Anyone actually looking forward to this?

I've noticed the cynicism has been very high concerning this flick, as if nearly everyone is just expecting this to be the worst Bond film in the series, dismissing it so early before a trailer has been released. Right now I don't have any expectations and probably won't have any until the filmmakers elaborate more on what the film will be like. It could be the worst Bond film, or the best, or maybe just a solid entry nothing more or less. So for the most part my stance on this flick is quite neutral, there's not enough for me to set expectations. I'm especially curious to see how Deakins shoots it and how Thomas Newman will work the Bond theme.

I don't think it will be bad, nothing can be worse than QOS, but I must admit that I really don't care. Which is really odd considering it's got a great cast and crew, really top notch for Bond, but I've just gotten so cynical about EON Productions in general and Babs in particular. I've got a sour taste in my mouth from how they''ve been handling the character and the franchise. QOS is the only Bond film I don't have a copy of.

I am. While I don't care much for Dench as M, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, gay Q, or NYPD Craig, I'm still hoping Mendes cooks up a Bond film in the spirit of the earlier installments.

Plus, I'm excited to hear what Newman has to offer, as well.

I always look forward to new Bond films.

I just happen to have very low expectations this time around. Maybe the tone of the trailers will give me some hope (or confirm my fears).

There's nothing wrong with having low expectations, in my opinion.

With Eon's recent track record, why would anyone expect this to be a masterpiece? For fuck's sake, they still have the writers of DIE ANOTHER DAY working on their films.

Nothing wrong with low expectations, just that it's all there seems to be around in this forum so I was curious to hear anyone having a positive or neutral stance. Sometimes I felt like I was the only one NOT thinking it's going to be crap.

I'm excited to see and hear how the thing looks and sounds. Also pleased about Bardem's involvement. All these things are more than I was banking on, so I suppose I'm excited. Sort of.

I forgot that Bardem is involved.

I've been waiting for Fiennes to be in a Bond flick for a while, long before he had anything to do with Henry Potter. Hopefully they use him well.

I am - I always do. As mentioned countless times, I've admired Ralph Fiennes for a long time, and have always said his inclusion in a Bond film would be most welcome in my opinion. After seeing No Country For Old Men, the casting of Bardem is, likewise, most welcome. Since reports of Harris being Moneypenny have been dropped, I'm fine with her being a Bond girl, though I'm hoping Berenice will be the main Bond girl. She retains a classic Bond girl look, in the mould of Elektra, Honey and Domino, so I'm excited to see what she's like. The locations seem promising, the enthusiasm of cast and crew seems genuine and I like Mendes as a director, so I'm assuming that the film will be great. Plus, I like the concepts Purvis and Wade cook up, and with Logan's appreciation of the franchise, coupled with the cast and crew's admiration of the script (especially Bardem's "I'll only accept if the script is good") I have faith in the film. Plus I'm excited to see Deakins' cinematography. His work on The Reader, Revolutionary Road, etc have been wonderful.

I am slightly sceptical about Naomie Harris and Thomas Newman, but we'll see what happens. Looking forward to the teaser trailer.

I'm pretty excited about SKYFALL.

But I'm not part of the anti-Craig/anti-CASINO ROYALE brigade which seems to have taken over these parts.

I'm looking forward to it too.

I'll probably go see it, but I'm not expecting much. I would like to see Craig get an actually good Bond film.

*opens brown envelope. counts wad of notes*

Skyfall is the most hair-raising, breathtaking, heart-stopping, sexy film I've ever known in my life.

I mean that most sincerely, folks.

I can't wait for SKYFALL.

I love Craig as Bond.

I'm looking forward to Javier Bardem and Ralph Fiennes.

I'm intrigued by the idea of a Bond film set mostly in Britain.

I'm looking forward to seeing how Shanghai and Turkey are used as locations.

It will be refreshing to have a score by someone other than David Arnold.

Sam Mendes is a well-respected director and Roger Deakins is a well-respected cinematographer.

I don't care for QUANTUM OF SOLACE, but SKYFALL is a completely different film.

Makeshift Python wrote:

I've noticed the cynicism has been very high concerning this flick, as if nearly everyone is just expecting this to be the worst Bond film in the series, dismissing it so early before a trailer has been released. Right now I don't have any expectations and probably won't have any until the filmmakers elaborate more on what the film will be like. It could be the worst Bond film, or the best, or maybe just a solid entry nothing more or less. So for the most part my stance on this flick is quite neutral, there's not enough for me to set expectations. I'm especially curious to see how Deakins shoots it and how Thomas Newman will work the Bond theme.

I'm not cynical, MP, but I'm more than a trifle uneasy about SF. But that uneasiness has primarily to do with QOS, the Mendes quote and Bond in a dress. Perhaps my concerns will be unjustified. I hope so.

Fairbairn-Sykes wrote:

I don't think it will be bad, nothing can be worse than QOS, but I must admit that I really don't care. Which is really odd considering it's got a great cast and crew, really top notch for Bond, but I've just gotten so cynical about EON Productions in general and Babs in particular. I've got a sour taste in my mouth from how they''ve been handling the character and the franchise. QOS is the only Bond film I don't have a copy of.

This.

In many ways low expectations offer the film greater scope to surprise and impress, regardless of my expectations every Bond since GE has dissapointed so I confess cynicism has become par for the course to me - but because it's Bond I will give it the benefit of the doubt and the provebial once over.

tbh comments and speculation made prior to release is all pretty meaningless stuff they shouldn't be taken too seriously imo one way or another.

Folks saying this could be TWINE 2 aren't considering that TWINE could have been a good entry, if Bond hadn't been wussified into this reactive figure for much of the run-time.

But no, I am not looking forward to it. It might be a really good-looking entry, as I'll admit SPY and MR were, but since I rank those WAY DOWN in the pantheon (and own them only for VFX and art direction), that isn't a good enough thing by itself.

Whether this is good or not depends on the script. Babs gave John Logan this list of 22 scenes to incorporate.

1. Bond feels ashamed of himself and his attitudes.
2. Bond in Speedos 1.
3. Bond realises women are just as good if not better than men
4. Bond in Speedos 2.
5. Bond fails and is rescued by a woman.
6. Bond in Speedos 3.
7. Bond thinks with his cock and bitterly regrets it.
8. Bond in Speedos 4.
9. M beds a man a quarter of her age.
10. Bond in Speedos 5.
11. Bond doesn't bed a woman, but finds himself sympathetic and strangely attracted to Random Gay No.1
12. Bond and Randon Gay No.1 in Speedos.
13. Bond sees scenes of Imperialism and poverty that make him question his beliefs.
14. Bond in Speedos 6.
15. A strong assertive Musilm woman makes Bond question his beliefs.
16. Bond in Speedos 7.
17. A passing Marxist makes Bond question his beliefs.
18. Bond in Speedos 8.
19. A trigger-happy squad of US marines makes Bond realise that the USA is the Great Satan.
20. Bond in Speedos 9.
21. A cameo by Sean Penn helps Bond realise Britain is crap and would be better off as a republic.
22. Bond in Speedos hangs himself.


In other words Skyfall will be utter shit.

Vesper wrote:

Fairbairn-Sykes wrote:

I don't think it will be bad, nothing can be worse than QOS, but I must admit that I really don't care. Which is really odd considering it's got a great cast and crew, really top notch for Bond, but I've just gotten so cynical about EON Productions in general and Babs in particular. I've got a sour taste in my mouth from how they''ve been handling the character and the franchise. QOS is the only Bond film I don't have a copy of.

This.

This + 1

I was disillusioned with the franchise during the Brozza years, then EON managed to do the impossible and make a Bond movie which I still rank as one of the best in the entire series (I'm talking about CR, obviously).

So my expectations levels were naturally very high prior to QoS. Unfortunately the illusion that EON created, the false path they led me on was quickly shattered with the release of QoS. They returned to their bad old ways again, only this time in a slightly different fashion to the crap they managed to pour over the series during the 90's.

So I can understand the hesitation to get too carried away and excited again this time round. Once bitten, twice shy as they say. Any good EON managed to create during the first two years of Craig's reign was quickly undone 2 years later, and unfortunately the long, hard, dull, shameful Brosnan years remains in the memory much longer than that fleeting, rare glimpse of success in 2006.

So yes, I think most of us will remain cautiously guarded this time round, in case EON manage to fuck up again....and they have more of a track record in fucking up than they have of doing things right over the past 18 years.

Erica Ambler wrote:

Whether this is good or not depends on the script. Babs gave John Logan this list of 22 scenes to incorporate.

1. Bond feels ashamed of himself and his attitudes.
2. Bond in Speedos 1.
3. Bond realises women are just as good if not better than men
4. Bond in Speedos 2.
5. Bond fails and is rescued by a woman.
6. Bond in Speedos 3.
7. Bond thinks with his cock and bitterly regrets it.
8. Bond in Speedos 4.
9. M beds a man a quarter of her age.
10. Bond in Speedos 5.
11. Bond doesn't bed a woman, but finds himself sympathetic and strangely attracted to Random Gay No.1
12. Bond and Randon Gay No.1 in Speedos.
13. Bond sees scenes of Imperialism and poverty that make him question his beliefs.
14. Bond in Speedos 6.
15. A strong assertive Musilm woman makes Bond question his beliefs.
16. Bond in Speedos 7.
17. A passing Marxist makes Bond question his beliefs.
18. Bond in Speedos 8.
19. A trigger-happy squad of US marines makes Bond realise that the USA is the Great Satan.
20. Bond in Speedos 9.
21. A cameo by Sean Penn helps Bond realise Britain is crap and would be better off as a republic.
22. Bond in Speedos hangs himself.


In other words Skyfall will be utter shit.

:cheers:

The cynicism on this board may be a bit overdone, but it would prove a salubrious corrective to Miccoli's cultural death march. From that standpoint BaB should be required reading for that lot if only to expose them to incisive criticism and a point of view they will not encounter in Hollywood.

trevanian wrote:

Folks saying this could be TWINE 2 aren't considering that TWINE could have been a good entry,

I think SKYFALL could be TWINE 2.0, but that's not a complaint because I think TWINE is Brosnan's best Bond film. If SKYFALL suffers because it is viewed as TWINE 2.0 it won't be because TWINE was a bad film but because SKYFALL is derivative. In fact, we've been down this road a lot lately where the relationship between Bond and M is concerned. M didn't believe Bond in TWINE, got herself kidnapped, then needed Bond to save her. M didn't believe Bond in DAD, told him she'd have preferred he rot in prison, then needed him to save her career after she sent a double agent to assist Bond in bringing Graves down. M didn't trust Bond in Casino Royale, but Bond proved her wrong in the end. M didn't trust Bond in QUANTURD OF SOLACE, including blaming Bond for getting Agent Fields killed, but Bond proves her wrong in the end by foiling Greene's dastardly schemes.

It's like, you know, after 22 missions does Bond really need to be proving himself? Haven't we worn out the Bond/M relationship by now?

Personally, I'm not looking forward to SKYFALL one bit. It's not anywhere close to being on my "must see" list, which only includes THE DARK KNIGHT RISES and PROMETHEUS. Maybe when a trailer is released and we have something to look at I'll get excited. But right now we haven't been given spit in terms of publicity; no interviews with the stars on shows like Extra, Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood, etc...We've been given a droll, vague blog posting of Sam Mendes waxing philosophically about his being a Bond fan, an alert that Tom Jones would be performing at the BAFTAS and...................uh, that's it. 4 MONTHS OF FILMING and we haven't seen s**t.

As Sean Connery said in THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN: "I'm waiting to be impressed."

I am. The talent involved with this film is too impressive to not be intrigued.

Loomis wrote:

I can't wait for SKYFALL.

I love Craig as Bond.

I'm looking forward to Javier Bardem and Ralph Fiennes.

I'm intrigued by the idea of a Bond film set mostly in Britain.

I'm looking forward to seeing how Shanghai and Turkey are used as locations.

It will be refreshing to have a score by someone other than David Arnold.

Sam Mendes is a well-respected director and Roger Deakins is a well-respected cinematographer.

I don't care for QUANTUM OF SOLACE, but SKYFALL is a completely different film.

Yep.

I'm excited with what Mendes and crew can do, but I haven't been following Skyfall as much as I had followed QOS and CR.

I'm waiting for a trailer before passing judgement.