third shortest film in the series. To give it its credit the film boasts a brilliant title song by the legendary Shirley Bassey, the iconic Shrley Eaton smothered in gold, the playful golf match between Bond and Goldfinger and the name Pussy Galore but aside from this it feels run of the mill which is a disappointing feeling to have only three films into the series. There’s no denying that by Goldfinger in 1964 Bond had become a phenomenon; I only wish that the story were tighter and more engaging this time around.
Every time I settle down to watch Thunderball I always tell myself “This time you’re going to love it!” and every time I’m left unfulfilled. Again, there are some great sequences in Thunderball and Lucianna Paluzzi is the screen villainess to beat in the series but the film feels incredibly laboured and the narrative is too complex for its own good; perhaps to compensate for the fact that Goldfinger was so simple. Connery also seems very uninspired by this film. Gadgets are starting to play a bigger part in the series and Bond is starting to become the superhero that Fleming so vehemently stated he wasn’t. Former Miss France Claudine Auger is beautiful as Domino albeit your archetypal Bond bimbo and the choice of the Bahamas is exotic for Bond but for these good elements the film then scuppers its potential by spending more screen time than desired trying to explain the plot and filming extensively underwater. Thunderball was so hyped in 1965 when it received its Christmas release that people flocked to see the new 007 adventure. At the time, audiences felt this one had it all but in hindsight it falls short.
Around 2am I was mid-way through the mish mash that is spoof Bond Casino Royale. If you can watch this film without even mildly smirking at the crass quips from David Niven and co., you are made of more steel than me. If you take the film for what it is you might enjoy it. Take it seriously and you’re in for a rough 2 hours. Sellers is on sparkling form as ever and even Andress is here as Vesper and From Russia with Love’s Kronsteen (Vladek Sheybal) makes a cameo. It’s a convoluted mess but its fun after a couple of middle of the road Bond adventures.
4am means back to Connery Bond. Japan is an inspired location for the series and for a moment it seems all too fleetingly that new life is being brought back into the series. Bond is with a girl, he’s shot and killed “on the job” and post credits he’s alive and well again. It’s an intriguing start if nothing else and John Barry’s music and Nancy Sinatra’s vocals are a beautiful combination for the title song but You only live twice quickly descends into parody. The emphasis on gadgetry has all but taken over and Connery looks like he’s waiting for the paycheck. Five years and five Bond films later, Connery set his stamp on the series. Many believe him to be the best Bond. I beg to differ.
Early Saturday morning, December 28th 2013 and the sun is beginning to rise in Surrey as I stick George Lazenby’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service on the telly box. Having dismissed the film and the Bond actor for years claiming it to be one of the worst entries in the series, my opinions have since shifted. No, Lazenby isn’t your desired successor to Connery. Famous only as a model and television commercial star, Lazenby additionally seemed very young for Fleming’s naval Commander but where his acting chops and his delivery of the dialogue sometimes leave a lot to be desired, his physical presence in the action sequences is excellent. Just take the brawl in the hotel room after Bond and Tracy’s re-encounter in the hotel Casino, or the new Bond’s introduction in the beach fight. The film boasts one of John Barry’s finest music scores ever and an inspired pairing of Lazenby and Diana Rigg. Telly Savalas makes an intimidating Blofeld and Ilse Steppat’s Irma Bunt is great villainous support. The dialogue in the film is often best between Bond and M; the latter is particularly cold towards Bond in the film. It’s one of the longest films in the series to date and yet it never drags in the same way that three of Connery’s films did. It seems, in hindsight, a great shame that Lazenby didn’t choose to continue in the role as by the end of the film and the last scene with Tracy, Lazenby cements himself as an engaging 007.
After such a brilliant re-invigoration of the series from director Peter Hunt with OHMSS, Connery is prised back to the series for perhaps the single worst film: Diamonds are Forever. I say worst as mainly it’s just a case of wasted potential. Bond quickly appears to forget that Blofeld is responsible for the death of his wife and he starts hot footing around with Tiffany and Plenty. Jill St John is one of the most irritating of Bond’s women, Charles Gray is an embarrassment as the new Blofeld and the less said about Wint and Kidd the better! If only Lazenby had given his future as 007 a little more thought, things could have been very different.
The 1970s brought comedic excess to Bond largely due to Tom Mankiewicz’s flair for writing comedy dialogue in the film’s screenplays. Live and Let Die is superior to Diamonds as its characters are more intriguing, Roger Moore seems to be enjoying himself in his Bond debut, the theme song is one of the series’ best and everything seems to gel here, aside from the overly long boat chase before the denouement and also the irksome Sheriff J W Pepper.
I came to The Man with the Golden Gun feeling hungry come Saturday lunchtime. After a confident debut Moore doesn’t slip with his second film. His performance remains one of the most convincing and assured in a film that is largely hit and miss. There are many irrelevant and some stupid characters (GOODNIGHT!) in this but Golden Gun ultimately gets a harsh deal from Bond fans. It is not THE worst film in the series. It’s near the bottom of the pile but there are worse ones. The film, for all its problems, boasts another strong, enigmatic villain in Christopher Lee’s Scaramanga. A fleeting character, he generates fear mainly through his steely expressions, his nonchalance at putting a bullet to the chest of his lover and his elation at destroying Bond’s means of escaping his fun island. It’s largely played for laughs and the ideas aren’t original but for all intents and purposes, The Man with the Golden Gun is another fun watch.
1977 not only celebrated the first 15 years of the Bond series but it also saw the 10th film get its release with Cubby Broccoli now the sole producer following Harry Saltzman’s bankruptcy. The Spy Who Loved Me is larger than life. The locations – Egypt, Sardinia – are breathtaking, the Lotus Esprit is an iconic Bond car, the Bond girl is much more of an equal to Bond for the first time in the series thus far and of course we are treated to Rick Sylvester’s extraordinary Union Jack parachute jump segueing into the best James Bond theme from Carly Simon, the title alone summing up James Bond 007 for millions of fans: Nobody does it better!
The end credits of The Spy who loved me read: “James Bond will return in For Your Eyes Only” and this would have been true had it not been for George Lucas’ Star Wars of 1977 and the influence it had on Cubby to release Moonraker as the next Bond picture. There’s no denying that some of the film’s locations are beautiful and the visual effects for the scenes in space are brilliant but these things alone do not make a good film. For me, Moonraker is the most tired and uninspired of the Moore Bond films. Everything seems formulaic even when Bond and co have their feet firmly on the ground. Hugo Drax is a frustratingly banal villain, giving Jaws a girlfriend and making him Bond’s ally was the nail in the coffin and even John Barry’s score seems flat. It’s certainly the weakest of the Shirley Bassey fronted Bond themes. If I’d wanted to see so much of space I would watch Star Trek or Star Wars. Bond is fantasy but this is excessive and unnecessary.
For Your Eyes Only is a welcome return to form. From the pre-credits reminder of Bond’s past with Tracy to the intriguing characters to the stunning Greek landscapes, Bond’s 12th adventure is a success. The film is somehow largely forgotten by those less ardent fans of 007. This seems bizarre to me because the narrative is tight, the film ticks all the right boxes for Bond trademarks and the final act, though significantly downbeat alongside Spy and Moonraker, is one of the most nailbiting moments in Bond history; you’re with Bond up the mountain every step he takes. Carole Bouquet’s Melina Havelock is one of the most beautiful of Bond’s ladies in the series and the arc of her character plays out convincingly on screen. Topol is great support for Bond – another memorable ally in the Tanaka, Quarrel, Kerim Bey vein, and the film allows Moore to show a serious side to the character so rarely seen during his Bond tenure. Whilst at first it seems unlikely of Moore’s Bond, the forcefulness in kicking Locque’s car off the cliff edge is one of Moore’s stand out Bond scenes. In my opinion, For Your Eyes Only represents the best of Moore’s Bond and it was great to watch this again.
At about 30 hours into the marathon it was time to watch Octopussy. I was looking forward to this because of all the films in the series I often forget about this one. As the members of the MI6 message boards who followed my marathon progress will be aware, Octopussy was perhaps my biggest surprise. On watching this again I can appreciate how enjoyable the film is. Whilst it’s not Bond’s ‘all time high’ as the theme song would have us believe, it is still a fine addition to the series and another of Moore’s best. Moore looks in good shape still as Bond and his conviction with Maud Adams’ Octopussy when he’s grilling her about her operations and his conversation with Orlov on the train are two memorable scenes. India is an inspired location for Bond and one that they need to return to in future films; the culture is so vibrant, intense and visually arresting. Vijay is one of Bond’s best allies. The Tuk Tuk chase (which could have been completely comical) is an entertaining action sequence and the villains are one of the strongest sets in the Roger Moore era. The eeriness of the death of 009 scene is still a highlight in the Bond series in my opinion. With the right balance of humour and sincerity, Octopussy is begjnning to ascend in my best Bond films list.
Following Octopussy it was Sean Connery’s time to return for his swansong in the Bond series with the unofficial Bond remake of 1965’s Thunderball fromrival Bond producer Kevin McClory. Connery is clearly too old and out of shape to make a convincing 007 but some of the set pieces are very good and Fatima Blush is a great, campy villainess. In many respects it’s a more enjoyable and watchable film than the original it is trying to emulate.
I’ve always considered A View to a Kill to be an entertaining watch and despite the fact that almost everyone, including Moore, is hamming it up to the max I still stand by my original analysis. Yes the plot isn’t original, yes, Stacey Sutton is perhaps one of the most irritating Bond girls in the series and yes, May Day on top of Bond is more than anyone needs to see, and yet, Christopher Walken proves to be one of the series’ most enigmatic villains. He’s intelligent, cunning, devious – all the characteristics one expects from the memorable Bond heavies. A View to a Kill seems to be a steady finale for Moore’s Bond despite the fact that, as Moore notices in the film’s commentary, it is very sadistic for a Bond film, let alone a Moore Bond.
June 1987, the month and year I was born, saw the fourth incarnation of James Bond on screen. With the mantle having slipped from Pierce Brosnan’s grasp (he had made a deal with the studio before TV series Remington Steele reclaimed him back to his contract), Bond was now in the hands of Welsh Shakespeare thespian Timothy Dalton. In my mind, and through close examination of his films, Dalton provides the best portrayal of Fleming’s Bond on screen to date. Bond takes his job seriously; there’s little enjoyment and certainly little time for quips and crass remarks. He is sophisticated, conscientiously minded, ruthless and dedicated to seeing the job through. Some of Dalton’s facial expressions and reaction shots in his debut The Living Daylights aptly demonstrate Dalton’s grasp on the character from the get go. Daylights is a satisfying, confident debut for Dalton. The story is one of the better ones in the series despite one of the weaker sets of foes Bond has had to face, the title song is entertaining and John Barry is back on form with a terrific score that showcases his final Bond score in the series. The film moves along at a good pace which was welcomed by me as I watching this around 4am on the Sunday morning after sitting through 14 hours of Roger Moore’s tongue in cheek flippancy. The relationship between Bond and Saunders is also developed nicely on screen, allowing audiences to empathise with Bond as he inspects Saunders’ dead body. Richard Maibaum and Michael Wilson’s script is well written and structured and the final act of the film in the desert is as thrilling as any Bond finale.
Another Bond film that sits comfortably in my Top five is Dalton’s final film in a too short Bond tenure, Licence to Kill. Lifting some key plot points from Fleming’s novel Live and Let Die, Licence to Kill is still the grittiest and one of the most engaging Bond films to date. Dalton takes the character and turns it up to 100%. His Bond is dangerous yet also a charmer, attracting the attention and admiration of two beautiful women played brilliantly by Carey Lowell and Talisa Soto. Not since Robert Shaw’s Red Grant in my other favourite Bond film, From Russia with Love, do we feel that Bond might have truly met his match against the villain. Robert Davi plays Sanchez with such conviction that seeing the two together on screen is always electric. The film is fast paced, violent and it also knows how to get some laughs (Professor Joe Butcher the televangelist being a prime example). It’s also great to see David Hedison return as the best Felix Leiter in the series to work with his second Bond actor. Ultimately, Dalton’s Bond tenure was too brief and honestly it’s one of the biggest disappointments of the Bond series.
1995. Bond has been off screen for six years and now the fifth actor has the chance to make the role his own. Pierce Brosnan finally received his chance to play Bond with Goldeneye, the film that would truly decide Bond’s future for the nineties and his longevity into the 21st century. Goldeneye is an explosive return for Bond and Brosnan does light up the screen. He’s the Bond I grew up with yet in hindsight he’s one of my least favourite Bonds. Martin Campbell was a strong choice to direct Bond’s return to the screen and many aspects of the film are excellent: Sean Bean, Famke Janssen, Tina Turner’s title track, Daniel Kleinman’s revised gun barrel and credits sequence, the stunt work....but these are occasionally undermined by frustratingly banal characters like Wade and Boris. The film also finds it difficult to strike the right tone and maintain it throughout. For these reasons I don’t agree that it’s Brosnan’s best Bond film.
The end of the marathon is in sight. By late morning on Sunday 29th December 2013 after a burst of caffeine I came to Tomorrow Never Dies, my favourite of the Brosnan films. The film is one of the more entertaining Bonds with some good characters, some great action sequences and plenty of Brosnan charisma. Again the film doesn’t even come close to the best Bond films but there are many things to enjoy about Brosnan’s second film if solely for the fact that Brosnan himself seems now to have relaxed into the role after an often under-confident portrayal of the character in Goldeneye. The villain is probably the weakest element of Tomorrow Never Dies, Jonathan Pryce truly hamming it up as the media megalomaniac.
We said goodbye to Bond in the 20th century after 37 years with the 19th film The World is not Enough. After 18 official films you wonder what’s left for Bond to conquer and amazingly screenwriter newcomers Neal Purvis and Robert Wade deliver the goods. From the exciting extended pre-credits boat chase, inserting as much of London’s River Thames and South Bank as possible, to the introduction of Renard (one of the most intriguing of Bond’s foes), The World is not Enough is an entertaining watch. Although the film demonstrates more focus on character it doesn’t disappoint on the action. It’s good to see Judi Dench’s M getting more involved in the story thus garnering more screen time as well, and a return for Robbie Coltrane’s Zukovsky after his satisfying scene stealing introduction in Goldeneye. There are some weak elements: even Bond fans who can clearly leave their brains at the door and become enveloped by Bond’s many fantasy worlds must find it incomprehensible to imagine Denise Richards as a nuclear physicist!
Whatever your feelings of Brosnan’s time as Bond, things were about to get undeniably worse. Die Another Day, the 20th film released on the series’ 40th anniversary, suffers from trying to pack too much in. Whilst occasional nods and winks to the series’ longevity are fine, the film feels like it depends on them to tell the story, a story which is incidentally one of the most ludicrous concepts in the series. A Korean man stuck to the engine of a hovercraft which careens off the edge of a dam undergoes such a physical transformation that he returns to Bond’s world as a hammy Englishman played with little subtlety by Toby Stephens apparently modelling himself on Bond. This isn’t the worst aspect of this mess of a film. Zao returns with his face embedded with diamonds and frankly looks about as intimidating as Mr Bean. There’s an invisible car, Bond and Moneypenny ‘get it on’, Madonna sings the title track and even cameos in the film and the film cannot even be saved by Oscar winning actress Halle Berry whose character Jinx gets some of the most appalling dialogue ever written for a central or even minor Bond character. Not enough bad elements? How about the scene where all Bond aficionados cringed and thought “They’ve killed James Bond” – the CGI tidal wave surf!
There are, amazingly, some redeeming features in Die Another Day. The first half of the film , though a mixed bag in terms of narrative, holds up fairly well and the fencing fight scene between Bond and Graves is well choreographed and engaging. The idea of Bond failing a mission and being tortured is also a bold direction to take, yet even this is undermined by the fact that the torture sequences themselves are reduced to appearing over Madonna’s dirge title track and Daniel Kleinman’s graphics. After the more audacious steps towards barrier breaking Bond in films like Licence to Kill, why are we now reduced to such nonsense? Not since Diamonds are Forever had I truly felt that a Bond film was such a categorical waste of potential all round. Ultimately not the swansong that Brosnan deserved.
The series died for a short time once again in 2002. Although Die Another Day was an enormous commercial success, Bond had now become a pastiche of itself; Bond was an indestructible superhero in the Superman vein. A little like after the success of Moonraker, Bond needed to return to basics. With three films remaining in this epic marathon I switched on Casino Royale. What a breath of fresh air, at last. After almost ten years of mediocre films, Bond is back with a vengeance with Daniel Craig and the producers taking Bond back to his roots. Martin Campbell appears to rectify all mistakes made on Goldeneye and brings us one of the most invigorating films in the Bond canon. Craig’s Bond is a machine that needs taming in his debut, the character in the early days of his career as a 00 and he finds that he can’t even be trusted by M played once again by the ever brilliant Judi Dench. The film is one of the longest in the series and it’s relentless. Even the slower poker table scenes bristle with tension and energy. The standout for me in Casino Royale is the inspired casting of the stunning Eva Green as one of the most inspirational women in Bond’s life, Vesper Lynd. The chemistry between Green and Craig is terrific to watch making her betrayal heart wrenching to watch. Craig gives one of the best and most assured debuts of a Bond in the series.
Bond was back but it seemed that following the huge success of Casino Royale, producers Broccoli and Wilson were having trouble meeting fan’s high expectations for the follow-up film, the 22nd film in the series and the first official Bond ‘sequel’. Set immediately after the conclusion of Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace launches the audience into the action immediately. The film continues at break neck pace and remains the shortest Bond film to date. The characters here are largely one dimensional particularly the villain, Dominic Greene. Some of the film’s dialogue is also often difficult to understand. The title song is a big disappointment after the strong You know my name from Chris Cornell and the hotel in the desert with a confrontation which the film has been leading to is ultimately lacklustre and painfully brief. All this aside, Daniel Craig is once again on top form as 007. The best moments of the film are the quieter, reflective moments between Bond and Mathis, Bond and Camille and Bond and Vesper’s ex-boyfriend in the final scene of the film. The mystery remains: will Quantum return to the series in the future a la SPECTRE or has Bond’s relationship with this new villainous organisation been disbanded? It’s certainly reassuring to see Bond let go of Vesper as the film closes to allow the next film to bring us Bond without the emotional baggage. As always, James Bond will return.
It’s about 9.30pm on Sunday evening. Having started this beast of a marathon at 3pm on Friday afternoon it’s with mixed emotions that I headed into the final hurdle of my Ultimate Bond marathon with the film that’s freshest in the minds of Bond’s most ardent fans; the 50th anniversary delight that is Skyfall. After Quantum of Solace failed to live up to many an expectant fan’s ideals, Skyfall had its work cut out. Hiring Academy Award winning director Sam Mendes was the first big coup. The promise of a strong narrative involving M and the return of Q and the injection of some fresh humour to the series were big selling points. Furthermore this film was released in the franchise’s 50th year; a half century milestone for the British secret agent created by a British author intending to write “the spy story to end all spy stories”. All the elements were undoubtedly set in place to ensure that Skyfall would be an anniversary film that fans could look back on in years to come with pride! Ultimately it is. The film takes the audience by the jugular from the get go and refuses to let go, even as Bond returns to his family home to defend his past and protect matriarchal figure M. This is Craig and Dench’s film and both excel. The council session with the PM with M’s Tennyson quotation with the following attack by Silva sets things into motion for one of the most affecting, entertaining Bond finales in recent memory.
As the film drew to a close with Bond promising to return to work “with pleasure” before the new M and the eternal Bond theme re-awakening the viewer to the normality of their own lives, my marathon came to its conclusion. Finishing just before midnight on Sunday 29th December 2013 I gave my final video thoughts about the film and the marathon as a whole and thought about the best way I could some up my experience. It’s a brilliant thing to do and the sense of achievement of being the first person solo to achieve this record in the world (I believe; I’ve seen many failed attempts on You Tube) just made me feel more proud of this achievement. From 1999 when I sat to watch my first Bond film Dr No on British television as an impressionable 11 year old, fast forward 15 years and my love for 007 grows daily and with the coming of each new film. My thanks to all the members of the MI6 boards who tracked my progress and gave me encouragement. 57 hours is a long time to deprive yourself of sleep, even for Bond, but you guys were great company. This is just a good story to add to the Bond book that I’m starting to write this year. As long as Bond returns, as a faithful, life long fan I’ll be along for the ride to share the girls, guns, gadgets and the adventure.