Tag Archives: James Bond

Silent Sunday or: The Haul 3/24/18

25 Sunday Mar 2018

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Salutations™!!

The_Scorpions_LatFS

@Mercury

 

Yesterday was a cold, snotty, sleety, crappy-weathered day. But, I had my best gal and we had each other to keep warm and enjoy some record listening. That means, of course, that we went by Underdog Records! And, here is what we got:

So, a pretty good haul. I was especially excited about the Dire Straits album even with the truncated first side. That and the Rickie Lee Jones were worth the whole thing. Good stuff.

New to vinyl? Want to get into vinyl? Returning to vinyl? Don’t go spend a ton of money on brand new equipment when you can get quality used stuff from Jonathan at Underdog Records. If you decide you want to get deeper into the “lifestyle” then you can go spend big bucks. But, don’t just jump in. My two cents.

Discogs is also a great way to catalog your collection, see your friends’ collections and even purchase used and new vinyl in the marketplace. It’s a great site and a great resource.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Is that her? What’s her name? Oh, it’s never going to be same. But that’s not her. I know what’s wrong – Chuck E’s in love with the little girl who’s singing this song.” – “Chuck E’s in Love” (Jones)

Silent Sunday or: The Haul 1/20/18

21 Sunday Jan 2018

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Salutations™!!

It was a long Saturday and that’s a rarity for The BCPF and me. Because Willows Bistro opened back up, we didn’t eat until 7pm but, we had a lot of listening time from our haul from Underdog Records earlier in the day. This is what we got:

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©Chess Records

  • George Harrison – All Things Must Pass – 3xLP box set. The BCPF has had a big tumultuous spell as of late and she’s seeing the daylight on the other side, so I made sure she got this, which she has been coveting for a while. It’s #433 on the RS List, which I think is a little low. New.
  • The Stooges – Fun House – #191 on the RS List. This is a new reissue and it is in 180g orange and black splatter vinyl.
  • Aretha Franklin – Lady Soul – #85 on the RS List. I have never been a huge fan of Aretha’s. I know, I know. I especially don’t like her later stuff and all that crazy vocal running she does that is back in fashion. But, this is early stuff and it’s really good. New.
  • Chuck Berry – The Great Twenty-Eight – #21 on the RS List. Yes, it’s a compilation. Yes, I skipped the compilations on the list when I was doing them. As I’ve had to explain, several times, I am a fan of compilations. I have many of them. But, for that list of the “greatest albums of all time,” I don’t consider them “albums.” Now, the pure definition of the word album is “a collection usually in book form of literary selections, musical compositions, or pictures.” But, for that list, I took album meaning a work of original releases that were carefully placed sequentially to tell a story or elicit an emotional response. To me, many compilations are nothing more than a record company’s take on what sells. I have no problem with that, but not on a greatest of all time list. No matter the reasoning. This is a VG copy.
  • Louis Armstrong – Plays W.C. Handy – VG+ remastered copy.
  • New Birth – Blind Baby – A while ago, I saw someone posting about five or six albums from this group. I came across one of their albums at Underdog and gave it a listen this past week. I liked it. I saw this on for $2 and I couldn’t pass it up. VG+.
  • The Zero Zero Seven Band – James Bond Thrillers!! – A VG copy of the Zero Zero Seven Band (get it? 007) doing a collection of James Bond scores. Partly the main themes and partly incidental scored music from the first three films.
  • Rosemary Clooney And Duke Ellington And His Orchestra – Blue Rose – VG+
  • New Edition – New Edition – VG+ from my early teens. A friend and I would sing “Cool It Now,” “Mr. Telephone Man,” “Lost in Love” and “Kinda Girls We Like,” repetitively. I had fun and The BCPF got to see me return to my childish side (again).
  • Grover – Grover Sings The Blues – Yes. Yes, this is Grover from Sesame Street. As I’ve said before I had several of these albums as a young child and I just want to hear them again. I don’t mind living in the past. I mean, all of this is from the past, right? VG.
  • Ringo Starr – Ringo’s Rotogravure – Ringo’s voice has a distinct sound; a tone. You know it’s him when he speaks or sings. This is rated at VG, but it’s actually in really good shape. The cover, one of the older cardboard style, is splitting a little at the bottom. I can’t really glue those back together. $1 bin find.
  • 38 Special – Tour De Force – I’ve been looking for the album with “If I’d Been the One” and this is it. Found it in the $1 bin. There’s a little damage on the cover, but the album is in decent shape, once I cleaned it. VG.
  • Various – The House At Pooh Corner And Now We Are Six – As you can tell, The BCPF and I are both suckers for children’s records. This is not to be confused with the song by Loggins and Messina. It’s a $1 bin find and is VG.
  • The Doowackadoodlers – More Wacky Doodlin’s – I don’t really know what this is, but it was $1 and the cover seemed funny. I cleaned it up and it is around VG quality. I may give it a spin later today before the games.
  • John Klemmer – Brazilia – Another thing we like is music from other countries. This is (obviously) Brazilian. It was $1 and is VG.

There were two other albums we got, one brand new and one a German version of Brahms’ Concerto for Violin and Orchestra but because The BCPF has a knack for getting/wanting albums that aren’t in Discogs, I can’t list them here. It is a long, drawn-out process when you have to submit them yourself. Perhaps I’ll do a few of the half dozen or so that isn’t in there during the games today? Also, Jonathan gave me a crateful of records that are either partially or very warped. I want to experiment with them and see if I can reshape them. I’ve watched a few YouTube videos about it and I want to try a few methods. It will involve the oven, which I know is a scary thought, but we’ll see. If they’re useless anyway, why not?

I have to watch the Underdog Records social media pages because Jonathan will post all throughout the day when he gets fresh used records in. My friends on the private Facebook page all clamor over the same genres and have similar wants. It’s fun. It’s like when I used to collect baseball and football cards. I wanted to buy to see if I got something my friends didn’t. It’s friendly. The point is, you should watch their social media to see what is “just in.”

There was a guy that had been coming in for a bit, even purchasing a few albums here and there. All the while, he’s not even had a turntable. He just wanted to collect. This week, Jonathan finally sold him a turntable because he has several for sale. Some of it is entry level (which makes sense if you’re just dabbling) and some of it is higher quality. Sometimes he’ll get some high-dollar stuff but mostly it’s entry and moderate level. But, he tests it and makes sure it’s good before he posts it. Sometimes there are A/V receivers and speakers for sale, too. Keep checking back.

And you can tell that I use Discogs to do my archiving. I purchased a record that I’ve been searching for from their marketplace last night. Stay tuned to see which one. Discogs is great to keep track of what you have and what your friends have. Delightful!

Until tomorrow, keep collecting and keep spinning…
Scorp out!

—
“What I feel, I can’t say. But my love is there for you, any time of day. But if it’s not love that you need, then I’ll try my best to make everything succeed. Tell me, what is my life without your love. Tell me, who am I without you, by my side?” – “What Is Life?” (Harrison)

Bond, James Bond or: Moore for the Money

23 Tuesday May 2017

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Salutations™!!

Today we lost our first Bond. At the ripe age of 89, Sir Roger Moore has passed away. He was the cleverest Bond, the snarkiest Bond and the gadgets were cooler and more over-the-top. Everything in the early 1970s and up to the mid-1980s was about excess and bombast. roger-moore

I enjoyed all the other Bond films, as well, even On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. I thought Lazenby did a fine job, and the storyline was pretty good on that film. But, there’s something about the time and feel of the Roger Moore Bond films that stayed with me the most. It started with Live and Let Die in 1973, then The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), The Spy Who Loved Me (1977), a brief departure from the planned track with Moonraker (1979) to capitalize on the Star Wars craze, For Your Eyes Only (1981), Octopussy (1983) and finishing with A View to a Kill (1985). Like Sean Connery in Diamonds are Forever (1971), you can tell Sir Roger is peaking in the Bond “age parameter” category by the time he got to A View to a Kill. He was starting to push it in For Your Eyes Only and Octopussy, but he ran the course and it was time to go, but he did it with dignity.

I think it funny, too, that Eon Productions thought Connery looked too old and then they hired Moore, who is actually two to three years older than Connery. He just aged better, I guess.

My son, 3B, and I have been watching all the Bond films starting at Doctor No and we have gotten up to finishing For Your Eyes Only. I sent him a message that Sir Roger had died and he was like… “who?” I rolled my eyes. When I explained who it was, he said, “oh…” I think he’s enjoying the films, just at 15, isn’t paying too much attention. I get it, but he always asks if we’re watching one today. So, I guess he’s paying more attention than I give credit, just not to who is in the picture.

I have seen all of the films, at least up to The Living Daylights (1987) probably around 30 times each. Daylights on to Die Another Day (2002) around 10-15. I have seen the Daniel Craig films at least twice each. I usually watch them in order so I have been watching the older ones more times, obviously.

I rate my love of James Bond up there with KISS, Disney and Star Wars. Even against Star Wars, I’d say James Bond is my favorite film franchise. And, Sir Roger is definitely part of the reason for that. Were his films the best? Nope, but they’re good enough for me. Rest well, Sir Roger Moore, you were fantastic.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“There’s no sense going out half-cocked.” – James Bond (Live and Let Die)

Thunderball or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

25 Saturday Feb 2017

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a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Thunderball (1965), starring: Sean Connery, Claudine Auger and Adolpho Celi.thunderball-movie-poster-1965-1010189595

Per IMDb: “James Bond heads to The Bahamas to recover two nuclear warheads stolen by SPECTRE agent Emilio Largo in an international extortion scheme.”

Emilio Largo (Celi), #2 in the nefarious organization called SPECTRE (SPecial Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion), creates an elaborate plan to have a flight-trained double agent have plastic surgery to imitate a French pilot named François Derval (whom they kill), who hijacks a test flight, killing the rest of the crew and delivering two atomic bombs. SPECTRE then uses the bombs as ransom for $100M (and yes, I typed it like Dr. Evil and you know you just said it like him, pinky to the corner of your mouth and everything) from the world governments or else the organization will destroy a major US city.

Secret Agent, James Bond (Connery) just so happens to be at the same health spa as the plotters of this elaborate scheme and gets in a tangle with one of them; a little back and forth between between snarky superspy and lackey villain. He stumbles through the plot and when all the “00” agents are brought in for a meeting, Bond recognizes someone from the spa. He asks to be redirected to the Bahamas to investigate. He goes and meets Domino (Auger), the sister of the pilot who was killed, Derval. Domino’s guardian, whom she calls her “uncle,” is none other than Largo.

Bond tries to keep Domino in the dark about what he knows, but at the same time becoming involved with her and investigating Largo at the same time. Largo even invites Bond to his house to entertain him and show him around, for lunch. Bond of course accepts the invitation and visits, but, not before he is caught trying to investigate the Disco Valante which is the large yacht owned by Largo. What did he find? What did he uncover? Did he get the girl? Of course, you’ll have to watch the film to see.

This is the fourth of the James Bond series. I have the entire series at least up until Skyfall on the 50th anniversary Blu-Ray Disc set that came out in 2012. I have had the pleasure of introducing my boy, 3B, to the world of James Bond. We watched the entire “Austin Powers” series and he liked that, so I wanted to show him where the inspiration came from. Frau Verbissener is a direct parody of Klebb from From Russia with Love and #2 from “Powers” (eye patch and all) is a direct parody of Largo. Of course, Dr. Evil is Ernst Stavro Blofeld.

In this film we are starting to get a real glimpse of the gadgetry that the Bond series became known for. There were hints in the first film, we are introduced to Q in the second and third, but this is where they ramped it up. A jetpack, Geiger counter watch and the now-famous Aston Martin DB5 which first arrived in Goldfinger, equipped with gadgets of its own, are just the beginning. The plots were very “Cold War” back then. And, the cinematography, as cheesy as it is now, was quite apt at the time. Green screen work, or just forefront work, in general was very noticeable. 3B is used to really good special effects, which these effects were great, they’re just dated.  Those kinds of effects were in their infancy at that time and while it was continuously growing, it wasn’t until the mid 80s that it really took off. It all looked over-the-top fake, to me.

I think with the exception of Klebb in Russia there’s a rule that Bond has to have a pretty woman (good or bad) and the whole film is full of them. As is always the case when they’re using Italian and other foreign actors the have to use voice artists for the screen actors to lose a good bit of their native accents. This had a lot of out-of-sync spots of that. But, overall it was one of the best of the early Bond films, to be sure. I like it a good bit, I’m just a Bond fan. The scenery, the lavish sets, the locations. The sharks (minus the frickin’ laser beams). It’s all part of the Bond charm. And, the fact that I get to introduce to, watch with and experience with The Boy, then that’s just bonus. Oh, and let’s not forget the awesome theme song sung by the great Tom Jones. Listen closely to the end of the title song and you’ll hear Mr. Jones warble and fade out. In reality, he passed out in the studio from holding that note so long at that pitch. He did it right on the take, but passed out. They left that in there. I think that’s cool trivia.

Rotten Tomatoes rates it at 86% Fresh with an Audience Score of 73%. IMDb has it at 7 out of 10 stars. You can only watch it on disc right now, so you can order it from DVD.com, Netflix‘s disc service, if you’d like to see it. Again, I have the whole collection on Blu-Ray so that’s how I saw it. I rate it 4.25 stars out of 5. Have you seen it? What would you like to read/hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Do you mind if my friend sits this one out? She’s just dead.” – Bond

Dad and Son or: Pie Day

10 Friday Feb 2017

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Salutations™!!

Yesterday 3B and I made homemade pizza. Dough and sauce, we made it all. The BCPF and I had gone to the store on Saturday and picked up all the stuff we needed. I didn’t realize it at the time but Thursday was National Pizza Day. I even reported it on The Man Who Ate the Town‘s podcast on Tuesday and it still didn’t click. But, anyway, it was by coincidence that I made my first homemade pie in about 20 years. 2017-02-09-20-57-39

Thursdays, you see, are the days that The BCPF and I decided we were going to try something new. She needed more time with her mother and I needed more time with The Boy. One-on-one time that is. So, 3B and I cook on Thursdays and we usually watch something together. This time it was pizza.

I used the Kitchen-Aid stand mixer that I got The BCPF for Christmas about four years ago and that she’s used exactly once. I have used it about three. That’s unacceptable, I say, so I used it. Both the whisk and the dough hook. Amazing how that works! But, in addition to the flour, yeast, hot water, salt and olive oil, I also added honey and garlic salt to the mixture. I let it set around 40 minutes since it was rapid rise yeast. I punched it and it was good to go.

The only part of the sauce I cheated on was I used a 28oz can of crushed tomatoes instead of doing that myself. But, otherwise, adding in the fresh basil and garlic to the tomatoes and oil (pinch of salt and pepper) was fantastic enough, but I added a little fresh grated Parmesan to flavor it up a bit. It was better than any jarred store-bought sauce (and better for me). We heated that up and spread it along the pizza dough and topped with browned Italian sausage, bacon bits, a ton of mozzerella and pepperoni. I overbaked it just a bit but it was still quite tasty. I froze the extra sauce so I can do that again, soon. So happy day after National Pizza Day to you all. But wait, there’s more!

Over the last few weeks, 3B and I have been watching the Austin Powers film series. Yes, they’re corny, silly and over-the-top, but still a fun watch. I told 3B that we needed to start on the inspiration for these films, James Bond, and he was okay with that. So, last night we started with Dr. No. He said he liked it, so From Russia with Love will be next. I’m glad he liked it.

I have really been enjoying our Thursday night father/son time. His teachers say he does a better job in class on Fridays, too. I guess it does something to his school confidence and at this point, I’ll take it, for sure! I love that boy! And, a special thanks to The BCPF for working with me and allowing us this time. I love that woman! So, make your own pizza, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“You can’t go wrong with pizza, unless it’s terrible pizza.” – Andy Kindler

Spectre or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

28 Saturday Jan 2017

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a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less spectre_posterDesirables Movie of the Week, Spectre (2015), starring Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz and Léa Seydoux.

Per IMDb: “A cryptic message from Bond’s past sends him on a trail to uncover a sinister organization. While M battles political forces to keep the secret service alive, Bond peels back the layers of deceit to reveal the terrible truth behind SPECTRE.”

Welcome to the most expensive Bond film ever made. Not only that, it’s one of the most expensive film ever made of any kind. The film’s budget was around $245M. Wow. Well, James Bond is back and he, once again, is getting little direct help from M (Ralph Fiennes). This time, however, it’s not M’s fault, it’s because of a private defense/intelligence company, called the Joint Intelligence Service in which its head, Bond calls him “C,” is trying to phase out the 00-program in favor of drone and other non-personnel surveillance.

The film starts, however, with Bond getting a cryptic message from the former, and now deceased, M (Dame Judi Dench), who tells him that something that sends him on a non-sanctioned mission to Mexico where he attends a Dia de Muertos celebration and stops a few terrorists from blowing everything up. He kills a high up commander of the terrorists and steals his ring which depicts a weird octopus-like creature.

He finds out that the ring belongs to a secret society and uses it to gain entrance into a meeting. It is there that he finds out that someone from his past is in charge of the organization and spends the rest of the film trying to find this person, why and what they have to do with the organization and to stop them. Does he succeed? Who was the person and what did they have to do with Bond? You’ll have to watch to find out.

Again, it’s the most expensive Bond film, yet. I must say that Daniel Craig is my favorite Bond, as I think he depicts him like the creator of the character, Ian Fleming, wanted, but the last two films have been kind of let downs. I mean, I liked the films but they seem like transition pieces, at least the previous one, Skyfall, did. I suppose this one had its own substance and I like Fiennes as M and I like Ben Whishaw as Q. I’ll tell you the villian, which isn’t any stranger to the Bond canon, is Ernst Stavro Blofeld and he’s played beautifully by Christoph Waltz, but what does he have to do with Bond outside the original films he appeared in with both Sean Connery and Roger Moore? Hmmm… yep, watch to find out. This film does tie in with the previous four and this one is like the egg that keeps it all together. It makes sense then. I really can’t go much into it without giving a ton away and I don’t like reading, nor giving spoilers.

Visually, it was well designed, the special effects were stunning, too. I like that Q is back with gadgets. It seemed the first two of the Craig Bonds were lacking that. I think that’s part of the appeal of the original sets of films, the gadgets and the plausibility therein. The acting was nothing less than spectacular and the plot twists were good, albeit a little predictable. Not a bad thing, though. I would have liked the film to be a little more the focus than tying the series up, but in that, at least, it did its job. I will say, though, that whilst I like seeing the series pay homage and even step back toward what we come to know and love about Bond, I feel it’s relying too heavily on the old Bond films and techniques. It’s always M attempting to hold Bond back and someone stabbing someone else in the back. I guess that’s why it’s called espionage, huh?

Rotten Tomatoes rates it at 65% Fresh with an Audience Score of 62%. IMDb has it rated 6.8 stars out of 10. Not fantastic numbers but not bad. I saw it on Amazon Prime and I will rate it 4 stars out of 5, only because I’m such a Bond fan. Have you seen it? What did you think? What would you like to read/hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“You’re a kite dancing in a hurricane, Mr Bond.” – Mr. White

Quantum of Solace or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

22 Saturday Aug 2015

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Salutations™!!

a/perture Cinema, the Official Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Quantum of Solace (2008), starring Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric and Dame Judi Dench.

Per IMDb: “James Bond descends into mystery as he tries to stop a mysterious organization from eliminating a country’s most valuable resource. All the while, he still tries to seek revenge over the death of his love.”

As a James Bond fan, and as a Daniel Craig as James Bond fan, this was right down my alley. The film is a direct continuation of Casino Royale, the first Bond film that MV5BMTY0MjI4MDI5MF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwODkwNjk3MQ@@._V1_SX640_SY720_Craig starred in. This film also does something that is rare in the 007 film world and that’s reference a past lady in Bond’s life. As far as the movies go, there have been some references that were linked: Lazenby’s version of Bond married Tracy Draco in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service and (spoiler alert) she was eventually killed. There’s a reference to that in The Spy Who Loved Me as Barbara Bach’s Anya Amasova mentions “wife killed…” in her recitation of Bond facts to show she did her research. In For Your Eyes Only Bond is shown laying flowers at the grave of Tracy Bond. In License to Kill when Felix Leiter gets married, his wife refers to Bond as the next one to get married after throwing her garter and Bond is disturbed about it; Felix explains to her why. There are also a few indirect references throughout the canon but they’re subtle and it’s not really a prominent issue.

In Casino Royale, Bond’s love interest Vesper Lynd is murdered and he wants to know who and why. Along his search, he finds, assists and is assisted by Camille Montes (Kurylenko), who is plotting her own revenge for the murder of her family. She is already involved with wealthy businessman Dominic Greene (Amalric), a member of the Quantum organization, who seeks to buy his way into a coup in Bolivia to seize control of the water supply.

Along the way Bond’s death count rises and M (Dench) asks him if he could try to not kill every lead they have. He says he’ll try. At one point while tracking Greene, he ends up at a performance of Giacomo Puccini’s Tosca and intercepts a communication device and baits the participants in the scam to out themselves. At this time, Greene’s henchmen kill a British Special Branch man and assuming that Bond did it, M freezes his passport and credit cards. That makes things difficult for Bond, but in true Bond fashion, he makes do. He does this by enlisting the help of a former ally, Mathis played by Giancarlo Giannini who secures false documents for him. When Bond and Mathis arrive in La Paz airport in Bolivia, they are met by a striking redheaded MI6 agent named Fields. Any guesses as to what Ms. Fields’ first name is? Remember, she’s redhead. I’ll give you a second… That’s right, Strawberry Fields. Anywhat! She says she’s there to return Bond to company and he gets her to go along with him to stay at a swanky resort and gets a pass to a meeting with Greene. She’s eventually exterminated in classic Bond fashion (instead of gold paint, she’s covered in oil).

From there, there’s more government corruption, scandal and destruction. Lots of explosions and keeping with the Daniel Craig era, not a lot of gadgets. That’s really all I miss about his era of Bond, the gadgets. But, even with the “we know what we’re going to see” aspect, I always like to see how it plays out. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: Daniel Craig is James Bond. He’s the closest to the Ian Fleming version. Ruggedly handsome without being the pretty boy, sarcastic wit without the camp that Connery or Moore portrayed him as. This film was every bit as good as Casino Royale and served, basically, as a part 2 to it. TLD FD (full disclosure), Bond gets his revenge for Vesper’s death. But, it’s not the same old “kill the bad guy” line, either. You’ll have to watch to see how that happens.

Rotten Tomatoes has it at only at 65% Fresh stating: “Brutal and breathless, Quantum Of Solace delivers tender emotions along with frenetic action. Not as good as franchise reboot Casino Royale, but still an impressive entry to the Bond canon.” I can see their point but I don’t believe it’s entirely accurate, at least from my opinion of the film, and I’m talking about the “brutal and breathless” part. It has an even lower 58% Audience Score. That’s a shame, because I found the film to be very engaging and entertaining. It is true that it’s not as good as Casino Royale but it’s still a good film. I recommend it, highly, but only if you’ve seen Casino Royale as it is just a lot of blowing up stuff. It’s okay as an action movie, but does better as a companion piece when you know the whole story. Unfortunately, I didn’t see this on Netflix, but saw it on Blu-Ray because I own the 50 Years of Bond collection. I’ll review Skyfall in the upcoming months at which point, I’ll restart the Bond series over again, back at Dr. No. I know you can’t wait for that!

What do you think? Do you agree or not? Drop me a line on any of the social media outlets and let me know. Tell me what you want to hear and read me review.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“They say you’re judged by the strength of your enemies.” – James Bond

Casino Royale or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

21 Saturday Feb 2015

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Salutations™!!

The Less Desirables Movie of the Week was Casino Royale.  Not the 1967 clunker that was MGM’s stab at spoofing.  Not that that wasn’t a cool ride back then, but it really had nothing to do with James Bond. This is the 2006 version of awesomeness.

I’m a huge 007 fan and I was excited that Eon Productions was doing a “relaunch” of the James Bond series.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed everything that came before it (with the exception of Never Say Never Again, which was a blasé offshoot of Thunderball) and I loved every guy playing Bond: Connery, Moore, Brosnan; I even liked Lazenby (who should have been in more than one) and, yes, I even liked Dalton.  But, with this film, especially being based on one of the last books that Fleming actually wrote, and even more especially since it was the very first one, it was an opportunity to go back to the beginning, tone down the gimmickiness (I loved the gimmicks, but c’mon) of it, start anew; fresh.

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Casino Royale (2006)

And we got a new Bond.  This Bond is the way I read Bond in the Fleming novels.  Daniel Craig plays him a little more rugged, rough around the edges and even more anti-establishment than his predecessors.  To me, Daniel Craig is James Bond.  So, from the beginning, Bond isn’t yet a 00. He has to earn that distinction with two kills, which he does get, obviously.  But, it shows Bond thwarting a terrorist attack at an airport and then having to take down a known terror financier, Le Chiffre, played by NBC’s Hannibal‘s Mads Mikkelsen, by beating him in a high-stakes game of Texas Hold ‘Em.

This film is fast-paced and more closely filmed than others in the past.  The violence is a little more realistic than cartoonish, the way that some of the past Bond films have seemed; not that it detracts from those films, at all.  Most everything is on point with this one.  The ending does drag on a bit, but overall the film was spectacular.  And Eva Green as Vesper Lynd? Great choice.

Perhaps one aspect of the book that was toned down in the film was the genital torture scene.  I believe in the book it was much more violent and longer.  However, I believe that scene, in the book, helped define the overall toughness that was characteristic of future Bond stories and films.  It’s portrayed well in the film but I think the realistic thing was to tone it down from the book.  I don’t think anyone could have survived it like in the book.

Dame Judi Dench (2 weeks in a row) is here as “M” and spares not the rod when it comes to her cracking down on Bond.  She doesn’t believe him worthy of the position, at least she says.  I believe she is proud of the young(er) man and is pushing him to his abilities.  The film was directed by Martin Campbell, who directed GoldenEye and The Mask of Zorro.  His Achilles Heel was Green Lantern, I think.  A bold, yet uninspired stab at one of my favorite superheroes, but I digress.

I highly recommend this film as I feel it is certainly THE way James Bond is supposed to be.  I watched it on Netflix and I rate it 5 Stars.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“I’m sorry. That last hand… nearly killed me.” – James Bond (Daniel Craig), Casino Royale (2006)

Shaken, Not Stirred or: Introducing the Boy to Bond

20 Tuesday Jan 2015

Posted by in Life as We Know It

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Salutations™!!

It’s not every day that I get to sit and watch a movie with my son, 3B. It’s also not every day that I can introduce him to something I am a huge fan of, and he take it in, seemingly enjoying it.

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3B enjoying the film

 

I’m watching the next in the sequence of James Bond films and I’m on The World is Not Enough.  Granted not the best film of the series and probably the worst Bond girl (Denise Richards) but not a bad film.  Anywhat! I’m going to spare the review, just glad that I can share something with him like that.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Oh, grow up, double-O Seven!” – Q (Desmond Llewellyn), The World is Not Enough (1999)