James Bond
James Bond is, without doubt, the most successful
film franchise to date. The fictional character was created
by Ian Fleming in January 1952 and Fleming wrote 12 stories
about James Bond's secret agent exploits and also a couple
of short story collections. Film Producer Harry Saltzman purchased
the film rights towards the end of the 50's and the first
James Bond film, Dr No was made in 1962 with Sean Connery
playing the British Secret Agent. Dr No was made by EON Productions
by producers, Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli. Dr No
was a massive box office success and, pretty much from the
launch of the first film, James Bond entered iconic status.
For the actor, Sean Connery, it was a the break-through to
super stardom and he went on to play James Bond in six more
films, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You
Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, made in 1973. Before
the making of Diamonds Are Forever, another James Bond production
had been made with George Lazenby playing Bond. The film was
titled On Her Majesty's Secret Service. George Lazenby wasn't
a success as Bond and Saltzman and Broccoli managed to convince
Sean Connery to make Diamonds Are Forever. For the next James
Bond movie, Live And Let Die, EON productions handed the reins
of the Bond character to Roger Moore after Sean Connery decided
he didn't want to continue as Bond, but in 1983 Sean Connery
reprised himself in the role of James Bond in a re-make of
Thunderball titled Never Say Never Again that was produced
by Jack Schwartzman. Originally, the film was scheduled for
release in direct competition with the EON Productions Bond
film, Octopussy, starring Roger Moore, which led to the media
dubbing the situation "The Battle of the Bonds".
In the end, the two films were released in 1983 and both were
big box-office successes, though Octopussy was the 'winner',
making $187 million compared to the $160 million made by Never
Say Never Again. The title is based on a conversation between
Sean Connery and his wife. After Diamonds Are Forever he told
her he'd 'never' play James Bond again. Her response was for
him to "Never say never again". She is credited
at the end of the film for her contribution. As a result,
it was the first Bond movie to use a non-Fleming originated
title.
Roger Moore played the role of James Bond six
more times after Live And Let Die and, in my opinion, he added
a wonderful touch of genuine humour to the Bond character,
although he was, perhaps, a little too smooth for those who
preferred the more rugged James Bond Sean Connery had portrayed.
Roger Moore's final Bond was to be A View To A Kill before
handing the reins over to Timothy Dalton in 1987 when Dalton
played Bond in The Living Daylights and the next Bond film,
Licence To Kill. I personally liked Timothy Dalton as James
Bond, but he failed to convince the critics. However, he did
take Bond away from the ultra smooth character Roger Moore
played to the rugged, action hero more in the Connery vein.
After Timothy Dalton, the role of Bond went to Pierce Brosnan
who actually managed to incorporate the ruggedness of Connery
and Dalton with the smoothness of Roger Moore. I liked Pierce
Brosnan's James Bond a lot, mainly, I think, because he added
the spice of intensity to the role and was, perhaps, truer
to the James Bond Ian Fleming had written as one has a sense
with Brosnan that James Bond isn't necessarily a nice man.
Pierece Brosnan made four Bond films and now we have Daniel
Craig in the role of the hero. In Casino Royale, Daniel Craig's
first Bond film, we have, I feel, a Bond who is trying hard
to be the next Jason Bourne. In my opinion, James Bond is
his own man and they shouldn't try to run after trends and
James Bond has always been the trend setter, but that is just
my opinion. I do, however, like Daniel Craig's James Bond
a lot, but for exactly the same reasons I love to watch Jason
Bourne in action. Daniel Craig's Bond has lost all the humour
and style of Connery, Moore and Brosnan and, in essence, is
a totally different character to James Bond. My main argument,
I suppose, is that the only thing Daniel Craig's James Bond
has in common with the established character is that he is
a British secret agent, so you could just as easily call the
Daniel Craig James Bond by another name and the film would
work equally as well and would probably be equally as successful.
I do look forward to A Quantum Of Solace, but I would like
to see the return of James Bond...
Tim Rees
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