Serious or Campy?

DieAnotherDayDieAnotherDay Glasgow, ScotlandPosts: 460MI6 Agent
in The James Bond Films
Do you prefer the serious or the campy James Bond films?

I am partial to both kinds but I would have to say that all in all I prefer the more stern and serious bonds like TB and GE but I don't like the ones that are almost humourless such as QOS. It's no secret that I do enjoy vampire Bonds like AVTAK and DAD but I never like excess levels of camp throughout to the point where it becomes a parody which is where I feel a lot of the 70's bonds fell apart. There was times when even the serious parts just felt like a parody of the stern Bond movies.
....and the best he ever managed was a sermon on the mount.

Comments

  • DieAnotherDayDieAnotherDay Glasgow, ScotlandPosts: 460MI6 Agent
    DieAnotherDay wrote:
    Do you prefer the serious or the campy James Bond films?

    I am partial to both kinds but I would have to say that all in all I prefer the more stern and serious bonds like TB and GE but I don't like the ones that are almost humourless such as QOS. It's no secret that I do enjoy vampire Bonds like AVTAK and DAD but I never like excess levels of camp throughout to the point where it becomes a parody which is where I feel a lot of the 70's bonds fell apart. There was times when even the serious parts just felt like a parody of the stern Bond movies.

    "I do enjoy vampire Bonds". Sorry that was supposed to read 'Campier' Bonds
    ....and the best he ever managed was a sermon on the mount.
  • BlackleiterBlackleiter Washington, DCPosts: 5,615MI6 Agent
    Actually, "vampire Bonds" is appropriate for both AVTAK and DAD because they suck the life right out of me every time I watch them! :))

    But to your question, I am most definitely in the serious Bond camp (although the serious Bonds with a few light moments like GE and TB work best for me).
    DieAnotherDay wrote:
    DieAnotherDay wrote:
    Do you prefer the serious or the campy James Bond films?

    I am partial to both kinds but I would have to say that all in all I prefer the more stern and serious bonds like TB and GE but I don't like the ones that are almost humourless such as QOS. It's no secret that I do enjoy vampire Bonds like AVTAK and DAD but I never like excess levels of camp throughout to the point where it becomes a parody which is where I feel a lot of the 70's bonds fell apart. There was times when even the serious parts just felt like a parody of the stern Bond movies.

    "I do enjoy vampire Bonds". Sorry that was supposed to read 'Campier' Bonds
    "Felix Leiter, a brother from Langley."
  • DieAnotherDayDieAnotherDay Glasgow, ScotlandPosts: 460MI6 Agent
    Yeah, I especially think GoldenEye mastered the mix between humour and seriousness the best out of all the Bonds but of course I can't foget about the earlier Connery Bonds which set the perfect tone for the series. It's a shame they strayed from it so many times...At least one of Connery's, Moore's and Brosnans films are guilty of this.
    ....and the best he ever managed was a sermon on the mount.
  • Le SamouraiLe Samourai Honolulu, HIPosts: 573MI6 Agent
    Ian Fleming said that Bond films should be told with a "straight face" and "a desperate sense of urgency." He cited the excellent French film Wages of Fear as an example of what he wanted the movies to be like.

    I'm with Fleming. I prefer serious Bond films. If I want camp, I'll watch Steed and Mrs. Peel in The Avengers.
    —Le Samourai

    A Gent in Training.... A blog about my continuing efforts to be improve myself, be a better person, and lead a good life. It incorporates such far flung topics as fitness, self defense, music, style, food and drink, and personal philosophy.
    Agent In Training
  • The Domino EffectThe Domino Effect Posts: 3,638MI6 Agent
    Definitely the serious Bonds. I enjoyed the light-hearted ones at the time, and still enjoy watching some of them now, but I definitely lean towards Fleming's idea of Bond.
  • JarvioJarvio EnglandPosts: 4,241MI6 Agent
    I honestly love both. Most people seem to be one or the other, but I highly enjoy both for different reasons. Depends what mood I'm in as to which type I want to watch at the time.
    1 - LALD, 2 - AVTAK, 3 - LTK, 4 - OP, 5 - NTTD, 6 - FYEO, 7 - SF, 8 - DN, 9 - DAF, 10 - TSWLM, 11 - OHMSS, 12 - TMWTGG, 13 - GE, 14 - MR, 15 - TLD, 16 - YOLT, 17 - GF, 18 - DAD, 19 - TWINE, 20 - SP, 21 - TND, 22 - FRWL, 23 - TB, 24 - CR, 25 - QOS

    1 - Moore, 2 - Dalton, 3 - Craig, 4 - Connery, 5 - Brosnan, 6 - Lazenby
  • Brosnan_fanBrosnan_fan Sydney, AustraliaPosts: 521MI6 Agent
    Jarvio wrote:
    I honestly love both. Most people seem to be one or the other, but I highly enjoy both for different reasons. Depends what mood I'm in as to which type I want to watch at the time.

    Seconded.
    "Well, he certainly left with his tails between his legs."
  • DEFIANT 74205DEFIANT 74205 Perth, AustraliaPosts: 1,881MI6 Agent
    While I definitely have a preference for the serious Bonds, I also enjoy some of the not so serious ones such as Diamonds Are Forever and The Man With the Golden Gun. That said, the serious Bonds are the ones I'll watch over and over, while the not so serious ones are the ones I'd only watch for a laugh if I felt like watching a comedy.
    "Watch the birdie, you bastard!"
  • James SuzukiJames Suzuki New ZealandPosts: 2,406MI6 Agent
    Skyfall is the one film which perfected the humour the best.
    “The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. "
    -Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
  • raptors_887raptors_887 CanadaPosts: 215MI6 Agent
    I prefer a serious Bond film with the odd joke thrown in here or there. You can't have it too serious.
    1: Casino Royale 2: Goldeneye 3: Skyfall 4: Octopussy 5: Goldfinger 6: Tomorrow Never Dies 7: The World Is Not Enough 8: The Living Daylights 9: From Russia With Love 10: The Spy Who Loved Me
  • Moore ThanMoore Than EnglandPosts: 3,173MI6 Agent
    Brosnan_fan wrote:
    Jarvio wrote:
    I honestly love both. Most people seem to be one or the other, but I highly enjoy both for different reasons. Depends what mood I'm in as to which type I want to watch at the time.

    Seconded.

    Thirded.
    Moore Not Less 4371 posts (2002 - 2007) Moore Than (2012 - 2016)
  • Napoleon PluralNapoleon Plural LondonPosts: 10,489MI6 Agent
    Well, really FRWL and GF have camp moments in terms of not being serious. I mean, spiked shoes or auditioning Red Grant with a single knuckle duster? But it's not OTT, though the duck on the helmet in the GF pts is stretching it.

    Don't mind serious in principal, but the films struggle with it imo, I don't find it credible when they try.
    "This is where we leave you Mr Bond."

    Roger Moore 1927-2017
  • Silhouette ManSilhouette Man The last refuge of a scoundrelPosts: 8,871MI6 Agent
    edited February 2013
    Oh, serious all the way. Campy Bond films are just embarrassing and should never have been made - terribly disrespectful to old Ian Fleming!
    "The tough man of the world. The Secret Agent. The man who was only a silhouette." - Ian Fleming, Moonraker (1955).
  • James SuzukiJames Suzuki New ZealandPosts: 2,406MI6 Agent
    I love all of them, SF perfected the humour, but serious or not, I don't mind either way.
    “The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. "
    -Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
  • Silhouette ManSilhouette Man The last refuge of a scoundrelPosts: 8,871MI6 Agent
    Le Samourai wrote:
    Ian Fleming said that Bond films should be told with a "straight face" and "a desperate sense of urgency." He cited the excellent French film Wages of Fear as an example of what he wanted the movies to be like.

    I'm with Fleming. I prefer serious Bond films. If I want camp, I'll watch Steed and Mrs. Peel in The Avengers.

    Thanks for that very interesting tidbit, Le Samourai - I don't think I've ever heard that one before!
    "The tough man of the world. The Secret Agent. The man who was only a silhouette." - Ian Fleming, Moonraker (1955).
  • Le SamouraiLe Samourai Honolulu, HIPosts: 573MI6 Agent
    Silhouette Man wrote:
    Le Samourai wrote:
    Ian Fleming said that Bond films should be told with a "straight face" and "a desperate sense of urgency." He cited the excellent French film Wages of Fear as an example of what he wanted the movies to be like.

    I'm with Fleming. I prefer serious Bond films. If I want camp, I'll watch Steed and Mrs. Peel in The Avengers.

    Thanks for that very interesting tidbit, Le Samourai - I don't think I've ever heard that one before!

    To give credit where credit is due, I got that from Raymond Benson's great 'James Bond Bedside Companion.'

    From the same source: Fleming enjoyed 'North By Northwest' very much, but was bothered by the inclusion of too much humor. That led to his comment about 'Wages of Fear.'
    —Le Samourai

    A Gent in Training.... A blog about my continuing efforts to be improve myself, be a better person, and lead a good life. It incorporates such far flung topics as fitness, self defense, music, style, food and drink, and personal philosophy.
    Agent In Training
  • hoppimikehoppimike London, UKPosts: 54MI6 Agent
    I like some light humour, but most of all I like Bond to kick-ass like in CR and QoS!

    QoS really wasn't humourless though... at least not to me.

    The humour is very subtle though, and that's how I like it! :)

    Movies: The Spy Who Loved Me. Actor: Pierce Brosnan. Theme: You Only Live Twice. :D

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