Never Say Never Again: your detailed review

Thunderpussy

I remember reading here on AJB that there is a story that Connery met Legrand and offered him the job.

chrisisall

Thunderpussy wrote:

I remember reading here on AJB that there is a story that Connery met Legrand and offered him the job.

Actors...

Napoleon Plural

To be fair, Connery wanted Richard Donner to direct (who turned it down) and Jerry Goldsmith to score (who also...) But yeah, some actors mess up - how he approved the film's goofiness , then again Lennon returned to do a Macca-style house husband album just before he died in 1980 so you never know....

Blackleiter

Barbel wrote:

The title song is ok, but the score itself is down there with GE.

I hated the entire score, including the title song. To me that song was worse than both Day Another Day and Another Way to Die.

chrisisall

Blackleiter wrote:

To me that song was worse than both Day Another Day and Another Way to Die.

Blackleiter

chrisisall wrote:

Blackleiter wrote:

To me that song was worse than both Day Another Day and Another Way to Die.

Well at least I didn't spank him! )

chrisisall

Blackleiter wrote:

Well at least I didn't spank him! )

But initially, you shocked the monkey!

Blackleiter

chrisisall wrote:

Blackleiter wrote:

Well at least I didn't spank him! )

But initially, you shocked the monkey!

) ) )

Bond life

I just came back to this and can't stop laughing at the previous comments on tongues

Barbel

It's all a matter of taste.

Thunderpussy

I only pay it lip service.

DelicatessenInSteel

I've always thought as per entertainment value that Thunderball was the worst of the Connery movies even though its the highest grossing one, due to its lack of focus and lethargic pace...So remaking it was just a bad idea. It takes me a few sittings to get through it. Michelle Legrand is a great composer I really loved his Umbrellas of Cherbourg music for that awesome french musical..but man that music was as inappropriate as the Ladyhawke soundtrack..he must have gotten directions to make a jazzy score and went down the 80's freeform jazz route or just out of his depth for that type of scoring. Really the casting was awful with all the British talent at the time that could have been used and really uninspired direction. Also since the movie was delayed they still had time to do a rescore..a good composer could have done it in two weeks. That title song..man that sounded like it was written for a late 70's early 80's porn movie..they could have been any big act at the time which would have been glad to submit a number. As it stands the movie has a more expensive Gymkata type feel, no its more like the Superman IV of James Bond movies
.

P.S. if you haven't seen it this is an absolute great rescore and edit in EON style..of the opening PTS with John Barry music that actually fits. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytZ7YxAva2Q -{

chrisisall

DelicatessenInSteel wrote:

As it stands the movie has a more expensive Gymkata type feel,

How do you know of this movie? I'm the only one who ever saw it!

DelicatessenInSteel

chrisisall wrote:

DelicatessenInSteel wrote:

As it stands the movie has a more expensive Gymkata type feel,

How do you know of this movie? I'm the only one who ever saw it!

Oh well that makes two then..because I actually saw it in the theatre...gym bars conveniently in the middle of alleys...you know thats kinda awesome...
-{ -{

chrisisall

DelicatessenInSteel wrote:

gym bars conveniently in the middle of alleys...you know thats kinda awesome...
-{ -{

And a 'horse' in the square... astonishing.

hehadlotsofguts

I liked the fight with Lippe in Shrublands, really well choreographed and exciting

chrisisall

hehadlotsofguts wrote:

I liked the fight with Lippe in Shrublands, really well choreographed and exciting

That was actually my favourite part of the whole film.

Blackleiter

DelicatessenInSteel wrote:

I've always thought as per entertainment value that Thunderball was the worst of the Connery movies even though its the highest grossing one, due to its lack of focus and lethargic pace...So remaking it was just a bad idea. It takes me a few sittings to get through it. Michelle Legrand is a great composer I really loved his Umbrellas of Cherbourg music for that awesome french musical..but man that music was as inappropriate as the Ladyhawke soundtrack..he must have gotten directions to make a jazzy score and went down the 80's freeform jazz route or just out of his depth for that type of scoring. Really the casting was awful with all the British talent at the time that could have been used and really uninspired direction. Also since the movie was delayed they still had time to do a rescore..a good composer could have done it in two weeks. That title song..man that sounded like it was written for a late 70's early 80's porn movie..they could have been any big act at the time which would have been glad to submit a number. As it stands the movie has a more expensive Gymkata type feel, no its more like the Superman IV of James Bond movies
.

P.S. if you haven't seen it this is an absolute great rescore and edit in EON style..of the opening PTS with John Barry music that actually fits. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytZ7YxAva2Q -{

Specifically regarding the casting, I think the casting of Bernie Casey as Felix Leiter and Barbara Carrera as Fatima Blush worked out rather well.

chrisisall

Blackleiter wrote:

Specifically regarding the casting, I think the casting of Bernie Casey as Felix Leiter and Barbara Carrera as Fatima Blush worked out rather well.

Definitely.
Y'know, all the film needed was a director that had the guts to take it all a bit more seriously, and fight for a good musical score. Kersh was not the right man for that unfortunately.

Blackleiter

chrisisall wrote:

Blackleiter wrote:

Specifically regarding the casting, I think the casting of Bernie Casey as Felix Leiter and Barbara Carrera as Fatima Blush worked out rather well.

Definitely.
Y'know, all the film needed was a director that had the guts to take it all a bit more seriously, and fight for a good musical score. Kersh was not the right man for that unfortunately.

Those improvements definitely would have helped. -{

chrisisall

Blackleiter wrote:

Those improvements definitely would have helped. -{

I've seen the stupidest scripts turned into good films with the right director...

DelicatessenInSteel

Blackleiter wrote:

Specifically regarding the casting, I think the casting of Bernie Casey as Felix Leiter and Barbara Carrera as Fatima Blush worked out rather well.

As far as Casey he was alright I wasn't thrilled but yeah him and Carerra were the most inspired casting in the film and actually the best acting wise..at least they seemed as if they wanted to be there.

UltimateTruth

"Carrera was excellent. I never understood why she didnt break through to become a more famous actress. This was a great performance and at the same level as the original Fiona of TB."..........MrOsato

probably because she's 5'9"......I doubt many leading men of that era wanted a leading lady that was as tall or taller than them

Napoleon Plural

Eh? That's not so tall surely.

She did talk up her role for that movie, saying all the right things regarding motivation. Then you had Basinger saying, 'Well, I took the role cos Domino is a dancer like me...' 8-) and she goes on to win an Oscar!

Strangeways

Blackleiter wrote:

NSNA is a very mixed bag for me.


Barbara Carrera - I loved her colorful turn as Fatima Blush. The movie isn't as
interesting after she meets her demise.

Overall I'd rank NSNA as mediocre at best, but I still prefer it to just about every one of the Roger Moore Bonds.

I agree that Barbara Carrera was great as a feme fatale, and underused...she deserved to win that Golden Globe she was nominated for!

brandomack

While nowhere near the best Bond flick, I fondly remember Kim Basinger and her lovely curves and will always have a nostalgic soft spot for it.

Ornithologist

Re-watched this yesterday out of curiosity. I'd only seen it on TV before as a kid when I didn't know about EON, the movie's history etc. etc.

Here are my two cents:

Pros:

- Sean Connery is in it
- His age is incorporated into the plot
- Some good one liners which he still delivers well
- I think Maximilian Largo had great potential as a villain with a psychopathic character behind a polite, almost cheerful facade (reminded me of Silva in Skyfall), and Brandauer does a fine job
- Kim Basinger looks stunning as Domino
- Felix Leiter (Blackleiter) )

Cons:

- Connery, while reasonably fit, is a shadow of his former self (think GF, FRWL)
- The fact that the first 1/3 of the movie takes place in what looks and feels like a nursing home where Bond is threatened with a "herbal enema"
- The soundtrack is so dreadful that it even drags down the scenes which could've otherwise worked (think motorcycle chase)
- the plot, while simple, is still hard to follow because of the obscure way in which it is presented (Largo's connection to SPECTRE, etc.)
- this might have a lot to do with editing / pacing (the film just drags on without the plot progressing)
- Max von Sydow, whom I'd considered a serious actor, is completely wasted here as an OTT cliché version of Blofeld with less than five minutes on screen
- Largo is more fun in the German version with Brandauer's Austrian accent, which doesn't apply to the original movie however.

All in all, I was able to enjoy it but can understand very well why most dismiss it as an unnecessary remake.

Thunderpussy

I hated it on first seeing it in the cinema ( I actually got bored).
My feelings haven't changed. I regard it like CR67, just another
Curiosity.