24 James Bond Films later - Our Own Quarantine Film Festival.
24 James Bond Films Later - Our Own Quarantine Film Festival
It was early on in lockdown, I had cleaned out my sock drawer (noticed yesterday it may be time to do it again), and my makeshift workout area was gathering dust. I had been glued to the TV, obsessed with the latest Covid news flashes and found myself, as a result, completely stressed out. We got sucked in to Tiger King, along with the masses, and then I had a brilliant idea. “Let’s watch all of the James Bond Films from start to finish!”, I said to my husband. He agreed and so we started our own Quarantine Film Festival of sorts.
Strict rules were enforced. To be viewed in order, no deviations, no eliminations (even if we’d seen it before, mind you), and we would attempt to be open minded during our least favourite Bonds. And so we began…
Here’s The Take:
I was always a fan of the 007 Franchise; the intrigue, the style, the music, the ‘shaken, not stirred’, and the villains, but admittedly I hadn’t seen them all. Going in to this experiment, to me, the iconic James Bond was Sir Sean Connery or Sir Roger Moore - being a fan of film and television of that time, despite not having seen many of the films. I knew also that George Lazenby had only done one film in the series, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and heard that Timothy Dalton’s take on 007 was not as well received (the studio’s first real attempt at making Bond a bit more serious). Regardless, I was excited to go on this journey with an open mind and to escape a bit from the world around me.
24 films is a lot of films. Next to Godzilla at 30 films, the James Bond series has 24 that have been released to date (I don’t count the original Casino Royale Parody with David Niven as part of this franchise). Regardless if you like the 007 series or not, it is an impressive accomplishment.
Most of the films aren’t that great. Early on, the cheese quotient tends to outweigh the excitement and intrigue. It is fun, admittedly, to go through the gadgetry progression as technology advances through the years but only that carries so far. There are, however, a few standouts along the way that I think shape or reflect the social narrative of the day, and are worth keeping in your film library.
No rankings here. There are great places that you can read about those, or watch and form your own opinions. Here are my standouts:
Dr No: It’s the first one. Sean Connery sets the tone for Bond. Ursula Andress emerges from the sea. We learned how to make a martini. Need we say more?
Goldfinger: Shirley Eaton’s Jill Masterson being painted in Gold was one of the most talked about cinematic moments in history. Honor Blackman flips the smooth talking Bond on his back, and Shirley Bassey nailed the song. Classic.
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service: George Lazenby’s first and only film., Diana Rigg as his unlikely love interest, and Telly Savalas as Ernst Stavro Blofield. Joana Lumley makes an appearance. I really enjoyed this film and wish he would have done more. It was the first attempt at downplaying the one-liners, which I appreciated as a change of pace. It also has one of the best and most emotional moments of all of the Bond films.
A View to a Kill: My favourite of the Sir Roger Moore films. Christopher Walken makes the perfect Bond nemesis in Max Zorin. For me, however, Grace Jones in the part of May Day makes this film. Duran Duran’s theme song also an 80’s iconic hit.
Goldeneye: I know I said there would be no rankings, but this one is definitely in my top ones of the franchise to date and Pierce Brosnan’s best in my opinion. The first appearance of Judi Dench as M , Tina Turner with maybe the best Bond song ever and that is everything you need to know.
Casino Royale: Another one of my top picks. Daniel Craig drives reappraisal of what it means to be Bond. Eva Green delivers an exceptional performance as Vesper Lynd, Le Chifre as played by Mads Mikkelson, and of course Dame Judy Dench. Bond like its never been seen before.
Skyfall: We see Bond (Craig) take ownership of the strategy which takes the viewer on a different and unpredictable journey. Ms Moneypenney(Naomie Harris) gets from behind the desk. The chemistry with Harris and Craig can be cut with a knife (or a gunshot). Dame Judy again delivers. Javier Bardem frightens. Adele. Job done!
Spectre: The opening scene in Mexico City is mind blowing, and may be one of the most edge-of-your seat, action-packed, nail-biting openers for an action film ever. Monica Bellucci makes a statement. Christoph Waltz is perfection.
I have to admit that many of the earlier films and what I imagined as iconic, most left me a bit wanting more. After the first few with cheeky quips, predictable plots, sexist remarks, and borderline abuse towards women (lots of slapping around in those days), I did ask myself, ‘Did they really make it to 24 films of this same old schtick?’
But the journey surprised me. It drew me in. It took us until Timothy Dalton and most recently Daniel Craig, but Bond began to reinvent himself, and, from then on I realised that this really could be one that lasts. The female leads became stronger along the way, from Maud Adams, Grace Jones, Judi Dench to Eva Green - these women began to stand up for themselves and to help shape the changes in society on how women were depicted in these films. And finally, we will have a female 007 in Lashana Lynch coming to the role. Reinvention.
I have to acknowledge Desmond Lllewelyn for his impressive 17 films in the role of ‘Q’, and Dame Judy Dench who will forever be ‘M, appearing in 7 films - the same number of films featuring Sir Roger Moore (most films of any Bond).
A big thank you as well to Sir Ian Fleming, both Albert R and Barbara Broccoli and the 11 directors who brought James Bond to the world of Cinema.
Monty Norman’s 007 theme played by John Barry is one of the most recognisable of film scores, but the Bond songs create almost as much excitement and anticipation as the films themselves. Like the films there are some memorable ones - strong female vocals, powerfully delivered. License to Kill (Gladys Knight), Goldeneye (Tina Turner), Skyfall (Adele) along with two Shirley Bassey greats (Diamonds are Forever and, the iconic Goldfinger) are some of the most iconic of the series. Bassey = Bond Song Diva in so many of our minds (actually she also sang Moonraker) , but License to Kill by Knight is in my opinion underrated and one of the strongest. Diamonds are Forever, by Bassey is truly the best thing about that film, and Turner’s Goldeneye is one of the best Bond Songs in my opinion. Softer, more melodic performances also are unforgettable with Nobody Does it Better (Carly Simon), For Your Eyes Only (Sheena Easton)and We Have All the Time in the World (Louis Armstrong). Armstrong’s song is perhaps one of the most emotionally moving in the film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Sir Paul McCartney (Live and Let Die), You Know my Name (Chris Cornell) and A View to a Kill (Duran Duran) are among our favourite male offerings of Bond Songs.
Everyone loves a good villain and we can’t forget The Baddies: Here’s some of the best nemeses we love to hate.
Richard Kiel as Jaws (The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker)
Lotte Lenya as Rosa Klebb (Number 3) (From Russia With Love)
Charles Gray, Telly Savalas, Max von Sydow and most recently Christoph Waltz as Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Mulitple Films)
Christopher Lee as Francisco Scaramanga (Man with the Golden Gun)
Christopher Walken as Max Zorin (View to a Kill)
Jonathan Pryce as Eliot Carver (Tomorrow Never Dies)
Mads Mikkelson as Le Chifre (Casino Royale)
Javier Bardem as Raoul Silva (Skyfall)
As for the Best Bond ever? The journey is not yet over. I’ll get back to you on that one. I like the directions it’s heading, but we have some more reinvention to do.
I’d like to thank the Artist Community, the Musicians and the Creative Industries across all segments who have all made us sane over these past few months. What would we do without you? This group has been hard hit throughout the pandemic. If you can support the actors, the museums, the designers, the creative talent who aren’t able to work right now please try to do so.
Also a big shout out to IMDB who helped to keep us on track and in order and supplied lots of fun facts for us along the way.
That’s ‘The Take’….
Until next time, be active, speak out and stay safe!
- LG