› ›

'Skyfall' vs. 'Casino Royale = 'Thunderball' vs. 'From Russia With Love'

Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
edited November 2012 in Skyfall Posts: 11,119
Really, I think comparing 'Skyfall' with 'Casino Royale' is like comparing 'Goldfinger' and 'Thunderball' with 'From Russia With Love': Both very damn good Bond movies, but when it comes on details like tone and atmosphere they are different from each other.

Many people praise 'Goldfinger' as the quintessential James Bond film where everything comes together: A comical Q-Branch scene, a car with gadgets, lasers that destroys doors and....Bond, original death by gold paint, lush hotelrooms, an almost comical villain with a tedious taste for gold, etcetera.

And many praise 'Thunderball' for actually topping the 'Goldfinger'-blockbuster feel, with even more lush locations, a larger villainous plot, sharks as pet toys and moreover a true Bond battle that has its climax under water. People also praise 'Thunderball' for being it the film where James Bond as a character is really at his best here; He really deploys his espionage capabilities to a maximum.

Still, many other people praise 'From Russia With Love' as the one and only faithfully adapted Ian Fleming espionage thriller. The film is much more grim, has a bit less humour and Bond simply fights without camp oneliners. Bond has almost no gadgets in his possession and Major Boothroyd (later Q) looks nothing more than a boring assistant.

But if you ask me, both 'Goldfinger', 'Thunderball' and 'From Russia With Love' earn the same rating. Just....for differents reasons. I think that's how you should compare 'Skyfall' with 'Casino Royale'. And IMO, taking my arguments into account, both 'Skyfall' and 'Casino Royale' have my 4.5/5 stars ('OHMSS' and 'FRWL' have my full 5.0 out of 5 stars rating). Happy dear lads ;-)?

Comments

  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    Posts: 11,119
    Anyone?
  • JamesCraigJamesCraig Ancient Rome
    edited October 2012 Posts: 3,497
    From Russia With Love feels almost like a Hitchcock movie to me! Red Grant is threatening and he speaks with this extremely calm demeanor. The train fight was something pretty special in 1963 I think.

    And, I'm gonna get killed for this, but... Goldfinger is overrated imho. Yes, TB's diving scenes are too long, but I just prefer SC's performance plus I can never take Fröbe serious as main villain. It does have some great moments, like the GF's demise, the DB5 and Pussy Galore is cold, but has "something".
  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    edited October 2012 Posts: 11,119
    JamesCraig wrote:
    From Russia With Love feels almost like a Hitchcock movie to me! Red Grant is threatening and he speaks with this extremely calm demeanor. The train fight was something pretty special in 1963 I think.

    And, I'm gonna get killed for this, but... Goldfinger is overrated imho. Yes, TB's diving scenes are too long, but I just prefer SC's performance plus I can never take Fröbe serious as main villain. It does have some great moments, like the GF's demise, the DB5 and Pussy Galore is cold, but has "something".

    I understand. But my point is: Even the best of the best (rated) Bond films are different from each other and each of you gives your unique feeling/ride and treats you with a different atmosphere.

    OHMSS: The definite christmas-Bond-film, which you should see during the holidays. The perfect camera shots of the alps give you this unique feeling that isn't visible in any other Bond film.

    GF: Lush, American-esque, a bit camp but certainly very summery film. The horses, the hay at Goldfinger's horse farm, the brown wood designs of Ken Adam, the aerial shots of Miami. Stunning, but stunning in its own way.

    TB: The most tropical Bond film IMO. Even more tropical than DN. The underwater scenes are still breathtaking. And as I have said before, money-wise, production-wise SKYFALL is this years THUNDERBALL.

    SKYFALL: Very sober, Scottish feel. It's the real autmn Bond film if you ask me. Havind just seen the main titles......this..this is definately my favourite Bond film that I have seen in cinema. This really is BOND, and it oozes Maurice Binder in his early years (TB, YOLT, especially LALD). This Bond-film IMO marks a new renaissance of Bond films!
  • JamesCraigJamesCraig Ancient Rome
    Posts: 3,497
    Yes, it brings back good memories, as it is in par with the best, or sometimes even better. I got a FRWL meets CR vibe from it all, mixed with LALD & YOLT, but without their sillyness.

    No?
  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    edited October 2012 Posts: 11,119
    JamesCraig wrote:
    Yes, it brings back good memories, as it is in par with the best, or sometimes even better. I got a FRWL meets CR vibe from it all, mixed with LALD & YOLT, but without their sillyness.

    No?

    Concerning the actual main titles from Danny Kleinman:
    You can rewatch the titles again here if you want: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lq8ZeNdT_Mo

    My thoughts? I adore them! And honestly? I think the titles are better, especially way more effective than the titles for 'Casino Royale'. Why?

    I think Adele's theme song AND the actual main title visuals by Daniel Kleinman perfectly blend together. These main titles are not just very creative and visually stunning, they take you on a rather dramatic, horrific tour full of visuals that are reminiscent of death and sad funerals.

    I love the blood red colours a lot. And the visuals of skulls and tomb stones mixed with a slowly moving girls every now and then, give me goosebumps.

    Moreover, I really think these titles are reminiscent of Maurice Binder's early designs for 'Thunderball' (Lots of bright red and green colours, as if the girls are swimming in blood or poison), 'You Only Live Twice' (Deep red colours and visuals of melted lava) and especially 'Live And Let Die' (Everyone knows the voodoo themology of these titles, and it gives you chills too!).

    Most importantly, Skyfall's main titles are the best to watch. The visuals move very slowly (perhaps the slowest of all of Kleinman's titles), to blend in with Adele's slow-tempo song. I love that. I. JUST. LOVE. THAT! The MK12-titles for 'Quantum Of Solace' were causing headaches, just like all the shaky cam.

    One last thing, Bond falling off that water fall. It's......it's like a dead body really. Perfectly kicks-off the titles, very much like Binder's 'You Only Live Twice'!

    Concerning the overall look and feel. I....still need to properly think about that. 'Skyfall' is very much a stand-alone film. It's very 'grand', very 'big', especially cinematography-wise. This....I am finally going to see a Bond film getting nominated for an Oscar! I have never experienced THAT! ^:)^
  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    Posts: 11,119
    Damn....I have the shivers....still :-O
  • SharkBaitSharkBait
    edited October 2012 Posts: 2,107
    I have to see it a few times to make up my mind. However, I think Skyfall wasn't anything like any previous Bond film. Still it's a Bond film with a capital B.

    It was the most psychological, I think. Made you really think of the inner turmoil of the characters, and it was really the first film in the franchise to address the issue of spies in the modern world and if they are needed anymore.
  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    Posts: 11,119
    SharkBait wrote:
    I have to see it a few times to make up my mind. However, I think Skyfall wasn't anything like any previous Bond film. Still it's a Bond film with a capital B.

    It was the most psychological, I think. Made you really think of the inner turmoil of the characters, and it was really the first film in the franchise to address the issue of spies in the modern world and if they are needed anymore.

    Maybe 'Skyfall' and 'Casino Royale' are...hard to compare because of their uniqueness in its own way? That's more or less my point. I think both films deserve 4.5 stars. But both....earn these stars in a different way.
  • JamesCraigJamesCraig Ancient Rome
    Posts: 3,497
    Well, with such a great cast, it couldn't really go wrong in that department. ;)
  • Aziz_FekkeshAziz_Fekkesh Royale-les-Eaux
    Posts: 403
    GF is the weakest of those four, in my opinion, but it unquestionably contains the quintessential elements of the movie character, at least how the mainstream audience sees him.
  • KerimKerim Istanbul Not Constantinople
    Posts: 2,629
    Casino Royale is slightly better than Skyfall.

    From Russia With Love is a lot better than Goldfinger.

    There, I compared them.
  • GSSGSS
    edited November 2012 Posts: 14
    I think that Casino Royale is actually the better of the two (as FRWL is better than GF) in that it has a far better storyline. However Skyfall has more of that Thunderball blockbuster feel to it.
  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    Posts: 11,119
    GSS wrote:
    I think that Casino Royale is actually the better of the two (as FRWL is better than GF) in that it has a far better storyline. However Skyfall has more of that Thunderball blockbuster feel to it.

    Totally agree.
  • bondfan007bondfan007
    edited November 2012 Posts: 15
    I would agree with several of the comments on here. Skyfall, in it's own right, stands to be unlike many of the Bond films that have come before it. That is good. I've tried comparing it to the older films, and I just can't seem to strike any chords other than the obvious homages and the over feel of "this is a Bond film." Although, I would like to offer a point in the form of a question: can Skyfall really be compared to Casino Royale? I mean, sure Casino Royale was a reboot, bringing us into a new era of Bond. But Skyfall seems to be the first move in establishing a new canon for the franchise. Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace were Bond becoming OO7 (yes, that was worded purposefully). One could argue, I suppose, that the continuity of Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace still fit within the canon of Skyfall. However, in Skyfall we see the re-establishing of old motifs, the re-emergence of the MI6 we knew from the 60s. What carried over from the old Bond films into Casino Royale was the character of Bond himself, who still underwent a significant reinterpretation, and M. In Skyfall, we see the canon that was overwritten in Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace being re-established. I love this aspect of Skyfall, yet it stands to make an already complicated continuity even more convoluted! On another note: I do feel that Skyfall has a much higher "multiple viewings" rating than Casino Royale ever did. Whereas the plot of Casino Royale requires a slow-burn second act, Skyfall moves at a breakneck pace from start-to-finish, even though both movies feature a runtime that caps out within minutes of each other.
  • socaljon3socaljon3
    Posts: 27
    Both in my top 5 Bond movies, yet Casino Royale over SkyFall. As for the earlier Bond' films Goldfinger edges out From Russia Wit Love and Thunderball follows. All five mentioned are in my top ten favorite Bond films.
  • JBFan626JBFan626
    Posts: 1,497
    Skyfall is a far superior film to CR IMO. CR suffers from a poor story arc. The big showdown with the villain is a card game that happens midway through the movie. The last 30 minutes of the film drag. The film-makers try to make a film around the novel - a novel that doesn't really work as a film (still a good read mind you). Bond's annoying melodrama with Vesper gets worse with each viewing. There are good ingredients for sure: Craig has a confidence to him, Martin Campbell does a fine enough job creating the look and feel of a Bond film, and the locations are stellar. CR is a bit a overrated in my book, because it should be better than it is. It takes itself so seriously and wants the audience too as well, but asks us to ignore all the inconsistencies.

    Skyfall on the other hand delivers in spades. There are still a few problems plotwise, but the overall execution of delivering a satisfactory story, and the delivery of everyone involved, make for an excellent film. SF transcends what I thought a Bond film could be: a film with themes, subtext, convincing drama, along with all the classic Bond moments and oustanding cinematography. So it's hard for me to compare Skyfall to any of the Connery films: it's a different kind of movie.
  • NapoleonPluralNapoleonPlural
    Posts: 512
    I'd agree in that really, in terms of incredulity, TB is to Dr No what SF is to CR, not that CR was devoid of plotholes imo. The bit where Count Lippe tries to kill Bond, who doesn't even think to mention it back at the office, or when he manages to infiltrate the Spectre frogmen, who don't even notice the newcomber, is stretching it.
  • Matt007Matt007
    Posts: 1,314
    I think CR sits within the canon more comfortably than skyfall. I want to love Skyfall but both times I've seen I've left the cinema slightly flat.

    CR got everything right for me. Campbell understands Bond, right down to the details such as Bond standing up when a lady leaves the table.

    I LOVE the first 30 mins of Skyfall, the Macau scene and the following London scenes, but I don't know why, I feel the ending is just underwhelming with a hugely flawed resolution.

    FRWL, GF better than TB.
  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    Posts: 12,837
    IMO...

    SF beats CR.

    TB beats FRWL.
  • sirseanisbondsirseanisbond
    Posts: 2,189
    thelivingroyale wrote:
    IMO...

    SF beats CR.

    TB beats FRWL.

    Agreed but I still feel like SF is more analogous to GF than it is to TB, and CR is closer to DN. Hopefully, Bond 24 will be the new TB.
  • DRush76DRush76
    Posts: 533


    "SKYFALL" is a piece of crap and an embarrassment to EON Productions. It's one of the most badly written Bond movies I have seen from the entire franchise. And like "GOLDFINGER", one of the most overrated. It was embarrassing, watching this movie.
  • Gustav_GravesGustav_Graves
    Posts: 11,119
    DRush76 wrote:

    "SKYFALL" is a piece of crap and an embarrassment to EON Productions. It's one of the most badly written Bond movies I have seen from the entire franchise. And like "GOLDFINGER", one of the most overrated. It was embarrassing, watching this movie.


    Hey DRush76. You know what crap is? Shit.
  • DRush76DRush76
    edited February 2013 Posts: 533

    Hey DRush76. You know what crap is? Shit.


    Yes dear. I know. And that is exactly what I had encountered when I saw "SKYFALL".
  • fire_and_icefire_and_ice
    Posts: 6,432
    CR, FRWL and TB are very good movies for me. I don't care much for GF or SF.
Sign In or Register to comment.