Bond #24: SPECTRE

Whenever it comes together. Current hoo-hah:

Sam Mendes has reportedly been seriously considering helming the 24th James Bond installment now it will be a stand-alone film.
Sam Mendes is ''75 per cent'' sure he will direct the next James Bond film.
The 'Skyfall' filmmaker has allegedly revoked his decision not to direct the 24th instalment of the popular spy franchise now screenwriter John Logan has scrapped plans to write a two-part story.
The next two chapters were initially rumoured to form one continuous storyline, which would have been a big commitment and needed to be shot back-to-back over a four year period.
According to a report by the MailOnline, the director is reluctant to commit until he sees John's finished script, but is likely to sign on for the job.
Sources claim the plot for the next 007 adventure is currently in the form of two treatment papers outlining the basic details. Only producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson are said to have seen the blueprint so far.

Direction was solid enough, photo was great. What Skyfall lacked was in the script, and while the same guy is writing this movie that doesn't really mean anything at all and there's a solid chance Bond #24 will take what was good in Skyfall and wrap a better story around it.

Because most of it can basically be fixed by having another villain. And Broccoli and her brother will do their thang regardless of who's working on the movie so it's only as good as they say it'll be.

One director doing more Bond films in a row is something I've wanted, and while I'd rather see Martin Campbell do it Mendes seems to work smoothly as a Broccoli henchman, not interferring too much.

Let's only hope Logan has written in a female character that's not useless, now Moneypenny is back and M gone.

There's more chance it's shit again, really. Not like they had to introduce characters or anything last time, so why assume anything will be better this time round?

writer mither

http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=41415

Christoph Waltz for the baddie! http://www.slashfilm.com/christoph-waltz-bond-24/

Spectre!

http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=42910

live feed from the announcement: http://youtu.be/2khljj3VKAw

So, the return of SPECTRE, the gender roles at MI5 reversed to their "proper" order (male boss, female secretary), a German bad guy, a huge, muscly henchman... Looks like they really want to go back to the good ol' days of the franchise, no?

Looking forward to this, Waltz pretty much born to play a Bond baddie.

Looks like they really want to go back to the good ol' days of the franchise, no?

As oppossed to the politically nuanced post-feminist leanings of recent outings?

Well they killed off the series' main female character and made the film's main female character, originally an active spy, a one-note-joke secretary so yes, I think it's fair to say Skyfall represented a big step down or backwards or whatever. At least some interesting female characters is all I ask for from SPECTRE. That and a much better film of course.

http://content.worldcarfans.co/2014/12/4/big/4028897421960358833.jpg

Aston Martin DB10 revealed for 24th James Bond movie called SPECTRE

Also: James Bond Will Drive A Fiat 500 And Everyone Is Freaking Out

James Bond Spectre: Lea Seydoux and Monica Bellucci to play leading ladies

(did not know Bellucci lost to Teri Hatcher in Tomorrow Never Dies. Also, WTF?))

Presumably Bellucci will be playing an antagonist, because she's too old to be a "proper" Bond girl? Though it would be cool if the movie had a romantic interest older than Bond for change (even though the age difference between her and Craig is only 4 years.)

girl in the last one didn't have much to do except get shot and then quipped at by our Jim.

as long as Waltz strokes a cat, right?

tasty

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi3875712537/

I remember there was a thread about the longest film series but can't find it : surely it's Bond, yes ?

well if the "same" production unit has to be involved (ie the Broccolis) i suppose so

So!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTDaET-JweU

I remember there was a thread about the longest film series but can't find it : surely it's Bond, yes ?

7 UP has been going 49 years with the same director and cast!

the secret key to longevity is michael apted

"It was me, James. The author of all your pain." That's a p good line.

you want Skyfall remake? we got Skyfall remake!

None of the Craig Bonds are very memorable, are they? Exciting in the theater, but then kind of a blur afterward, too many locales packed in, too many femme fatales per movie.

casino royale is vv memorable imo. I barely remember a thing about quantum of solace except that moment where bond makes all the bad guys feel awkward about using their cell phones or whatever during a theater performance. skyfall is super impressive dumb garbage.

xxpost -- yeah my girlfriend (a stone cold Bond fan in general, loves the Craig Bonds thoroughly) said similar. In that the series has never had quite this specific an arc, though, it's been interesting to see it play out over four films now, Skyfall itself being the most tangential.

Is this the last Craig Bond?

In that the series has never had quite this specific an arc

closest thing was probably you only live twice/ohmss/diamonds, shame about the bookends there

Casino Royale is the one I remember the most about, though not much, and it's been the one I haven't seen for the longest. QoS and Skyfall were exciting in the theater, but I remember almost nothing.

casino royale might as well be 'bullitt' considering how relatively stripped down it is, though the final act has a fair chunk of padding to say the least. Good padding imo but still...

is it worth seeing '.. Solace' if you loved the 2 slices of Bond-bread either side? it got such a kicking that i never bothered.

CR is still easily the best Bond i've ever seen.

QoS is the least essential of the Craig Bond films.

Is this the last Craig Bond?

I think he signed up for two more, so next to last. (Unless it's extended after that -- could be, Roger Moore's run remains the longest at 8 films/12 years and Craig's currently at 4 films/9 years with one more to come, so who knows?)

QoS is the least essential of the Craig Bond films.

And yet oddly Spectre is clearly playing on the fact that the escape of the Mr. White character in QoS is a key part of the whole thing; it's been an element of both trailers now. I wonder how much if any direct flashback/explanation they're going to put into the film.

QoS I just thought was bad in kind of a boring way, but Skyfall I really hated. My reflexive disgust for the Mendesian pomposity of it was a major contributing factor though I'll admit

i'd said it elsewhere but i think skyfall, for all its really impressive staging, really diminishes the more you think about it. not just for the gross sexual politics and the half-hearted winks at bond tropes but for the actual stupidity of the characters, and of course the blandness and unoriginality of silva as a villain (in terms of persona, motivation, and execution of his goals) that is only masked by bardem being an incredible actor.

I didn't mind QoS - it is pretty humourless and brutal, though, and not the traditional kind of crowd-pleasing Bond film. It's Craig's Licence to Kill or For Your Eyes Only, if you like - both of which I have a soft spot for, so. Personally, I thought it looked better than the over-praised Skyfall, too.

you want Skyfall remake? we got Skyfall remake!

pretty blatantly On Her Majesty's Secret Service remake, down to the quotes from the original score in this one

I've said it before, but the plot of Skyfall is completely nonsensical once you think about it, it's all just an excuse to show pretty locales and cool pictures. Which of course makes it the best Bond in a loooong time. QoS is pretty forgettable, but the scene at the opera is great as mentioned upthread. Especially because Mr White is the only one with the cool to simply stay and slip away with the rest of the audience. Mr White is so amazing, and I only partly say that because I'm such a big fan of Jesper Christensen.

I think I love the fact that nothing in Skyfall makes sense. Most action films just have plotholes. Skyfall really is one of those rare films that just don't care.

I bet you're a Prometheus fan

I've actually just dvr'ed it. But from what I've seen of it, clips and trailers and such, I think it's ugly. I mean, the point of Skyfall is that it discards plot to focus on imagery.

Well Sam Smith's done the theme tune and it's bloody awful.

I don't care for Sam Smith but a Bond 'I Will Survive' kinda works.

Really doesn't imo.

I'm not really into Sam Smith, but this seems very dull.

It's crap.

that was the one where he caught up to the falling plane, climbed inside and flew away

he was in Titanic?

― μpright mammal (mh), Tuesday, February 2, 2016 10:07 AM bookmarkflaglink

he played Kathy Bates

― its subtle brume (DJP), Tuesday, February 2, 2016 10:08 AM bookmarkflaglink

ok this is unexpected but it actually hits quite differently rewatching now after seeing No Time To Die

i think half of what i didnt like was Madeline Swan & i honestly appreciate her a lot more now?

Yeah I kinda figure that like with QoS if you watch this in combination with the film it’s most directly tied with it takes on a different resonance, however unintended at the time.

honestly, I always liked Spectre and was the odd person out on this thread (I think DJP liked it too? I can't recall).

also I love "Writing on the Wall" I don't care if I am its sole defender. but I don't care for Eilish's song.

I do recognize that it is a bit lazy to throw in a character that previously was obviously not part of the universe and retconning them to be the puppetmaster of the previous films, but.....I think that's an inherent problem of turning Bond into a universe with continuity. Nobody gives a fuck if shit doesn't line up in the pre-Craig Bonds. I kind of hope they go back to the standalone format from here on out, even though I liked the Craigs.

also on the way to see Spectre I totally hit someone's car in the parking lot so I should hate the film but I don't.

i rewatched (sorry, 'rescreened') QoS a little while back because i got the sense it was getting a reappraisal and...it was fine? i think i might not have actually seen Spectre, so might watch that soon before seeing the new one

QoS is definitely 'fine', just a huge letdown after Casino. I rewatched last night and I didn't outright hate it like I did when I first saw it, and I think the story is all over the place.

but the big thing is that the trailers for the movie made it sound like a much different movie than it turned out to be. yes, it was kind of a revenge flick, but....only somewhat? trailer made it seem like a neo License to Kill where Rage-Bond goes rogue and blows up entire cities in avenging Vesper.

also the oil woman replacing gold woman = fail

but it's still ok, opening set piece is good, so is plane fight scene.

i remember being annoyed that he didnt shoot Blofeld and it definitely did not really sink in as to the why of it all

it’s quite poignant this time around
and when she looks at Bond instead of at the footage of White killing himself when theyre in Blofeld’s resort/lair … much bigger impact for me this time round

also I love "Writing on the Wall" I don't care if I am its sole defender

gasp

lol

not the lyrics though, those are like 2nd grade level. just the musical aspect

i still hate the song & skip the credits completely

Especially as Radiohead's rejected effort is so much better (though I can see why it wasn't used as you can't really make out any of the words).

I can’t remember if I posted here when this was new.

Spectre had a fantastic opening set piece. And there was an amazing battle in a skyscraper, and also Batista was great in it (it was this movie, right?). Then … there’s the rest of the flick

Watching it in the theater I just didn’t care about it and was relieved when it ended. Daniel Craig looked like he wanted to be anywhere else. I like Christophe Waltz, but yeeesh.

I’m pretty sure I’m the only person I know who doesn’t love Skyfall, but that’s for a different thread.

Spectre had a fantastic opening set piece. And there was an amazing battle in a skyscraper, and also Batista was great in it (it was this movie, right?). Then … there’s the rest of the flick

Skyscraper battle is Skyfall and yes, my favorite sequence of the film easily. Deakins earned his keep. Bautista was in Spectre, yup.

I also am pretty meh on Skyfall, only because it's so long and ponderous. I stand by my proposal that it could be massively improved by just dropping the entire sequence where Bardem gets captured on purpose and attacks Parliament. Top to bottom derivative and tedious to get through.

Skyfall I now appreciate purely because the villain has a clear objective, Bardem is amazing and it’s one of the rare times a villain is not thwarted!
Also skyscraper fight rules, Komodo dragon/Macau stuff is awesome… has a lot of great stuff!

Spectre has the Bautista car chase in Italy! with the parachute ejectorseat! the alpine stuff in Austria with the plane smashing down the mountain like a crazy sled! the fkn TRAIN FIGHT with Bautista! so many things i had forgotten. it has a lot of very good/excellent set pieces & great locations. Waltz is still frustrating as Blofeld, I would have preferred someone else more threatening w more gravitas

seriously everyone who has seen No Time To Die should rewatch Spectre and be pleasantly surprised at how it hold up and/or improves

imo

and i will give you $10

jk

$10K why thank you. That is what you meant to type, yes?

yes ned 10,000 will be wired to the account of your choosing just key in your 6 digit password on the keypad here but fyi VESPER as a password is not allowed due to a previous incident

"what do you mean I can't reuse previous passwords? It's my bloody password!"

Sir please stop choking me. SIR.

seriously everyone who has seen No Time To Die should rewatch Spectre and be pleasantly surprised at how it hold up and/or improves

imo

I rewatched it after seeing No Time To Die and all the bits I thought sucked still sucked (ie not Bautista)

:/

tbf I tuned out completely and started internetting before the end of the desert hideout torture scene stuff, maybe everything after “Bond and Blofeld are brothers” is rly good

btw if anyone’s in this thread bcz they’re working up to NTTD, the best parts are totally the imax scenes so it’s worth catching in that format if you have the choice

Thanks, Ned.

QoS is a mess but … underrated, even by me sometimes.

Tomorrow: NTTD!

huh just checked and it looks like craig is the longest-running bond thus far? (time-wise, not in total number of movies). fifteen years!

dude has definitely done his time
i wondered to mr veg if he’ll throw a party when his official post-release duties are completed.
i mean as we know from prev bonds, money-truck aside, it’s one hell of a gulag

He filmed TWO Benoit Blanc flicks in between making No Time To Die and having to promote it on release

Damn.

More later, but best since CR.

I would very much like a post-apocalyptic HBO show set in the, uh, island lair

yes plz

#onethread?

we are only allowed to talk about spectre in this thread, #spectrethoughtsonly

Radiohead got robbed

fukunaga did an amazing job, whole thing looked amazing and was super varied in terms of color lighting

rami malek was terrible. not remotely scary, idiotic accent, everything he said was so groanworthy pretentious and vacuous (even by Bond villain standards), also for some reason his skin condition improved throughout the movie? by the end it just looked like mild acne scars

léa seydoux is insanely beautiful and every moment she was on screen i was jaw agog. however daniel craig and ana de armas have the best chemistry, wish she was in it more. havana scene was so fun

plot was so dumb. when ralph fiennes is like “we didn’t mean for this bio chemical weapon capable of exterminating entire races of people to become a WMD” lol

overall i loved it. i think italy was my favourite action setpiece (i was hooting and hollering in the movie theatre when he started motorcycling up stairs and flying over bridges) but they were all very entertaining

Lol at his name being Lyutsifer Safin

i haven’t seen it since it was in theatres and was really high when i saw it so this might be totally inaccurate but i remember the action in quAntum being peak shaky cam era disorienting blurry close combat. and i am grateful of how far we are from that now. loved the scene at the end on the stairwell (the shadow!). felt kinda like a first person shooter

I just watched it and yes, it was def like that

quantum’s lone flaw for me is the action directing

everything else about that movie rules tho

fyi flopson there is a No Time To Die thread, you'll find more discussion there! which also, some of us are consciously avoiding until we've gotten to the film.

oh sorry i looked through SNA but didn’t see it so i figured ppl were just talking here. if a mod wants to delete it that’s ok. sorry for spoilers

you're all good! i pulled my eyes away once I registered the type of information the post contained, but before any of it actually reached my brain lol