How so? It's one thing to say that you like the others better than you like Connery. Everyone has their reasons why they prefer one Bond actor over the others, but what do you mean when you say Connery is overrated? Overrated how and by whom? Not trying to diminish your opinion, just curious about your reasons.
I find GF very overrated since it seems to be regarded as the official no.1 by mass media. I just find it a bit boring compared with FRWL and TB among others.
“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to a better understanding of ourselves.” - Carl Jung
I have quite a bit of knowledge about the series, thank you, and I think Connery's films are the overall best of the series. I'll admit that DAF was the weakest of the lot, but when I compare Connery's total output to the rest, his films still come out on top.
I'm surprised anyone here feels that Die Another Day is overrated. on imdb it has a rating of 6.0 which i believe is the lowest out of all the 007 films.
(Not that I put much faith in those rating systems but...)
My current 10 favorite:
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
I'm surprised anyone here feels that Die Another Day is overrated. on imdb it has a rating of 6.0 which i believe is the lowest out of all the 007 films.
(Not that I put much faith in those rating systems but...)
Dodgy Double Feature: MR & DAD. That'll put ya off Bond for a bit.
I have quite a bit of knowledge about the series, thank you, and I think Connery's films are the overall best of the series. I'll admit that DAF was the weakest of the lot, but when I compare Connery's total output to the rest, his films still come out on top.
I have quite a bit of knowledge about the series, thank you, and I think Connery's films are the overall best of the series. I'll admit that DAF was the weakest of the lot, but when I compare Connery's total output to the rest, his films still come out on top.
I have to agree- he was in at least 3 Bond masterpieces, more than anyone else. -{
I'm surprised anyone here feels that Die Another Day is overrated. on imdb it has a rating of 6.0 which i believe is the lowest out of all the 007 films.
(Not that I put much faith in those rating systems but...)
Personally, I think 6 out of 10 is overrating Die Another Day. If I had an account with which to rate films on IMDB, I'd give it a 4 at most.
I have quite a bit of knowledge about the series, thank you, and I think Connery's films are the overall best of the series. I'll admit that DAF was the weakest of the lot, but when I compare Connery's total output to the rest, his films still come out on top.
I have to agree- he was in at least 3 Bond masterpieces, more than anyone else. -{
I agree with you both - and extend that to say that he was in 4 Bond masterpieces. Connery's first four films are all in my top 5.
How so? It's one thing to say that you like the others better than you like Connery. Everyone has their reasons why they prefer one Bond actor over the others, but what do you mean when you say Connery is overrated? Overrated how and by whom? Not trying to diminish your opinion, just curious about your reasons.
Connery himself is overrated and Moore, Brosnan, Dalton & Craig are better. Sorry George.
I just feel that these actors are better then him, and it annoys me how people brush over series greats like Moore &Dalton to someone who started to hate the series and have really bad films. Bond started his acting career, it boosted him to super stardom and gave him cash, he seems to forget what it did to him. But I don't hate Connery, his first 2 were perfect and his accent is awesome, I love it when he says.SCEPTRE.
“The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. "
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
it annoys me how people brush over series greats like Moore &Dalton to someone who started to hate the series and have really bad films. Bond started his acting career, it boosted him to super stardom and gave him cash, he seems to forget what it did to him.
While you are entitled to that opinion, I can't help but feel that some of you let Connery's spat with Saltzman and Broccoli off screen influence your view of his portrayal of Bond on screen.
I definitely do not agree that Brosnan and Craig are better, let alone Moore ...
Bond started his acting career, it boosted him to super stardom and gave him cash, he seems to forget what it did to him.
I think the reverse is also true: Connery turned Saltzman and Broccoli's dream of making a James Bond film alive. Connery wanted recognition in the form of a share of the film's takings, which I believe is not an unreasonable request when he had played such a large part in bringing that dream to reality. As for "what it did to him", Connery was mobbed by fans everywhere he went; he had no privacy, not even in the men's room. His other roles in the 1960s during his time as Bond suffered because the audience didn't see an actor playing a role, they saw James Bond. I think he quite rightly wanted more, because if he wasn't able to play other roles as a result of being typecast as Bond, his financial future wouldn't have been very bright. I also think that if you wouldn't begrudge any other employee seeking a pay rise, then neither should you begrudge Connery for wanting a bigger slice of the profits.
The argument that other actors could've played the role may have been true to an extent, but not in the 1960s, not during the height of Bond-mania where audiences saw Connery as Bond.
it annoys me how people brush over series greats like Moore &Dalton to someone who started to hate the series and have really bad films. Bond started his acting career, it boosted him to super stardom and gave him cash, he seems to forget what it did to him.
While you are entitled to that opinion, I can't help but feel that some of you let Connery's spat with Saltzman and Broccoli off screen influence your view of his portrayal of Bond on screen.
I definitely do not agree that Brosnan and Craig are better, let alone Moore ...
Bond started his acting career, it boosted him to super stardom and gave him cash, he seems to forget what it did to him.
I think the reverse is also true: Connery turned Saltzman and Broccoli's dream of making a James Bond film alive. Connery wanted recognition in the form of a share of the film's takings, which I believe is not an unreasonable request when he had played such a large part in bringing that dream to reality. As for "what it did to him", Connery was mobbed by fans everywhere he went; he had no privacy, not even in the men's room. His other roles in the 1960s during his time as Bond suffered because the audience didn't see an actor playing a role, they saw James Bond. I think he quite rightly wanted more, because if he wasn't able to play other roles as a result of being typecast as Bond, his financial future wouldn't have been very bright. I also think that if you wouldn't begrudge any other employee seeking a pay rise, then neither should you begrudge Connery for wanting a bigger slice of the profits.
The argument that other actors could've played the role may have been true to an extent, but not in the 1960s, not during the height of Bond-mania where audiences saw Connery as Bond.
I think the reverse is also true: Connery turned Saltzman and Broccoli's dream of making a James Bond film alive. Connery wanted recognition in the form of a share of the film's takings, which I believe is not an unreasonable request when he had played such a large part in bringing that dream to reality. As for "what it did to him", Connery was mobbed by fans everywhere he went; he had no privacy, not even in the men's room. His other roles in the 1960s during his time as Bond suffered because the audience didn't see an actor playing a role, they saw James Bond. I think he quite rightly wanted more, because if he wasn't able to play other roles as a result of being typecast as Bond, his financial future wouldn't have been very bright. I also think that if you wouldn't begrudge any other employee seeking a pay rise, then neither should you begrudge Connery for wanting a bigger slice of the profits.
The argument that other actors could've played the role may have been true to an extent, but not in the 1960s, not during the height of Bond-mania where audiences saw Connery as Bond.
CASINO ROYALE and SKYFALL are absolutely the most overrated for me; I cannot for the life of me understand how CR wasn't laughed out of theaters with its 'kill guys to get their cellphone info' plotting, as if espionage professionals wouldn't be committing important contact to memory instead of letting it hang out of their pocket. 'Bratty' Bond also doesn't work (is an epic fail in fact), because you need Bond to be in his 20s for this to be believable at all; for all its faults, CR could have worked with Henry Cavill. And this is without even getting into the 'why is somebody who looks like Taylor Negron playing Bond?' question (you can substitute Gollum for Negron too, but I'm not a LOTR fan, whereas Negron was great in LAST BOY SCOUT, and it shows EXACTLY the kind of role Craig should have had in Bond -- villain's nasty henchman ... or maybe a post-shark-attack Felix Leiter. )
Outside of how pretty the Shanghai sequence looked, there was nothing about SKYFALL I enjoyed ... absolutely nothing. I did think it was interesting that I found myself with more sympathy for the villain than M, and think that a much better movie could have been made in which somebody like Silva wound up working with Bond to take down M.
Both of these movies claim to be more realistic than other Bonds, but whenever folks bring up implausibilities, there is a rush to hide behind the 'you have to roll with it because it is another one of these crazy Bond flicks' arguments ... for me you can't have it both ways. If these things have plotting and credibliity problems like MOONRAKER, then they're not done right, regardless of how moody they might seem.
Just as a side note, Bond turns out to be a failure in both of them ... the money is lost in CR, and M dies in SF. If you had different endings, it wouldn't have made me appreciate them more, but I wonder if there is some public interest in 'downer' movies again. Odd if true, because I am super big on downer endings ... but in the right movies (THE PARALLAX VIEW, TWILGHT'S LAST GLEAMING, LOOKING FOR MR GOODBAR), not just to switch things up a bit.
"Achievement is it's own reward - pride obscures it."
Major Garland Briggs, in TWIN PEAKS
Totally don't get the hype around it. I think the villain is one of the Connery era's cheesiest, the Kentucky ranch is so not Bond, the daytime heist in the dry heat where they knock a town unconscious is idiotic, and it had a very distinct lack of allure that I sense in all of the other Connery films.
I like the early parts of Goldfinger in Miami and then the good car scenes in the countryside, but the rest of the film is a dud to me.
I've seen it three times and I've now seen every Bond film and it does little for me.
Totally don't get the hype around it. I think the villain is one of the Connery era's cheesiest, the Kentucky ranch is so not Bond, the daytime heist in the dry heat where they knock a town unconscious is idiotic, and it had a very distinct lack of allure that I sense in all of the other Connery films.
Those are very valid points. And, even more bizarre, the townsfolk were actually faking it because Pussy switched the canisters. It bugs me that staunch Connery supporters bash the Moore films for being "over-the-top" yet turn a blind eye to some of the nonsense in the first 5 films.
My current 10 favorite:
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
Totally don't get the hype around it. I think the villain is one of the Connery era's cheesiest, the Kentucky ranch is so not Bond, the daytime heist in the dry heat where they knock a town unconscious is idiotic, and it had a very distinct lack of allure that I sense in all of the other Connery films.
Those are very valid points. And, even more bizarre, the townsfolk were actually faking it because Pussy switched the canisters. It bugs me that staunch Connery supporters bash the Moore films for being "over-the-top" yet turn a blind eye to all the nonsense in the first 5 films.
I do think there are plenty of over-the-top elements in the Connery films when compared to Moore's, but half of Moore's are sickeningly cheesy and the other half pull it off quite well. Connery's films mostly pull it off for me, but Goldfinger is where I see exception. I don't find it clever and there is little in the film that I desire, myself (something that is important in my love of the character and franchise).
And, even more bizarre, the townsfolk were actually faking it because Pussy switched the canisters.
That may be, but who said the canisters were harmless? Pussy switched it from the lethal Delta-9 nerve gas to something else (we're not told what) which may very well have induced the town into a temporary deep sleep to allow Goldfinger to break into Fort Knox and plant the bomb there. It was only a few minutes of film time, but perhaps it was actually longer.
It bugs me that staunch Connery supporters bash the Moore films for being "over-the-top" yet turn a blind eye to some of the nonsense in the first 5 films.
It's not the "over the top" plot that I have a problem with, it's Moore's overly jovial portrayal of the character. As for the "nonsense" in the first 5 films ... really? I'll grant that You Only Live Twice and Diamonds Are Forever aren't Connery's best films, but his first four, and first two in particular, are masterpieces.
And, even more bizarre, the townsfolk were actually faking it because Pussy switched the canisters.
That may be, but who said the canisters were harmless? Pussy switched it from the lethal Delta-9 nerve gas to something else (we're not told what) which may very well have induced the town into a temporary deep sleep to allow Goldfinger to break into Fort Knox and plant the bomb there. It was only a few minutes of film time, but perhaps it was actually longer.
It bugs me that staunch Connery supporters bash the Moore films for being "over-the-top" yet turn a blind eye to some of the nonsense in the first 5 films.
It's not the "over the top" plot that I have a problem with, it's Moore's overly jovial portrayal of the character. As for the "nonsense" in the first 5 films ... really? I'll grant that You Only Live Twice and Diamonds Are Forever aren't Connery's best films, but his first four, and first two in particular, are masterpieces.
To be fair, Connery gets a free pass because of the superlative first three entries. After that it's even stevens between YOLT or TSWLM, AVTAK easily trumps NSNA imo, many would say LALD is better than DAF, OP better than TB and so on.
"This is where we leave you Mr Bond."
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Silhouette ManThe last refuge of a scoundrelPosts: 8,845MI6 Agent
It would have to be Goldfinger - it's good, but not all that!
"The tough man of the world. The Secret Agent. The man who was only a silhouette." - Ian Fleming, Moonraker (1955).
I don't like to use the word overrated, but here are some films that are often placed above even better films, IMO.
Dr. No - Some people understand but others are wearing the nostalgia goggles
From Russia With Love - short, and slow. with one decent action scene.
You Only Live Twice - connery really didn't have his heart in it.
Goldeneye - good but not the best brosnan film.
I don't like to use the word overrated, but here are some films that are often placed above even better films, IMO.
Dr. No - Some people understand but others are wearing the nostalgia goggles
From Russia With Love - short, and slow. with one decent action scene.
You Only Live Twice - connery really didn't have his heart in it.
Goldeneye - good but not the best brosnan film.
Ok, I'll bite. Nostalgia goggles? Are you suggesting that people who actually like this film are wearing 'nostalgia goggles', as you put it, and that there can be no reason to like Dr No but for nostalgia? It's all well and good to say that you didn't like Dr No, but to suggest that people who rate it highly are wearing "nostalgia goggles" comes across as a little insulting.
I rate Dr No as the third best, behind From Russia With Love and On Her Majesty's Secret Service. Aside from introducing the Bond character to the big screen, Connery's portrayal of Bond was pretty much spot-on. There is a sense of danger and a sense of coolness about him, from the moment he introduced himself while smoking a cigarette, to the delivery of his "forgive me if I'm a few minutes late" line, his attempted interrogation of Mr Jones and the photographer, and his assassination of Professor Dent.
As for From Russia With Love, I couldn't disagree more about it being 'slow'. It may seem that way if all you're after is action, but remember that Bond is a spy first, an action hero second. Given the development of the plot throughout the film, I think if the pacing were any faster it'd seem rushed. There is nothing in that film that shouldn't be there, that doesn't aid plot development.
Ok, I'll bite. Nostalgia goggles? Are you suggesting that people who actually like this film are wearing 'nostalgia goggles', as you put it, and that there can be no reason to like Dr No but for nostalgia? It's all well and good to say that you didn't like Dr No, but to suggest that people who rate it highly are wearing "nostalgia goggles" comes across as a little insulting.
Darn. I always forget I have 'em on. Here, let me take them off. Now I'll watch Dr. No.... * Less than two hours later...*
Well what do you know, I liked it JUST AS MUCH!! )
Comments
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
i was referring to the "masses" not fans who post here on AJB007. I totally respect your opinion that Connery is #1
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
(Not that I put much faith in those rating systems but...)
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
Dodgy Double Feature: MR & DAD. That'll put ya off Bond for a bit.
#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
Personally, I think 6 out of 10 is overrating Die Another Day. If I had an account with which to rate films on IMDB, I'd give it a 4 at most.
I agree with you both - and extend that to say that he was in 4 Bond masterpieces. Connery's first four films are all in my top 5.
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
While you are entitled to that opinion, I can't help but feel that some of you let Connery's spat with Saltzman and Broccoli off screen influence your view of his portrayal of Bond on screen.
I definitely do not agree that Brosnan and Craig are better, let alone Moore ...
I think the reverse is also true: Connery turned Saltzman and Broccoli's dream of making a James Bond film alive. Connery wanted recognition in the form of a share of the film's takings, which I believe is not an unreasonable request when he had played such a large part in bringing that dream to reality. As for "what it did to him", Connery was mobbed by fans everywhere he went; he had no privacy, not even in the men's room. His other roles in the 1960s during his time as Bond suffered because the audience didn't see an actor playing a role, they saw James Bond. I think he quite rightly wanted more, because if he wasn't able to play other roles as a result of being typecast as Bond, his financial future wouldn't have been very bright. I also think that if you wouldn't begrudge any other employee seeking a pay rise, then neither should you begrudge Connery for wanting a bigger slice of the profits.
The argument that other actors could've played the role may have been true to an extent, but not in the 1960s, not during the height of Bond-mania where audiences saw Connery as Bond.
Very well said indeed.
IMO, of course. :v
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Outside of how pretty the Shanghai sequence looked, there was nothing about SKYFALL I enjoyed ... absolutely nothing. I did think it was interesting that I found myself with more sympathy for the villain than M, and think that a much better movie could have been made in which somebody like Silva wound up working with Bond to take down M.
Both of these movies claim to be more realistic than other Bonds, but whenever folks bring up implausibilities, there is a rush to hide behind the 'you have to roll with it because it is another one of these crazy Bond flicks' arguments ... for me you can't have it both ways. If these things have plotting and credibliity problems like MOONRAKER, then they're not done right, regardless of how moody they might seem.
Just as a side note, Bond turns out to be a failure in both of them ... the money is lost in CR, and M dies in SF. If you had different endings, it wouldn't have made me appreciate them more, but I wonder if there is some public interest in 'downer' movies again. Odd if true, because I am super big on downer endings ... but in the right movies (THE PARALLAX VIEW, TWILGHT'S LAST GLEAMING, LOOKING FOR MR GOODBAR), not just to switch things up a bit.
Major Garland Briggs, in TWIN PEAKS
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Totally don't get the hype around it. I think the villain is one of the Connery era's cheesiest, the Kentucky ranch is so not Bond, the daytime heist in the dry heat where they knock a town unconscious is idiotic, and it had a very distinct lack of allure that I sense in all of the other Connery films.
I like the early parts of Goldfinger in Miami and then the good car scenes in the countryside, but the rest of the film is a dud to me.
I've seen it three times and I've now seen every Bond film and it does little for me.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
I saw it twice in my teens, and now at a firm 20 for my third viewing, the opinion is only more solidified. It just isn't for me.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Those are very valid points. And, even more bizarre, the townsfolk were actually faking it because Pussy switched the canisters. It bugs me that staunch Connery supporters bash the Moore films for being "over-the-top" yet turn a blind eye to some of the nonsense in the first 5 films.
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
I do think there are plenty of over-the-top elements in the Connery films when compared to Moore's, but half of Moore's are sickeningly cheesy and the other half pull it off quite well. Connery's films mostly pull it off for me, but Goldfinger is where I see exception. I don't find it clever and there is little in the film that I desire, myself (something that is important in my love of the character and franchise).
That may be, but who said the canisters were harmless? Pussy switched it from the lethal Delta-9 nerve gas to something else (we're not told what) which may very well have induced the town into a temporary deep sleep to allow Goldfinger to break into Fort Knox and plant the bomb there. It was only a few minutes of film time, but perhaps it was actually longer.
It's not the "over the top" plot that I have a problem with, it's Moore's overly jovial portrayal of the character. As for the "nonsense" in the first 5 films ... really? I'll grant that You Only Live Twice and Diamonds Are Forever aren't Connery's best films, but his first four, and first two in particular, are masterpieces.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
Dr. No - Some people understand but others are wearing the nostalgia goggles
From Russia With Love - short, and slow. with one decent action scene.
You Only Live Twice - connery really didn't have his heart in it.
Goldeneye - good but not the best brosnan film.
AJB007 Favorite Film Rankings
Pros and Cons Compendium (50 Years)
Ok, I'll bite. Nostalgia goggles? Are you suggesting that people who actually like this film are wearing 'nostalgia goggles', as you put it, and that there can be no reason to like Dr No but for nostalgia? It's all well and good to say that you didn't like Dr No, but to suggest that people who rate it highly are wearing "nostalgia goggles" comes across as a little insulting.
I rate Dr No as the third best, behind From Russia With Love and On Her Majesty's Secret Service. Aside from introducing the Bond character to the big screen, Connery's portrayal of Bond was pretty much spot-on. There is a sense of danger and a sense of coolness about him, from the moment he introduced himself while smoking a cigarette, to the delivery of his "forgive me if I'm a few minutes late" line, his attempted interrogation of Mr Jones and the photographer, and his assassination of Professor Dent.
As for From Russia With Love, I couldn't disagree more about it being 'slow'. It may seem that way if all you're after is action, but remember that Bond is a spy first, an action hero second. Given the development of the plot throughout the film, I think if the pacing were any faster it'd seem rushed. There is nothing in that film that shouldn't be there, that doesn't aid plot development.
* Less than two hours later...*
Well what do you know, I liked it JUST AS MUCH!!
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS