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| | Bondathon methods and musings | |
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+5Largo's Shark Perilagu Khan 00Beast James Bond tiffanywint 9 posters | |
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Largo's Shark 00 Agent
Posts : 10588 Member Since : 2011-03-14
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Sun Jul 22, 2012 9:54 pm | |
| - Quote :
- I suppose what I'm saying is that I found Drax to be just as one-dimensional and OTT as everything else in MR
No less one dimensional than Stromberg, or countless other villains Bond villains, minus perhaps Sevalas's Blofeld and Auric Goldfinger. One sets Drax apart for me is his brilliantly witty dialogue (not to mention the epic monologue in "the cradle of the heavens" - one of the most chilling speeches ever written for Bond), and Michel Lonsdale. He's one of France finest character actors, and his dry, deadpan humour and sinister charm steals every scene he's in. He's a lot of fun to watch. |
| | | AMC Hornet Head of Station
Posts : 1175 Member Since : 2011-08-18 Location : Station 'C' - Canada
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Mon Jul 23, 2012 1:34 am | |
| Although I acknowledge that Londsdale is a fine actor (in other things) he has nothing to do in MR except read the villain's lines and try to sound villainous doing it.
OTOH, he at least was villainous, unlike Julian Glover in FYEO. More should have been made of his infatuation with Bebe (and less made of her infatuation with Bond). Glover wouldn't come off as effectively villainous until Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
This is all just my opinion of course. I'm one of those who thought that Tobey Stephens did a better job of playing a Drax-inspired villain that Londsdale did, so what do I know? |
| | | Largo's Shark 00 Agent
Posts : 10588 Member Since : 2011-03-14
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Mon Jul 23, 2012 1:38 am | |
| - AMC Hornet wrote:
- Although I acknowledge that Londsdale is a fine actor (in other things) he has nothing to do in MR except read the villain's lines and try to sound villainous doing it.
More that just villainy - humour (which Toby Stevens utterly failed at, unless we're supposed to laugh at him). i always crack up when Lonsdale does his "cucumber sandwich" line. Great dialogue is one thing, but what matters in the end is the delivery. |
| | | AMC Hornet Head of Station
Posts : 1175 Member Since : 2011-08-18 Location : Station 'C' - Canada
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Mon Jul 23, 2012 3:21 am | |
| All that said, I have to admit I've had a hankering to watch MR recently. That or LTK.
Weird double-feature, but I might be able to pull it off. |
| | | tiffanywint Potential 00 Agent
Posts : 3675 Member Since : 2011-03-16 Location : making mudpies
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:59 am | |
| MR looks spectacular in blu-ray, and the Berry score takes it up yet another level.
I think both Stromberg and Drax are really Blofeld knock-offs. Eon I think was trying to milk the supervillain caricature as far as they could during this period. With Blofeld off the table, thanks to McClory, Strommers and a Blofeld-like Drax, instead of a Fleming-like Drax, filled the bill instead.
For me, Strommers was a dullish villain, but as Shark suggests, Lonsdale really did some inspired work with his character. Hid deadpan delivery was chilling in a camp kind of way. I say camp, because its hard to take the whole thing seriously, but what makes these scenarios work I think, is when the actors play it straight, like it's all perfectly normal. And I thought Lonsdale embraced the role wonderfully. I love the."..... and all wearing gasmasks line"
Lonsdale has quite a few smooth little zingers in the film. Jurgens Stromberg by comparison seemed like a grumpy old man. |
| | | Vesper Head of Station
Posts : 1097 Member Since : 2011-03-14 Location : Flavour country
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Mon Jul 23, 2012 7:16 am | |
| Stromberg is dull as dishwater. I don't think it's Juergens fault, the script was neutered by the McClory drama over the name Blofeld and his character is the big casualty. For all TSWLM has going for it, I honestly find it amounts to naught because Stromberg just isn't that menacing or interesting a villain.
Though the sequence at the start with the sharks, the base rising out of the water etc, all set to Mozart, is one of my favourite moments of the series. |
| | | tiffanywint Potential 00 Agent
Posts : 3675 Member Since : 2011-03-16 Location : making mudpies
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Wed Jul 25, 2012 3:08 am | |
| Spy has some great moments. Very classic, escapist Bondian in many respects.
I think in a way the series almost maxed out with MR and then level off somewhat, which isn't bad. Keeping things that interesting for 11 films is no small feat. What's come since though, has been damn good too. The 80's was a good decade for Bond as well.
I'm not quite as impressed with 1995 forwards ,but still these films have pulled in whole new generations of Bond fans, many of whom grace these boards. |
| | | Largo's Shark 00 Agent
Posts : 10588 Member Since : 2011-03-14
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Wed Jul 25, 2012 3:12 am | |
| - Quote :
- Spy has some great moments.
A few great moments, but many dull ones. It's got the Lotus sub, Ken Adam's sets, the parachute jump, and my dad was in it, but apart from that, it doesn't do much for me. |
| | | tiffanywint Potential 00 Agent
Posts : 3675 Member Since : 2011-03-16 Location : making mudpies
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Wed Jul 25, 2012 3:23 am | |
| - Largo's Shark wrote:
-
- Quote :
- Spy has some great moments.
A few great moments, but many dull ones. It's got the Lotus sub, Ken Adam's sets, the parachute jump, and my dad was in it, but apart from that, it doesn't do much for me. Its got some real lame Rog moments, (pyramids). Visually it looks really good. The blu-ray should be a real treat. The Lotus chase is classic Bond. Who was your dad, Sheik Hossein maybe? |
| | | Largo's Shark 00 Agent
Posts : 10588 Member Since : 2011-03-14
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Wed Jul 25, 2012 3:31 am | |
| - tiffanywint wrote:
- Largo's Shark wrote:
-
- Quote :
- Spy has some great moments.
A few great moments, but many dull ones. It's got the Lotus sub, Ken Adam's sets, the parachute jump, and my dad was in it, but apart from that, it doesn't do much for me. Its got some real lame Rog moments, (pyramids). Visually it looks really good. Not as good looking as MOONRAKER though. Jean Tourniers's cinematography was something else. My dad was the redshirt who Rog kicks down the stairs in the Liparus. :) |
| | | tiffanywint Potential 00 Agent
Posts : 3675 Member Since : 2011-03-16 Location : making mudpies
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Wed Jul 25, 2012 3:52 am | |
| - Largo's Shark wrote:
My dad was the redshirt who Rog kicks down the stairs in the Liparus. :) That's great, your dad was a stuntman then! |
| | | Largo's Shark 00 Agent
Posts : 10588 Member Since : 2011-03-14
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Wed Jul 25, 2012 4:07 am | |
| - tiffanywint wrote:
- Largo's Shark wrote:
My dad was the redshirt who Rog kicks down the stairs in the Liparus. :) That's great, your dad was a stuntman then! Nah, just a stage actor who did his own stunts. Went in for the day, met Moore, Gilbert, Adam and the rest of the gang. He used a padded stunt belt (don't know what you call it) under the jumpsuit to protect his spine in the fall. He also worked with Clint Eastwood when he doubled the mountaineer in the green jacket in THE EIGER SANCTION, rode with Franco's army in CROMWELL, and did some of the bad skiing in Michael Ritchie's DOWNHILL RACER. Trained in his youth with the legendary Dougal Haston (who was killed in an avalanche two years later). Worked with Alan Rickman (good friend of the family), Gary Oldman, Timothy Dalton, and Sir Ian Richardson, and dined with Sean Connery and a mate when he was in the National Youth Theatre in the late 60s. Lucky bastard. |
| | | lachesis Head of Station
Posts : 1588 Member Since : 2011-09-19 Location : Nottingahm, UK
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Wed Jul 25, 2012 12:32 pm | |
| - Largo's Shark wrote:
- tiffanywint wrote:
- Largo's Shark wrote:
My dad was the redshirt who Rog kicks down the stairs in the Liparus. :) That's great, your dad was a stuntman then! Nah, just a stage actor who did his own stunts. Went in for the day, met Moore, Gilbert, Adam and the rest of the gang. He used a padded stunt belt (don't know what you call it) under the jumpsuit to protect his spine in the fall.
He also worked with Clint Eastwood when he doubled the mountaineer in the green jacket in THE EIGER SANCTION, rode with Franco's army in CROMWELL, and did some of the bad skiing in Michael Ritchie's DOWNHILL RACER. Trained in his youth with the legendary Dougal Haston (who was killed in an avalanche two years later). Worked with Alan Rickman (good friend of the family), Gary Oldman, Timothy Dalton, and Sir Ian Richardson, and dined with Sean Connery and a mate when he was in the National Youth Theatre in the late 60s.
Lucky bastard. That's a nice connection to have, in good company indeed. I certainly agree re the look of Moonraker it has a rich texture and visual beauty few other films can match, quite stunning in Blu Ray. |
| | | Perilagu Khan 00 Agent
Posts : 5641 Member Since : 2011-03-21 Location : The high plains
| Subject: w Wed Jul 25, 2012 2:21 pm | |
| - Largo's Shark wrote:
- tiffanywint wrote:
- Largo's Shark wrote:
-
- Quote :
- Spy has some great moments.
A few great moments, but many dull ones. It's got the Lotus sub, Ken Adam's sets, the parachute jump, and my dad was in it, but apart from that, it doesn't do much for me. Its got some real lame Rog moments, (pyramids). Visually it looks really good. Not as good looking as MOONRAKER though. Jean Tourniers's cinematography was something else.
My dad was the redshirt who Rog kicks down the stairs in the Liparus. :) You've been holding out on us! :) |
| | | tiffanywint Potential 00 Agent
Posts : 3675 Member Since : 2011-03-16 Location : making mudpies
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Wed Jul 25, 2012 7:39 pm | |
| - Largo's Shark wrote:
- Nah, just a stage actor who did his own stunts. Went in for the day, met Moore, Gilbert, Adam and the rest of the gang. He used a padded stunt belt (don't know what you call it) under the jumpsuit to protect his spine in the fall.
He also worked with Clint Eastwood when he doubled the mountaineer in the green jacket in THE EIGER SANCTION, rode with Franco's army in CROMWELL, and did some of the bad skiing in Michael Ritchie's DOWNHILL RACER. Trained in his youth with the legendary Dougal Haston (who was killed in an avalanche two years later). Worked with Alan Rickman (good friend of the family), Gary Oldman, Timothy Dalton, and Sir Ian Richardson, and dined with Sean Connery and a mate when he was in the National Youth Theatre in the late 60s.
Lucky bastard. Those are real interesting stories. Did he meet Bach and Jurgens too? He must have met Sidney Tafler, the Liparus Captain ("It's too late Bond..." That work was doubling interesting, in that not only was he in a Bond movie, but also occupied one of Bond's most famous sets. Oh, if he dines with Sean again, can you ask him to ask Sean, to get in touch with us Canada Connerys. My maternal grandfather, whom I knew very well, was a Connery, although he changed his name, for reasons unknown, when he disembarked the boat from Ireland. But even tough the name was lost at the dock, the bloodline persists. And as the Scottish Connerys and Irish Connerys are the same bunch, I figure Sean and I are blood, so we would like him to attend the family picnic some day. We can rename it the Connery family picnic in his honour. :) |
| | | tiffanywint Potential 00 Agent
Posts : 3675 Member Since : 2011-03-16 Location : making mudpies
| Subject: Re: Bondathon methods and musings Sat Jul 28, 2012 5:44 am | |
| Announcing a new Bondathon. This one will cover the classic era (the '60s films) and the post-classic era (the '70s films). This group of 11 are my favourite films and do comprise my top 11. Having dutifully reviewed the '80s-'00s Bonds, it's now time to return to the glory days of 007, featuring the original 4 pak of Bond directors, Young, Ham, Gilbert and Hunt, plus Bernard Lee (featured in all 11 films) as well as Maxwell, another stalwart of all 11 entries, and Llewelyn as Q, in 9 of 11 films. It's a return to the halycon days of Spectre, GF, NO, and '70s stalwarts, Kananga, Scaramanga, Strommers and Drax, plus much John Barry, Shirley Bassey and Ken Adam. Uber henchmen, Oddjob, Grant, Hans, Wint and Kidd, Tee-Hee and Jaws. The famous femme-fatales, Fiona, Helga, Taro and Naiomi plus uber bad-women, Klebb and Bunt. Plus the iconic Bond-girl collection of Honey, Pussy, Kissy, Tatiana, Domino, Tracy, Tiffany , Solitaire, Goodnight, Amasova and Goodhead. I will be watching them in the order in which I originally saw them, beginning with a double-plus-awesome, 5 picture Sean-athon :shock:, including the three biggest Sean-Bonds of all :shock:, to start things off. Thus the order for this trip down memory lane, is thus. Let the making of mudpies commence! (Prince Kamal Khan, sort of) 1. DAF 2. TB 3. YOLT 4. FRWL 5. GF 6. OHMSS 7. LALD 8. TMWTGG 9. DN 10.TSWLM 11.MR |
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