Recently it was announced that Bond 23 is finally entering production after years of legal wrangling that stalled the series (much like what happened between 1990-95, derailing the franchise and signaling the end of Timothy Dalton's tenure) Daniel Craig has put an indelible stamp on the character, rooting him firmly in the 21st century, imbuing him with a deadly earnestness that even the master himself, Sean Connery, could not achieve.
Every Bond before Craig (including Connery and the somber Dalton) went about his tasks with a wink and a nod to the audience (to varying degrees). There was an implied conceit between actor and audience that the proceedings, however exciting, were the stuff of fantasy. Roger Moore was the living embodiment of this ideal as his Bond films venture into self-parody more often than any other actors take on the role.
However, Craig is as serious as a heart attack in his portrayal of Bond. He is brutal, unyielding, even morose. Timothy Dalton wanted to take Bond back to his roots, and for my money he was successful, and I enjoyed his films very much. However, he was hampered by the conventions of the Bond film (he seemed to wince in pain whenever he had to deliver a one-liner), and wasn’t able to go as dark as he wanted to.
Pierce Brosnan struck a comfortable balance between the suave, winking Moore, and the (at times) brutal, misogynistic Connery, and his films brought Bond to even greater financial heights. However, “Die Another Day,” was a bloated, silly adventure reminiscent of Roger Moore’s worst efforts.
It seems that when the series gets too gimmicky or excessive the next entry mandates a back to basics approach. Such was the case with “Moonraker,” and “For Your Eyes Only,” “A View to a Kill,” and “The Living Daylights,” and most recently, “Die Another Day,” and “Casino Royale.”
My relationship with Bond goes back to “For Your Eyes Only.” Released in 1981, it is far and away Roger Moore’s best effort (sorry, “Spy Who Loved Me” fans!) It is a straight up revenge story, and Moore tapped into a previously hidden reservoir of bitterness and anger, serving up his finest performance in the role. There were still jokes to be sure, but the tone was vastly different from his prior (and subsequent entries).
In 1983 we were treated to “The Battle of the Bonds,” as Sean Connery stepped into the role one final time with the unofficial “Never Say Never Again.” The film, essentially a remake of “Thunderball,” resulted from a lawsuit against Bond producers by Kevin McClory, who developed the original story with Ian Fleming.
McClory won the rights to his original treatment and then mounted a rival Bond production to be released at the same time as the Roger Moore entry, “Octopussy.” McClory scored an amazing coup when he convinced Connery to reprise the role, a move the original 007 was only too happy to make, owing to the great animosity he felt towards Bond producer Cubby Broccoli.
My parents took me to see both Bonds that year. “Octopussy,” was released in the summer, and “NSNA” in the fall. Prior to “NSNA” I had never seen a Connery Bond film, and instantly felt like this guy had something. Moore was too jokey for me even then, but here was Sean Connery, no longer in his prime, and still the master. “NSNA” lost the battle of the box office that year, but Connery won me over, and for sentimental reasons, it remains my favorite Bond film.
When my parents purchased a VCR for me the following year, ABC still owned the television rights to all the Bond films and aired them with surprising regularity (it seemed like once a month or once every two months). I grabbed as many as I could, and finally had the opportunity to see what all the fuss was about re: Sean Connery. I can’t be sure but I believe I saw “Goldfinger” first, then “Dr. No.”
Before Daniel Craig came along I would’ve said Connery was the living embodiment of Bond, and while Craig may’ve superseded Connery in that regard, Sean is still tops in my book. His Bond was a brutal, efficient killer, whose decidedly un-PC attitudes still bring a smile to my face. He managed to be suave, without being foppish, debonair without being pretentious, and had an air of danger about him that others simply did not.
Even when phoning in the performance he gave in “Diamonds Are Forever,” (paunch and bad hair piece included), he still managed to give Bond some defining Connery moments, especially in the pre-credits sequence, (“I shan’t ask you politely next time”).
I was really happy when Roger Moore hung it up after 1985’s disastrous “A View to a Kill,” and I was thrilled with the announcement Timothy Dalton (who I knew only as Prince Baron from “Flash Gordon”) was taking the character back to his roots. As I noted earlier, I enjoyed Dalton’s two outings as Bond, and never thought he got a fair shake in the role (see my prior column for a more thorough analysis of Dalton's tenure).
If anything, I was terrified when Pierce Brosnan was cast in the role. I believed he would hearken back to Moore rather than Connery. After several years without a Bond film (the longest lag in the series’ history) “Goldeneye” was released in 1995, and I was pleasantly surprised at how well he acquitted himself in the role, especially in that premier outing.
I’ve had the good fortune to have two in-person experiences with two of the actors who played Bond. The much-maligned (by myself included) In 2008, Roger Moore appeared at my local book store to sign his autobiography, “My Word is My Bond.”
Mr. Moore was charming and gracious and still cut a dashing figure at 82 years of age. He entertained questions, did some spot-on impressions (of Sean Connery and Herve Villacheze to name two) and was very good natured about his time as Bond. He noted that his favorite appearance was “The Spy Who Loved Me,” and while he was too much of a gentleman to list a favorite female co-star, he was not shy in relating his worst one: Grace Jones.
He observed that he found the whole notion of Bond as spy seemed quite ridiculous. “I’m going around everywhere saying, ‘My name is Bond, James Bond.’ Everyone knows who I am!”
In 1995, on the eve of “Goldeneye’s” release, a good friend and I traveled into Manhattan for a James Bond convention. It’s funny, I always seem to forget about this one, and it was one of the best convention experiences I ever had.
Desmond Llewelyn (“Q”) was there, as were the two newest Bond girls, Famke Janssen and Isabella Scorupco, but the highlight came at the end when Pierce Brosnan himself appeared on stage. He was extremely affable, running out into the audience to accept gifts (much to the organizers chagrin) and he spent a good 45 minutes with us discussing the film and his excitement at finally nabbing the role (he was initially cast as Moore’s replacement but could not get out of his “Remington Steele” contract).
Over the years, I’ve managed to snag all of their autographs, except for Dalton who always refuses. Connery is also notoriously difficult but I tracked down his home address in the Bahamas, and he signed a “Never Say Never Again” mini-poster for me, which is my most prized autograph.
I don’t want to neglect one-hit wonder George Lazenby from the proceedings. As a matter of fact, “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service,” is one of the top five Bond films, in my opinion. While he lacked the charisma Connery exuded and that sense of foreboding, he did an admirable job humanizing the character, and took him in a direction no Bond film ever attempted before or since.
As we await Bond 23 let's remember what Q said to Bond in “Never Say Never Again,” “I do hope we’re going to have some gratuitous sex and violence now that you're on the case.”
Bond: “I certainly hope so.”
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