| Pages: 1 2 3 4 |
sausagebrigade
|
![[*]](./images/engage/default_icon.gif) posted on 16/1/2007 at 21:16 |
|
|
Another old review:
| Quote: | Thunderball
Why is it that some people are so willing to pan Thunderball? It's a well made, reasonably intelligent, reasonably well acted Bond movie with no
double taking pigeons, no Stacey Sutton and no bloody Eric Serra score, and yet this is the Connery movie, more than any other, that seems to be the
most hated. Christ, even Diamonds Are Forever has it's fans! I can remember only ever knowing two Bond fans who rated this as one of their top Bond
movies (in fact, they're probably on this board), while the rest seem to be of the opinion that it's long, draggy, and has a downright interminable
underwater battle scene. Pah! All I can say is it's better than having a long and interminable career as 007 'cough' Roger Moore 'cough' *
*Although I would like to point out that I am not really a Roger basher. He's just an easy target.
I think people weaned on the likes of Tomorrow Never Dies mistake atmosphere and characterisation for slowness. The opening sequence is a classic
example of this. Opening as Bond and some French bint (actually, she looked more Asian to me, but I suppose they're in France) watch the funeral of a
SPECTRE agent, it's a slow build up to one of the greatest fight scenes in series- nay, movie- history. If Thunderball had been a Brosnan movie, it
would just be a barrage of exploding grandfather clocks and hovercrafts, but in the hands of Terence Young, and with a still on form Connery at the
helm, it's ferocious (in a good way). The female mourner suddenly turning into Bob Simmons is a classic touch, and would pave the way for gags in
Diamonds Are Forever.
Alright, I'll admit the movie slows down after Tom Jones' unoriginal yet effective theme song, but it's all good stuff. I notice that not many
people work out the connection between Bond and Largo- both were late for meetings, Largo for his SPECTRE conference and Bond for his MI6 Debriefing.
It's not much, but I think it's intentional, and it sets up a potentially intriguing Bond/villain relationship which is never really executed very
well and was tried again, even less successfully, in The Man with the Golden Gun. Whoever played Blofeld is class, and Bernard Lee (who amazingly, I
have neglected in my last three reviews) is great. That bit in the sauna- not very erotic nowadays, but imagine how embarrassing it was for me when I
was watching it for the first time in front of me family...
I really don't understand how people can call Thunderball poor. It's got more style than the successive Bond's put together. It feels like the sort
of movie people in Porsche adverts would enjoy (err...). And the cast is just beautiful, particularly Claudine Auger. Can she act? Nope, practically
none of the Bond girls can. But I wouldn't half! I must again refer to the talents of the dubbing team; thanks to them, Adolfo Celi's performance
seems entirely natural. As for Lucianna Paluzzi, yes, she's the hottest Bond girl thus far in the series, but would've been wasted as the heroine.
The only thing I can really pinpoint as the movie's downfall are the underwater sequences. Terence Young was a great director (his work in the
Junkanoo scene is superb) but he wasn't as skilled at directing action as the dire John Glen was. I don't think the battle at the end drags;
admittedly, it took me a few times to come to this view, but have those of you who criticise it bothered to evaluate what an impressive achievement it
is? In this day and age, nobody would bother to choreograph something as mesmeric as this, they would've done it all in 'glorious' CGI. Perhaps
Barry's music slows things down, but this is definitely NOT one of his worst scores.
All of which leaves me to say that I love Thunderball, and honestly believe it is one of the best Bond movies ever made. Be cynical about it if you
like, but you know this is better than crap like Moonraker and Licence to Kill, even if you refuse to admit it.
***** |
Yeah, I basically agree with what I wrote here- though not the way I wrote it. It's really immature stuff, bashing other movies to make the one I'm
reviewing look good by comparison. I know I did that the other week, but I hate it anyway!
MI6 Debriefing Room Moderator- Got a Problem? Please u2u Me
"To kind of suddenly try to get my hair colored, and dance up and down in a miniskirt or do something, you know, show that I've got a lot of
jazz out there and drop a bunch of one-liners, I'm running for the president of the United States...I kind of think I'm a scintillating
kind of fellow."
|
|
|
Cyclone49
Undercover Agent
Posts: 926
Registered: 26/2/2003
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Member Is Offline
Mood: aroused
|
| posted on 18/3/2008 at 10:59 |
|
|
I forced myself to watch Thunderball for the first time in over two years the other day (three years may be more accurate, as I believe I fell asleep
during the previous viewing). Sadly, my opinion of it hasn't changed. The most frustrating thing about Thunderball is that I'm sure there's a good
movie hidden in it somewhere; however it's lost among the utter tedium and filler that seems to occupy the film.
It actually starts off great. The pre-title sequence, which I used to dislike, has grown on me a fair bit. The opening titles are fantastic, although
Tom Jones' theme song is incredibly cringeworthy. The first 15-20 minutes or so are very promising: Bond lazing around at Shrublands is a lot of fun,
the hijacking is very tense and the SPECTRE scenes are top-notch. Every time I watch Thunderball I tend to find myself thinking "this movie isn't
that bad at all, why on earth did I hate it so much?" for the first 15 minutes or so. However, as soon as Bond gets to Nassau the quality drops
immensely.
Thunderball is by no means a badly written film. Unlike many future Bond films, Thunderball's flaws don't come from cheesy dialogue or poor
plotting. The main problem with Thunderball is simply that it is one of the most boring films ever made. After a few viewings, I've come to realise
that Thunderball is quite a well written film ruined by uninspired casting and luckluster direction. Terence Young, who did a pretty good job with Dr.
No, and was brilliant in From Russia With Love, seems to be completely zapped of creativity during this film, and apart from a couple of good scenes
(Quist being eaten by sharks being the main example that comes to mind) there's nothing that really catches the eye.
The three big problems I have with Thunderball are as follows:
1) The casting. What the hell happened here!? Dr. No and Goldfinger might have their flaws, but the casting of the villains was always inspired. With
Thunderball, each character is as dull as dishwater. Fiona Volpe is the only character with anything resembling a personality, and even she is nothing
to write home about. Adolfo Celi’s Largo is boring and unimposing; he is creepy at the start, but there is nothing remotely interesting about him, and
I find myself wishing that they had not dubbed over his voice, if only for the fact that an indecipherable accent would have at least given him some
sort of quirk. One of the worst villains in the entire Bond series.
The henchmen are even worse. They just feel like stock standard action movie henchman. Vargas’s only interesting feature is the fact that he IS
incredibly boring (“Vargas does not smoke, does not drink, does not love”), and that other guy (I can’t even remember his name) is just… nothing – a
stock baddie who is tough and imposing but who you immediately forget as soon as the movie is over. Domino is hot but forgettable, I’ve never been
able to get involved with her character or her torturous relationship with Largo; I know there’s an interesting story in there somewhere, but it just
never seems to show itself. Rik Van Nutter does a decent Jack Lord impression as Felix Leiter, he’s a definite improvement on Cec Linder but not
particularly great either.
2) The length. Dear god, this is a long, plodding movie. Like Dr. No this could have been edited down tremendously; there are so many long, pointless
shots of Bond wandering around aimlessly in his hotel room or of a villain or Bond girl not doing anything of much interest. Considering Bond is on a
strict time limit and has to find the warheads within three days, he certainly takes his time, lazing around Nassau like a tourist on holiday.
However, despite the incredible length, there is an underlying sense that a lot has been cut out of this movie. I’ve read that the original cut of
Thunderball was about four hours, and I don’t have trouble believing that. It feels like there are lot of subplots that were only hinted at in the
final cut; particularly that of Dr. Kutze, the physicist working for Largo who eventually rescues Domino. That entire scene comes completely out of
the blue – Dr. Kutze had only appeared at the start of the film, and the sudden reappearance of the character comes completely out of nowhere. It’s a
shame actually, because I feel spending some of the screen time focussing on someone him would have been far more interesting than some of the tedious
padding that seems to consume this film.
3) That damned underwater battle. It has to be one of the most overlong, confusing and ultimately dull scenes in the entire Bond series. I’ve come to
realise despite having seen this film about five times, I could not recite to you what happens in this sequence. That’s because not once have I ever
felt compelled to pay attention to what happening on screen. I’ve always been distracted by a friend talking, or something on the computer, or, hell,
by the blank wall beside the TV, because even that is more interesting. The whole sequence is just so poorly edited, so confusing and just so
pointless that all the obviously immense work that went into choreographing and filming the sequence just goes to waste.
The score is a shocker too. After From Russia With Love’s fantastic score and a decent offering in Goldfinger, Thunderball’s score is, like the movie,
just so dull and tedious. It also contains copious amounts of the “007” theme, which I absolutely loathe. Thank god John Barry stopped using this tune
regularly after this film.
Don’t get me wrong, there are some good, even great moments in Thunderball. As I’ve already said, the first 15-20 minutes are a lot of fun, Bernard
Lee and Lois Maxwell are on top form, there are some great one-liners (Connery’s sheepish expression after the “She’s just dead” line cracks me up
every time – one of the best deliveries of a Bond one-liner ever) and Domino is admittedly drop dead gorgeous. There is a great movie hidden in
Thunderball somewhere, and with better direction, some more inspired casting and more vigilant editing it could have emerged. Unfortunately, as it
stands, Thunderball remains a dull, tedious and overlong film, and my least favourite Bond movie.
3/10
"They think they're all so high and mighty, just because they've never been caught driving without pants"
-Moe Syzlak
|
|
|
Cyclone49
Undercover Agent
Posts: 926
Registered: 26/2/2003
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Member Is Offline
Mood: aroused
|
| posted on 18/3/2008 at 11:11 |
|
|
Hmm, that's odd, I've never been able to view page 4 of this thread until I posted that review.
| Quote: | Originally posted by Bondfox
I guess I'm in the minority here when I say that I appreciated how Q's evolving relationship with Bond was something that I really liked. It was one
of the only discernable sources of continuity and I felt that it had the weight of two men who have worked together for many years. If Bond is one
character from Connery to Brosnan, he better respect Q by the end judging by how many times Q branch had saved him.
I just liked the evolving role that Desmond had, eventually filling the paternal role that Bernard Lee left vacant. |
I have to say, I completely agree with this. I've always loved how each Bond had a very different relationship with Q, and I've never had a problem
with the the fact that by the time Dalton and Brosnan came along their Bonds were far more respectful of Q than Connery or Moore ever were. I also
really liked the fact that when John Cleese took over it returned to the more adversarial role seen in the earlier Bond films. This is one of the
reasons I've always hoped (rather futilely) that John Cleese would return as Q during the Craig films - Daniel Craig has great comic timing, and I'd
love see how his Bond would face off against Q.
"They think they're all so high and mighty, just because they've never been caught driving without pants"
-Moe Syzlak
|
|
|
sausagebrigade
|
| posted on 18/3/2008 at 12:33 |
|
|
| Quote: | Originally posted by Cyclone49
Considering Bond is on a strict time limit and has to find the warheads within three days, he certainly takes his time, lazing around Nassau like a
tourist on holiday. |
That's the point, though. Back in the 60s travel was still pretty expensive for the average person, so Bond doing nothing in glamorous locations was
as appealing to them as the beautiful women and cars. Bond movies were as much travelogues as they were action movies.
It really bothers me a great deal when people complain about this aspect of the movies because it was an integral part of Bond before the movies got
stupider and more juvenile. As far as I can tell the best Bond movies have included some aspect of the travelogue in them.
MI6 Debriefing Room Moderator- Got a Problem? Please u2u Me
"To kind of suddenly try to get my hair colored, and dance up and down in a miniskirt or do something, you know, show that I've got a lot of
jazz out there and drop a bunch of one-liners, I'm running for the president of the United States...I kind of think I'm a scintillating
kind of fellow."
|
|
|
sausagebrigade
|
| posted on 18/3/2008 at 12:39 |
|
|
| Quote: | Originally posted by Cyclone49
Like Dr. No this could have been edited down tremendously; |
I know this is the Thunderball thread, but maybe I should point out that Dr No is one of the shortest Bond movies, and has almost no flab that I can
see on it, at least compared to any of the 80s Bond movies or even Casino Royale.
MI6 Debriefing Room Moderator- Got a Problem? Please u2u Me
"To kind of suddenly try to get my hair colored, and dance up and down in a miniskirt or do something, you know, show that I've got a lot of
jazz out there and drop a bunch of one-liners, I'm running for the president of the United States...I kind of think I'm a scintillating
kind of fellow."
|
|
|
Cyclone49
Undercover Agent
Posts: 926
Registered: 26/2/2003
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Member Is Offline
Mood: aroused
|
| posted on 19/3/2008 at 06:20 |
|
|
| Quote: | Originally posted by sausagebrigade
| Quote: | Originally posted by Cyclone49
Considering Bond is on a strict time limit and has to find the warheads within three days, he certainly takes his time, lazing around Nassau like a
tourist on holiday. |
That's the point, though. Back in the 60s travel was still pretty expensive for the average person, so Bond doing nothing in glamorous locations was
as appealing to them as the beautiful women and cars. Bond movies were as much travelogues as they were action movies.
It really bothers me a great deal when people complain about this aspect of the movies because it was an integral part of Bond before the movies got
stupider and more juvenile. As far as I can tell the best Bond movies have included some aspect of the travelogue in them. |
Yeah, but they can include travelogue elements while still maintaining a sense of urgency. My issue isn't with the focus on beautiful locales, rather
the fact that it never feels like Bond is in any hurry to find the warheads before Largo, you know, blows up Miami or whatever.
| Quote: | Originally posted by sausagebrigade
| Quote: | Originally posted by Cyclone49
Like Dr. No this could have been edited down tremendously; |
I know this is the Thunderball thread, but maybe I should point out that Dr No is one of the shortest Bond movies, and has almost no flab that I can
see on it, at least compared to any of the 80s Bond movies or even Casino Royale. |
There's a difference between a long movie and a slow paced movie. A movie can be very long but still move at a brisk and exciting pace (ie. Casino
Royale) or it can be quite short but still be tremendously slow and plodding (ie. any episode of Criminal Intent). It's all a matter of opinion of
course, but I feel Dr. No (and Thunderball to a lesser degree) spends an inordinate amount of time on scenes like Bond getting dressed or wandering
around his hotel room (all with the Bond theme inexplicably roaring in the background).
"They think they're all so high and mighty, just because they've never been caught driving without pants"
-Moe Syzlak
|
|
|
sausagebrigade
|
| posted on 19/3/2008 at 08:24 |
|
|
| Quote: |
Yeah, but they can include travelogue elements while still maintaining a sense of urgency. My issue isn't with the focus on beautiful locales, rather
the fact that it never feels like Bond is in any hurry to find the warheads before Largo, you know, blows up Miami or whatever.
|
I think certainly this is a case of the need for spectacle getting in the way of the plot, but then again, I don't think the plot is particularly
interesting or the main reason anyone watches the Bond movies. We basically know how the plot in Thunderball is going to be resolved, so for the movie
to just go ahead and do that would result in it being as boring and colourless as it is now, at least according to you. The bits in between, that are
apparently pointless, are there to give the viewer their money's worth.
We're looking at Thunderball from the perspective of modern cinema, but the fact that it has a lot of seemingly pointless scenes interrupting the
flow of the plot shouldn't be considered a flaw- that was probably what the film-makers intended.
| Quote: |
It's all a matter of opinion of course, but I feel Dr. No (and Thunderball to a lesser degree) spends an inordinate amount of time on scenes like
Bond getting dressed or wandering around his hotel room (all with the Bond theme inexplicably roaring in the background).
|
Yeah, of course they do. Because people back in the 60s wanted to see that. And by playing the Bond theme in the background of a scene, the audience
is made aware of the fact that this is what Bond is all about- glamour and sophistication. If you don't like these bits, or want to skip past them, I
can't help but think you're kind of missing the point of the whole Bond thing, right back to Fleming. Nowadays, whenever the Bond theme gets played
during a sequence, it's probably to remind the audience that they're not watching a Bourne movie.
MI6 Debriefing Room Moderator- Got a Problem? Please u2u Me
"To kind of suddenly try to get my hair colored, and dance up and down in a miniskirt or do something, you know, show that I've got a lot of
jazz out there and drop a bunch of one-liners, I'm running for the president of the United States...I kind of think I'm a scintillating
kind of fellow."
|
|
|
Greg007
Owner of Universal Exports Super Administrator
Posts: 3067
Registered: 13/10/2002
Location: New York City
Member Is Offline
Mood: Quantum-ey
|
| posted on 17/4/2008 at 15:23 |
|
|
I'm currently working on the revamped Thunderball section (as well as about 100 other things for the site) and wanted to know if anyone wanted to
submit a fan review. It can be as short as a paragraph or as long as you like. If you're interested, just post it here and say that it's for the
site and I'll pull it from here.
Cyclone...can I use yours?
|
|
|
Fish1941
Junior Agent
Posts: 192
Registered: 7/11/2006
Location: Los Angeles
Member Is Offline
Mood: Hmmm.
|
| posted on 18/4/2008 at 02:03 |
|
|
I had just viewed the 1965 Bond movie, “THUNDERBALL” for the first time in several years. And I can see why this movie is considered to be one of my
all time favorite Bond flicks. But I do not think I can state why in one or two sentences.
“THUNDERBALL” turned out to be director Terrence Young’s third and last Bond film. Most Bond fans consider it to be his least superior film, but I
consider it to be his second best, following 1963’s “FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE”. The story, based upon an unfinished script called “Warhead”, co-written
by Ian Fleming, Kevin McClory and Jack Whittingham. The unfinished script eventually became Fleming’s 1961 novel, “Thunderball”. This resulted in a
major lawsuit between McClory and Fleming and eventually, EON Productions became dragged into it. The story is about SPECTRE’s theft of NATO nuclear
warheads and how they used it to blackmail the U.S. and British government for the sum of 100,000,000 pounds. Naturally, MI-6 sends all of their “00”
agents to recover the warheads before SPECTRE can carry out its threat to detonate the weapons on U.S. and British soil. Many moviegoers found the
movie’s plot a little hard to buy and viewed it as part of the realm of fantasy. But considering the current obsession of terrorism and the high
illegal weapons market, “THUNDERBALL” is probably one of the more relevant plots of any Bond film.
Aside from the underwater sequences, “THUNDERBALL” turned out to be an elegant and exciting thriller with excellent drama, a solid plot that managed
to avoid any major plotholes, a classy score by John Barry and a first-class cast. Sean Connery portrayed James Bond for the fourth time in this film.
Thankfully, he seemed to be at his top game in this one. It is a vast improvement over his performance in 1964’s “GOLDFINGER”, in which he seemed to
come off as an immature prat. And he is ably assisted by a first-class cast – Claudine Auger as Domino Duval, Adolfo Celi as villain Emile Largo
(SPECTRE’s Number 2), Rik Van Nutter as CIA Agent Felix Leiter and especially Luciana Paluzzi as villainess Fiona Volpe.
Below is a list of positive and negative aspects of the film. I have decided to start with the negative, since there was little that I did not care
about the movie:
Negative:
*Rik Van Nutter as Felix Leiter – Do not get me wrong. Van Nutter’s performance as Leiter was competent and very personable. My problem was that his
role was written as a “less-than-bright” sidekick of Bond’s, instead of an ally. Bond has been assisted by Leiter in other movies, but they have never
come off as some dumb sidekick . . . except for Cec Linder in “GOLDFINGER”.
*Theme Song – I will not deny that the movie’s theme song, performed by Tom Jones is slightly catchy. But I also found the lyrics to be slightly
sexist and off-putting.
*Underwater Sequences – Yes, the underwater sequences had threatened to drag the movie a bit. Actually, I can point out two sequences that came close
to boring me – the sequence that featured Largo’s acquisition of the warheads and the final battle between Largo’s men and U.S. Navy frogmen.
Positive:
*Luciana Paluzzi – Let us be honest, folks. The red-haired Paluzzi came dangerously close to stealing the picture from Connery. Like Honor Blackman
before her, she radiated sexiness and a strong on-screen presence. She seemed to be even more of a threat than Emile Largo and his men.
*Adolpo Celi – What I like about Celi’s performance is that he does not come off as an over-the-top villain. He was elegant, intelligent, ruthless and
egotistical. Perfect villain.
*Nassau setting – The setting in Nassau gave the movie an exotic, yet elegant feel that really added substance to the movie.
*Dialogue – The dialogue in this movie was unusually sharp and witty. But what really appealed to me was that Connery’s puns did not come out of his
mouth every other minute, as it did in his previous two movies. In fact, the movie featured what I consider to be one of Connery’s best lines during
his tenure with the franchise.
Speaking of dialogue, below is what I consider to be some of my favorite lines:
* Moneypenny: In the conference room. Something pretty big. Every double-o man in Europe has been rushed in. And the home secretary too!
Bond: His wife probably lost her dog.
*Bond: My dear, uncooperative Domino.
Domino: How do you know that? How do you know my friends call me Domino?
Bond: It's on the bracelet on your ankle.
Domino: So... what sharp little eyes you've got.
Bond: Wait 'til you get to my teeth.
*Do you mind if my friend sits this one out? She's just dead.
*M: I've assigned you to Station "C" Canada.
Bond: Sir, I'd respectfully request that you change my assignment to Nassau.
M:Is there any other reason, besides your enthusiasm for water sports?
*Pat Fearing: James, where are you going?
Bond: Oh, nowhere. I just thought I'd take a little, uh... exercise.
Pat Fearing: You must be joking.
*But of course, I forgot your ego, Mr. Bond. James Bond, the one where he has to make love to a woman, and she starts to hear heavenly choirs singing.
She repents, and turns to the side of right and virtue...[she steps on Bond's foot]... but not this one.
I would like to conclude with this little note: in 1983, Kevin McClory – one of the original authors of “Thunderball/Warhead”, produced his own
version of the story, starring Sean Connery as Bond. The movie, "NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN" was not terrible, but it almost seemed like an overblown
version of the 1965 movie.
"Names are for tombstones, baby!"
|
|
|
Greg007
Owner of Universal Exports Super Administrator
Posts: 3067
Registered: 13/10/2002
Location: New York City
Member Is Offline
Mood: Quantum-ey
|
| posted on 24/4/2008 at 13:09 |
|
|
Any other reviewers out there? I'm finishing up the section right over the next few days.
|
|
|
Greg007
Owner of Universal Exports Super Administrator
Posts: 3067
Registered: 13/10/2002
Location: New York City
Member Is Offline
Mood: Quantum-ey
|
| posted on 26/4/2008 at 17:46 |
|
|
Click the below link and check out the updated Thunderball section, complete with new movie posters, fan reviews, links and more.
http://www.universalexports.net/Movies/thunderball.shtml
|
|
|
Cyclone49
Undercover Agent
Posts: 926
Registered: 26/2/2003
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Member Is Offline
Mood: aroused
|
| posted on 27/4/2008 at 02:05 |
|
|
| Quote: | Originally posted by Greg007
Cyclone...can I use yours? |
Yeah, go for it.
"They think they're all so high and mighty, just because they've never been caught driving without pants"
-Moe Syzlak
|
|
|
Data
Special Agent
Posts: 1499
Registered: 30/4/2005
Location: Right behind you--Oh no, lookout!!
Member Is Offline
Mood: Solace-ized
|
| posted on 27/4/2008 at 17:30 |
|
|
The new section looks great! Makes me want to re-watch the film again, and maybe catch that urinating dog this time around...
James Bond as a foreigner (as interpreted by Pierce Brosnan in TWINE):
"Я не знаю никаких шуток
доктора. Между прочим, я
выгляжу намного старше,
чем я фактически,
полагая, что я нахожусь в
моих шестидесятых и -
российский ядерный
ученый."
|
|
|
FelixLeiter
Moderator
Posts: 6479
Registered: 7/1/2003
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Member Is Offline
|
| posted on 28/4/2008 at 11:59 |
|
|
Yeah, it's weird. Having seen the film a trillion times I only just happened to pick up on the dog bit on my last viewing a few weeks ago.
Btw, sorry I haven't emailed you my soundtrack review yet, Greg. I shall have some time this week, so hopefully I'll get it to you by the end of the
week, or before.
MI6 Debriefing Room Moderator- Got a Problem? Please u2u Me
|
|
|
Cyclone49
Undercover Agent
Posts: 926
Registered: 26/2/2003
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Member Is Offline
Mood: aroused
|
| posted on 18/7/2008 at 07:51 |
|
|
| Quote: | Originally posted by sausagebrigade
| Quote: |
Yeah, but they can include travelogue elements while still maintaining a sense of urgency. My issue isn't with the focus on beautiful locales, rather
the fact that it never feels like Bond is in any hurry to find the warheads before Largo, you know, blows up Miami or whatever.
|
I think certainly this is a case of the need for spectacle getting in the way of the plot, but then again, I don't think the plot is particularly
interesting or the main reason anyone watches the Bond movies. We basically know how the plot in Thunderball is going to be resolved, so for the movie
to just go ahead and do that would result in it being as boring and colourless as it is now, at least according to you. The bits in between, that are
apparently pointless, are there to give the viewer their money's worth.
We're looking at Thunderball from the perspective of modern cinema, but the fact that it has a lot of seemingly pointless scenes interrupting the
flow of the plot shouldn't be considered a flaw- that was probably what the film-makers intended. |
Fair enough. Obviously, as someone who first watched the film in 2002 (I think), and rarely watches any movies made earlier than the 80s, I'll
probably look at them them from quite a different perspective. Still, I don't find myself having this problem with, say, From Russia With Love
(admittedly that is a very different film). I think we'll just have to agree to disagree on this point.
| Quote: | | Quote: |
It's all a matter of opinion of course, but I feel Dr. No (and Thunderball to a lesser degree) spends an inordinate amount of time on scenes like
Bond getting dressed or wandering around his hotel room (all with the Bond theme inexplicably roaring in the background).
|
Yeah, of course they do. Because people back in the 60s wanted to see that. And by playing the Bond theme in the background of a scene, the audience
is made aware of the fact that this is what Bond is all about- glamour and sophistication. If you don't like these bits, or want to skip past them, I
can't help but think you're kind of missing the point of the whole Bond thing, right back to Fleming. Nowadays, whenever the Bond theme gets played
during a sequence, it's probably to remind the audience that they're not watching a Bourne movie. |
I understand your point, but... did audiences in the 1960s really want to watch extended scenes of Bond wandering around his hotel room or getting
dressed. Really?
"They think they're all so high and mighty, just because they've never been caught driving without pants"
-Moe Syzlak
|
|
|
sausagebrigade
|
| posted on 18/7/2008 at 08:16 |
|
|
| Quote: | Originally posted by Cyclone49
I understand your point, but... did audiences in the 1960s really want to watch extended scenes of Bond wandering around his hotel room or getting
dressed. Really? |
Well, yeah, some of them probably did- remember that the austerity of the post-war era had only recently ended by about the time Bond came about. For
a lot of the audience, air travel would've been a luxury and fancy clothes would've been something they could only dream of.
Bond was, and still is, an aspirational fantasy. But the manner in which this is now done has changed.
MI6 Debriefing Room Moderator- Got a Problem? Please u2u Me
"To kind of suddenly try to get my hair colored, and dance up and down in a miniskirt or do something, you know, show that I've got a lot of
jazz out there and drop a bunch of one-liners, I'm running for the president of the United States...I kind of think I'm a scintillating
kind of fellow."
|
|
|
| Pages: 1 2 3 4 |
|
