|
Sprinkler Systems
Uhaul move
Lawn care
Roses and trees
Ford Parts
Chrysler Parts
Lake Powell
New IPod Touch Apps
New IPhone Apps
IPhone Apps
IPad Information
IPad Apps
Android APPS
Android Games APPS
Android Systems
Android Tablets APPS and Beyond
Smartphone Apps
Smartphone Games Apps Repair and Tools
Tablet PC
Car Sharing Car Leasing
Tabler Pc
Fly Fishing
Toyota Cars
Vacation Rentals
Stock market
NYSE
SSE Stock
Freight & Shipping News
Gluten
Lactose
Gout
My Coupon Life
Campgrounds Check
Outdoor
Kitchen Design and Redoo
Bath Remodeling
Palm Springs
Las Vegas Vacation Tipps
Lake Powell Boating
Homes for lease
Electric and green Car Blog
Pearls and diamonds
Whatsapp and forget SMS Blog, What is Whatsapp App
Solar Panel Solar Energie Sun Power Blog
|
Miscellaneous / Verschiedenes » alt.fan.james-bond » To the producers of CR: my hopes (and advice)
| To the producers of CR: my hopes (and advice) [message #274618] |
Fr, 26 Mai 2006 04:43 |
|
A little late, but I thought I'd post this nonetheless...
Having some extra time recently, my girlfriend and I decided that we'd
watch a movie from my collection...and she trusted me to show her
something that she'd like. I popped in OHMSS, to which she exclaimed
in mock horror "You're making me watch the GEORGE LAZENBY one!?". It
turned out she was kidding - she had literally only seen a few minutes
of it on TV many years ago, and had no idea what it was about. After
it was over she said she couldn't believe how good it was. She said
"That wasn't just a good James Bond movie - that was a good *movie*".
Anyway, after talking about what we both liked about it I realized that
if the producers wanted tips on how to make CR a great movie they
should start with OHMSS (as opposed to, say, The Bourne Identity).
So my impressions or ideas follow...I should state that I've remained
completely spoiler free so that may explain any obvious errors I make.
Not everything references OHMSS, but it started the discussion...
MUSIC
Seeing how they want to make the film a little more "real world" I
would strongly suggest *not* having a title song. There's a whole new
generation of movie goers who will think that it's a little...camp. I
mean, how many times have we seen it parodied? I think that a great,
lean instrumental like OHMSS would really set the tone. Of course,
that leads us to a problem I've had with the last few films. I
appreciate the effort that David Arnold has made but to me there isn't
a single memorable theme from any of the films he scored (of course,
anyone would pale in comparison to Barry). Something that I love about
the old films is that they would have a very strong theme song that
would then be woven through the score of the entire film. To me that's
one of the defining elements that gives each film so much of its own
personality and identity. Think of what GF or YOLT would be like with
their original scores removed and replaced with a (to me) very generic
sounding Arnold score. This is one of the biggest mistakes the
producers have made in the recent films. Of course, it doesn't help
that the titles songs have been so bad...
CASTING
I'll start by saying that I'm very pleased with the casting so far. I
remember there was one thing that my friends and I (and co-workers,
too) agreed on after seeing GE - the women were stunning. I think that
it helped that they were unknown to us prior to seeing the film. I
think it helps you're not distracted by "oh, that's Halle Berry/Teri
Hatcher up there", as well as the fact that there's that weird feeling
of having "discovered" a new beautiful woman. As for the rest of the
cast, I'm pleased that they're casting "actors" instead of names. To
me it gives the film a much more exotic feeling, and less of a
formulaic feel.
As for Craig, I was at first shocked when I saw the story of him being
cast on CNN. Putting a picture of him up beside of picture of Brosnan
was...unfortunate. Having now seen him in action I think he'll make a
stellar Bond. I do fear though that his reception from North American
audiences will be cold. Like it or not, we here in North America seem
to have very narrow perceptions of what is "attractive". I just can't
see Craig bringing the sixteen year old girls into the theatre the way
Brosnan did. But presence-wise I think he's a great choice. He really
does remiond me of Connery in the fact that I could buy him beating the
shit out of three guys at once. I mean, let's face it - who in their
right mind would be scared of running into Moore or Brosnan in a dark
alley? Another thing about Craig - I can believe that he's a trained
assassin. I think that today's audience would expect someone in Bond's
position to be in top shape and highly skilled. Ten push-ups and a
plateful of eggs in the morning just wouldn't cut it. One minor thing,
and it really is a quibble - I've grown to accept the blond hair. But
I really think that they should have darkened his eyebrows a shade. At
times you can't really see them and it gives him a bit of a ghoulish
appearance. Having strong eyes is a really important aspect of an
actor's "look".
One last thing about whether or not audiences like Craig: although I
was very opposed to Christian Bale when Brosnan was dumped, I now think
that he would be the best compromise between a) someone with the
physical presence of Craig b) the "young" Bond they were considering
and c) someone who would be considered very attractive by women. It's
really a combination of seeing him in Batman Begins and seeing how cool
it is to have a badass Bond again. But that's water under the bridge
now.
LOCATIONS
One thing that I think that they got right in both DAD and GE was the
exotic locations. Part of the fun of the old Bond films is the
globetrotting, but at the same time people want to see someplace exotic
and probably tropical (especially if they're watching this film in the
winter - films are all about escapism). Even better is when you throw
in some local colour like the Cuban scenes in DAD. I think if you hop
around too much it can be a little dizzying, though - stick to two
places, one being the "beauty" location. And get a good
cinematographer. One of the things that I liked about the older Bond
films was the "romance" of them. There's the great scene in OHMSS when
Bond gets the scenic flight up to Piz Gloria. The visuals, plus the
sweeping score, make it a memorable experience. If you're going all
the way to some location to film it, then let us see how beautiful it
is. Luckily, this seems to be the case with the Bahamas scenes in CR
ACTION
I remember an interview in Starlog with a former Bond scriptwriter who
said he was so glad he wasn't writing the films anymore. As he said,
what else is there left to do? CGI stunts really rob the idea that
Bond is innovative and a real can-do guy. Having simple stunts well
done is much better. The fight scenes in OHMSS still pack a punch, and
it's largely because Lazenby is such a physical guy. I would think
that Craig would be the same way. One key difference, though - we've
seen so many fight scenes cut together with a blender that it's "been
done". It also makes it very hard to follow the action. I'd love to
see long, unbroken shots of the fight scenes in CR. Let the audience
see what Bond can do - to me that would be even more impressive than an
MTV-style edit. Another thing that I liked in OHMSS, and although it's
a small thing it's important. You never see Lazenby pause before doing
something - he just does it. It gives his Bond that "can-do" aura and
makes him seem that much more impressive. I'd love to see Craig's Bond
be the same.
ROMANCE
To me the idea of every woman Bond meets wanting to sleep with him has
become trite. Let's see him work for it. Not only is it interesting
(you get some great dialogue) but you become more invested in the
relationship then. The fact is, the more work that went into two
characters getting together means that the audience cares more about
what happens to them. To me it really helps the audience identify with
and therefore like Bond if they see him as more of a regular guy
instead of (no offense) Brosnan's smirking "I know you want me"
attitude. He can still be a badass (appealing to both women and men)
but let's see the other side. It doesn't have to be a "softer" side,
but charming would be nice. Don't discount the quiet scenes - play
them up. One of the most endearing scenes is the barn scene in OHMSS.
And there's nothing wrong with endearing scenes in Bond films.
PRODUCT PLACEMENT
I realize that product placement can help pay the bills for a film but
it can really hurt the Bond films. I understand a deal with Aston
Martin, but Bond drinking Smirnof? Please. One of the things that
distinguishes the Bond films is that they are exotic and not the
familiar Hollywood action films. Play up those differences. Using low
quality products in the film robs it of that aura.
There were a few other things that we were talking about but that's all
I can rememeber for now. I'll post anything else I can think of as a
reply. As it is, I think that CR has the potential to be very good. I
just hope that the producers want it to be the film that others want to
copy instead of copying other films. Like I said, play up the
differences.
Dude!
|
|
|
Gehe zu:
aktuelle Zeit: Sa Mai 26 08:39:41 CEST 2012
Insgesamt benötigte Zeit, um die Seite zu erzeugen: 0,02028 Sekunden |
