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Post by Shep on Feb 18, 2007 13:23:46 GMT -5
That's what I'm saying A flick like Live and Let die will run the gamut, from being praised to vilified. From critics and fans alike. 007 like the wind baby, he can't be pinned down. Casino RoyaleI didn't know what to think of this at first. For one, it goes back and tells of 007 first adventure with his License to Kill. But it's not a true prequel because it's set in the here and now, post 9/11 world. The cold war James Bond is gone. It's like they erased all that came before and just began anew. Which I thought kind of sucked, But... And let me get it off my chest, Daniel Craig is an ugly, ugly man. He's short, light haired and has these squished up features with jug ears that make Alfred E. Numan's look tiny. I wish they would have signed that guy from "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead", but.... It all works. The movies freaking great! For one, ugly or not. Craig is a hell of an actor, the best to take the role since Connery. Watching his Bond transform from a blunt instrument to the refined, sharp double O we all love and know is outstanding, the man certainly has the chops to bring subtle layers to the character. And the little introductions, from meeting Felix to seeing him dressed to kill, all make this a joy to watch. The humor is there, but gone is the over the top cartoony stuff. This is refined, with slick production and an incredible score (Though I don't remember hearing the familiar guitar heavy theme?) The song by Chris Cornell is incredible as is the title sequence. Recently I've felt the title sequences have gotten too busy with the CGI, this is clean, crisp and cool. Though light on the gals. The acting is above board. Judy Densch really got to show off her talents, the baddie Le Chiefe (sp?) was suitably creepy (with those tears of blood) and Bond Girl Vesper was a heart breaker (And for us male pigs, if you want to see, much, much more of her. Check out "The Dreamers") - She's not a plastic Hollywood beauty, but she's beautiful never the less and as an actress she's second to none. She goes toe to toe with Craig and, hell, at the end I was seriously choked up. Great, great movie, I'd rank it either #2 or #3 (I hate to push From Russia With Love back) - Unlike License to Kill which only gave lip service to delivering a fresh new Bond. Casino Royale is the real deal, it's multi-layered, comes off wholly original but stays true to the character established by Sean. Highly recommended. Ugly Bond or not, this is a classic. Personally, I prefer the original Peter Sellers/David Niven film.
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Post by Trumpy's Magic Snout on Feb 18, 2007 15:55:46 GMT -5
The guys from British film mag Empire done a Bond marathon, watching every single one in one session without a break! The lack of sleep and constant Bond supposedly led to halucination and the conclusion that Dalton was the best Bond!
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Post by Shep on Feb 18, 2007 15:59:09 GMT -5
The guys from British film mag Empire done a Bond marathon, watching every single one in one session without a break! The lack of sleep and constant Bond supposedly led to halucination and the conclusion that Dalton was the best Bond! After some of those terrible Roger Moore films, who could blame them. LOL Actually, that's a bit how my wife and I felt after watching the SpikeTV marathon. There was something refreshing about Dalton's sincerity.
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Post by mightyjack on Feb 20, 2007 12:16:31 GMT -5
I find nothing refreshing about his blandness though More lists! Best Directors (with more than one movie under their belts) 1. Martin Campbell (Goldeneye, Casino Royale) I know some of you will eagerly attack your Keyboards to type... "But MJ, I can't agree" - and my answer to that? "I don't give a flying piece of $hit!" - This is MY list! Make your own damn list... oh, and get off my plane! ;D He gets my top spot for revitalizing the series, twice! Both of his films are well told and exciting (Hell he made a card game a nail bitting adventure that kept me riveted to my seat!). Both of his directed films made my top 5. 2. Terrance Young (Dr. No, FRWL, Thunderball) The father of the film franchise. Set the style and helped make Connery the cool bad ass we all know and love. 2 of his 3 films made my top 10. 3. Lewis Gilbert (YOLT, TSWLM, Moonraker) I loved the camera work in his films, the framing is so good, at times I watch his efforts like I'd look at a work of art in a museum. His films are epic and filled with interesting characters and he directed Moore's best. 2 of his 3 made my top 10. 4. Guy Hamilton (Goldfnger, DAF, TMWTGG, LALD) He directed my favorite 007 adventure, as well as my least favorite (Live and Let Die). I'm not sure what to make of this guys talent. Goldfinger was so tightly directed, while Diamonds Are Forever was so sloppy. Still, at this point in time, 2 of his 4 films made my top 10. 5. John Glen This dude directed a whole bunch, but most are middle to M'eh. Nothing made my top 10. His best for me is FYEO Favorite 007 in list form1. Sean Connery 2. Daniel Craig 3. Peirce Brosnan 4. George Lazenby (yeah, I know... "But MJ I disagree..." - don't care, he's really grown on me and I wish I could have seen how he would have developed. 5. Roger Moore (After hearing Hamilton's commentary where he talks about how Moore whined about roughing up the girl in TMWTGG and the violence in general. I've come to the conclusion that Roger never really "got" what Bond was all about) 6. Timothy Dalton (Though it seems to have become the trend of late to embrace this stiff
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Post by mightyjack on Jun 20, 2007 3:30:04 GMT -5
I've been watching those 007 DVDs that were recently released, that I bought: A few observations.
I watched 'em in order. From Russia With Love, then You Only Live Twice.
Both are outstanding and Connery had it all. The looks, the smooth personality and he was one tough SOB too. The next one was Moonraker, and holy crumb, going from two great Connery flicks to this one... it was kind of shocking.
For one, I was stunned at what a total puss 007 had become. And amazed how over the top camp, I mean really embarrassing camp, the humor had gone. The thing with the Gondola riding through the streets, the bird does a double take, the bad guy flaps his arms and does a prat fall into the water (Did someone just slip a scene from "Catalina Caper" into my Bond movie?). The stupid music they'd play whenever Jaws did something wacky, like try and flap his arms like a bird when he was free falling, or when he spots his true love.
My God how far this character had fallen. What a joke he'd become. And I gotta change my opinion on Dr. Goodhead, she was a tiresome grump!
And then I watched The Living Daylights - And while there was still some silly things, and Joe Don was way over the top and stupid. Overall I liked it better this round, and again. Watching these movies in this manner, I went from cool Connery, to shameful Moore to, Timothy Dalton, and well...
Shep, if your reading this you might want to sit down. Place a cold compress on your forehead
By God, Dalton really did a lot to restore the dignity of this character.
Oh crap! I think Shep just passed out, somebody get a medic!
Strangely, I started seeing some nuance to his acting that I wasn't aware of the last time I watched it. At the fair, for example. He's smiling, romancing the girl, and even though he's playing her to get information... I had a real sense that 007 was starting to care for this gal, there was a real warmth and breezy charm in the performance in these scenes. And when his fellow agent is killed, there's that Dalton icy stare, but underneath, a hint of pain mixed with wrath.
Heck, I wasn't even as bothered by the Bond girls acting this time out.
I was reading a British mag which featured an article about Bond films. They went through each actor and picked their favorite film from each. Most weren't surprising, (Connery=Goldfinger/Moore=The Spy Who Loved Me) but while they didn't have many nice things to say about Dalton, they did pick Daylights as his best Bond. I thought most people liked License. It was kind of nice to have someone else prefer Daylights as I do.
So okay, Shep... Dalton's out of the bottom spot. Moore, you had some good flicks but your too wimpy and silly, get down in the basement, now mister!
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Post by LetGoOfItSlappy on Jun 20, 2007 15:17:01 GMT -5
It was kind of nice to have someone else prefer Daylights as I do. Actually I have always preferred The Living Daylights to License To Kill. LTK always seemed like just another drug dealer action movie, never a Bond film. It just didn't seem like the right way to "modernize" Bond....... Goldeneye and Casino Royale....THOSE were the right way to modernize the character. I think, MJ, that you and I have about the same taste in this franchise from everything I have read.
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Post by Shep on Jun 20, 2007 18:23:51 GMT -5
Shep, if your reading this you might want to sit down. Place a cold compress on your foreheadBy God, Dalton really did a lot to restore the dignity of this character. Oh crap! I think Shep just passed out, somebody get a medic!Strangely, I started seeing some nuance to his acting that I wasn't aware of the last time I watched it. At the fair, for example. He's smiling, romancing the girl, and even though he's playing her to get information... I had a real sense that 007 was starting to care for this gal, there was a real warmth and breezy charm in the performance in these scenes. And when his fellow agent is killed, there's that Dalton icy stare, but underneath, a hint of pain mixed with wrath. Heck, I wasn't even as bothered by the Bond girls acting this time out. I was reading a British mag which featured an article about Bond films. They went through each actor and picked their favorite film from each. Most weren't surprising, (Connery=Goldfinger/Moore=The Spy Who Loved Me) but while they didn't have many nice things to say about Dalton, they did pick Daylights as his best Bond. I thought most people liked License. It was kind of nice to have someone else prefer Daylights as I do. So okay, Shep... Dalton's out of the bottom spot. Moore, you had some good flicks but your too wimpy and silly, get down in the basement, now mister! LOL I knew you'd come around, MJ. Dalton's films are definitely growers IMO. I hated them when they first came out when I was in jr high/high school (I'd grown up with Roger Moore), but he won me over with good acting and a more serious tone to the films (still not terrific scripts though).
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Post by mightyjack on Jun 21, 2007 0:05:06 GMT -5
It was kind of nice to have someone else prefer Daylights as I do. Actually I have always preferred The Living Daylights to License To Kill. LTK always seemed like just another drug dealer action movie, never a Bond film. It just didn't seem like the right way to "modernize" Bond....... Goldeneye and Casino Royale....THOSE were the right way to modernize the character. I think, MJ, that you and I have about the same taste in this franchise from everything I have read. I tried to watch LTK tonight, and I think most of my negative reaction to Dalton came from this movie. He's pretty one dimensional in this one and it does just seem like another drug dealer action film, not a 007 movie. The only time It felt like 007 was when Q joined in as a field agent (Loved seeing him in that role) The other thing was, the production values were weak, almost felt like a made for TV movie. In fact it was chock full O' made for TV actors. lol I liked Timmy in TLD, but he was pretty stiff in LTK, IMO.
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Post by LetGoOfItSlappy on Jun 21, 2007 10:46:18 GMT -5
I'll tell ya onw of things that still bugs the holy crap outta about LTK. The Semi doing what essentially amount to a wheelie.....WaHuh??? I know one has to suspend a certain amount of disbelief when watching a Bond movie but that was so BADLY done that to this day I do not watch that movie and that is one of the many reasons. I liked Timothy Dalton and I think one of the other saving graces of that movie was Benicio Del Toro but the negatives far outweigh the positives in that movie.
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Torgo
Moderator Emeritus
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Posts: 15,420
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Post by Torgo on Jun 21, 2007 23:26:44 GMT -5
You know, I've always had this uncontrolable attaction to long running franchises. As a spur of a moment deal, I picked up all four of those new box sets and I've slowly been pacing my way through them.
So far, I've been enjoying myself. I remember watching Tomarrow Never Dies a long time ago and it turning me off of Bond for many years. Needless to say, I haven't popped that one in yet. But the original Sean Connery flicks are pretty cool. Especially Dr. No and You Only Live Twice (love the Japanese women, groooooowl...according to the commentary on Ghidorah the Three Headed Monster, one of the Bond Girls in YOLT was in that Godzilla flick, so sweet).
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Post by mightyjack on Jun 23, 2007 14:45:05 GMT -5
That Brit mag I spoke about picked "Tomorrow Never Dies" as the best Brosnan flick. It's my least favorite of his.
I finished up watching the recent purchases with Brosnans "The World is Not Enough"
It's my second fav from Bros, thought they pack a lot into it, it's the human element I like, the storyline with Electra King. I don't have any problem with the Christmas character, it's pure Bond to have a genius also be cute as a button. My problem is with Richards acting, wow she's terrible (Right up there with Tanya Roberts) and she gets some of the worst lines, that "Blood Beast" like bit about terrorists and explosive not being good. Ha, ha, ya think?
I like Peirce, he's kind of all the Bonds wrapped up in one.
He's got Moore almost too stiff British stature, but he's also got Lazenbys human element, mixed with Dalton's hard ass, "fight his bosses" edge and Connery's cool, suave demeanor. He's good in the role. His 007 was smooth, but with a snarl - unlike Moore, Brosnan's Bond had no problem killing a bad guy without remorse.
Plus he and Llewellyn had great rapport. (We miss you Q, but what a great line to go out on)
So, my revised list:
The best! 1. Goldfinger 2. From Russia With Love 3. Casino Royale 4. The Spy Who Loved Me 5. Goldeneye 6. You Only Live Twice 7. On Her Majesties Secret Service 8. Dr. No 9. The World is Not Enough 10. The Man With the Golden Gun Solid, enjoyable efforts 11. For Your Eyes Only 12. Die Another Day 13. The Living Daylights 14. Thunderball 15. Octopussy Some good stuff, with many flaws 16. Moonraker 17. Tomorrow Never Dies 18. Diamonds are Forever 19. A View to a Kill 20. Live and Let Die 21. License to Kill
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