Is it time for a "retro" James Bond film?

[DrNewGod]

Something closer to the original books could be done, and done as a period piece. However, it would probably work better as a streaming series rather than a feature film series. Smaller audience, but less people hammering at it about its fealty to the tone of the cinematic versions.

You'd need someone with real affection for the source tho. HBO's recent (in name only) Perry Mason prequel series was not the way to go.

[ChrisIII]

It can be done ,but the better way to do it is not having Bond in the film, make it an entirely independent franchise akin to The King's Man prequel to the Kingsman movies just more grounded. Basically you set it during WW2 itself with the '00' agency being set up and recruiting a Bond like predecessor with subsequent movies being set around the late 40s and Korean war. You give nods to the Bond franchise but make it a different animal.

I suppose it could also still have "007" but with Bond's predecessor as well. As we see in NTTD if an agent is dead or inactive (Bond being the latter, at least at first) then the 00 goes to another.

I think the original movie continuity have at least two 002s and 009s who replace ones that were killed in earlier films. It's also possible Alec wasn't the only 006 either. There's an 006 in Thunderball but given Bond changing actors it could be Alec or it could be not, no real answer either way.

[Jared]

There's been kind of a sub-genre of Ian Fleming biopics, which often exaggerate/ try to make it look like Bond was based on his real life adventures.

One even had Christoph Waltz in a short role-and Fleming was played by Charlies Dance, who had a small role as a henchman in FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. It also had the weird bit of a guest of Fleming's humming the James Bond theme when Fleming meets the Ornithologist Bond,

.

And it was originally titled, Goldeneye!

[amerigo178]

Then, why not create a new character, a new world.
Anyone can create outside the box to suit themselves.
I believe, a “good” creator should work in the box.
Create within the confines already established. It shows
How creative you really are.

[Mister Mets]

Then, why not create a new character, a new world.
Anyone can create outside the box to suit themselves.
I believe, a “good” creator should work in the box.
Create within the confines already established. It shows
How creative you really are.

Is this an argument for a new character in a retro environment, or for new characters in the modern world with James Bond existing in the confines of the cold war publication of the novels?

[ChrisIII]

Zack Snyder is saying the next film should be a "Young Bond" film, going through some of the trauma he experiences (such as him being orphaned, although of course Snyder infamously tackled something similar in Batman V Superman, although with Bond's parents it was an accident).

There was a series of YA novels, mainly taking place in Bond's college days although I admit it's one of the areas of Bond with which I am less familiar.

There was also as I've mentioned the "origin" comic series which had Bond develop his spying skills during his World War II Royal navy service.

Both had a period setting (1930s-1940s) since they were 'sort of' tying into the Fleming material I think.

The Craig films were sort of an origin story in addition to a reboot.

[Gray Lensman]

Outside of making a scene look good, I tend to disregard anything else that Grimderp Snyder says. The guy seems to fundamentally misunderstand the material he is attracted to.

[Powerboy]

Outside of making a scene look good, I tend to disregard anything else that Grimderp Snyder says. The guy seems to fundamentally misunderstand the material he is attracted to.

Yeah. I haven't seen the Craig movies other than the first one. So I don't know what's been going on there. But Zack Snyder doing James Bond? No. I really don't want to see James Bond brooding, moping and questioning everything he is, and being totally "deconstructed".

[ChrisIII]

Craig films basically did a new modern twist on the Bond stuff beyond "Casino Royale".

-Quantum of Solace tackles some threads from Casino Royale, with Bond uncovering another plot (Monopolizing Bolivia's water supply) by the organization (Quantum) that hired Vesper and coming to terms with her death (and also making it up to Mathis who he wrongly blamed). Bond ends it by having MI6 capture the "Honey pot" who tricked Vesper. Mr. White, who Bond captures at the end of Casino Royale, manages to escape though.

-Skyfall has Bond accidentally shot during a failed mission to recover a stolen list of embedded agents so he decides to go off the grid for a while, but returns to MI6 when it's attacked (By the same man who stole the list). He also has to deal with a guy who's basically overseeing M after the debacle, Mallory, and new versions of Q and Moneypenny. Turns out the villain is a former MI6 agent who was given up to die by M. He tries to kill M but Bond rescues her and sets up a defense in his childhood home, Skyfall. However M dies anyway. Mallory becomes the new M and Bond returns to being full time agent.

-SPECTRE has Bond given a last mission by Dench's M in a videotape, heading to Mexico city where he uncovers a ring with an octopus insignia on it. However the mission was unauthorized so he's on probation for a while, but continues to search the leads on the ring, learning that the organization, SPECTRE (Which is Quantum as well but was renamed), is run by his former stepbrother, Hans Oberhauser. He also finds Mr. White who was a member of the organization, who tells him to protect his daughter before he dies. The organization also has a sleeper agent trying to take control of MI6 with a global surveillance system. Bond finds White's daughter Madeline and they fall in love, then they meet Oberhauser who now goes by the name Ernst Stavro Blofeld. They then shutdown his attempt to launch the surveillance system. Blofeld is injured in the eye and then captured. Bond drives into the sunset with Madeline.

-NO TIME TO DIE-Bond is retired with Madeline but is attacked on their vacation by SPECTRE who strongly hint that she was an agent all along. Bond breaks up with her and lives in Jamacia for five years. A secret nanobot virus is stolen by SPECTRE but is then turned against them by a third party, killing their leaders except the imprisoned Blofeld. Bond is hired by the CIA to find out what's going on but Felix is killed. Reinstated to MI6 to help figure out the nanobot plot, He also visits Blofeld in prison and is briefly reunited with Madeline. Blofeld tells him he set up Madeline, but then dies from the virus which Madeline gave to Bond. There's a villain called Safin who basically wants revenge against SPECTRE (Who killed his family) and killed Madeline's mother and Blofeld, and wants revenge against Madeline and her young daughter as well, and also to unleash the virus on the world (It's unclear why though) kidnapping them and planning to launch an attack from an island near Russia and Japan. Bond foils Safin's plot and kills him but is exposed to the virus which will kill Madeline and her daughter (Who is also Bond's daughter-she was pregnant at the start of the movie) if he gets near them. Bond allows himself to be killed by the missiles sent to destroy Safin's base.

[Powerboy]

Craig films basically did a new modern twist on the Bond stuff beyond "Casino Royale".

-Quantum of Solace tackles some threads from Casino Royale, with Bond uncovering another plot (Monopolizing Bolivia's water supply) by the organization (Quantum) that hired Vesper and coming to terms with her death (and also making it up to Mathis who he wrongly blamed). Bond ends it by having MI6 capture the "Honey pot" who tricked Vesper. Mr. White, who Bond captures at the end of Casino Royale, manages to escape though.

-Skyfall has Bond accidentally shot during a failed mission to recover a stolen list of embedded agents so he decides to go off the grid for a while, but returns to MI6 when it's attacked (By the same man who stole the list). He also has to deal with a guy who's basically overseeing M after the debacle, Mallory, and new versions of Q and Moneypenny. Turns out the villain is a former MI6 agent who was given up to die by M. He tries to kill M but Bond rescues her and sets up a defense in his childhood home, Skyfall. However M dies anyway. Mallory becomes the new M and Bond returns to being full time agent.

-SPECTRE has Bond given a last mission by Dench's M in a videotape, heading to Mexico city where he uncovers a ring with an octopus insignia on it. However the mission was unauthorized so he's on probation for a while, but continues to search the leads on the ring, learning that the organization, SPECTRE (Which is Quantum as well but was renamed), is run by his former stepbrother, Hans Oberhauser. He also finds Mr. White who was a member of the organization, who tells him to protect his daughter before he dies. The organization also has a sleeper agent trying to take control of MI6 with a global surveillance system. Bond finds White's daughter Madeline and they fall in love, then they meet Oberhauser who now goes by the name Ernst Stavro Blofeld. They then shutdown his attempt to launch the surveillance system. Blofeld is injured in the eye and then captured. Bond drives into the sunset with Madeline.

-NO TIME TO DIE-Bond is retired with Madeline but is attacked on their vacation by SPECTRE who strongly hint that she was an agent all along. Bond breaks up with her and lives in Jamacia for five years. A secret nanobot virus is stolen by SPECTRE but is then turned against them by a third party, killing their leaders except the imprisoned Blofeld. Bond is hired by the CIA to find out what's going on but Felix is killed. Reinstated to MI6 to help figure out the nanobot plot, He also visits Blofeld in prison and is briefly reunited with Madeline. Blofeld tells him he set up Madeline, but then dies from the virus which Madeline gave to Bond. There's a villain called Safin who basically wants revenge against SPECTRE (Who killed his family) and killed Madeline's mother and Blofeld, and wants revenge against Madeline and her young daughter as well, and also to unleash the virus on the world (It's unclear why though) kidnapping them and planning to launch an attack from an island near Russia and Japan. Bond foils Safin's plot and kills him but is exposed to the virus which will kill Madeline and her daughter (Who is also Bond's daughter-she was pregnant at the start of the movie) if he gets near them. Bond allows himself to be killed by the missiles sent to destroy Safin's base.

Wow! Thanks for the detailed recap.

Makes me very curious where they will go: continuation with 007 as a designation; Bond really survived; standard modern restart; retro restart in the Cold War.

[ChrisIII]

Fleming tried to kill Bond twice, with a poisoned shoe which stabbed him (unlike the movie) and falling out of an exploding castle. Although in the second case he was amnesiac.

Although in this case it was pretty big missiles so it'd be very hard to survive that.

[Powerboy]

Fleming tried to kill Bond twice, with a poisoned shoe which stabbed him (unlike the movie) and falling out of an exploding castle. Although in the second case he was amnesiac.

Although in this case it was pretty big missiles so it'd be very hard to survive that.

My preference is definitely the retro restart in the late 1950s or early 1960s.

I lost interest in the movies during the Brosnan years. No real reason. Not that they weren't still good. I should just stream them and watch a little at a time.

I also really liked Casino Royale but never watched the rest.

I suspect the series' best chance to survive is to do a modern day restart although that is the least interesting, to me, of the options I listed.

[ChrisIII]

Some have suggested the films sort of return to the more light-hearted aspect of the series, which is largely what the Brosnan era largely was to the Dalton era; granted, Living Daylights is still very much a Moore-style in a lot of ways (such as the recurring role of the Defense minister, the uneasy relationship with the KGB,a lot of comedy bits that the more serious Dalton seems to struggle a bit with etc) but it was kind of intended to star Brosnan at one point.

License to Kill, on the other hand...(although even that has it's share of goofy bits like the Wayne Newton televangilest)

[Powerboy]

Some have suggested the films sort of return to the more light-hearted aspect of the series, which is largely what the Brosnan era largely was to the Dalton era; granted, Living Daylights is still very much a Moore-style in a lot of ways (such as the recurring role of the Defense minister, the uneasy relationship with the KGB,a lot of comedy bits that the more serious Dalton seems to struggle a bit with etc) but it was kind of intended to star Brosnan at one point.

License to Kill, on the other hand...(although even that has it's share of goofy bits like the Wayne Newton televangilest)

That's true. Are we just getting past the era when a quipping Roger Moore style would work.

One of the best compliments I ever heard about Dalton's Bond was actually intended as an insult.

Him: Watching Timothy Dalton's Bond made you feel like Bond was a professional assassin, a cold-blooded killer.

Me: Buuut, that's what he is.

Him: No, no. He's a spy who kills when he has to.

Me: What do you think a 00 is? Someone who is only sent in when assassination is likely needed.

Him: Yes, but Timothy Dalton made it feel like that's who he really is.

It's debatable because Christopher Lee was a real life equivalent to Bond and doesn't really seem like "a professional assassin" outside of when he's playing some Dracula role. I suppose an assassin that seemed like an obvious assassin would be useless.

My personal preferences.

Connery: Felt too much like a thug to me.

Lazenby: Hard to judge because it's been ages but a little too light.

Moore: I like him but, somehow, a little too lighthearted for the fact he's killing people and quipping about it.

Dalton: My personal favorite.

Brosnan: I would have liked to see him straight from Remington Steele to Bond but he was okay.

Craig: Really pulled it off.

Edit: Just to note, I would like to see them go back to something more lighthearted if that means we can get a recognizable "Jaws". but getting a guy that big (absolutely no CGI) with a sense of humor like Kiel's? Good luck.

[godisawesome]

That's true. Are we just getting past the era when a quipping Roger Moore style would work.

One of the best compliments I ever heard about Dalton's Bond was actually intended as an insult.

Him: Watching Timothy Dalton's Bond made you feel like Bond was a professional assassin, a cold-blooded killer.

Me: Buuut, that's what he is.

Him: No, no. He's a spy who kills when he has to.

Me: What do you think a 00 is? Someone who is only sent in when assassination is likely needed.

Him: Yes, but Timothy Dalton made it feel like that's who he really is.

It's debatable because Christopher Lee was a real life equivalent to Bond and doesn't really seem like "a professional assassin" outside of when he's playing some Dracula role. I suppose an assassin that seemed like an obvious assassin would be useless.

My personal preferences.

Connery: Felt too much like a thug to me.

Lazenby: Hard to judge because it's been ages but a little too light.

Moore: I like him but, somehow, a little too lighthearted for the fact he's killing people and quipping about it.

Dalton: My personal favorite.

Brosnan: I would have liked to see him straight from Remington Steele to Bond but he was okay.

Craig: Really pulled it off.

Edit: Just to note, I would like to see them go back to something more lighthearted if that means we can get a recognizable "Jaws". but getting a guy that big (absolutely no CGI) with a sense of humor like Kiel's? Good luck.

In general, I think the sweet spot for Bond is soemthing where you can have fun, but maintain dramatic tension - not too goofy, but not completely po-faced.

But an updated Jaws feels like he would be amazing if nailed correctly - especially if they nailed the balance between threat and humor, and him and Bond ending up with a weird sort of frenemy relationship.