No, this is not about our favourite super spy getting strung up on meat hooks in a butcher shop on live TV.
We all know movies get edited on TV. My question to you is, where have you seen Bond butchered?
I have two examples, both regarding Casino Royale, but on two different channels - AMC (US) and BBC America.
AMC:
AMC cut two minutes 40 seconds out of its broadcast of CR.Not to mention screwing with the speed. The whole movie. But it wasn't really all that noticeable, except when they'd play music. It would seem that they sped it up to about 1.2x for a few seconds, then 1x for a few and just kept swapping speeds for the whole movie.
The stuff they cut out was mostly establishing shots.
1. The shot of the woman getting onto Le Chiffre's boat is gone. It cuts from 007 looking at the bomb to Le Chiffre wiping his bloody eye.
2. The establishing shot of London when we see M is gone.
3. Bond's drive to the Ocean Club is completely cut out from showing Le Chiffre's yacht to Bond checking his phone. The first shot you see is Bond's Ford going from right to left into the driveway of the Ocean Club
4. The kids following Solange's horse is gone. Instead, jumping from the shot of Bond right after he thanks the receptionist to Solange and her horse viewed from the back.
5. Bond's entire walk to the Ocean Club is cut, cutting from him looking at M's computer to Dimitros kissing the Ocean Club worker.
6. Bond’s helicopter landing at the hotel is cut, picking up with him and Villiers walking along.
7. The shot of Montenegro is missing, cutting directly to Bond’s Aston driving to the parking space.
8. The shot of the general casino after Bond is poisoned is cut, cutting directly to the shot of Felix throwing his chips in
9. Throwing Bond into the car after crashing his Aston is cut before the fade to the dockyards, picking up as they open the door into the interior.
10. The pan of Bond’s recovery villa is cut down to about one second before they show Vesper.
Secondly, what is up with this taxi being blurred on the BBC America version?
Comments
And speaking of OHMSS, there's the infamous ABC 1976 edit :
the007dossier.com/post/2013/06/18/OHMSS-The-1976-ABC-TV-Version
In 1995, TBS showed all the Bond films, and as a new Bond fan, I of course recorded them all.
The Living Daylights was an early favorite for me and I couldn't get over how incredible the theme song was. It was the best song I'd ever heard.
So after learning to avoid recordings by cover artists, I eventually got a CD with all the original songs, up to Licence to Kill. But for some reason The Living Daylights was not as good as I remembered. Took me ages to realize they had sped up the title sequence on TV by 10% or something.
So then whenever I wanted to hear that song, I had to pop in my TV-recorded copy of the movie. Weird stuff. But if you get a chance, 10%-faster TLD is the best Bond theme. :D
It happens. That's why I avoid them on tv.
I think one of the fan magazines from the '70s listed all the cuts ABC made. Most were suggestive lines and violent acts, others were cut for time. Although these were often broadcast in 2:30-2:45 slots and OHMSS took up a whole 3 hours.
Some I can recall off the top of my head:
DN: Of course the shots of the Dent shooting were shortened, the assassinations of Strangways and his secretary were as well. Dragon tank's flames toward Quarrel are also gone.
FRWL: The fight with Grant was chopped up. I don't know about the premiere, but a later broadcast cut out the entire gypsy camp sequence. I also think they cut the SPECTRE film crew in the suite when Bond meets Tanya.
GF: On a later broadcast I was shocked they cut the gunbarrel and precredits and cut right to the credits to accommodate a 2-hour timeslot. The scene with Mai Ling spying on Bond in the jet bathroom was gone and the fight with Oddjob was shortened.
TB: One rebroadcast cut the gunbarrel and opened on the funeral. Lots of the final fight was hacked up as was the Boivard fight. One line I could never figure out that was cut was Bond's reply "Wait till you get to my teeth" after Domino comments "What sharp little eyes you've got."
YOLT: A lot of the violence like Bond throwing a ninja star and cutting it from there. I understand when it was first broadcast they hacked up the entire precredits.
OHMSS: From showings of the normal version, they cut the "He had a lot of guts line;" it just shows the guy falling and that's it. The short scene with the Draco guy using a flamethrower was also out.
DAF: The scalpels Bond hurls at the guard in the precredits are shortened. The line "I'm on top of the situation" in the fish bed is cut as is the Blofeld clone death jerk after being shot with the piton gun. Also they cut just before Wint and Kidd hold hands in the desert and the line "Miss Case is quite attractive. For a lady." I think they also cut Tiffany's line "Blow up your pants" to the annoying kid at Circus, Circus. And I think they quickly cut away from Mrs. Whistler being pulled out of the water. Franks fight is also hacked up as is Bond knocking Franks over the rail. He's suddenly just laying there.
LALD: They cut the sequence when Bond and Solitaire encounter Baron Samedi in the graveyard. Also when the henchman slides the knife into Hamilton's side and Mrs. Bell's "Oh shit."
TMWTGG: When Bond grabs the sumo's bottom and his escape and Chu Mee was mostly eliminated.
TSWLM: The only ones I really recall were the scene where the crew member is set on fire by a flame thrower, the shooting of the crewmen trying to infiltrate the control room and the second shot of Stromberg, it just shows him falling.
Can't recall any others from there although there are more. They also cut up some of the Binder title sequences as many were designed for widescreen and always clipped out "James Bond will return in..."
Here LTK always seems to be the main casualty of editing. If it’s shown before 9pm on terrestrial tv or one of the ITV channels you can guarantee it will be cut to shreds.
Excellent list. That's how I recall the ABC edits as well.
TSWLM: I believe the short shot of Anya in the shower was trimmed.
FYEO: Some of the ski chase was trimmed- Bond knocking down the line of skiers.
The FYEO title credit was moved to the top of the screen rather than below Sheena.
NSNA: I remember the middle shot of Bond and Fatima's love scene in the boat was cut, as was the vial in Lippe's back.
TLD: Disclaimer appears at beginning and the Gunbarrel is an open matte: 1:85. In other words, it kind of looks like Binder's DR NO gunbarrel, but with Dalton.
The naked men running around were cut.
A thread on differences in dubbed versions would be interesting, you should include texting to make it much broader. That way you will get more input.
Oh, come on! That's one of the best parts =))
"Turn the [not so] bloody machine off!"
Yes, I suppose so. Would've made a lot more sense, I'm sure.
Oh, yeah. I think there was a missing/deleted line on the original too. Something about a great performance or something.
Yes, and strangly enought, the line of the performance exist in the french version (while she missing in the English ones).
Casino Royale: Bond gets poisoned.
Quantum of Solace: the dogfight and Bond-Camille in freefall.
Pretty understandable when you think about it.
Yes, I recall seeing this one. Perfectly understandable, as you say. Still, an astoundingly confusing edit.
I get the dogfight with planes attacking each other and nervous flyers and all that, but I'm scratching my head about the poisoning.
Airline food isn't that bad is it?
Now that I think about it. A good portion of CR (about 1/3) was removed on my flight from Qatar to Baltimore. Granted it was a military flight but still, a lot was removed. I can't remember specifics but I remember going to sleep because of how bad it was butchered.
Also those days there focus more contuned effect from the program or movie before.
Spectre tv premiere is already delayd view times. Mabey Hinx eye thing is problem and the end. Tdk offical 16+ was cut 1 minuut to show it with tv premier in 2011 at 08.30 pm. Because of Two Face Fingers. TDKR get like Spectre 12+, but i can understand that was to low rating.
Mabey The Blacklist is cut too, promos are only aloud after 10'00 pm if 16+. Whyle serie is seen at 08.30 pm.
The violence grow too because of Full HD. I think there is difrence between cinema and tv, but for how long it take before we will get moreranks movies ranks based on how you watch a movie or series.
CR, SF and SP should get r-rated.
I think Goldeneye music is changed the last time i watched it on tv a view years back. The
Scene between Bond and Solange in Casino Royale be more sexual/longer screentime in the cinema then tv versions.
Actually, cutting Bond’s drive to Ocean Club would be an improvement.