10 Flemingesque moments in Skyfall

I've seen the film twice now, and a few Fleming-type moments jumped out at me more the second time round. Here they are -

1) The obvious one to begin with. Bond dying, Obituary written by M, a depressed Bond going AWOL, and then Bond reappearing again, with health at an all-time low. This whole episode is taken out of Fleming's last few novels - TB (Bond's health), YOLT (Bond being a shadow of his former self, Bond dying) and TMWTGG - Bond resurfacing and being tested and questioned.

2) Severine - she felt like a Fleming girl (a bird with one wing down). The fact that she was used as a young hooker emphasised this even more. There was a sadness about her. I actually felt more sorry for this Bond girl than any previous female, despite her brief appearance.

3) The scene with the glass on Severine's head felt like it was penned by Fleming. It was one of the most disturbing scenes in the entire franchise, and actually genuinely shocked me. The music playing in the background (what was it?) felt like the bizzare elements of Fleming, and Bond looking round feeling uncomfortable before the gun is placed in his hand was Craig's defining moment as Fleming's Bond for me. Here he nailed it.

4) Likewise, helicopters blaring music out as Silva flew towards Skyfall had a touch of the benign bizzare Fleming.

5) The whole casino scene from start to finish literally jumped out of an unwritten Fleming novel, from Bond's tense conversation with Severine, to the bizzare pit fight with dragons.

6) Silva had a touch of the outlandish Fleming villain. His appearance reminded me of how Scaramanga would have looked, and the hints at homosexuality emphasise that further, as I'm sure Scaramanga was attracted to Bond in TMWTGG.

7) M's death, tragic ending was another Fleming masterstroke. He often ended his novels with a shock twist, and only twice have we seen this appear in the films, with CR and OHMSS.

8) Skyall Lodge, with its tombstone graves. The title itself is very Fleming, and the house itself in Glencoe captured perfectly how Fleming probably imagined where his hero was brought up.

9) Bond asking to be taken to Severine's employer. Gambling his life to get to meet the villain, surrendering himself on the boat so he could face Silva felt very Flemingesque.

10) The Shanghai build-up, spying through glass windows reflecting neon, fighting against the backdrop of moving neon lights was another Fleming touch.

I agree with all of that. especially Severine. One of the few Bond girls I actually liked. The ten points you list are some of the many reasons I love the film. However, our local cinema is booked solid so I don't know when I'll get to see it again.

I thought Gareth Mallory's obvious if unspoken disdain for foolhardy politicians while still clearly stoutly patriotic and a defender of the inner workings of Whitehall is very reminiscent of themes that run through the Fleming novels.

Δ

Good spot, Sharky. I only noticed on my second viewing that Silva's whisky is dated 1962.

Well spotted, that shark :D

And well spotted BI.

Largo's Shark wrote:

There's a subtle reference that very few have picked up. The pseudonym "John Byrce" on Bond's passport is the same name Fleming's Bond used in Live and Let Die.

Arlington Beech
Roger Sterling
... John Bryce

I'd love for David Somerset or Mr. Fisher to be used again.

Another one.

- Kincade seems to be partly based on Bond's surrogate father Hannes Oberhauser from Fleming's OCTOPUSSY.

Largo's Shark wrote:

Another one.

- Kincade seems to be partly based on Bond's surrogate father Hannes Oberhauser from Fleming's OCTOPUSSY.

I thought exactly that too.

jet set willy wrote:

1) The obvious one to begin with. Bond dying, Obituary written by M, a depressed Bond going AWOL, and then Bond reappearing again, with health at an all-time low. This whole episode is taken out of Fleming's last few novels - TB (Bond's health), YOLT (Bond being a shadow of his former self, Bond dying) and TMWTGG - Bond resurfacing and being tested and questioned.

Very Fleming indeed. Daniel Craig handled this extraordinarily well. He was very believable as the "blunt instrument" in the first two films, but he is very much at ease as the more world weary and jaded Bond.

jet set willy wrote:

3) The scene with the glass on Severine's head felt like it was penned by Fleming. It was one of the most disturbing scenes in the entire franchise, and actually genuinely shocked me. The music playing in the background (what was it?) felt like the bizzare elements of Fleming, and Bond looking round feeling uncomfortable before the gun is placed in his hand was Craig's defining moment as Fleming's Bond for me. Here he nailed it.

Everything about this was perfect. Silva literally makes you recoil. He is a sick man, and he doesn't have to do much for you to understand this. Sick and extremely dangerous. The perfect Fleming villain. And as you say, Bond's reaction to the situation is perfect. He's as perplexed and disgusted as the viewer, though he doesn't lose his nerve.

jet set willy wrote:

9) Bond asking to be taken to Severine's employer. Gambling his life to get to meet the villain, surrendering himself on the boat so he could face Silva felt very Flemingesque.

A risky move and direct move by Bond. No gadgets, no nonsense. This is the type of story development that has been missing from Bond for a while. Usually we have some type of arranged meeting, or something grandiose. Here it was simple. And very Bondian.

Yeah, I would agree with all of these points, all of which were some of my favourite things about the movie, being the Fleming devotee that I am.