The Living Daylights

007 · December 2010

The Living Daylights was on UK TV today – haven't watched it for about a year - so damn good... certainly the first 45/60 minutes anyway.
And Dalton is perfect as Bond for me – just perfect!

j.blades · December 2010

I'm glad you liked the movie, its great but, just don't think this is the most appropriate place to discuss it. Being the Bond 23 section and all.

007 · December 2010

Sorry - you're right - posted in the wrong place!

Hardyboy · December 2010

Moved--no problem!

007 · December 2010

Thanks Hardyboy - top man...

Thunderbird 2 · December 2010

I have to agree. I was very sorry Mr D's version of the character was not seen more, but TLD is a damned good film. Having read the short story, its facinating to see how much of it survived into the opening scenes...

HowardB · January 2011

Grew up seeing the Connery films in the theater and I was never a big Roger Moore fan (not a hater...just didn't care for him as Bond) and especially disliked the turn the series had taken. TLD and Dalton was a revelation for me and I probably hold the film in higher esteem than it probably deserves....for me it was the return of the real James Bond. Dalton was someone I considered to be worthy of the tux and PPK. Great pre-title sequence and the assasination scene after the titles with Bond and the other double o is about as close to Fleming in tone as any Bond film gets. The rest of the film regresses back to formula a bit too much and Dalton at times appears a bit uncomfortable with some of the attempts at humor (the script was written for Pierce Brosnan after all). And of course the last Bond score by the great John Barry didn't hurt either. Ironically while TLD was written for PB, "Goldeneye" was written for Dalton.

Napoleon Plural · January 2011

HowardB wrote:

Ironically while TLD was written for PB, "Goldeneye" was written for Dalton.

A good, intersting point. Happy new yera HowardB! (why can't I post tow beer mugs clinking?)

Higgins · January 2011

Sorry, but I have to disagree except the PTS and the John Barry score.

TD always looked like a bookkeeper to me an I did not buy him the role for one second. His attitude was to make Bond more serious but that was it. IMHO, he took this too serious and he's lacking any coolness in his performance though. I mean to see him every second to TRY HARD to be tough, but I don't buy it. Another bad point is, that after Saunder's death, we can see tears in his eyes. Same with the doggy-puppy expression in his eyes when talking to Karla.
The literaric Bond was never meant to be like this, no matter how often TD fans claim him to be Flemingesque. Don't get me wrong: Roger Moore had a lot of silly moments and the more serious approach for TLD was a good one, but poorly performed!

Besides all the jokes, Roger Moore could be hell of a serious agent, when he needed to be. He could switch from suave and charming to dead-serious within a second!

Examples:
FYEO: Visiting Teresa's grave
TSWLM: Conversation with XXX about the death of the fiancee
TMWTGG: Confrontation with Scaramanga during dinner

.....

TD never could never be like this.

TD looks ridiculous in the Aston Martin convertible and the scene, where they are parachuted out of the Hercules is simply silly and poorly done. I dislike TLD to a high degree because of the poor performance and plenty of plain boring scenes:

- 007s kidnapping in the convertible car
- the smashing of the balloon is laughable
- the gas pipe scenes and Harrier scenes are cheap and boring!
- the Cello chase is boring and poorly executed
- the entire Afghanistan sequence: I am glad, that I am able to have a skip function.

To my taste, LTK is the far better movie, even, it has a lot of weaknesses too.

007 · January 2011

Fleming's image of James Bond; commissioned to aid the Daily Express comic strip artists.
Dalton is probably the closest to this?

Higgins · January 2011

I am well aware of that image, but don't think, that any of the cinematic Bonds comes even close to it.

To me, TD still looks like a bookkeeper or a salesman at Woolworth, and I find him the least convincing actor - sorry!

007 · January 2011

It's your opinion and you're entitled to it - you certainly shouldn't apologise.

mrbain007 · January 2011

Bondtoys wrote:

Sorry, but I have to disagree except the PTS and the John Barry score.

TD always looked like a bookkeeper to me an I did not buy him the role for one second. His attitude was to make Bond more serious but that was it. IMHO, he took this too serious and he's lacking any coolness in his performance though. I mean to see him every second to TRY HARD to be tough, but I don't buy it. Another bad point is, that after Saunder's death, we can see tears in his eyes. Same with the doggy-puppy expression in his eyes when talking to Karla.
The literaric Bond was never meant to be like this, no matter how often TD fans claim him to be Flemingesque. Don't get me wrong: Roger Moore had a lot of silly moments and the more serious approach for TLD was a good one, but poorly performed!

Besides all the jokes, Roger Moore could be hell of a serious agent, when he needed to be. He could switch from suave and charming to dead-serious within a second!

Examples:
FYEO: Visiting Teresa's grave
TSWLM: Conversation with XXX about the death of the fiancee
TMWTGG: Confrontation with Scaramanga during dinner

.....

TD never could never be like this.

TD looks ridiculous in the Aston Martin convertible and the scene, where they are parachuted out of the Hercules is simply silly and poorly done. I dislike TLD to a high degree because of the poor performance and plenty of plain boring scenes:

- 007s kidnapping in the convertible car
- the smashing of the balloon is laughable
- the gas pipe scenes and Harrier scenes are cheap and boring!
- the Cello chase is boring and poorly executed
- the entire Afghanistan sequence: I am glad, that I am able to have a skip function.

To my taste, LTK is the far better movie, even, it has a lot of weaknesses too.

Interesting view and I agree to an extent but IMO you're being a little harsh on Dalton. I thought he was excellent as the world-weary, rather disgruntled agent (personally I thought the forementioned balloon scene was a brilliant way of displaying this). Certainly his more serious style was closer to Fleming's idea of Bond. One thing the literary Bond never did was crack jokes. Aside from a few quips here and there (albeit not always convincingly delivered by TD) the humour is pretty much absent in TLD. That style is perhaps closer to the literary character.

HOWEVER I did feel that Dalton somehow lacked a "panache". As well as being a serious, determined agent (a side that Dalton got SPOT ON) the original literary character was someone who loved the highlife.

Like Fleming himself, Bond got a buzz from gambling, fast cars and seducing women. He was someone who enjoyed a game of golf and who took great pleasure in the food he consumed. Oddly, this was something I personally felt Dalton never quite got to show enough of. For instance I couldn't imagine him playfully singing along to Honeychille Rider as she walked out the sea.

Not that he wasn't capable - quite the contrary.

Personally, I prefer the "cool" Bond onscreen. Thats why I enjoy the likes of Brosnan, Connery and, funnily enough, Moore over Dalton. They all had a confidence and a swagger that Dalton lacked. However, I would still say that Dalton still made an enjoyable Bond.

I point you to two things:

First is a video of Ian Fleming himself - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_IzoKbNktY&feature=related . You can clearly see his sophisticated, relaxed, school-boy-like poise.

Second is an interview with Connery - who was the only James Bond actor to chat to Fleming:
http://www.totalfilm.com/features/the-icon-sean-connery

I know my argument may sound a little incoherent but its something I've always thought of Dalton's potrayal. Excellent on the one hand, slightly lacking on the other.

I think the problem was that Dalton needed to lighten up - just a little bit!

mrbain007 · January 2011

This is the very distinctive "Necros" theme:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZXtXWlmGM4

The song has "John Barry" written all over it

Blackleiter · January 2011

I agree that Dalton's biggest flaw was that he needed to lighten up just a little and show that he enjoyed a few of the perks of being a Double-O. But his serious, no nonsense approach was appropriate for the most part, and I thought it provided a much needed relief from the jokey Roger Moore era. As for the argument by some that Dalton wasn't believable as a hardened agent, I totally disagree. It did not appear to me for one second that he was trying too hard to act tough. To me, he was very credible as a tough and menancing agent with a license to kill, and the "trying too hard" was more evident in the few attempts at humor. Dalton was also very good at the action scenes, and I had no problem with the fact that he allowed Bond to show a few traces of remorse, sorrow, anger, etc. If you ask me, Dalton's Bond was head and shoulders above Moore's in every respect except in the ability to toss a quip or raise an eyebrow in amusement.

I thought the PTS of The Living Daylights was great and an excellent introduction to Dalton's Bond, and the John Barry score was terrific. What a tremendous loss to the Bond franchise when Barry stopped doing the soundtracks.

mrbain007 wrote:

Bondtoys wrote:

Sorry, but I have to disagree except the PTS and the John Barry score.

TD always looked like a bookkeeper to me an I did not buy him the role for one second. His attitude was to make Bond more serious but that was it. IMHO, he took this too serious and he's lacking any coolness in his performance though. I mean to see him every second to TRY HARD to be tough, but I don't buy it. Another bad point is, that after Saunder's death, we can see tears in his eyes. Same with the doggy-puppy expression in his eyes when talking to Karla.
The literaric Bond was never meant to be like this, no matter how often TD fans claim him to be Flemingesque. Don't get me wrong: Roger Moore had a lot of silly moments and the more serious approach for TLD was a good one, but poorly performed!

Besides all the jokes, Roger Moore could be hell of a serious agent, when he needed to be. He could switch from suave and charming to dead-serious within a second!

Examples:
FYEO: Visiting Teresa's grave
TSWLM: Conversation with XXX about the death of the fiancee
TMWTGG: Confrontation with Scaramanga during dinner

.....

TD never could never be like this.

TD looks ridiculous in the Aston Martin convertible and the scene, where they are parachuted out of the Hercules is simply silly and poorly done. I dislike TLD to a high degree because of the poor performance and plenty of plain boring scenes:

- 007s kidnapping in the convertible car
- the smashing of the balloon is laughable
- the gas pipe scenes and Harrier scenes are cheap and boring!
- the Cello chase is boring and poorly executed
- the entire Afghanistan sequence: I am glad, that I am able to have a skip function.

To my taste, LTK is the far better movie, even, it has a lot of weaknesses too.

Interesting view and I agree to an extent but IMO you're being a little harsh on Dalton. I thought he was excellent as the world-weary, rather disgruntled agent (personally I thought the forementioned balloon scene was a brilliant way of displaying this). Certainly his more serious style was closer to Fleming's idea of Bond. One thing the literary Bond never did was crack jokes. Aside from a few quips here and there (albeit not always convincingly delivered by TD) the humour is pretty much absent in TLD. That style is perhaps closer to the literary character.

HOWEVER I did feel that Dalton somehow lacked a "panache". As well as being a serious, determined agent (a side that Dalton got SPOT ON) the original literary character was someone who loved the highlife.

Like Fleming himself, Bond got a buzz from gambling, fast cars and seducing women. He was someone who enjoyed a game of golf and who took great pleasure in the food he consumed. Oddly, this was something I personally felt Dalton never quite got to show enough of. For instance I couldn't imagine him playfully singing along to Honeychille Rider as she walked out the sea.

Not that he wasn't capable - quite the contrary.

Personally, I prefer the "cool" Bond onscreen. Thats why I enjoy the likes of Brosnan, Connery and, funnily enough, Moore over Dalton. They all had a confidence and a swagger that Dalton lacked. However, I would still say that Dalton still made an enjoyable Bond.

I point you to two things:

First is a video of Ian Fleming himself - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_IzoKbNktY&feature=related . You can clearly see his sophisticated, relaxed, school-boy-like poise.

Second is an interview with Connery - who was the only James Bond actor to chat to Fleming:
http://www.totalfilm.com/features/the-icon-sean-connery

I know my argument may sound a little incoherent but its something I've always thought of Dalton's potrayal. Excellent on the one hand, slightly lacking on the other.

I think the problem was that Dalton needed to lighten up - just a little bit!

little nelly · January 2011

HowardB wrote:

Grew up seeing the Connery films in the theater and I was never a big Roger Moore fan (not a hater...just didn't care for him as Bond) and especially disliked the turn the series had taken. TLD and Dalton was a revelation for me and I probably hold the film in higher esteem than it probably deserves....for me it was the return of the real James Bond. Dalton was someone I considered to be worthy of the tux and PPK. Great pre-title sequence and the assasination scene after the titles with Bond and the other double o is about as close to Fleming in tone as any Bond film gets. The rest of the film regresses back to formula a bit too much and Dalton at times appears a bit uncomfortable with some of the attempts at humor (the script was written for Pierce Brosnan after all). And of course the last Bond score by the great John Barry didn't hurt either. Ironically while TLD was written for PB, "Goldeneye" was written for Dalton.

Spot on, I agree 100%

Mister Greene · January 2011

I like Dalton as well I think he is the number 2 right behind Sean Connery

The Living Daylights

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