›

New York and Paris, under-used Bond locations?

sirseanisbondsirseanisbond
edited April 2012 in Bond Movies Posts: 2,189
James Bond has been all over the world, and visited the most exotic locations imaginable. As far as locations go, New York, Paris, and London arn't what you'd call exotic, but they are perhaps the three most important and prominent cities in the world. In Skyfall, London seems like it will be used more than in any other Bond movie before, as you might expect in this very British year with the Olympics and Bond's 50th birthday. My question is whether people think that New York and Paris will ever get the Skyfall treatment? Do you want to see New York and Paris used more? Are you glad thay don't play a big part in the movies because thay are so over-used in other films?

Personally I really want to see Bond go to New York. As an aAmerican, I was really excited when theI early Bond 23 news reports seemed to suggest that Bond would be headed to Manhattan, although that has aparently fallen through. I think that it's likley that New York will be pushed back to Bond 24 or Bond 25, and I think it would be a great way to showcase the new World Trade Center if Bond were to visit it once it's compleet in a few years.

Share your thoughts...
«13

Comments

  • DCisaredDCisared Liverpool
    Posts: 1,329
    I like the big apple and gay Paris so would love to see more of them with Some classic DC espionage
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    "I love Paris every moment, every moment of the year..." Well you get what I'm saying, and I'd love to see Bond get there again, especially in Dan's era. New York could be interesting too, bar the incoming Bond-Bourne comparisons on the horizon.
  • AgentJM7AgentJM7
    Posts: 421
    Alas gay Paris! Modern Paris is more cosmopolitan, metropolitan, more European than it was, say, in 1985. When I say more "European" I mean politically. No more francs, there are EU flags everywhere, and little French touches like yellow headlamps and black numberplates on the cars have disappeared. British people will understand this frustration with intrusive Europeanisation. Grrr.

    Nonetheless, it would be interesting to see in a Bond film.
  • sirseanisbondsirseanisbond
    Posts: 2,189
    If you look back at the films, it's actually prettty amazing how little these two cities have featured in Bond films when u consider their importance as international super-hubs. Paris has fietured in a few films in verry small pieces, and New York has only been in one film! I feel like it's EON's obligation like the International Olympic Comitty to share the Bond love. And as for the Bond-Bourne comparison, it will be important to make Bond's stay in NYC much diffrent than Bournes. Bond should show the luxury of the city, and maybe have a foot-race instead of a car-chase...
  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    There are so many cities that have either never been used or have been under utilised.

    Berlin, Madrid, Budapest, Prague, Milan, Bologna, Barcelona, Lisbon, Stockholm, Moscow, Tokyo, Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Edinburgh, Chicago.

    Why we need to return to Istanbul for the third time I am not quite sure.
  • JamesStockJamesStock
    Posts: 565
    LISBON (Lisboa)!!!!! With all it's terraces viewing the hilly Mediterranean cityscape...beautiful! It's got a lot of architecture and character to offer. Love the worn tiled buildings.

    As far as New York or Paris go, I think they are deserving of another visit. I feel the former visits just didn't capture much character of the cities, although the Harlem visit was interesting.
  • JWESTBROOKJWESTBROOK
    Posts: 5,745
    Getafix wrote:
    Berlin, Madrid, Budapest, Prague, Milan, Bologna, Barcelona, Lisbon, Stockholm, Moscow, Tokyo, Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Edinburgh, Chicago.

    Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please. Oh, and add Vancouver, Buenos Aeries, Seoul, and Washington DC.
  • DB5DB5
    Posts: 408
    And how many times do we have to see Venice? I count at least three so far: FRWL, MR and CR.
  • KennonKennon
    edited April 2012 Posts: 297
    No, I think NY today does not have what they look for in Bond. The city's media presence is quite overwhelming, no director would want the obvious images the Marvel superheroes currently have captured the city with. Perhaps in a few years again, when the current wave has passed.

    Paris I could see shining in a modern Bond, that's really overdue. But the best would be to visit all those places that haven't been done to death already, much more interesting than showing the same boring pics over and over. Be fresh and adventurous, show us what we don't know already.
  • actonsteveactonsteve
    Posts: 1,492
    sirseanisbond wrote:
    J
    Personally I really want to see Bond go to New York. As an aAmerican, I was really excited when theI early Bond 23 news reports seemed to suggest that Bond would be headed to Manhattan, although that has aparently fallen through. I think that it's likley that New York will be pushed back to Bond 24 or Bond 25, and I think it would be a great way to showcase the new World Trade Center if Bond were to visit it once it's compleet in a few years.

    .

    No offence but I dont want to see 007 go to New York....or LA, or Washington, or Chicago, or San Francisco..

    Why?

    Because 99% of Hollywood films are set in those locations and I am bored with it.

    I am bored with yet another Jennifer Aniston rom com set in New York or yet another cop drama set in LA with a car chase.

    The Bond films from the off have gone to obscure parts of the world. What other film franchise sends you to Udaipur or Corfu or Bangkok? Every Hollywood film is set in America and I am bored with it. No wonder I watch French or Czech films or enjoy detective series set in Denmark. LALD did Harlem/New York very well and made N'awlins seem very exotic but can I prefer it when Bond goes to Shanghai or La Paz..

    Locations I would like to see

    Buenos Aires (great latin metropolis)
    Florence
    The Loire Valley
    The Black Forest
    The Galapagos Islands
    The Inca trail in Peru
    The reefs off Belize
    Cuba properly
    The Andalucian cities of Spain ie Grenada, Cordoba, Seville
    Lisbon
    Stockholm
    Zanzibar
    Northern Tanzania
    Cape Town
    Indonesia
    Nepal

  • 0iker00iker0
    edited April 2012 Posts: 501
    Buenos Aires, Sidney, Melbourne, New Zeland, Barcelona, Madrid, Sevilla, San Sebastian, some town in Toscana, Cannes, Chicago, Mexico DF, Lima, Rome, Oslo, Helsinki, Stockholm, Lisbon, Oporto, Burdeaux, Johannesburg, ... These are the locations Bond should visit in the following Bond movies.
  • marymossmarymoss
    Posts: 176
    Kennon wrote:
    No, I think NY today does not have what they look for in Bond. The city's media presence is quite overwhelming, no director would want the obvious images the Marvel superheroes currently have captured the city with. Perhaps in a few years again, when the current wave has passed.
    Paris I could see shining in a modern Bond, that's really overdue. But the best would be to visit all those places that haven't been done to death already, much more interesting than showing the same boring pics over and over. Be fresh and adventurous, show us what we don't know already.

    I disagree. The director just needs to know where to film. There are lots of TV shows and movies that film in NYCand you get classic NYC--as opposed to modern.

  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    Nothing against America at all but Bond doesn't need to be heading over there any time soon, especially NY. As others have said, NY is a city that has saturated so many movies. I wouldn't be surprised if it's the most used city in cinema. NY and Paris are typical, cliche locations. There's no need for Bond to be doing what every other movie is doing, which is why I love what SF is doing with the locations. London has never been used this extensively in a Bond movie, which is a welcome surprise, we have Bond going to China and other places. Let's keep Bond visiting exciting and different places where the culture and atmosphere aren't your standard, run of the mill locations like, NY.
  • identigraphidentigraph
    Posts: 1,052
    I thought Bond was sticking to Bognor Regis these days?
  • LofqvistLofqvist
    Posts: 56
    Paris has since long being my favorite place, both for living in and for Bond. Paris is by far the best city of those I have visited to be the place of a car chase. Wide avenues and bridges over Seine. Could be perfect. It is a pity that Mathis is dead (in the present canon), in other cases a rendez-vous in Paris would be highly enjoyable.
  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    Lofqvist wrote:
    Paris has since long being my favorite place, both for living in and for Bond. Paris is by far the best city of those I have visited to be the place of a car chase. Wide avenues and bridges over Seine. Could be perfect. It is a pity that Mathis is dead (in the present canon), in other cases a rendez-vous in Paris would be highly enjoyable.

    I think Bourne has already done the ultimate Parisian car chase - an absolute classic of the genre.

    Has Rome ever featured in a Bond movie? Lots of potential there.

  • sirseanisbondsirseanisbond
    Posts: 2,189
    actonsteve wrote:
    sirseanisbond wrote:
    J
    Personally I really want to see Bond go to New York. As an aAmerican, I was really excited when theI early Bond 23 news reports seemed to suggest that Bond would be headed to Manhattan, although that has aparently fallen through. I think that it's likley that New York will be pushed back to Bond 24 or Bond 25, and I think it would be a great way to showcase the new World Trade Center if Bond were to visit it once it's compleet in a few years.

    .

    No offence but I dont want to see 007 go to New York....or LA, or Washington, or Chicago, or San Francisco..

    Why?

    Because 99% of Hollywood films are set in those locations and I am bored with it.

    I am bored with yet another Jennifer Aniston rom com set in New York or yet another cop drama set in LA with a car chase.

    The Bond films from the off have gone to obscure parts of the world. What other film franchise sends you to Udaipur or Corfu or Bangkok? Every Hollywood film is set in America and I am bored with it. No wonder I watch French or Czech films or enjoy detective series set in Denmark. LALD did Harlem/New York very well and made N'awlins seem very exotic but can I prefer it when Bond goes to Shanghai or La Paz..

    Locations I would like to see

    Buenos Aires (great latin metropolis)
    Florence
    The Loire Valley
    The Black Forest
    The Galapagos Islands
    The Inca trail in Peru
    The reefs off Belize
    Cuba properly
    The Andalucian cities of Spain ie Grenada, Cordoba, Seville
    Lisbon
    Stockholm
    Zanzibar
    Northern Tanzania
    Cape Town
    Indonesia
    Nepal

    I understand what yojr saying, but I think thats a perfect reason why Bond should go to New York, or DC, or Chicago, because Bond can illustrate those cities in a diffrent way than any other movie or TV show can. If they write them into the plot correctly, they can be used in a very uniqe way...
  • GetafixGetafix
    Posts: 11,425
    To me Bond always seems a little out of place in the US. Perhaps it highlights the underlying absurdity of what was already an anachronistic idea when Fleming was writing the novels - the idea of a British agent saving the world. When dropped in New York Bond seems very small... He is better suited to European, Middle Eastern and Far Eastern locations IMO - perhaps because these are slightly more believeable spheres of British influence. The historic locations of Europe and Asia also always seem to suit the look and feel of Bond films better.
  • slyfoxslyfox
    edited April 2012 Posts: 940
    I completely agree with @Getafix and others who are less keen on Bond being seen in the USA. The mass of movies set over there plays a part but even the feel that it's CIA's territory is also key. As posters have said, Bond seems a small fish over there. I think a fair few US (and Australian) members understandably would love Bond to come to their country (and cities) but for me, as a Brit, I think the movies are more effective in a European or Asian setting.

    As for Paris, I was reading the short story FAVTAK recently and I enjoyed the part where Bond meets a lovely lass at a stunning street cafe, a culture in itself in Paris. That could be used effectively. The city has a lot more than just the Eifel Rower and stereotype associations. The Bourne Identity utilised the city well so it may be difficult to head there and not have similarities drawn.

    Cities I'd throw in the hat for Bond would be:

    Prague, Budapest, Stockholm, Rome, Florence and Marrakech
  • Baltimore_007Baltimore_007
    Posts: 5,634
    Marrakesh is in Morocco to the best of my knowledge, would be classified as Africa

    Already done that with the Living Daylights, but by all means, go back again if they so wish

  • slyfoxslyfox
    Posts: 940
    Yep, I threw in one African city. Cape Town is another i'd add to the list.

    TLD used Tangier as a location but not Marrakech.
  • Baltimore_007Baltimore_007
    edited April 2012 Posts: 5,634
    I'd like to see James Bond in Casablanca (Morroco)

    Craig, or whoever, could get all Humphrey Bogart and decide on whether to concentrate on the girl or focus on the task in hand and fight off the bad guys etc
  • slyfoxslyfox
    edited April 2012 Posts: 940
    Yes, Casablanca (Morocco) and Alexandria (Egypt) often get over-looked by their more famous inland cities but would be great and beautiful choices. Personally, I find there is something more dangerous, thrilling, mysterious and spy-like in these cities, as opposed to well known cities in the States.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    edited April 2012 Posts: 9,117
    sirseanisbond wrote:
    Paris has fietured in a few films in verry small pieces, and New York has only been in one film! I feel like it's EON's obligation like the International Olympic Comitty to share the Bond love.

    On this one occasion I'll overlook commenting on your disgraceful spelling as you seem to have come up with an absolutely blinding idea.

    Why not every two years have various cities around the world vying for the right to feature in the next Bond film in a similar process to that used to decide the world cup and olympics?

    There would be various criteria they would have to fullfill such as allowing access to the filmakers to landmarks and permitting streets to be closed.

    In return not only would the city feature prominently in the new film but the actor playing Bond would also be contractually obliged to feature in some promotional posters and videos for the tourist board. It would also be a way for smaller towns and cities that would never stand a chance of hosting an olympics or world cup of getting some valuable international exposure.

    As someone who lives in London I have to say the prospect of the city featuring extensively in SF is getting me a lot more excited than having the olympics in town.

    EON would have a choice of cities queuing up and probably willing to pay decent money for the right to 'host' Bond.

    A win win for all involved as far as I can see.
  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    Paris is a much better fit for a suave 007, and can still offer a lot to the franchise. On the other hand Bond has little or no business in NYhe better leaves that to the Superhero's.
    The older European city have much more romantic mood than anything in the rest of the world.
    That said I find South-America can offer a lot more in locations, please no more desert. And then there is Down under and Kiwi land.
  • nobodydoesitbetternobodydoesitbetter
    Posts: 1,021
    I don't know why but I really love it when Bond goes to Asia. Maybe its because I also like this part of the world. I think that both NY has been over used in the last few years in both action movies and superheroe movies that I dont see Bond going there anytime soon. Apart from "Taken" I can't think of any other film that has used Paris in a modern action film. I do also wonder why James Bond as never been down under to Australia or the South Pacific Islands. Plenty of exotic locations there....and volcanoes for hideouts!
  • sirseanisbondsirseanisbond
    Posts: 2,189
    To those who keep refering to 007the in New York as a small fish in a big pond, whag you fail to realize is that this is a problem which Bond has as a charector that must be fixed if he is going to remain relivent into the future. I agree that New York seems much more like Felix's terf, but unless Bond can find a way to be as important as the agents of the CIA, he will become irrelivent as a charector. Thay could write a story that would make him relivent there, and that would seem verry diffrent from the Bourne films or all the cop films that have been done their, which frankly is all Live and Let Die felt like when he want to New York, just a mild cop melowdrama. Who knows, Bond could be fighting people inside the CIA, I think you Brits would like that...
  • actonsteveactonsteve
    Posts: 1,492
    Baltimore_007 wrote:
    Already done that with the Living Daylights, but by all means, go back again if they so wish

    Marrakesh is quite different from Tangier. Tangier is a Med trading port so isnt quite so arabic. Marrakesh is much more exotic. Its on the edge of the sahara so you get the tuareg influence and looks very different being made of red sandstone.

    Paris has been underused so could make an appearance but New York features in almost every other Hollywood flick usually with Jennifer Aniston having romantic troubles or superheroes jumping between buildings.

    The film world full stop has flogged New York to death.

  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    edited April 2012 Posts: 12,837
    I agree with some people on here that are saying they don't want Bond in New York, Chicago, LA, Washinton, etc. Overused.

    Paris would be cool I guess. Vancouver would be good. I really want Bond to go to Australia and Ireland.
  • sirseanisbondsirseanisbond
    Posts: 2,189
    This is another problem. Many of you bring up the factt that New York has been beaten to death in so many moviespeople and TV shows, which itis has, but theI wayearly I seewas it, except forwith a tonclass of rom-com's, a spattering of Cop dramas, and Mad Men, the last ten years have seen films shying away from New York. As far as action movies go, only the Bourne Ultimatum and the upcoming Avengers utalize the city as backdrop for the action ganre, which for me seems low given the cities importance. I'll be the first to admit that I have a huge personal bias here as I really really want to see Bond visit the big apple some time soon, but I don't think that this oppinion is unfounded. New York is entertaning and it gets used so often because of that fact. Using it in a Bond film would offer plot devices that you'd never get with any other city in the world, and that's because New York is so important. I understand people's hesitations to see Bond back in Manhattan, but trust me, their are so many posibilities when it comes to using the Big Apple as a set that a Bond film could easily travel their and do something truly unique and interesting. This can partly be due to the fact that New York is in the midst of an identity crisis, and has been ever since 9/11. Right now it would be a very interesting time for Bond to visit the city because he could not only take part in the existing culture of the city, but he could help re-defineon the city by capitalizing on it at this pivotal moment. I want Bond to do this because I feel that Bourne left the city with a bad rap in Ultimatum, as that movie illustrated the city as harsh, faceless, and overwhelming, which it verywell can be. However, Bond could help illustrate that New York is still luxurious and dynamic and even fun, which discribes the way I view the city, and the way I wish that others did as well.
Sign In or Register to comment.