I have said for years now that what the Bond franchise needs desperately to enter the 21st Century is a dramatic overhaul of the format. The Powers-That-Be have been afraid to tinker with the Girls, Guns, and Gadgets formula that has worked since the '60's.
But truthfully, that view is a mistaken reading of the film series. The movies have evolved in format from time to time. The first two were straight up thrillers. (God, From Russia With Love really was brilliant, even if it does seem quaint now.) The next few started the gadget-era. Lazenby was an anamoly, but brought us some pathos with Bond's marriage. Roger Moor veered the movies very close to farce, and several really ought to be considered outright comedies. The Timothy Dalton era proved that evn Bond can be dull.
As good as he was for the role, Pierce Brosnan's films really solidified the "formula" by combining elements of the previous movies. But it was really the producers and writers at fault there.
In the meantime, Matt Damon of all people made a really great, sexy spy series, the Jason Bourne movies. I'm genuinely interested in the last in the Bourne Trilogy. How many Hollywood movie series can you say that about these days?
So I was excited to learn that they've turned to a real film script writer for Casino Royale. Could this be the defibrilator this series so desperately needs?
There's no reason why Bond can't be unpredictable, dangerous, and sexy again. We live in an uncertain world where Bond's heroics are more necessary than ever. I hope they take a nod from the Bourne series and tone down the unbelievability-level of the Bond movies.
4 comments:
Top 5 Ideas to Overhaul the Bond Films:
1. End the current, formulaic series on a high note with Sean Connery as the villain.
2. Start fresh by using one or more of these other ideas: Pick a new Bond for every movie.
3. Take a page from DC Comics and do Elseworlds Bond. Do Bond in different historical eras. Give us a Horror movie Bond. Put Bond in the future on a Space Colony. Etc.
4. Give us a realistic Bond fighting realistic menaces. Bond takes on the IRA in Northern Ireland in the 80's. Bond hunts Al Qaeda in Pakistan. No beyond reality gadgets. No super-heroic stunts.
5. Give us a Jane Bond. Give us a Black Bond. Play out the differences.
Feedback? Do you have better ideas? Let's hear them.
There are only 7 authentic James Bond Movies.
Weren't they considering a Jane Bond with Halley Barry's character from a recent Bond movie?
The incredible stunts and Bond's too-cool persona are what make's the series what it is. It is kind of dreamlike and soap opera-ish. It might do better as a cartoon series, truly. His manhood is definitely outdated. I've never been sexually attracted to any of the Bond characters. Bond seems too perfect, but then he's this slutty jigalo. His sexuality disgusts me, not my type at all. The only reasons I enjoy watching the movies is because of their dreamlike qualities and impossible action. They are fun, and they always show off great cars.
Post a Comment