Care To Self-Analyze Your Top Five Bond Movies ?
chrisisall
Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
Is there a distinct pattern? Do you lean toward a type or style? Big or small? OTT or relatively serious? A particular actor? Or no pattern whatsoever- a smattering of everything?
Here's mine:
1 & 2- TLD & LTK. Kind of interchangeable.
3- TND.
4- SP.
5- DN.
Dalton is my favourite Bond, my most literary Bond. This should indicate a preference towards smaller more serious Bonds, but then 3 & 4 are OTT entries (especially 3 which is near YOLT level) with humour & crazy villains. Then 5 is arguable the 'smallest' Bond with nearly none of the gadgets or extended action. No Moore, no Lazenby... the other four are here... there's no patter of strong villains since Whitaker & Blofeld are low key, no music pattern as they each have different composers. There is no objective quality pattern since most of them generally could not be considered 'classics' in the stricter sense of the word.
The only pattern I can conjure is that in each of these movies I am riveted and/or endlessly entertained by each actor's interpretation of Bond himself.
If anyone else can see a pattern here I'm not, I'd be interested to hear it.
Anyone else want to do theirs?
Here's mine:
1 & 2- TLD & LTK. Kind of interchangeable.
3- TND.
4- SP.
5- DN.
Dalton is my favourite Bond, my most literary Bond. This should indicate a preference towards smaller more serious Bonds, but then 3 & 4 are OTT entries (especially 3 which is near YOLT level) with humour & crazy villains. Then 5 is arguable the 'smallest' Bond with nearly none of the gadgets or extended action. No Moore, no Lazenby... the other four are here... there's no patter of strong villains since Whitaker & Blofeld are low key, no music pattern as they each have different composers. There is no objective quality pattern since most of them generally could not be considered 'classics' in the stricter sense of the word.
The only pattern I can conjure is that in each of these movies I am riveted and/or endlessly entertained by each actor's interpretation of Bond himself.
If anyone else can see a pattern here I'm not, I'd be interested to hear it.
Anyone else want to do theirs?
Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Comments
1. The Spy Who Loved Me 2. Dr. No 3. Goldeneye 4. Moonraker 5. Goldfinger
I was actually feeling guilty that my top 5 didn't have enough Fleming in it, so I put GF back in.
Dr. No and Goldfinger are my favorite 60's Bond films by a landslide. They are exciting, have Connery and are faithful to their source material. These two films represent the "true" James Bond for me.
Spy and Moonraker are near identical films to each other so I'm not getting any points for variety here. For me they are the other high point of the series when Bond was BIG. Neither follows the original Fleming novels, although bits and pieces of the books are still present. However, I am a big fan of "Pure Cinema" and love how they cut most ties to literary source and instead focused on what works best for the big screen.
It is the law that Goldeneye remain in my top 5 because it was the first Bond movie I saw in theaters and the Nintendo64 game basically made me a Bond fan.
Some say that a Bond film is only as strong as its villain. Some of my favorite baddies like Zorin and Scaramanga are actually not in my Top 5. However, I am a big fan of both Jaws and Oddjob.
John Barry is easily my favorite 007 composer and he scores 3 out of these 5.
Overall, x2 Connery in the 60's, x2 Moore in the 70's and x1 Brosnan in the 90's. For me it feels right to have a mix of faithful Fleming adaptations, pure cinema blockbusters, and my own early-teen nostalgia. Something these films all have in common is they are entertaining from start to finish. I find myself enjoying each scene as it unfolds while eagerly awaiting the next scenes. The worst thing for me is a boring Bond film and sadly some of the most highly regarded films like FRWL and OHMSS are painfully slow on repeat viewings.
Interestingly enough, no films from the 80's are represented even though I consider it perhaps the best overall decade for Bond.
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
1. For Your Eyes Only
2. The Living Daylights
3. From Russia with Love
4. Casino Royale
5. OHMSS
Its "Eyes Only" because that was the Bond which was so different from Moonraker. It relied on character and plot. And I loved the Greek and Italian locations. But where is Octopussy. Surely there's room for that.OP is one of my "favourites" but not the best Bond
"Daylights" is a joy. Mainly due to Daltons portrayal. He blasts himself onto the screen. FRWL is one of the most literary stories with the characters of Kerim Bey, Tatiana and Klebb up on screen. The book didn't take much altering
OHMSS the same reason - plus a shocker of an ending
Casino Royale is my generations Bond film. A literary classic with mighty Daniel Craig in the role. A man who can destroy you with a look. The film actually improves on the book.
So bubbling under my top five is DN, LTK, "Spy" and SF (and possibly spectre). I like the literary Bonds. The ones which can be easily translated to Flemings work. I have very little patience with those who don't try to books. They don't know what they are missing out on...
I can see a pattern - you're nuts!
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
Seems that the rankers are going cold turkey now that rankings are somewhere else
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
shouldn't either !
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
5. Goldfinger
The quintessential one, the one all Bond movies essentially owe the 'cinematic Bond' formula to, and should always be considered the classic of all classics. It has it all, the villian, the henchman, the car, the excitement and fun, a laser, a golden girl. People claim it's overrated, I can see where they are coming from, but I think they defenitely should also take the times into retrospect and look at what a cult this movie truly is!
4. GoldenEye
I might be a bit biased on this, it's arguably the Goldfinger of my generation. Again, one that is often called out to be overrated, which fair enough I can get into a lot better. To me it's the last true 'classic' Bond film in the series, which at the same time launched a modern era and single handedly rescued the franchise and brought Bond back to the top! Very fresh film, which might not have dated that well, but looking at it in the spirit of the mid nineties, it's awesome! (Also Xenia Onatopp. 'nuff said..)
3. Skyfall
Underrated in my opinion. I was blown away by it in the cinema! I really enjoyed SP too, but now that I've seen that one a few times and got some time to let it sink in, this one had a slight edge on it to me. Maybe it's the great villian, the original story, maybe it's bringing back the DB5 or that ultimate satisfying ending shot of Bond and M fading out to the gun barrel. Whatever it is, to me it's a masterpiece!
2. Casino Royale
Objectevely, I would say this is the best Bond film in the series. Craig makes an amazing debut, blowing away everything that came before this in Die Another Day. Things are fresh again, killing takes a toll of Bond, there's real danger, realism, Bond struggles with his ego, he falls in love. It's a great adaptation of the first novel and it brought back Bond to it's roots in a modern world. When I initially heard about the reboot, I wasn't excited. But now in retrospect, I'd say it was the best choice the franchise could have made at the time!
1. Licence to Kill
Wouldn't call it the best Bond film, but certaintly my favorite one. I've expressed my love for it many times on this forum, and lets just say it mainly comes down to the awesome voilent and realistic tone the movie has coming after an era of silly and cartoony Bond films. And also the great and unique story of Bond resigning and going on a personal vendetta to avenge his close friend. Franz Sanchez is easily my favorite main villian in the series, he's terrific in this! Also, I think those who say it's a bit to dark and far from Fleming should defenitely take into account all the elements from the novels that went into this movie too!
My two cents!
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My favourite Bonds all show a more human 007, not so much tne superman. He has
emotions, and inner demons to deal with. Closer to the literary version that Fleming
wrote about. He can be hurt, the fights being brutal and believable. He also seems to
genuinely fall in love with the ladies he helps in these films.
OHMSS, CR, LTK, FRWL, SF.
1. GOLDFINGER- my Dad's favorite as well. I first saw a heavily cut version on ABC in 1983 shortly after NSNA had been released. It took until November of '85 to finally see it on VHS in it's full glory, and would be one that we would rent often. It just moves, even though Bond spends most of the 2nd half sitting on his a$$ in a cell. I remember at the time I had just got Raymond Benson's James Bond Bedside Companion and the fact that the early films were somewhat truer to the books intrigued me. GF deviates a bit, but still has the feel of the novel.
2. THE SPY WHO LOVED ME- One of the first films I saw on HBO around 1980. We had seen MR in the cinema and as I little kid, Jaws was my hero. This one seemed to be on a lot, and all the iconic Egypt scenes stuck with me as a kid. Also, Roger is cool the way he admits to shooting Anya's boyfriend, and the way he tosses Sandor off the roof. Roger was my first Bond, and this film I can watch repeatedly.
3. DR. NO- another VHS we rented a lot in the late 80s. This one is real close to fighting for my number one spot, but just inched out by the other two. I was getting into the films from the Golden Age- Bogart, Cagney, etc at the time, and DR NO, though in beautiful Technicolor, with it's simple scaled down vibe, does seem like a left over from that era. Especially Sean with his slicked down hair, tapered, not blocked at the neck, gray suits and hat are just classic. Not to mention the Jamaica location, Jack Lord's Felix, and the beach scenes just evoke atmosphere.
4. FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE- again another butchered on ABC Bond that was an event to see when it was on. Would you believe the ENTIRE gypsy camp/ Krelencu section was removed when I saw it for the first time? Still, much like DR NO, FRWL has atmosphere in abundance. But in a darker tone. When I was a kid the attache case was my favorite Bond gadget- the rifle, gold coins, knife, etc. Sean once again looks old school classic here. IMO, his performance in this film remains the truest to Fleming's Bond- with Tim maybe a close second. FRWL, though simple by today's standards, I think the newer films could certainly learn a thing or two from this one. In fact one of m favorite things about FYEO is that it's inspired by FRWL in many ways.
5. THUNDERBALL- the last James Bond film shot in what I would refer to as the Fleming era. He had only just passed away the year before and the 60s were in the stages of transformation. By YOLT enough had changed in tone- bigger more spectacular- and it was really becoming a different era.
TB is one of the first Connery's I saw on ABC, and didn't warm to it until a bit later. In fact, I probably liked it's remake NSNA better at the time. However, by the age of 13, I saved up and bought it on VHS and was thrilled. Look at Sean as he's needling Largo and openly flirting with Domino in front of him. The man defines confidence. Though the whole underwater plane camouflage section IS slow and drags on, the whole film had a fine balance between playfulness, grit, and adventure (as opposed to action).
So 4 Connerys and one Moore and a lot of childhood memories to go with them. Dalton and Craig do have films in my second five somewhere. FYEO is high up, too. Eventually I'll post in one of the full ranking threads, but this one was a great thread to start for one who is re-evalauting the films.
I'd say you like your Bonds serious, but still with a bit of the excesses we've come to expect. In my view, our top five is generally about the place we wish ALL Bonds were at- that's certainly the case with me. I like them either literary & somewhat intimate, or balls out action. Call me an extremist.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Dutch, I'm afraid you missed the point. This is specifically not a top 5 ranking thread, but rather an overall summary of your top 5.
Thunderpussy got it right:
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
OHMSS
TLD
FRWL
FYEO
YOLT
I find the Bond character the most down-to-earth, relatable and realistic in the first four of these films. I can't say the same for YOLT, though for my number 6, OP, I also find the same as the first four. The Bond films I like the least (Brosnan's and Craig's) are the films where I can relate to Bond the least.
TWINE, FYEO and TLD all require Bond to be a bit more human and show his ability to deal with the complex. In TWINE and TLD, Bond falls in love with the female lead and she's is present throughout the film. OHMSS is similar - and is my #6.
He also has to overcome a confusing situation where we're not sure who is who (villain/ally). To me these three of the films demonstrate something a bit deeper than a whiz-bang typical 007 mission. Also, in those three films the acting of the lead characters is exceptional.
TSWLM and MR are a little outside of the above description, but for me the scale of these films are incredible, and the production behind them is stunning. Roger Moore carries both of these films with ease and they just feel like "epic" Bond films.
"Better make that two."
I like these films all for the same reasons.
One common thread for me is that each of these feature diverse locations that I find intriguing. This has always been one of my favorite aspects of the Bond films. I think the other common thread of these films is that they feature charismatic, but not over-the-top (by Bond standards) villains. Bond also makes significant mistakes in each of these films, and has to improvise in order to survive.
I have a general preference for the more seriously-toned Bond films, and particularly the films of the 1960s. Generally, my favourite Bond films are the ones that are faithful to the Fleming material. I like films that find a balance between action and character development. Despite my fondness for the literary Bond, I do have great affection for the cinematic version as well and Goldfinger and Goldeneye are my two favourites in this regard. Goldfinger for being the classic standard of the series, and Goldeneye for being the iconic Bond film of my generation.
For interest's sake, the films which narrowly miss out on my top 5 are TSWLM, SF, TLD and DN.
Combination of relatively serious films in which Bond shows some vulnerability, with two films that are in many ways "greatest hits" collections of classic "formula" elements, many quite cartoonish.
Woops! Sorry, I get it now.
Just like Chris pointed out about my top 5, I would say my Top Bond movies (GF, GE, SF, CR and LTK) are indeed mainly the ones that are serious but still have some of the excess we come to expect.
I would also say my top 5 Bond movies (by coincidence) are defenitely some that had a major impact to the franchise. (GF was the biggest influence to the series, GE pretty much rescued the franchise in the 90'ies, SF was a smash hit coming after a movie that is disliked on average and CR is an absolute masterpiece once again bringing the series from a low to a high point!) Ironically enough though, my absolute favorite one is the least succesful one in the franchise... (LTK)
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Looking at my top 5 they say I like my Bond films a little more serious.
They also say I am highly intelligent with great taste in films.
for it with general loveliness
Ah we must both be highly intelligent then TP, and of course extremely modest.
infact before SF, GF was on my list
4. Casino Royale
3. OHMSS
2.Goldfinger
1. Goldeneye
I'm not sure what pattern there is. Although I will say my top 7 have every Bond actor so I'm not necessarily biased towards any actor or time period.
I do tend to like a more realistic Bond, with some grittiness. I'm not sure what other pattern might be present.
Seems as if GE, GF follow the decent and entertaining formula and OHMSS and SF follow a deeper story with CR being a blend of the two?
"Better make that two."
1. OHMSS
2. FRWL
3. DN
4. Goldfinger
5. Casino Royale
You see a clear pattern I believe. All are faithful adaptations of Fleming. 4 out of 5 are from the 60's. And aside from Goldfinger, none of them are over the top story and gadget-wise.
That said, I do score certain Bond films quite high that you would expect maybe to be lower if you look at the top 5: YOLT is quite up there, TSWLM also, MR has grown on me a fair bit. And at the same time, the so called purist movies like TLD, FYEO and Skyfall are relatively low again.
But my top 5 is quite a solid one; they are there to stay I believe. The other ones tend to shift around a lot.
1. Connery 2. Craig 3. Brosnan 4. Dalton 5. Lazenby 6. Moore
Subtle humour I like a lot but excessive humour I find detracts from the film (and cheapens the fact it should be a spy story) and is the same with gadgets, car chases, explosions etc.
Connery (especially early on) typifies Bond for me with Craig a close second and are the ones I associate with who Fleming created in his novels.
I don't see the need for a big budget or OTT. Hitchcock I think made many brilliant films on a relatively cheap budget and as I said earlier give me a good dialogue any day.
So before I get massacred from you 'Moore comedic lovers', the question from chrisisall was to self-analyse your top 5 Bond films
which I think I have done.
So, TLD, LTK, TND, QOS, DN.... 3 of 5 have moderate or low budgets... but that's not much... wow, I can't see a real pattern here except two from Dalton... hmmm, is it Bond himself? Bond is maybe a little more emotional in these than most, making him more human & less the cool killing machine? Or am I reaching here?
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Interesting. Logical pattern too.
Mine doesn't change often, but have found MR to sink down a bit. I also find my top 5 lacks a pattern but let's see if I can use my marketing knowledge:
1. TWINE 2. FYEO 3. MR 4. TLD 5. TSWLM
TWINE, FYEO and TLD are more of the "thinking man's Bond" if you like and I enjoy their convoluted storylines because it requires Bond to think a bit differently and play a few moves ahead than anyone else. I think these films deliver good re-watch value, where some of the other films are purely entertaining - they can bore.
MR and TSWLM are my favourite epics. TSWLM will over time probably end up higher than MR (I do think TSWLM is the better film) but MR's scope, special effects and tight storyline wins me over each time I watch it. I watch it in awe. TSWLM is just excellent - everyone knows that haha.
"Better make that two."