The name is Bond...James Bond!

[Mike T Guest Find all posts View Profile Close Mike T]

Because every movie forum deserves a James Bond thread! So let's kick it off with, IMO, the best James Bond theme ever...

I must say, it's over a year off, but I'm already pumped for the next Bond film. Sam Mendes onboard as director, Daniel Craig and Judi Dench already committed...and rumours running wildly and rampantly out of control already! Mind you, Javier Bardem would make a bloody good Bond villain indeed!

Anyway, I keep reading a lot of anoraks gnashing their teeth over the non-availability of the remaining Bond titles on Blu-ray, so here's my hot tip for what will happen with them now that MGM has sorted itself out.

Call this an educated guess: MGM, in their infinite wisdom, will release the other half of the BDs for Xmas this year, as a marketing ploy to drum up preliminary interest in the new film. Then, come of the release of the new film, the entire BD catalogue will be re-released in new packaging (so that the anoraks will have to rebuy the entire set again) and the 2-disc Special Edition BD of Quantum of Solace will make its debut at the same time (or just before the second wave of BD re-releases).

Btw, I just can't believe that this man is 70!!!

The End of this post...but Mike will return... ;)

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

I figure you're right in that the remaining catalogue titles will come out closer to the new film, whether it be around Christmas or not. Either way, yeah, I'm annoyed that I don't have them yet.

As far as the new film, yeah, if they get Craig back, I'm game. I think he's excellent in the role and Bardem would be an awesome bad guy. He's got the right sort of screen presence to play the foil and I think he'd be an interesting choice.

[Mike T Guest Find all posts View Profile Close Mike T]

As far as the new film, yeah, if they get Craig back, I'm game. I think he's excellent in the role and Bardem would be an awesome bad guy. He's got the right sort of screen presence to play the foil and I think he'd be an interesting choice.

Craig's definitely back on board, that much has already been announced. Don't quote me on it, but I am fairly certain that I read he was contracted for four -- so he was always going to be back, it was just a matter of when between the MGM debacle and his exisiting projects. As for Javier Bardem, this the last word that Bond site Mi6 had on him...and they're amazingly accurate with stuff amongst all the Bond sites and forum bs. ;)

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

So he's a definite maybe. I thought Hopkins was also rumored to be cast as the bad guy in 23. Don't know how I feel about that, really.

[Mike T Guest Find all posts View Profile Close Mike T]

Well...Bond 23 just gets more and more interesting as the year ticks on. Obviously, Dan's back. Dame Judi Dench is back. Rumours have abounded as to the involvment of either Javier Bardem or Kevin Spacey. Sam Mendes signed on, as we always knew he would. And now DOP Roger Deakins, who's worked with the Cohens, has confirmed.

Roger Deakins confirms Bond 23 (source: Mi6)

Me thinks this is going to turn out a big, classy picture indeed (at least, with the amount of clear-cut talent signed on so far).

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

If they keep going in the direction they've gone in the last two, I'm all for it.

[Mike T Guest Find all posts View Profile Close Mike T]

Casino Royale is a hard Bond to top in anyone's books. Quantum of Solace was good, but just too tight -- Bond's need room to breathe. Thus, if it's better than Quantum, and half as good as Royale, I'm pretty sure we'll have a winner on our hands next year.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

See, I really like Quantum because it was so tight. It was more of a bad ass revenge movie than a typical Bond film I guess but I liked that they tried, and in my opinion, succeeded with trying something new. Craig was almost psychotic in that film, though not without reason to be. Really though, the movies go hand in hand. CR sets everything up and then QOS runs with it and brings it home.

[Mike T Guest Find all posts View Profile Close Mike T]

I think I shall rewatch Quantum on your apprasial there, Mr. Jane. Gives a whole new slant on it for me. I did really like it, but maybe second time will do the trick?

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

A second viewing can never hurt. I guess though that it all depends what you want out of it - supervillains with crazy plans and gadgets and bikini girls, or a more grounded, realistic, hard hitting story? Nothing wrong with either option, really. I think though that maybe the change in direction irked some long time fans, as it was a pretty drastic change?

[Mike T Guest Find all posts View Profile Close Mike T]

Yep, it was a pretty drastic change -- but one, as a fan of the entire series (with the odd exception), that they needed to make. Babs was a smart lady updating Bond, as we couldn't have old school Bond forever. The Brosnan films started leaning towards that much needed harder edge...then they went off and just recycled formula. The World is Not Enough was my favourite Brosnan Bond, as it featured two scenes that illustrated the cold edge to Bond we hadn't seen in a while - that great "fuck you all" look he gave after killing everyone in the banker's office, and that priceless finale line, and "happy I killed you" face, with Robert Carlyle. As you Americans, and maybe Canadians, say: that was some cold shit!

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

I liked Carlyle in the part quite a bit, but The World Is Not Enough didn't thrill me so much the first and only time I watched it. Maybe I need to revisit that one!

[Mike T Guest Find all posts View Profile Close Mike T]

Just look out for Brosnan's "steely, ice-cold gaze of death"; it really makes his Bond more of a bad-ass than a lot of people gave him credit for. That said, Denise Richards was a dumb choice for a Bond girl. Thank heavens we had Sophie Marceau to make up for the fact.

NB: TWINE took a while to grow on me. Wasn't impressed when I saw it at the movies, but eventually I warmed to it a LOT more on DVD. Must buy the Blu-ray...

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Denise Richards is fun to look at, but pretty vacant. I agree, not the best choice there.

[Nolando Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nolando]

QoS had both Gemma Arterton and Olga Kurylenko - best spank material the Bond flix have had in FAR TOO LONG.