MI6 Community Novel Bondathon - Reborn!

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  • Agent_99Agent_99 enjoys a spirited ride as much as the next girl
    Posts: 3,099
    It turned out I owned The Caine Mutiny as part of a Bogart box set, so I gave it a watch on Friday night. Absolutely stellar performance from Bogie (though I admit I prefer him young, sympathetic and monochrome). Many thanks for the recommendations!
  • Posts: 2,887
    I promise to hereon stop posting about Beat the Devil, but I just noticed the New York Times published an article on the film last Friday. The author is J. Hoberman, a pretty good critic, though he completely neglected to mention the restored version's Blu-Ray release.
  • MaxCasinoMaxCasino United States
    Posts: 4,053
    Revelator wrote: »
    I promise to hereon stop posting about Beat the Devil, but I just noticed the New York Times published an article on the film last Friday. The author is J. Hoberman, a pretty good critic, though he completely neglected to mention the restored version's Blu-Ray release.

    That sounds like a Bob Ross book. "Beat the devil out of it."
  • Posts: 2,887
    MaxCasino wrote: »
    That sounds like a Bob Ross book. "Beat the devil out of it."

    vejmBrZzhqqMIxMThDmzdRYbBRAMOJtWsqevXWugiI0.jpg?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=af654b7b6aa4d613944687230fbdbc105443db71

  • MaxCasinoMaxCasino United States
    Posts: 4,053
    Revelator wrote: »
    MaxCasino wrote: »
    That sounds like a Bob Ross book. "Beat the devil out of it."

    vejmBrZzhqqMIxMThDmzdRYbBRAMOJtWsqevXWugiI0.jpg?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=af654b7b6aa4d613944687230fbdbc105443db71

    Thanks I needed that laugh. :)
  • PropertyOfALadyPropertyOfALady Colders Federation CEO
    Posts: 3,675
    I finished TSWLM. It was excellent.
  • Agent_99Agent_99 enjoys a spirited ride as much as the next girl
    Posts: 3,099
    If you enjoy TSWLM, I have an article recommendation for you: https://literary007.com/2018/04/16/six-to-four-against-the-spy-who-loved-me/

    The author lives in the region where the story's set, so there's some nice local colour.

    Twitter account: https://twitter.com/3octaves
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,459
    Can we launch this thread again? Choose a novel to read together?
    Fleming, I mean, not a continuation author. Anybody want to do that?
    I love to read the novels (and see the older films) as my lead up to a new Bond film.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,372
    Can we launch this thread again? Choose a novel to read together?
    Fleming, I mean, not a continuation author. Anybody want to do that?
    I love to read the novels (and see the older films) as my lead up to a new Bond film.

    I wouldn't mind if we weren't so close to the end. I think the few of us that have been participating are in the midst of OHMSS currently.
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,459
    Close to the end? OK, which novel and let's talk about that one.
    I don't have the latter ones, but I'll buy it.
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,459
    Then we can go back to CR and maybe do it a little differently, just bullet points or highlights or contrast with the films, etc.
  • MaxCasinoMaxCasino United States
    Posts: 4,053
    Birdleson wrote: »
    Then we can go back to CR and maybe do it a little differently, just bullet points or highlights or contrast with the films, etc.

    Of course! @FoxRox is a few behind us. Take your time. I don't know if @MaxCasino is out or not. He started late. This may be a good time for him to jump back in.

    Thanks for remembering me! Like I've said before, my schedule and reading times and wants have gotten away from me. Please carry on without me!
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    edited April 2019 Posts: 12,459
    Ah, I just noticed @Creasy47 said OHMSS. Thanks! B-) I don't own it, but I'll buy it cheap on Amazon and get with it.
  • Agent_99Agent_99 enjoys a spirited ride as much as the next girl
    Posts: 3,099
    In OHMSS the book, it's not the ending that makes me cry (it is in the film), but
    the bit where Bond gets the bachelor button in the Christmas pudding.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,372
    I love having Ursula Andress amongst the diners in OHMSS; good thing she didn't blow Bond's cover!
  • PropertyOfALadyPropertyOfALady Colders Federation CEO
    Posts: 3,675
    Didn't Fleming put her in there because of Dr No?
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,372
    Didn't Fleming put her in there because of Dr No?

    I don't know if that's why, but it's totally possible. He was apparently completely enamored with her beauty, so it's a nice connection to have to the films, if that is the case.
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    He had just visited the set, so that is obviously why.
  • edited April 2019 Posts: 2,887
    On the set of Dr. No:

    ursula-andress-et-ian-fleming-sur-le-tournage-de-dr-no-de-terence-young-19621.jpeg

    OHMSS is also the first novel where Bond comes out as a Scotsman. Some say Connery had nothing to do with this, since in 1960 Fleming commissioned research from the College of Arms and had inquired about Scottish roots in Bond's ancestry. But until OHMSS Bond was exclusively referred to as English, with never a mention of Scottishness. It's a little too coincidental that Bond suddenly began referring to himself as a Scot only after Connery was cast, starting in a book that even references Connery's first Bond film! Fleming had probably intended to give Bond some Scottish ancestry, but to what extent we don't know--he had a Scottish grandfather and might have given Bond one too. But Connery's casting seems to have prompted Fleming to accentuate Bond's Scottish ancestry and identity in a way that might not have happened if an English actor had been cast in the role.
  • DoctorNoDoctorNo USA-Maryland
    Posts: 754
    That's really a nice, stand up move. Connery should have been a little more appreciative when talking about Fleming in later years... though I may be unaware.

    I know I've heard Connery giving credit in the sense of the success derived from being "all in the books;" and he did refer to Fleming as erudite and witty, but the overriding impression seemed to be of his being a snob.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,372
    Only about two chapters left on OHMSS, can't wait to finish them up. Book's as fantastic as the film adaptation, I really love the extra scenes between Marc-Ange and Bond, particularly the secret meeting to set up their Piz Gloria assault.
  • edited April 2019 Posts: 2,887
    DoctorNo wrote: »
    That's really a nice, stand up move. Connery should have been a little more appreciative when talking about Fleming in later years... though I may be unaware.
    I know I've heard Connery giving credit in the sense of the success derived from being "all in the books;" and he did refer to Fleming as erudite and witty, but the overriding impression seemed to be of his being a snob.

    True. Connery was told second-hand that Fleming originally didn't want him for the part. Afterward he repeatedly insisted Fleming was a snob. I think Connery is the greatest Bond and one of the greatest movie actors, but offscreen he is a resentful, litigious man with multiple chips on his shoulder.

    Moreover, before Connery appeared in front of the cameras as Bond it was justifiable to doubt if he had the required sophistication and suaveness for the role. Everyone acknowledges that Terence Young had to spend a good deal of time polishing Connery for the part.

    It should also be pointed out that Fleming accepted Connery faster than generally assumed. In a letter from Oct. 25, 1961 to Blanche Blackwell he says the following about Dr. No: "The producer, Terence Young, seems very nice and the man they have chosen for Bond, Sean Connery, is a real charmer – fairly unknown but a good actor with the right looks and physique."
  • DoctorNoDoctorNo USA-Maryland
    Posts: 754
    Revelator wrote: »
    I think Connery is the greatest Bond and one of the greatest movie actors, but offscreen he is a resentful, litigious man with multiple chips on his shoulder.

    It should also be pointed out that Fleming accepted Connery faster than generally assumed. In a letter from Oct. 25, 1961 to Blanche Blackwell he says the following about Dr. No: "The producer, Terence Young, seems very nice and the man they have chosen for Bond, Sean Connery, is a real charmer – fairly unknown but a good actor with the right looks and physique."
    That’s always the impression I got of Connery. I love him on screen to be sure so I wish that wasn’t the case.

    I read The Man with the Golden Typewriter and saw that letter too... another positive word from Fleming.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,372
    Birdleson wrote: »
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    Only about two chapters left on OHMSS, can't wait to finish them up. Book's as fantastic as the film adaptation, I really love the extra scenes between Marc-Ange and Bond, particularly the secret meeting to set up their Piz Gloria assault.

    I’m getting close too.

    More than ever before, the isolation and fear Bond experiences escaping from Piz Gloria really got to me. Such well-written passages. This novel does demonstrate a resurgence in Fleming’s passion and creativity. I love it.

    Agreed, you can really feel it. Even the moments before his escape, planning over and over in his head that he has absolutely everything he needs before making the trip down gives it a much more urgent feel than the film has. I love that aspect of this. Even the slight nerves he has going back up is a wonderful touch.
  • Posts: 2,887
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    Agreed, you can really feel it. Even the moments before his escape, planning over and over in his head that he has absolutely everything he needs before making the trip down gives it a much more urgent feel than the film has.

    It's probably the most suspenseful scene in any Bond book. The first time I read the novel I found it nerve-wracking, despite having already seen the film and knowing the plot. But as you note, being inside Bond's head ratchets the anxiety tremendously, especially after Campbell blows Bond's cover. Every minute afterward Bond knows he's on borrowed time. The reader begins inwardly screaming "hurry man! hurry!"
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,372
    @Revelator, couldn't agree more, what a scene.

    About to dive into YOLT, took me a while to segue into it because I haven't been able to shake the magnificence that is OHMSS, a perfect pairing with it's equally-brilliant film counterpart. I'm going to try as hard as I can to rank these when it's all said and done, but it's going to be so damn tough compared to ranking the films.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,372
    In terms of hooking the reader, the opening chapter for YOLT is certainly one of the best of the series.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,372
    He already seems a bit out of sorts in the first chapter alone - a bit cold towards the other Japanese alongside him, shouting. I love the immediate repertoire presented between him and Tiger, it's a great touch.
  • MooseWithFleasMooseWithFleas Philadelphia
    Posts: 3,333
    Sounds like many are coming to the end of their Novel Bondathon. I just finished the last proper novel and will give my attempt at a ranking with quick thoughts. Some of this is from memory because I started in 2013, often taking long hiatuses, and then getting through a couple books at a time in quick spurts. Not ranking the short stories, while many are good, they are too short to remember enough details to rank. Guess I'll have to go through them all again soon!

    1.) Moonraker - Drax is fantastic, Gala Brand is the best female character written by Fleming, Blades scene is great and love getting more exposure to M. The most engaging development of villain and plot made this the most entertaining for me.

    2.) From Russia With Love - This novel is so gripping and has the most successful non-Bond centric chapters. I forget how many pages it took before Bond showed up (similar to the many minutes in the film), but it all works getting the background on Grant, Klebb, and Tatiana. Add in Kerim & the Orient Express and the novel is nearly flawless. Also a nod to the Tiffany Case reference from the prior novel; I found this a unique exploration of Bond's relationship with Tiffany disolving.

    3.) Casino Royale - Not the strongest plot, but it is made up for with absolutely gripping gambling scenes. The descriptions of Bond's meals and drinks are delightful. Mathis and Leiter are great. Was wondering how it would end knowing how the film ended, and I wasn't disappointed.

    4.) Thunderball - Strongest of the Blofeld trilogy, classic plot. Shrublands is great, another solid casino scene, Domino is a standout character, and more Leiter is always better.

    5.) Live and Let Die - Dialogue ages horribly, to the point of discomfort when reading some of the passages. However, the plot is solid, and I love how Fleming depicts the US in his writing, in this case Harlem. Leiter's return and Quarrel's debut are highlights.

    6.) On Her Majesty's Secret Service - Very very solid front to back. The plot, villain, Bond's romance, action, are all well above average, but none are any of my favorites. Still a great read that never gets dry at any point.

    7.) You Only Live Twice - A very uneven novel, with some great parts, and other slow overly long parts. Passages with Tanaka and Henderson are absolute treats and the climax is solid with a unique end.

    8.) Dr. No - Great start with Bond's recovery from his poisoning. Quarrel's return is welcome, but sad when he goes up in smoke. I liked Pleydell Smith in here as well. The first 2/3 of the book is phenomenal, but the ending falls flat for me with the bizarre obstacle course and Honeychile is one of my least favorite characters.

    9.) Goldfinger - The golf scenes are some of my favorite in the series and Goldfinger in general is a great villain. Much of the rest of the novel drags though.

    10.) The Spy Who Loved Me - Intriguing concept. Works in places very well and I found it a calming read next to the fireplace. It did drag in areas, but the ending was very suspenseful, making it on the whole an enjoyable read.

    11.) Diamonds Are Forever - I like DAF, but 10 others still surpass it, showing how difficult this is. I again like the way Fleming depicts US locations. Wint & Kidd are very menacing villains, but the plot itself leaves some to be desired.

    12.) The Man With The Golden Gun - Struggled to get through this one, the colorful descriptions are lacking, and the action is all concentrated in a few quick chapters. Scaramanga is a very intriguing villian, but ultimately underwhelms, especially when comparing to the cinematic counterpart.
  • Posts: 12,243
    After a bit of a hiatus following From Russia with Love, I started Dr. No. It sure does open with a bang!
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