James Bond -Generational Gap question

[HudsonHawk]

Thespian issues momentarily aside, Fleming's 007 was recruited from the Royal Navy, and had been educated at public school and Cambridge
prior to World War II; ostensibly an officer with requisite polish, not a barrow boy out of London's hardscrabble East End, so the brute
issue is rendered moot. Innate lethality is not the sum of Bond, who, though enigmatic and mercurial, remains open to reasonable
interpretation and the actor's craft of capture. Connery had the lethality down pat, and Brosnan certainly possessed that trait.
The man himself remains elusive, subject to scrutiny.

Bond's background was essentially Fleming's. He was kicked out of Eton for being unruly and a womanizer and briefly attended the University of Geneva. As for his being a brute (which doesn't necessarily mean uneducated), the character was described at the time:

"James Bond lives in a nightmarish world where laws are written at the point of a gun, where coercion and rape are considered valour and murder is a funny trick ... Bond's job is to guard the interests of the property class, and he is no better than the youths Hitler boasted he would bring up like wild beasts to be able to kill without thinking."

All of that said, I still think Brosnan was horrible as Bond, only better than Moore because he was less cartoonish.

 

[Harp]

Bond's background was essentially Fleming's.... the character was described at the time:

"James Bond lives in a nightmarish world where laws are written at the point of a gun, where coercion and rape are considered valour and murder is a funny trick ... Bond's job is to guard the interests of the property class, and he is no better than the youths Hitler boasted he would bring up like wild beasts to be able to kill without thinking."

My understanding of Ian Fleming's background is that he flew a Naval Intelligence desk and had little or no real operational experience.
The above Bond descript sans source is a rather pejorative cast. The 'Bond as sociopath' line misses the mark entirely.
I always thought 007 was a Cartesian agnostic.

 

[Stanley Doble]

David Niven was the closest to Fleming's concept of Bond in terms of background and life experience. If you had asked him what Hollywood actor could best play the part he would probably have named Niven.

 

[esteban68]

There was recently on British tv a short series about Bond /Fleming that was very good and allegedly very accurate, think it was on the BBC ?

 

[Fading Fast]

There was recently on British tv a short series about Bond /Fleming that was very good and allegedly very accurate, think it was on the BBC ?

It popped up here on BBC America and was quite enjoyable - beautifully filmed with gorgeous time-travel sets - but those more knowledgable than I said the accuracy of the story was quite suspect.

 

[RegentSt1965]

The point about a lack of gadgetry is as a counterpoint to the cartoon excesses of the RM era.

 

[MikeKardec]

My Dad read all the Bond books and saw all the movies up until his death in the 1980s. I wouldn't call him a "fan" but he certainly enjoyed them. He was born in 1908 and served in WWII. Bond, as silly as some of the movies have been, kind of gets me misty eyed. I think it's the longevity of the thing. My work is dealing with literary and film estate or legacy issues and Bond is the Big Gun. The concept that wouldn't die. Even though some of the films, as I said, were pretty dumb and the books, in today's literary world are dinosaur flesh ... an acquired taste. When an author puts the hoodoo on the marketplace like that, you have got to have respect. Every time I see a Bond film and I get that choked up feeling I tell myself that this is what we fight for. It's what success, in my business, looks like.

 

[AmateisGal]

So...who is excited for SPECTRE? I was going to the London premiere of it, but turns out my original info was bad or they changed dates on me, but I will be back in the good ol' USA on the day it premieres - Oct. 26.

The trailer looks absolutely fantastic. I do think, though, that this is Craig's last time as Bond.

 

[Edward]

I'll probably make the effort to see it on the big screen, though I'll go on a Monday of Wednesday - half-price nights at my local cinema. Craig has been the first credible replacement for Connery. The others were dire. Moore was the Adam West of James Bond, and all those others, Connery and Craig aside, its George Clooneys.

 

[Zombie_61]

...Moore was the Adam West of James Bond...

Funny you should mention that. Adam West was offered the role for On Her Majesty's Secret Service, but turned it down because he felt Bond should be played by an English actor.

 

[Lean'n'mean]

The others were dire. Moore was the Adam West of James Bond, and all those others, Connery and Craig aside, its George Clooneys.

I wouldn't be quite so harsh on the others, they were of their time. It is true Craig is prehaps the nearest to the original Bond in the books who loved violence, both recieving & giving but his stint as OO7 transformed the Bond movies into ordinary action flics with little connection to James Bond. You could replace Craig with Jason Statham & you wouldn't see the difference, except Statham is more charasmatic,
Now I'm off to watch Austin Powers, the best Bond ever...

 

[Lean'n'mean]

Funny you should mention that. Adam West was offered the role for On Her Majesty's Secret Service, but turned it down because he felt Bond should be played by an English actor.

The producers obviously didn't agree with him 'cause the role was played by George Lazenby, an Aussie...........he did a decent job too & the movie was far from the worst of the franchise.

 

[Fading Fast]

Funny you should mention that. Adam West was offered the role for On Her Majesty's Secret Service, but turned it down because he felt Bond should be played by an English actor.

He just made a series of great career choices

- Typecast yourself for life in a campy TV series about a comic book hero - check
- Pass on playing one of the most famous screen roles ever - check

 

[Lean'n'mean]

Is this the same Adam West that has been in dozens of movies & even more TV shows ?...............looks like the guy was never out of work, not bad for someone who can't act !

 

[Doctor Strange]

Actually, I recently saw a documentary about him called "Starring Adam West", I think on Showtime.

Much like William Shatner after Star Trek, he had some VERY lean years after the Batman series ended because he was typecast, and let's face it, is a limited actor. He survived (Galaxy Quest style) by appearing as Batman for years at store openings and with the Batmobile at car shows. Once fans of the Batman series started to get into hiring positions in TV, he got work in animation (e.g., the classic BTAS episode: "Beware the Grey Ghost", and of course as "Mayor Adam West" on Family Guy), and has now been a ubiquitous presence for many years. But it's not exactly true that he was never out of work.

 

[AmateisGal]

I wouldn't be quite so harsh on the others, they were of their time. It is true Craig is prehaps the nearest to the original Bond in the books who loved violence, both recieving & giving but his stint as OO7 transformed the Bond movies into ordinary action flics with little connection to James Bond. You could replace Craig with Jason Statham & you wouldn't see the difference, except Statham is more charasmatic,
Now I'm off to watch Austin Powers, the best Bond ever...

Craig has nailed the Bond character from Ian Fleming's books - a ruthless killer, capable of charm, yet a misogynist and cold as ice, but I wouldn't expect Statham to do the same. At all. I disagree with the notion that they have turned into action flicks. Quantum of Solace, for its highly unbelievable plot, was much more a character study of Bond and how he coped with the grief over Vespa's death and betrayal, and his driving need for revenge.

And Moore was so far from the original Bond that it's rather sad. He was a dandy, something Bond was most definitely not.

 

[AmateisGal]

I'll probably make the effort to see it on the big screen, though I'll go on a Monday of Wednesday - half-price nights at my local cinema. Craig has been the first credible replacement for Connery. The others were dire. Moore was the Adam West of James Bond, and all those others, Connery and Craig aside, its George Clooneys.

I'll go see it here in the theater for sure. I think I've gone to see all of Craig's Bond movies in the theater - only way to experience it!

 

[Touchofevil]

Definitely a must see in the theater. The big screen, the anticipation, and the energy, cannot be experienced outside a movie theater. Bond flicks have that big movie feel to them wherein viewing at home is no where the same.

 

[Lean'n'mean]

and how he coped with the grief over Vespa's death and betrayal, and his driving need for revenge.

I guess I prefer watching Bond girls in bikinis & villainous villiains to 007 going through an existential crisis...

And Moore was so far from the original Bond that it's rather sad. He was a dandy, something Bond was most definitely not.

Yes he was but in the 70's Bond wasn't taken so seriously , the movies were for family entertainment & Moore bought much needed humour to a waining character. Exotic locations, plush sets, beautiful women, corny remarks, stunning sports cars; smoking, drinking & shagging are all laughable today (& politically uncorrect) but they thrilled the audiences back then. James Bond is a literary character that has has changed through the decades to suit the social mores of the times. The Craig bonds wouldn't have, couldn't have been made before the 2000's & if the earlier Bond movies were made today they wouldn't get an audience. Craig's Bond is certainly more gritty than his predecessors & the violence more realistic but that is probably because we have become accustomed to seeing violence in both everyday life & our 'entertainment'.

 

[MisterCairo]

The producers obviously didn't agree with him 'cause the role was played by George Lazenby, an Aussie...........he did a decent job too & the movie was far from the worst of the franchise.

I think OHMSS was one of the better Bond films, and up there with anything Connery did. The myth that Lazenby was the worst Bond because he only starred in the one film has festered itself into oblivion. He and the film are getting much more favourable treatment these days.

For the record, he was expected to continue in the role, but HE QUIT, in large part because of the poor treatment he received from the director, on account of his not being a "proper" actor (GL was a model).

It beats the hell out of Dr. No, which I'll never watch again.