"50 Years of Bond" Retrospective: In Conclusion...

Well, there you have it. 50 years, and still going strong. James Bond, which started as a partnership between two people, has now evolved into the longest running franchise in history, earned billions in box office sales, shared a hefty number of Oscar nominations, and has jump started the careers of many classic actors. The series has suffered from serious low points, but it’s also had incredible high points. It’s evolved over the years to fit various times, and has gained many a fan with each new installment. It’s earned its position as one of the most beloved franchises ever.

So, how will the future affect the series? Well, Daniel Craig is still confirmed to be doing two more films, and we’re not sure what the next films will be about, but here’s hoping for great things. But once Craig’s time is done, the studio will have the impossible task of finding someone to fill his shoes. Rumors have circulated about possible contenders like Idris Elba, but no matter what actor the studio chooses, I hope they never lose sight of what made these movies a success, but still continue to try new things.

Needless to say, the franchise will always have its devoted fanbase ready for more thrills. Whether your favorite movie is Goldfinger or GoldenEye, whether your favorite Bond is Sean Connery or Daniel Craig, your favorite Bond song by Paul McCartney or Tina Turner, everyone has their connections to Bond, both positive and negative. And though we don’t know what the future has in store, we can only hope that the next 50 years of vodka martinis will be just as incredible.

James Bond will return...

"50 Years of Bond" Retrospective - #23: Skyfall

Before Skyfall came out, we didn’t know what to expect. We weren’t totally sure what the film was about, either. All we knew was that EON was intending to kick Bond’s 50^th off in style. One of the chief indications of this was by hiring Sam Mendes are director. Mendes was known more for character driven dramas like American Beauty and Road to Perdition than he was for action, so there were some who were skeptical of him being chosen. Not me, as I was too busy shouting “INSPIRED DECISION!” Next up, the studio started hiring some of the best technicians in the business, and enlisted some of the best actors currently working such as Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, and Albert Finney. Naturally, we all got excited, but I don’t think any of us were ready for how much this would change the way we look at the series.

Throughout this retrospective, you’ve probably noticed me bring up Goldfinger a lot, usually in the case of comparison. So, with how much I hold the other films up to its standards, you might assume it was my favorite. As a matter of fact, it’s not. For that honor is held by Skyfall, which is just about the most perfect blending of everything I already love about Bond, and every new road I wanted it to go down. Thrilling, rich in character, suspenseful, funny, superbly acted, terrifically directed, and flawlessly produced, Skyfall is not only a fantastic James Bond film. It’s simply a fantastic film!

"50 Years of Bond" Retrospective - #22: Quantum of Solace

With Casino Royale making such a splash back in 2006, EON was quick to get their next film out, and contracted Daniel Craig for more Bond films. Quantum of Solace (meaning a small amount of comfort amidst sorrow or disappointment) was that next film. Release anticipation was hyped up to extremes, and… the title bore an ironic metaphor. While fans and critics certainly gave it positive notices, it failed to generate the same passionate love that Casino Royale had. And while I certainly can get behind that same sentiment that’s it’s not as good as the previous film, there’s still some REALLY good and fascinating stuff in this movie. If you’ve seen my reviews of Diamonds Are Forever, Thunderball, and Moonraker, you know I’m quite critical of follow ups to great movies, but this movie is doing exactly what I want it to do. It’s a proper continuation showing how the previous film’s events affected Bond, and NOT a rehash. This movie’s better than any of those follow ups.

"50 Years of Bond" Retrospective - #21: Casino Royale

With Die Another Day leaving a sour aftertaste, EON decided that they needed to begin focusing more on quality. They were gonna be consistent this time, but what were they gonna do? Taking a cue from Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins (which was actually inspired by the Bond saga), the studio rebooted the series from scratch, serving up a brand new timeline. Their next movie was going to be Ian Fleming’s first novel Casino Royale, which had been adapted as a Peter Sellers parody in the late 60’s… and it sucked. There had been a number of potential directors interested, including Quentin Tarantino, who had planned to shoot the film in black and white, set it in the novel’s original 50’s setting, and would have used Brosnan once more as Bond.

Fascinating idea, but the studio once again enlisted GoldenEye director Martin Campbell, but casting Bond himself was a tricky task. They had a number of considerations including the likes of Goran Visnjic, but the actor they eventually went for was Daniel Craig. Craig was a respected actor who’d been in several great films, but he was not a household name at the time, and having never headlined a major release before, many had doubts that he could pull it off. In my opinion, not only do I think he was the best possible choice, I’d dare call him the best Bond ever, but maybe that’s a personal bias. For many viewers, this was their introduction to 007. I was 14 at the time this movie came out, and this was the first Bond film I ever saw, and when you’re a newcomer to a franchise decades older than you, this is exactly where you want to start.

"50 Years of Bond" Retrospective - #20: Die Another Day

I don’t want to go so far as to say everyone hates Die Another Day. I’m sure it has its fan, every Bond film does, but of all the films I had to watch this month, this was the one I was looking the least forward to reviewing. I was hoping for a pleasant surprise, as I’d come across several during this retrospective... sadly, there were no surprises to be had. Good god, I hate this movie! This is up there with A View to a Kill as one of the most uninspired, unproductive, and all around clunky James Bond films ever made.

One thing that everyone seems to agree in criticizing is the over abundance of CGI. This film was released in 2002 (the franchises 40^th anniversary), and it was at a time between here and the mid-90’s when CG was all the rage. Movies like The Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean used it to inspired effect, but most others were exploiting it to cut corners. Comedian and online critic Doug Walker described this period of movies best, stating “Mostly, [CGI] was just used as a dodge, a way to save money on much bigger effects. And the filmmakers seemed to think ‘If we have CG, we don’t need to try that hard on the stories, either.” Sad to say this is the exact pitfall Die Another Day suffers from: Preferring to value flashy visuals as opposed to good storytelling.

"50 Years of Bond" Retrospective - #19: The World Is Not Enough

Pierce Brosnan’s era as James Bond was doing well enough, and while Tomorrow Never Dies didn’t quite duplicate the same level of success as GoldenEye, it was still a capable hit with plenty of fans. The same couldn’t quite be said for The World Is Not Enough. I’m not gonna lie, this was one of the movies I was looking the least forward to reviewing. While it’s not the one I was looking the least forward to (just wait until tomorrow for more on that), I think it’s just one of the most bland, jumbled, and undercooked films in the entire James Bond franchise. Don’t expect me to say too much on this one.

"50 Years of Bond" Retrospective - #18: Tomorrow Never Dies

All the way to 1997, GoldenEye was just the success that EON was hoping for. The film had shattered box office records, word of mouth was strong, the video game was doing gangbusters at the stores, and it had sent Pierce Brosnan’s career soaring. Brosnan had been contracted to do three more films after GoldenEye, and one of the movies that came afterward was Tomorrow Never Dies. This became the very first film in which original 007 pioneer Albert Broccoli did not work on, having passed away over a year and a half before the film’s release, and his friend and partner Harry Saltzman had died almost two years earlier. In the case of Tomorrow Never Dies… It was something of a mixed result. Opinions were split down the middle, and everyone agreed that it just wasn’t GoldenEye good. While I certainly can say it’s not as good as GoldenEye, what’s good in this movie is still REALLY good.