Very Flemingesque Elements in the Bond Films not from Fleming?
Silhouette Man
The last refuge of a scoundrelPosts: 8,845MI6 Agent
So, in this thread I want us to discuss what is says in the thread title up there. Namely, which scenes or elements, or lines of dialogue (or whatever you like), do you feel are very Flemingesque in nature but yet which do not have a corresponding source in the Fleming literary Bond canon? Of Fleming, but not Fleming, if you will.
So, in other words, things that the assembled writers of the Bond films, from the classic Bond Richard Maibaum era onward to the current rebooted Bond era of Purvis and Wade, have thought up all by themselves without adapting or otherwise relying on the works of Ian Fleming.
So, I think that's all clear enough. I'd love to hear your choices for this.
In the meantime, I will leave you with just one of mine to illustrate the point, that I thought of when the idea for this thread came to me idly earlier this year.
It comes from the pen of Tom Mankiewicz/Richard Maibaum. The film is The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) and I think it's a brilliantly written scene, worthy of Fleming but obviously not written by him in the source novel. It's a good encapsulation of what James Bond is and represents - "When I kill, it's on the specific orders of my government. And those I kill are themselves killers." That's a great encapsulation of James Bond's raison d'être all neatly gift-wrapped up in one short scene. It's powerful writing, and at the same time, the most Flemingesque thing not to come from Fleming's literary Bond. It's therefore, in my view, the perfect scene to illustrate and encapsulate the reasoning behind this thread. Here's the scene:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_dAKu_cNS8
I may have a few more to add of my own later, but for now I'd love to hear your choices!
So, in other words, things that the assembled writers of the Bond films, from the classic Bond Richard Maibaum era onward to the current rebooted Bond era of Purvis and Wade, have thought up all by themselves without adapting or otherwise relying on the works of Ian Fleming.
So, I think that's all clear enough. I'd love to hear your choices for this.
In the meantime, I will leave you with just one of mine to illustrate the point, that I thought of when the idea for this thread came to me idly earlier this year.
It comes from the pen of Tom Mankiewicz/Richard Maibaum. The film is The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) and I think it's a brilliantly written scene, worthy of Fleming but obviously not written by him in the source novel. It's a good encapsulation of what James Bond is and represents - "When I kill, it's on the specific orders of my government. And those I kill are themselves killers." That's a great encapsulation of James Bond's raison d'être all neatly gift-wrapped up in one short scene. It's powerful writing, and at the same time, the most Flemingesque thing not to come from Fleming's literary Bond. It's therefore, in my view, the perfect scene to illustrate and encapsulate the reasoning behind this thread. Here's the scene:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_dAKu_cNS8
I may have a few more to add of my own later, but for now I'd love to hear your choices!
"The tough man of the world. The Secret Agent. The man who was only a silhouette." - Ian Fleming, Moonraker (1955).
Comments
I think I did once, a long time ago. Would like to see it again.
With a bit of '007 in New York' thrown in for good measure.
I would agree that their initial chemistry in CR is similar to Bond's conversations with Tiffany Case and Pussy Galore in their respective novels, though it's funny that these two are fleshed out by Fleming as American gangster women. That "essence" is far removed from that of the literary Vesper and IMO not flattering for the screen Vesper. I watched parts of CR on TV recently and although that repartee made for an interesting intro for Vesper and good material to further Bond's own characterization, I wondered if that friction and animosity was necessary. Should Bond be that provocative when meeting a colleague for the first time? I personally would not like to start a professional relationship that way.
Here's a still:
And that's why you're not Bond
"- That is something to be afraid of."
And some would argue neither is DC, Fleming's Bond -{
From an earlier discussion the scene of Corrines death in MR also strikes me as flemingesque in its darkness.
From TLD the scene where bond ends up collecting the cello makes me think of Fleming, I can almost here myself reading the words " bond cursed inwardly for allowing himself to be manipulated by this woman, this damned cello had them precious moments which could make difference between making the border out of Russia or capture and torment at the hands of the kgb."
Though it's better written than what Fleming typed out, dialogue wise, there is something that always strikes me as something that Fleming's Bond would do.
Also, it helps that it's my single favorite scene of all of Brosnan's tenure. Quick, inventive, outlandish and exciting.
Yes, I pretty much agree with those instances, particularly TD often being short with Kara as Flemingesque. Even the idiot calling is on the spot Fleming-chauvinist, but it's just that initial meeting scene with Vesper in CR that touches a nerve whenever I watch it because of Bond's uncalled-for belligerence, which in turn is behavior that's beneath his character.
here's the bitch quotes: Including the final line in the film was almost as surprising as including that torture scene.