Skipping Bonds: OHMSS to LALD
blueman
PDXPosts: 1,667MI6 Agent
As much as I enjoy DAF, it's a tough film to take in the EON continuity: Connery circa '71 looked nothing like the previous Bond, Lazenby (he didn't even look like circa 60s Connery!), and the near-complete ignoring of the emotional core of OHMSS in the follow-up has always grated (where was Fleming's outstanding revenge story from YOLT??).
So setting aside DAF as a campy one-off, what about the transition from Laz to Moore with a 4 year gap (these days not unheard of, lol)? I had the thought to connect these two as a local cinema is showing some old Bonds on the big screen, this week is LALD, saw it tonight but also watched OHMSS at home yesterday, primed the pump so to speak. Well --
Laz to Moore, in his first outing, is a surprisingly easy transition to make. Both actors seemed eager for the actiony bits, both worked a tad too hard at being posh, they look kinda similar, and both have sufficient charm plus gravitas to make Bond work. Laz is a bit wooden in places, Moore gets a bit too glib, but as a 60s Bond into a 70s Bond, I like it and it works for me just fine.
What doesn't work as well is the transition from Hunt to Hamilton. Hunt never let on the bad guy's scheme is silly, he played things straight for the most part and the story he tells grabs and never lets go. Hamilton I think realized audiences just wouldn't buy a gadget-ridden, OTT, heroin smuggling plot (he was right IMO), and let quite a cartoony veneer cover things at times, which was odd as he would then hit a note-perfect scene (Kananga revealing himself to Bond then testing Solitaire, for example) and make me want to take things seriously - until poof, back to cartoonland we'd go. When he didn't take himself seriously, I didn't either; on the flipside those stretches were generally quite fun (the boat chase on the big screen rocks! ... JW Pepper and all ;% ). He does keep things moving, the pace is almost QOS-like (
) so points for that. Would've preferred a scaled-down plot for the bad guy but oh well, EON made a bundle with this one, can't fault 'em even if it's not quite my cup of Bond tea.
I like Kotto and all his cronies, Hamilton does a good job making me believe in Mr Big's organization most of the time (and really like the set designs for Big's hidey places, also Kananga's lair at the end). Seymour as Solitaire is okay, feels like there's a scene at the beginning between her and Kananga that's missing, they wait too long to set things up with her IMO but what's there is pretty good and gets better as it goes along. Contrasted to Rigg's Tracy she's hopelessly light-weight (Hendry's Rosie doesn't help things) but jeez Rigg would be a tough act for anybody to follow. Kotto is as equal with Savalas in OHMSS as Bond bad guys get IMHO, like Seymour he does a great job with what he's given (the Hunt-to-Hamilton tonal shift seems to leave him untouched) even if it feels like he could've had one scene more (cut Quarrel Jr, done!).
Also to note: Barry's synthy soundtrack for OHMSS transitions quite well to Martin's funky-ass, more popcorny (befitting his film) score, IMO. I miss Barry's superlative DAF work in between but when LALD's main credits start to roll I'm ready for a savvy and young-looking (I know I know...) Bond to hit the beach running (or wake up in bed with Madeline Smith, lol).
And of particular note: when Bond checks into the San Monique hotel and is told Mrs Bond has switch rooms for him, there's an uncomfortable moment where Moore doesn't take this in stride at all, really hit a chord coming on the heels of OHMSS.
All in all, a bit more a stretch than say skipping YOLT (another one-off Bond in my book) and going from TB straight to OHMSS, but like that transition it's the solid Bond performances both sides that make it go. Try it, you might like it. :007)
So setting aside DAF as a campy one-off, what about the transition from Laz to Moore with a 4 year gap (these days not unheard of, lol)? I had the thought to connect these two as a local cinema is showing some old Bonds on the big screen, this week is LALD, saw it tonight but also watched OHMSS at home yesterday, primed the pump so to speak. Well --
Laz to Moore, in his first outing, is a surprisingly easy transition to make. Both actors seemed eager for the actiony bits, both worked a tad too hard at being posh, they look kinda similar, and both have sufficient charm plus gravitas to make Bond work. Laz is a bit wooden in places, Moore gets a bit too glib, but as a 60s Bond into a 70s Bond, I like it and it works for me just fine.
What doesn't work as well is the transition from Hunt to Hamilton. Hunt never let on the bad guy's scheme is silly, he played things straight for the most part and the story he tells grabs and never lets go. Hamilton I think realized audiences just wouldn't buy a gadget-ridden, OTT, heroin smuggling plot (he was right IMO), and let quite a cartoony veneer cover things at times, which was odd as he would then hit a note-perfect scene (Kananga revealing himself to Bond then testing Solitaire, for example) and make me want to take things seriously - until poof, back to cartoonland we'd go. When he didn't take himself seriously, I didn't either; on the flipside those stretches were generally quite fun (the boat chase on the big screen rocks! ... JW Pepper and all ;% ). He does keep things moving, the pace is almost QOS-like (
) so points for that. Would've preferred a scaled-down plot for the bad guy but oh well, EON made a bundle with this one, can't fault 'em even if it's not quite my cup of Bond tea.I like Kotto and all his cronies, Hamilton does a good job making me believe in Mr Big's organization most of the time (and really like the set designs for Big's hidey places, also Kananga's lair at the end). Seymour as Solitaire is okay, feels like there's a scene at the beginning between her and Kananga that's missing, they wait too long to set things up with her IMO but what's there is pretty good and gets better as it goes along. Contrasted to Rigg's Tracy she's hopelessly light-weight (Hendry's Rosie doesn't help things) but jeez Rigg would be a tough act for anybody to follow. Kotto is as equal with Savalas in OHMSS as Bond bad guys get IMHO, like Seymour he does a great job with what he's given (the Hunt-to-Hamilton tonal shift seems to leave him untouched) even if it feels like he could've had one scene more (cut Quarrel Jr, done!).
Also to note: Barry's synthy soundtrack for OHMSS transitions quite well to Martin's funky-ass, more popcorny (befitting his film) score, IMO. I miss Barry's superlative DAF work in between but when LALD's main credits start to roll I'm ready for a savvy and young-looking (I know I know...) Bond to hit the beach running (or wake up in bed with Madeline Smith, lol).
And of particular note: when Bond checks into the San Monique hotel and is told Mrs Bond has switch rooms for him, there's an uncomfortable moment where Moore doesn't take this in stride at all, really hit a chord coming on the heels of OHMSS.
All in all, a bit more a stretch than say skipping YOLT (another one-off Bond in my book) and going from TB straight to OHMSS, but like that transition it's the solid Bond performances both sides that make it go. Try it, you might like it. :007)
Comments
Roger Moore 1927-2017
I watch the following:
Dr No
From Russia With Love
Goldfinger
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Live And Let Die
The Spy Who Loved Me
Moonraker
For Your Eyes Only
Octopussy
A View To A Kill
The Living Daylights
Goldeneye
Casino Royale
Quantum Of Solace
Those are the ones I watch. Line spaces signal a skip, or multiple skips
1. Dalton 2. Moore 3. Connery 4. Lazenby 5. Craig 6. Brosnan
Dr No
From Russia With Love
Goldfinger
Thunderball
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Live And Let Die
The Man With The Golden Gun
Casino Royale
Quantum Of Solace
Then there's a few guilty pleasures that aren't quite enough Bond for me even if they are entertaining:
YOLT - too much kitchen sink
DAF - too spoof-like
TSWLM - too cartoony
TND - ditto
At least QOS has physics on its side in that particular scene.
Sadly no parachute will bring your decent to Nil as there is a little thing called gravity which makes this impossible.
If you think a parachute does not slow your decent we'll both do a jump I'll do the chicken thing and open my chute, you do the "I'm not opening my chute for anyone" Bit and we'll see who hits the ground first.
But I am going to move away from this argument now, as I feel like I on a Bus sitting with someone on a Different wavelength to myself.
QOS is about two people on a shute meant for one person. If they'd popped the shute at 100 feet, they still would've hit the ground as hard as they did, the shute just wasn't designed to take the extra weight.
But you've proved my point, "However you do not continue to slow down" is absolutely correct so doesn't matter at what height one pops the shute. There are only two rates of decent in the equation, no shute and shute. 10 feet above the ground, while a highly unlikely height for a shute to open (but that's the Bondness of it! :007) ), still puts the brakes on as effectively as opening it at 100 feet. It's just that in this instance - two people on a shute meant for one - those brakes aren't entirely effective, and Bond takes his - easily survivable (per Hollywood rules) - lumps.
Never understood the negative reaction to this bit of Bond business, they could've opened the shute right when they jumped from the plane, the landing would've been just as hard for them.
I think the idea was to have the audience forget OHMSS now that Connery was back...
CR and QOS. -{
Or just skip your posts... 8-)