The Man From Barbarossa and GoldenEye - The influences?

Jeremy Black in his great book The Politics of James Bond refers to The Man From Barbarossa's themes turning up in the 1995 film (and Gardner novelisation) GoldenEye. Does anyone here care to comment on these links. I can think of a few - criminals in the post-Cold War world seeking to profit from it, dachas, mentions of the 1991 coup d'etat, General Yevgeny Yuskovich being a forebear of the next 'Iron Man' of Russia - General Ourumov. Anyone else want to contribute on this (perhaps) obscure but very interesting topic?

I do think that TMFB anticipates GE - it is the first James Bond film to be set largely in the new Russia (the Russian federation) and it is also shows that James Bond can work in the modern world of Intelligence as an intelligence operative in the post-Cold War world.

If you're interested, Nicholas, this would make a good article for your blog, The Goldeneye Dossier - I'll happily write it up for you if you want me to! No sweat!

I'd really love to hear your views on this one as a Goldeneye aficianado!

Let me know what angle you'd like for me to take....regarding your tweet to me @Dragonpol.

I doubt that there's any direct influence -- which is to say that I doubt EON was even looking at the continuation novels.

I think that there are certain themes and concerns that would have to be addressed by any Bond movie coming out of the Cold War, and that this is the reason for the similarities.

Fairbairn-Sykes wrote:

I doubt that there's any direct influence -- which is to say that I doubt EON was even looking at the continuation novels.

I think that there are certain themes and concerns that would have to be addressed by any Bond movie coming out of the Cold War, and that this is the reason for the similarities.

Yes, but I still think there's more of an "only connect" here besides the superficial. General Yevgeny Yuskovich being General Ourumov on the screen, the next Iron Man of Russia, for instance. There are more links in the novel and novelisation - tellingly both were of course written by John Gardner! They also both reference the 1991 Soviet coup d'etat!

SILHOUETTE MAN wrote:

If you're interested, Nicholas, this would make a good article for your blog, The Goldeneye Dossier - I'll happily write it up for you if you want me to! No sweat!

I'd really love to hear your views on this one as a Goldeneye aficianado!

Let me know what angle you'd like for me to take....regarding your tweet to me @Dragonpol.

Told you before and I'll be happy to.

BTW; glad you like my blog. All this years in CBn made me feel like a black sheep for liking the Brosnan era.

SILHOUETTE MAN wrote:

Fairbairn-Sykes wrote:

I doubt that there's any direct influence -- which is to say that I doubt EON was even looking at the continuation novels.

I think that there are certain themes and concerns that would have to be addressed by any Bond movie coming out of the Cold War, and that this is the reason for the similarities.

Yes, but I still think there's more of an "only connect" here besides the superficial. General Yevgeny Yuskovich being General Ourumov on the screen, the next Iron Man of Russia, for instance. There are more links in the novel and novelisation - tellingly both were of course written by John Gardner! They also both reference the 1991 Soviet coup d'etat!

So two stories that are the first post collapse Bond tales in their respective series deal with Russia. Frankly you would HAVE to mention the coup (and remember the GE script was written in like 93 or so) and as for them both using "next Iron Man of Russia", so both are trying to puff up the Russian villain bycomparig him to Stalin, who is basically the only USSR leader you can get away with calling villainous, especially in a PC movie like GE designed to service an international argument.

What exactly are you trying to suggest? That Michael France took inspiration from Gardner? Or that Gardner had some input in the GE story?

Bull. No one at EON even glances at the modern novels, else they would try harder to keep continuoty between them.

You sound like a conspiracy theorist plucking at straws? Is TND inspired by Man with the Red Tattoo? No. They both just figured that a story about a British spy in 97 could deal with the handover. Same shit here.

Fairbairn-Sykes wrote:

SILHOUETTE MAN wrote:

Fairbairn-Sykes wrote:

I doubt that there's any direct influence -- which is to say that I doubt EON was even looking at the continuation novels.

I think that there are certain themes and concerns that would have to be addressed by any Bond movie coming out of the Cold War, and that this is the reason for the similarities.

Yes, but I still think there's more of an "only connect" here besides the superficial. General Yevgeny Yuskovich being General Ourumov on the screen, the next Iron Man of Russia, for instance. There are more links in the novel and novelisation - tellingly both were of course written by John Gardner! They also both reference the 1991 Soviet coup d'etat!

So two stories that are the first post collapse Bond tales in their respective series deal with Russia. Frankly you would HAVE to mention the coup (and remember the GE script was written in like 93 or so) and as for them both using "next Iron Man of Russia", so both are trying to puff up the Russian villain bycomparig him to Stalin, who is basically the only USSR leader you can get away with calling villainous, especially in a PC movie like GE designed to service an international argument.

What exactly are you trying to suggest? That Michael France took inspiration from Gardner? Or that Gardner had some input in the GE story?

Bull. No one at EON even glances at the modern novels, else they would try harder to keep continuoty between them.

You sound like a conspiracy theorist plucking at straws? Is TND inspired by Man with the Red Tattoo? No. They both just figured that a story about a British spy in 97 could deal with the handover. Same shit here.

Well, you have your views, I have my informed views as a Gardner fan.

I did not suggest that Gardner had any input in the screenplay for GE.

I am merely suggesting that as Gardner wrote both TMFB and GE books they have interesting links.

And TMFB is not the first post-Cold War Bond - that is Death is Forever in 1992 which actually mentions the coup in 1991 also!

As regards TMWTRT and TND as it was published 5 years later I doubt it had much link to TND. I think you mean Benson's Zero Minus Ten.

Get the facts right and then perhaps I'll argue with you.

There is still an interesting article to be written here - see The Bondologist Blog for when it will be published.

CJB wrote:

SILHOUETTE MAN wrote:

General Yevgeny Yuskovich being a forebear of the next 'Iron Man' of Russia - General Ourumov.

"Those amateurs?"

Indeed - a case in point - the very presient nature of the James Bond novels by John Gardner