James Bond Franchise (1962-∞)

[HJackson]

Diamonds Are Forever is a lot of fun taken in its own right but the main issue with it is that, if you are watching the films in order and at a brisk pace, you are itching for a second George Lazenby outing where he avenges his wife - and instead you get Connery on the cusp of geezerhood off on a lark to Las Vegas. A good lark it is though, Wint and Kidd in particular as you say. The whole episode with Peter Franks cracks me up too, from Connery making out with himself in the shadows to "is he dead?" / "I sincerely hope so..."

[knives]

I didn’t. I honestly have no clue why anyone thinks OHMSS is anything but mud.

[hearthesilence]

I've never understood it either; I started watching all the Bonds in chronological order a few years ago, but got bored during Thunderball to the point where I switched it off and planned to get back to it later, but never did. (I'd seen it before in its entirety, but it never made much of an impression on me then either.)

The big underwater battle sticks out the most. It's impressive how far they went to stage one because it's a very difficult and enormously expensive endeavor, but unfortunately the results show why it's rarely worth the trouble - the inherently sluggish movement and pacing that comes with anyone moving underwater sucks all the energy and visceral excitement that comes with the visual spectacle of hand-to-hand combat. Amping up the score only emphasizes the difference rather than cover it up. (otoh, that sort of movement can translate well for comedic effect - see the underwater struggle in Buster Keaton's The Navigator.)

[Monterey Jack]

No underwater fight scene will ever top this...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh61gnj2hLo

[MichaelB]

Diamonds Are Forever was on telly a few days before we had a talk in our school by a police officer, and I'll always remember him saying "Did you see Diamonds Are Forever when the bloke peeled off his fake fingerprints? Don't try that in real life; it won't work."

[lacritfan]

Steven Knight will write the next one.

[therewillbeblus]

I decided to revisit Diamonds are Forever - I remembered it least amongst the Connerys, and not fondly, but I liked it a lot this time. It's a bit more grisly than its predecessors, but still in a campy way; its use of violence and action at once extravagant and also self-consciously trivial. Like the opening attack on Blofeld, or the overextended elevator fight, or the wild car chase. I appreciate how the overarching absurd plot takes a backseat to these smaller, less dramatic objectives revolved around the diamonds and such - so the film feels in step with its low stakes. Bond being repeatedly bested by the henchman into ridiculous situations is an amusing running joke, as is the bit where he fakes his voice and talks himself up, Charles Gray's more animated and insecure version of Blofeld also constantly shapeshifting from copying himself to dressing in drag, etc. ("such nice cheeks too, if only they were brains"), but really it's all gravy when kept at a tempo that never takes itself too seriously. Even the earlier campy Bonds have these moments of tonal whiplash that attempt to elevate the dramatic heights beyond where the audience is at, but not this one - and yes, the sleazy Vegas setting helps sell this vision. A James Bond movie is basically like going to Las Vegas.. they should all take place there

[beamish14]

Being claustrophobic, the crematorium escape from Diamonds Are Forever has always haunted me

[therewillbeblus]

I love the anticlimactic cut from the tension to the lamest rescue ever

[domino harvey]

Read the excerpts of Richard Roud’s unpublished book (included in the BFI reader) on his experience running film festivals and was amused by his anecdote of showing Vivre sa vie for the first time in London. Instead of attending the screening, Godard made Roud take him to go see Dr No, as it hadn’t opened in Paris yet!

[thirtyframesasecond]

So.....Robert Pattinson is now the Bond favourite.....

[Brian C]

I was gonna say that I’ll believe any Bond rumor once I see an announcement … but I’m actually not sure even that is sufficient. I’ll believe it when I see a trailer and a one-sheet.

[Matt]

I saw someone on Bluesky say that Pattinson would be a great choice IF we can get Kristen Stewart as a villain, and I fully support that.

I think he would be a great choice regardless. I don’t see him continuing on as The Batman, not least because of the WB regime change and his already stated desire not to keep doing it into his 40s. (He’s 40 now.)

[The Curious Sofa]

Even without Stewart, Pattison would be so perfect as Bond, he makes all the other candidates in the running look like terrible ideas. This is especially true after I've seen him in Primetime, where his smooth handsomeness combined with a reptilian cold-bloodedness.

[Mr Sausage]

Tenet also proved he can do breezy British charm in the midst of an action movie. One of the few things about that movie I liked.

The only negative I guess is that he's a slight man, not physically imposing. In The Batman the suit was doing the heavy lifting there.

[The Curious Sofa]

The Bond of the novels is described as slim and athletic rather than physically imposing. "Athletic" can be achieved with a personal trainer for a couple of months.

[Mr Sausage]

While I suspect in the 50s that "slim and athletic" read more like " low-key jacked" today, the real problem is visual: in a movie, your action hero has a credibility problem if he looks like he'll break his wrist punching the nearest henchman. And even the trim, sculpted Pattinson of Twilight looked on the slight side. I'm not discounting the effect a personal trainer and a few cycles can achieve, but in our current age of impossible godlike physiques, perceptions of heroic bodies have changed significantly.

[The Curious Sofa]

Tell that to Tom Cruise and Liam Neeson, who have had long careers in action movies despite not being imposing Hulks. Bond has always been more about cunning than brute force, and he has to look good in a suit.

[aox]

Tenet also proved he can do breezy British charm in the midst of an action movie. One of the few things about that movie I liked.

The only negative I guess is that he's a slight man, not physically imposing. In The Batman the suit was doing the heavy lifting there.

100% agreed on the latter. I don't recall his role in Tenet or that movie in general, but does that mean Pattinson can do a decent fake British accent? The idea of an American taking this role kind of doesn't sit well with me. And like you said, he's kind of puny.

[cdnchris]

but does that mean Pattinson can do a decent fake British accent?.

No, but he does a decent American accent.

Spoiler

Pattinson is British.

[The Curious Sofa]

Not only is he English, he's over 6 feet tall, that's not "puny". Countless slim actors (Christopher Reeve, Christian Bale) have bulked up for action roles. Remember the controversy around Daniel Craig's casting, who was considered thoroughly unsuitable for the role?