Tomorrow Never Dies vs. Quantum of Solace

Absolutely_Cart

These two movies do have a lot in common

* Both came at the heels of a prior film that was immensely successful, Goldeneye and Casino Royale '06 respectively.
* Both movies are very action heavy, with lots of bullets and explosions. More assault weapon usage than the average Bond.
* Both felt the need to make the villain a new kind of enemy. TND chose the news media rather than communism ; QOS chose phony environmentalists rather than terrorists.
* TND chooses to take on the issue with a certain over-the-top grandiosity whereas QOS takes on the issue with a sense of subtlety.

Manxman

I'd say they are more dissimilar than they are alike. Quantum Of Solace is a character study in which Bond matures visibly and learns a lot about himself. Tomorrow Never Dies is the closest the Bond series ever came to a generic action film: the characters are one-dimensional, the dialogue merely serves to advance the plot and Bond ends the film as exactly the same person he was when it started.

Absolutely_Cart

In a way, both have been criticized for emphasis on action rather than storytelling. With Quantum of Solace though, while the cerebral side of the plot was absent due to the writer's strike, Forster and Craig did a great job at delivering the ethos. In a way I think Tomorrow Never Dies succeeds better at being the American-style film you would take your wife and 13 year old kids to see. Quantum of Solace tries its best to not be that kind of movie.

chrisisall

They are like Peking duck & caviar, different, but I love 'em both.

Brosnan_fan

chrisisall wrote:

They are like Peking duck & caviar, different, but I love 'em both.

Are you in Hong Kong right now, in bed with a local girl? ) :v

chrisisall

Brosnan_fan wrote:

Are you in Hong Kong right now, in bed with a local girl? ) :v

Are you bugging me?!?!?!?! X-(

IMO, you can't begin to compare these two movies, except in budget. TND is like a Connery/Moore hybrid & QOS is like LTK.

Dutchfinger

I have to say I agree with Chris on this. I always thought TND had more simelaries with for example OP or TB, in the way that its a generic (in a good way) standard Bond action movie that is easy to enjoy and follow, and one of those movies you can just turn on and enjoy some good old Bond action. QoS is none of that in my opinion...

Thunderpussy

I remember first seeing TND in the cinema, and loved it. Thought it was
Great fun. -{ , just switch off, and go with it.

Lady Ice

Tomorrow Never Dies is not really like Quantum of Solace at all. Tomorrow Never Dies has the one villainous figure at the centre whereas there are multiple villains in QoS; Dominic Greene, Mr White, General Medrano. TND is just a fun adventure whereas QoS is a journey.

Gassy Man

Absolutely_Cart wrote:

These two movies do have a lot in common

* Both came at the heels of a prior film that was immensely successful, Goldeneye and Casino Royale '06 respectively.
* Both movies are very action heavy, with lots of bullets and explosions. More assault weapon usage than the average Bond.
* Both felt the need to make the villain a new kind of enemy. TND chose the news media rather than communism ; QOS chose phony environmentalists rather than terrorists.
* TND chooses to take on the issue with a certain over-the-top grandiosity whereas QOS takes on the issue with a sense of subtlety.

TND felt like yet another redux of Goldfinger -- megalomaniacal millionaire with a plan to make money. In this, it's more like that film and A View to a Kill.

broadshoulder

TND is the most generic Bond film - interestingly that makes it the best Brosnan effort...

Agent Purple

TND is more of a standard action 007 (arguably better than many recent action films) while QoS is more about Bond going rogue.

It's interesting how one franchise can produce 2 very different films.

I do think that both get too much hate though.

King Kamal

I think there's a subtle difference between the two.
TND is a generic Bond film.
QOS is a generic action film.
Therefore while I think in terms of component parts QOS is better (Craig, Dench, Opera scene, Mathis, Opening chase, CIA/Leiter subplot, end scene), it does feel very soulless and not at all Bondian for me at least. TND I think has big flaws but is very entertaining, perfect tonally and very Bondian.

eric7064

Manxman wrote:

I'd say they are more dissimilar than they are alike. Quantum Of Solace is a character study in which Bond matures visibly and learns a lot about himself. Tomorrow Never Dies is the closest the Bond series ever came to a generic action film: the characters are one-dimensional, the dialogue merely serves to advance the plot and Bond ends the film as exactly the same person he was when it started.

I disagree somewhat. While I enjoy Dalton's movies for what they are I feel they were the closest to a cliche action movie at the time. I know people say Dalton's version of Bond was closest to Flemings but those movies felt the LEAST like Bond movies to me personally.

Matt S

eric7064 wrote:

Manxman wrote:

I'd say they are more dissimilar than they are alike. Quantum Of Solace is a character study in which Bond matures visibly and learns a lot about himself. Tomorrow Never Dies is the closest the Bond series ever came to a generic action film: the characters are one-dimensional, the dialogue merely serves to advance the plot and Bond ends the film as exactly the same person he was when it started.

I disagree somewhat. While I enjoy Dalton's movies for what they are I feel they were the closest to a cliche action movie at the time. I know people say Dalton's version of Bond was closest to Flemings but those movies felt the LEAST like Bond movies to me personally.

LTK was very cliche for the time and doesn't feel much like Bond to me, but TLD was the Bond that was closer to Fleming's.

eric7064

Both these movies are very similarly ranked on my lists. Pretty much right in the middle. I like both for what they are and TND has one of my favorite scenes in the series (Remote control car). While i will agree its just a turn it on fun movie that does not provide anything remarkable I find it great fun. QOS I like more then others do and I appreciate what they tried to do with the resources they had. And why are so many Bond movies compared to Goldfinger? I get some plot similarities for the villains but that is it.

chrisisall

In a way, they are complete opposites. TND is an OTT adventure, and QOS is a down & dirty smallish redemption story.

Virgil37

They both suffer from the "let's put another one out quick" syndrome after successful movies. They feel rushed, which means the script is not fully developed. That said, QoS is an average movie and TND is well below average.

chrisisall

Virgil37 wrote:

They both suffer from the "let's put another one out quick" syndrome after successful movies. They feel rushed, which means the script is not fully developed. That said, QoS is an average movie and TND is well below average.

I happen to love the rushed, smaller Bonds! LTK is the very definition (same as QOS, even down to a writer's strike) of rushed (though QOS had a MUCH larger budget thanks to the preceding film's success), but the truly grand Bond productions (YOLT, TSWLM, MR, SF) leave me a bit tired as if I've overeaten at a meal.

Shady Tree

They're very different sorts of Bond film, but I wouldn't use the comparison, or an appreciation of QOS's character emphasis, to denigrate TND. For me, TND was riding high on the tide of 90s Britpop and, in that context, giving us back something of the formula, flavour and fireworks of the Lewis Gilbert Bond spectaculars of the 60s/70s ( - albeit lacking a memorable stand-out stunt, or a stunning centre-piece design like the volcano interior in YOLT or the super-tanker in TSWLM).

chrisisall

I liked that TND, whilst giving us a grand show, didn't go SO OTT. Carver's stealth ship was huge, but not CRAZY huge like the volcano or the Liparus. -{
It was excess within control. B-)

Agent Purple

The stealth boat battle is too good imo.

chrisisall

Agent Purple wrote:

The stealth boat battle is too good imo.

That makes TWO who like it (You and I). {[]

Agent Purple

chrisisall wrote:

Agent Purple wrote:

The stealth boat battle is too good imo.

That makes TWO who like it (You and I). {[]

Cheers dude -{ :007) .

Virgil37

Shady Tree wrote:

For me, TND was riding high on the tide of 90s Britpop and, in that context, giving us back something of the formula, flavour and fireworks of the Lewis Gilbert Bond spectaculars of the 60s/70s ( - albeit lacking a memorable stand-out stunt, or a stunning centre-piece design like the volcano interior in YOLT or the super-tanker in TSWLM).

That's a very good point. It was released the same year as Austin Powers. I like Austin Powers much better.

Agent Purple

I think Elliot Carver was a great Bond villain.

DigificWriter

I had to refresh myself on TND's plot because I've only seen it once years ago now, but in doing so I definitely noticed similarities/parallels between it and QoS (which is my favorite of the Craig Era films thus far), to the point that I would call it "QoS with a lighter edge and more overt flash".

heartbroken_mr_drax

I guess the parallel is the corporate playing politics and high level of action - but this isn't anything new to Bond, and features in the series: GF, DAF, TSWLM, MR, AVTAK.

QoS is superior to me because it has deeper menaing as part of the Bond series, plus it doesn't feel as self important as TND. TND has Bond elements sure, but they're to the point of hyperbole. The slow-mo scenes on the Devonshire, the street shower scene with Wai-lin, the shoot-em-up-machine-gun fire, the scenes on the deck of the aircraft carrier etc. Something is out of balance.

I enjoy it like DAF, but TND is a bit lame to be honest 8-)

Sorry Chris!

chrisisall

heartbroken_mr_drax wrote:

TND is a bit lame to be honest 8-)

Sorry Chris!

Thunderpussy

I remember leaving the cinema after TND, and feeling really happy, thinking
This must have been what it was like watching Bond in the 60s. It's a
Light hearted spy romp, to keep an audience entertained for a couple of
Hours. It sticks to the tried and trusted formula, puts a smile on your face
and bums on seats. Are there Better Bond films ? Yes!, are there worse
Bond films ? Yes !
For me it's an incredibly easy Bond film to watch, you don't have to give it
your full attention, yet still enjoy it. As with MR or YOLT.

chrisisall

Thunderpussy wrote:

I remember leaving the cinema after TND, and feeling really happy, thinking
This must have been what it was like watching Bond in the 60s. It's a
Light hearted spy romp, to keep an audience entertained for a couple of
Hours. It sticks to the tried and trusted formula, puts a smile on your face
and bums on seats. Are there Better Bond films ? Yes!, are there worse
Bond films ? Yes !
For me it's an incredibly easy Bond film to watch, you don't have to give it
your full attention, yet still enjoy it. As with MR or YOLT.