Le Chiffre died far too soon, without any kind of duel with Bond (other than the card game itself), which left me feeling that he didn't get his comeuppance - very unsatisfying. Mr White, to me, was not at all an intriguing or interesting villain - he just looked rather forgettable and weedy.
I like a resolution at the end of a Bond film.
I agree with you, General. The ending lacks any real dramatic punch, simply for the reason that the Mr. White is virtually a stranger to not just the audience, but to Bond as well. As much as this is supposed to be a story about 'Bond', at the end of the film the audience has nothing to 'measure' Bond against. It has the same level of flatness to the story at the end, just as it does at the beginning, because the story failed to lay the proper groundwork for the ending to have any significance.
The writers made a big mistake by botching the entire ending of CR. They removed Vesper's poignant suicide note (supposedly saved for Bond 22, but that doesn't do CR viewers anygood) and stretched the ending out past Fleming's classic line about Vesper being dead. THAT was the dramatic punch in the novel CR, but the screenwriters brushed it under a carpet and tried to do something clever with Mr. White. Fleming was a master at conveying the necessary dramatic punch he needed with just a few well-chosen words. Something the script managed to mangle in dozens of feet of celluloid.
I dunno, Darenhat, the audience whooped and cheered when Bond not only shot Mr. White in the leg but also gave the whole "Bond . . . James Bond." line. People on the way out thought that this was the coolest Bond scene they'd had in years (some ever). So, it worked for some people. I'd say it worked for me, too. Had the film just ended with "The bitch is dead," I think it would have been too much of a downer for most audiences.
Fleming wrote some great endings of various kinds (YOLT, TB, DN, OHMSS), and he also wrote at least one pretty wonky one IMO (FRWL--it's a gripper, sure, but five minutes later I was thinking ah c'mon gimme something here...). CR has a very good ending for a novel, but I can see wanting to mix it up somewhat--kinda like they did--for a filmed version. That they stayed true to the characters is great, and I gotta say I really enjoyed the little coda at the end where Craig gets to say the Line. It was a perfect finish to the film, IMO, and didn't diminish Vesper's demise much at all for me. If anything it puts how Bond feels about her in a bit more context.
But really, after OHMSS, I bet it was in Cubby's will, never have a Bond film end like that again.
I dunno, Darenhat, the audience whooped and cheered when Bond not only shot Mr. White in the leg but also gave the whole "Bond . . . James Bond." line. People on the way out thought that this was the coolest Bond scene they'd had in years (some ever). So, it worked for some people. I'd say it worked for me, too. Had the film just ended with "The bitch is dead," I think it would have been too much of a downer for most audiences.
The reaction in the theater where I saw it was not at all enthused. My friend who I saw it with (also a big Bond fan) pretty much shrugged and said "That was different." No whooping and cheering from anybody.
IMO, the film lost almost all of it's dramatic effect when it followed up with Mr. White who had absolutely no involvement with Bond through the film. Shooting White meant nothing to me, becuase if you think about it, it meant nothing to Bond.
Wow, I saw it as Bond going after those who ruined Vesper. Means the world to Bond, IMHO. Like with the novels: Bond goes after SMERSH with a vengeance for the same reason, book after book. The end of CR the film starts that off for us instead of making us wait 2 years (or like with Fleming until the next novel...).
Going after White/the Organization has become Bond's raison d'etre at the end of CR, IMHO. Adding that scene at the end of the film underscores it. That's how I saw it anyway.
Have to go with ending was somewhat disappointing. read a review or two that said the same thing. Not bashing the movie, I enjoyed it, but the ending was muted to say the least. No victory for Bond over forces wanting to destroy the world and a pretty girl to roll around with. But, CR was different and relatively faithful to the book. So one would expect what we got. Sometimes going in a new direction takes getting use to. Especially for us who were perfectly happy with what we had been getting.
I dunno, Darenhat, the audience whooped and cheered when Bond not only shot Mr. White in the leg but also gave the whole "Bond . . . James Bond." line. People on the way out thought that this was the coolest Bond scene they'd had in years (some ever). So, it worked for some people. I'd say it worked for me, too. Had the film just ended with "The bitch is dead," I think it would have been too much of a downer for most audiences.
I have never been to a showing of a film -any film at all - where, in the UK, anyone has cheered, whooped, clapped etc, the most reaction I have seen is someone wolf whistling the DBS in CR!!
We Brits are so unenthusiastic, I just wanted to cheer when Mr White got levelled, I think I would have upset a lot of people if I had though ;%
I was surprised at the ending in that they didn't make a great attempt at showing how Bond would tie up all loose ends and defeat all the bad guys; I guess I got used to seeing a gift-wrapped Bond ending. Plus, there were a few things that I didn't get in the 1st viewing.
On the 2nd viewing, I appreciated the ending more; it's seeming open-endedness reminds me of a line ... "Bond ... you know the rest." And that's what the ending was.
I don't expect them to tie any loose ends from here in the next movie, and I hope they don't. This, just like his first kill, will be just another of his missions. His next movie can be set the week after, or even 5 years into the future from this timeline. Just another mission for Bond, James Bond.
The first time I saw it (opening day): My reaction was similar to the audience- cheering. At that time, I was excited to see this version of Bond (who unlike the prior Bonds I got to really care about) finally utter those infamous words wearing a beautiful 3 pc suit, HK, and Bond theme in full glory.
2-4th Time: This time, I felt deeply sadened. I realized that the ending also signified Bond "loosing his soul.. and having nothing left to salvage." He had just become the Bond we know, and I kept thinking I'm going to miss this younger, less polished and more human Bond, and also felt such pity for the character. It's hard to explain, others on here have described it better than me.
2-4th Time: This time, I felt deeply sadened. I realized that the ending also signified Bond "loosing his soul.. and having nothing left to salvage." He had just become the Bond we know, and I kept thinking I'm going to miss this younger, less polished and more human Bond, and also felt such pity for the character. It's hard to explain, others on here have described it better than me.
I think thats a pretty good summation and it describes the way I felt too the 3rd time I saw it. The love affair really got to me, the despair was so apparent and raw when he was trying to open the lift doors to save her.
I get the feeling that Bond may never return to being the totally cold hearted man of yesteryear, maybe we'll never see him in such an emotional state as CR but just to know that he's not totally infallible and his love for Vesper was as strong as it was makes one hell of a difference to the way he has set the character up to be perceived in the future.
Comments
I agree with you, General. The ending lacks any real dramatic punch, simply for the reason that the Mr. White is virtually a stranger to not just the audience, but to Bond as well. As much as this is supposed to be a story about 'Bond', at the end of the film the audience has nothing to 'measure' Bond against. It has the same level of flatness to the story at the end, just as it does at the beginning, because the story failed to lay the proper groundwork for the ending to have any significance.
The writers made a big mistake by botching the entire ending of CR. They removed Vesper's poignant suicide note (supposedly saved for Bond 22, but that doesn't do CR viewers anygood) and stretched the ending out past Fleming's classic line about Vesper being dead. THAT was the dramatic punch in the novel CR, but the screenwriters brushed it under a carpet and tried to do something clever with Mr. White. Fleming was a master at conveying the necessary dramatic punch he needed with just a few well-chosen words. Something the script managed to mangle in dozens of feet of celluloid.
But really, after OHMSS, I bet it was in Cubby's will, never have a Bond film end like that again.
The reaction in the theater where I saw it was not at all enthused. My friend who I saw it with (also a big Bond fan) pretty much shrugged and said "That was different." No whooping and cheering from anybody.
IMO, the film lost almost all of it's dramatic effect when it followed up with Mr. White who had absolutely no involvement with Bond through the film. Shooting White meant nothing to me, becuase if you think about it, it meant nothing to Bond.
Going after White/the Organization has become Bond's raison d'etre at the end of CR, IMHO. Adding that scene at the end of the film underscores it. That's how I saw it anyway.
I have never been to a showing of a film -any film at all - where, in the UK, anyone has cheered, whooped, clapped etc, the most reaction I have seen is someone wolf whistling the DBS in CR!!
We Brits are so unenthusiastic, I just wanted to cheer when Mr White got levelled, I think I would have upset a lot of people if I had though ;%
On the 2nd viewing, I appreciated the ending more; it's seeming open-endedness reminds me of a line ... "Bond ... you know the rest." And that's what the ending was.
I don't expect them to tie any loose ends from here in the next movie, and I hope they don't. This, just like his first kill, will be just another of his missions. His next movie can be set the week after, or even 5 years into the future from this timeline. Just another mission for Bond, James Bond.
2-4th Time: This time, I felt deeply sadened. I realized that the ending also signified Bond "loosing his soul.. and having nothing left to salvage." He had just become the Bond we know, and I kept thinking I'm going to miss this younger, less polished and more human Bond, and also felt such pity for the character. It's hard to explain, others on here have described it better than me.
I think thats a pretty good summation
I get the feeling that Bond may never return to being the totally cold hearted man of yesteryear, maybe we'll never see him in such an emotional state as CR but just to know that he's not totally infallible and his love for Vesper was as strong as it was makes one hell of a difference to the way he has set the character up to be perceived in the future.