Thursday, November 8, 2012
MARTINIS ON THE ROOF: For those of us who have never, ever seen a James Bond film (don't ask me why - just an odd cultural gap), the AV Club has a primer on where to start, and names as the five "essentials" From Russia with Love, The Spy Who Loved Me, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Goldfinger, and Casino Royale (2005).
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I don't particularly consider myself a Bond connoisseur, but yeah, I'd probably pick at least four of those five (not sure about TSWLM) if I had to sit down with the whole series. TSWLM was, at least, a good example of Moore before he started looking WAY too old for the part and the writing got too winky and jokey.
ReplyDeleteI never got around to seeing the one between Craig's Casino Royale and Skyfall - is that worth catching up on?
Totally agree with this list, although Secret Service is an unconventional pick.
ReplyDeleteQuantum of Solace is a big step down from Casino Royale, though it does feature Stana Katic.
ReplyDeleteI'll argue for GoldenEye probably belonging on the list (likely in place of Spy Who Loved Me). Brosnan really was a good Bond even if the last two he did were way too explodey and silly for their own good.
Unconventional, but fully warranted. I understand that Lazenby isn't everybody's cup of tea, but the movie is great. It has two of everything -- car chases, ski chases, bobsled chases -- and one of the more cockamamie evil plans ever to grace a Bond movie (I know I've never looked at a chicken the same way again). And with Telly Savalas and Diana Rigg as the Villain and the Girl, how can you go wrong?
ReplyDeleteAnd that's not even touching on the ending, which I won't spoil.
I guess I started with Moonraker, on account of my being the age I was when Moonraker came out. Starting Bond as a child with Moonraker is sort of like wandering into the middle of a Pink Panther movie. You're like, "there seems to be a hulking brute with metal teeth that everybody knows and who is trying to kill James Bond/there seems to be an Asian gentleman who everybody knows incompetently trying to attack Peter Sellers" and then you just go with it, whether or not it makes sense. There also is a zero-gravity sex scene with Moore and a Bond Girl. I do not know whether it is true or just a faulty memory that has that scene lazily filmed in front of a green screen and then moved up and down a little in front of a space station background, so that it doesn't look so much like zero gravity sex as like people having sex on a poorly tethered scaffold. I'm fairly certain that the next James Bond movie I saw was Cannonball Run, still with Roger Moore.
ReplyDeleteI have since seen other James Bond movies (all pre-Daniel Craig), though the only thing I really remember from any of them is that Cubby Broccoli was the worst kind of hack who sucked the life out of material that could have been fun in the hands of a competent director.
I'd put Dr. No in the essentials as well, tell people to ignore any Moore movie, and don't be an EON snob (yes, Never Say Never Again is a Bond movie and it's a better Thunderball adaptation than Thunderball, especially in upgrading the villain).
ReplyDeleteAlso, Dalton is under appreciated.
Bond ranking: Connery, Craig, Dalton, Brosnan, Lazenby and Moore.
I approve Secret Service being on this list. We just watched it again last night and it's an interesting, very entertaining (if slightly overlong) odd duck of a movie. But jeez, imagine it with a proper Bond.
Agreed. Please rectify this problem at once.
ReplyDeleteBond movies were one of the few things my brother and I could agree on growing up. In retrospect, I'm not sure why my parents let us watch so many of them. Shortly after I moved to NYC, Bond movies became a Thanksgiving tradition. I'd have friends over for Thanksgiving and after we stuffed ourselves we'd rent a bunch of Bond movies and spend the rest of the day drinking, eating leftovers, and watching Bond movies.
ReplyDeleteI actually listed those five as my five favorites earlier in the week, so I'll definitely second that post.
ReplyDeleteSeeing "Skyfall" at midnight and am very, very excited.
Ugh, not for me. Late Moore is worse Moore.
ReplyDeleteI'm a big believer in the Dread Pirate Bond theory: Bond, Q, M, etc. are code names that get passed down, so there's no continuity problem.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I remember hearing that had Craig not re-upped, they would have gone with Idris Elba, which yes.
My understanding is that Skyfall embraces that theory (at least in part).
ReplyDeleteAmen, brother. I'm not sure how one phones in a smirk, but Moore manages it.
ReplyDeleteI haven't gone to a Bond film since The World Is Not Enough, but this, plus the great reviews, make me think I'll head out to this one.
ReplyDeleteOr, that Bond is actually a Time Lord.
ReplyDeleteI dunno - I guess since it was probably my first Bond, I just thought that was how Bonds were - so all the later Bonds I saw were an improvement, rather than a disappointment.
ReplyDeleteOh, great. Now we're going to be up all night arguing about which Bond corresponds to which Doctor.
ReplyDeleteQ and M, certainly (though, you'll recall from Casino Royale, M is not a randomly-chosen letter). To say anything about Bond would be to spoil.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious to try something Matt Mira suggested: watch Casino Royale and immediately follow it with Quantum of Solace, and view it as a 2 part movie.
ReplyDelete