Phoebie Waller-Bridge
bainesy1us
Posts: 43MI6 Agent
Just wondered what everyone thought of her contribution. I may be wrong in some instances but seems pretty obvious which parts of the script she had a hand in. The meeting in Bonds bedroom with Nomi for example. I personally think these are the weakest parts of dialogue in the film. Im not quite sure why shes so revered as a script writer but im really not sure shes added anything to the francise. I will elaborate when i have more time but wondered everyone elses thoughts?
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Does anyone know what she contributed specifically? Do we have drafts of the script before and after she came on-board? Has she claimed, "That was my joke"?
If not, we're left making assumptions based on what we *think* sounds like Phoebe Waller -Bridge, ignorant of how the script might have taken shape and who had input, including the actors improvising.
This exercise inevitably ends up saying a lot more about who we are as individuals about than it does about her.
I too would be interested to know exactly what her contribution was, but from the horse's mouth rather than speculation. I just read up on her, it's very lazy of me not to have done so before, and I am surprised to read she is basically an upper class educated toff. Whether her Catholic education influences her comedic material remains to be debated, I guess. I am deeply suspicious of the upper classes. Unfortunately we are surrounded by them in British business, politics and media. There is a still Bond film aching to be told about a maverick infiltration of the class system, a la Fleming's Sir Hugo Drax.
I didn't watch Fleabag, the title put me off. Killing Eve was fun, but she was adapting someone else's work. If the producer's intention was to put some quirkiness into NTTD, I'm not entirely sure where it was. NTTD isn't quirky. It isn't even very amusing, just the odd line or two and anyone could have written them they are so comedically obvious. I think its more likely she leant some texture to Bond and Madeleine's extended relationship. I base that on the fact all those scenes are romantically and familiarly awkward when compared to the rest of a robust, muscular film. Or perhaps I too am making too much of an assumption about PWB capabilities.
Having watched and enjoyed both seasons of Fleabag, what FELT like her (though I agree this is all essentially useless speculation):
"Where'd you find the Book of Mormon?"
"Does that bother you?...Does that bother YOU?"
"My god, you're thirsty at the moment!"
"I can see why you shot him."
Michael G. Wilson and Cary Fukunaga discuss her contribution above.
Andrew Scott aka C from Spectre appeared in Fleabag as Hot Priest, a phenomenal success and talk of the office. It also had Hugh Dennis who went on to have a small role as one of the office lab characters who get offed early on, a rather depressing piece of casting imo, won on the basis of an on-set bet perhaps, but I imagine that was down to Phoebe.
I first saw Waller-Bridge before she became famous, on stage in an adaptation of Hayfever, she was very good in it, it also had Fleabag star Olivia Colman, it's all a bit wheels within wheels but that's how the world goes round.
I was happily surprised to learn she'd been snapped up, because Killing Eve really did have that tonally dark, aesthetically light, stylish touch that the early Bonds once had, even if it was a bit too sadistic for my tastes. However, little of that makes it into NTTD, sadly. KE is all about the chase, a kind of erotic, one-upmanship between the hunter and the quarry, it's been a while since we've had that kind of Bond film played out. In fact, we don't see much of Bond with either Blofeld or Safrin in this movie, he seems to be chasing his own tale - I'll leave that typo as it's appropriate.
I'm not mad about posh people myself though tbf they are often devoid of self-pity. Fleming was posh himself of course. I think Waller-Bridger had her work cut out doing anything with this screenplay, they were up against the clock. Let's not forget that Dr No and the next one had a woman writer on it, Joanna someone wasn't it?
Roger Moore 1927-2017
I'm not sure, but I belive it was Purvis & Wade who said in an interview that Phobe Waller-Bridge was responsible for the Paloma character and her fingerprints are all over the Cuba sequence. Since pretty much everyone applaud these elements I think this speaks to Waller-Bridges skill.
We can assume, I think, Waller-Bridge isn't responisble for the basics of the ending of NTTD. That was Craig's idea and probably something he demanded before signing on to the movie. It would be great to find solid imformation on this process. The next edition of "Some kind of hero" is the most likely future source for this.
that Variety interview I think settled that question. The basic idea of the Ending was Craig's, and was one of the plot elements Fukanaga had to work around, whatever else he wanted to do. But the actual mechanism if how it would unfold they still had to work out.
Since Waller-Bridge was brought in rather late, I assume the structure was all in place and she reworded the dialog. If she did create the Paloma character (and I'm sure I've seen that claimed before), Paloma's not crucial to the plot and the Cuba scenes could have begun and ended the same without her. But the addition of a new character is more substantial than rewriting dialog, so I wonder what else she added.
Yes I don't think it's obvious and I'm a little dubious of folks who say they can spot her stuff without ever actually having watched anything she's written before. I certainly can't tell what she did or didn't write: Bond scripts are just collaborative.
Who knows, but these examples do sound like a good call to me. "I can see why you shot him" is one of my favourite lines in the film.
We know very little about what PWB contributed with in NTTD, but based on what we know and what I think I hope she's kept on as a scriptwriter.
I'm sure, than anything she contributed to this film, is better than what the next Indiana Jones film has to offer, if the rumours are true.
Oh no! Is it rumoured to be bad?
Roger Moore 1927-2017
I've just has a look online and I see what you mean but don't reveal anything as it gives spoilers of a kind.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Not at all, no. There's a load of made-up stuff from sexist YouTubers, but every film has that now.
Hmmm...I COULD go into specifics, but i'd rather not to avoid spoilers.
But, there is a rumoured element of the story that (in my view) totally goes against what the series is about.
Again, i'd love to discuss this at length, but spoilers and the fact that is has yet to be proven.
I have a few friends working on it. Oh dear. Oh dear. Oh dear. The last film pretty much killed the franchise anyway, so I had no interest in this one.