What movie genre best describes Bond for you?

Harry Palmer

Inspired by a topic opened by Bigzilcho, ("Before Bond there was nothing") and by a number of claims made therein, I would like to ask this questions each member of the forum. I base the question on the following observations:

1. The Bond series means different things to different people.
2. Not only is it groundbreaking; it inaugurates its own genre.
3. A testament to its diversity and originality is the fact that it has had so many (and so many different) imitators (from the Die Hard series to Bourne and from the Saint to Indiana Jones)...
4. The Bond movies themselves differ widely from each other and different viewers have different favourites.

In light of this, what would you say is the genre that best describes Bond movies for you? Do you (for the sake of argument) approach Bond as an action-hero adventure or as a spy-flick?
(I foresee that some of you will say, "a Bond film is a genre in its own right; while I basically agree, for the purpose of this discussion I will consider that answer as a cop-out: you are warned!).

Harry Palmer

I'll start by saying that for me, FRWL is still safely entrenched in the spy-genre (a' la "North by Northwest"), but with Goldfinger we are already in a whole new territory.

If you check my "list of favourite titles" (or even if you read the implications of my ID on this forum) I guess you'll realise which side of Bond I am partial to.

Barbel

HP,you've basically answered your own question in your observations.

1. The Bond series means different things to different people.

Totally correct. Just look around this site for proof of that.

2. It inaugurates its own genre.

Again, who can argue with that? Bond is a thing in and of itself. While there are frequent nods to other films (you know the list as well as I do; blaxploitation (LALD), kung-fu (TMWTGG), Star Wars (MR)...) there are just as frequent nods to earlier Bond films (again you know the list).

3. It has had so many imitators.

Always had, always will... Only the names change- once we had Matt Helm, now we have Austin Powers. Once we had Harry Palmer (joke aside, I personally am a huge fan of that series and Len Deighton's books), now we have Jason Bourne.

4. The Bond movies themselves differ widely from each other and different viewers have different favourites.

Once more complete agreement. To pick an obvious example, DAD is a different animal from FRWL, as more or less anyone around here will testify. Call it a cop-out if you will, but Bond is too big to be defined by any single description other than itself.

Andy A 007

Barbel wrote:

Call it a cop-out if you will, but Bond is too big to be defined by any single description other than itself.

I think you've hit the nail right on the head with this statement.

Barbel

Thank you, Andy. The series incorporates science fiction, straight (well, fairly straight) spying, comedy, romance, exotica, unusual locations, terrorism counter-intelligence & revenge , a touch of mysticism, and manages to combine nostalgia with remaining contemporary. It's too much to fit under one umbrella other than its own.

Sweepy the Cat

I'd say spy-thriller for the darker bonds and adventure for the lighter

Brosnan_fan

...not to forget Action, too.