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2. Craig
3. Moore
4. Connery
5. Dalton
6. Lazenby
My biggest difficulty is where to place Moore. He is one of my favorite Bond actors, but he also had one of the worst catalogs.
1. Sean Connery
2. Daniel Craig
3. George Lazenby
4. Timothy Dalton
5. Roger Moore
6. Pierce Brosnan
I think Craig’s performances in CR and NTTD are the most impressive of any in the series, and his QOS and SF performances are also extremely good. However, his SP is the weakest in the series IMO (he just felt off somehow to me, too silly / weird), so I can’t quite hold him above Connery, who I think turned in A+ performances in his first four and still has his moments in his weaker two with YOLT and DAF.
I love Lazenby, despite only one film to judge him on. Very human, enjoyable Bond to me. Really wish he and Dalton got some more. Speaking of Dalton, I have him pretty interchangeably with Moore at #4 and #5. Dalton’s a more serious, Fleming Bond, while Moore is often a bit on the extreme of silly, but still very entertaining. I go back and forth on it.
Brosnan, who I still like quite a bit, has to take last place just for being the least original and having the least amount of quality films to help him out. He is very well rounded and fun to watch still. Kind of think of him as a jack of all trades, master of none with all Bond’s signature qualities.
Whoever Bond #7 is will have a hard time getting anywhere above the bottom spot given how much I love them all, but I remain hopeful given the track record.
Dalton (best fits Bond’s persona IMO; film-wise I prefer TLD to LTK but am very fond of both)
Brosnan (more lightweight but suitably polished, pretty good in action and can carry a hint of menace when needed; GE and TND are great fun rides, TWINE and DAD are anything but, but they have their good moments)
Connery (the classic; I love GF, like YOLT for the story/settings and NSNA for the nostalgia, and respect DN and FRWL for the iconic quality, but TB and DAF are letdowns IMO)
Lazenby (an OK Bond buoyed up by a good film and charismatic co-star)
Moore (too camp for me; I really like TSWLM and FYEO, the rest are not my favourites by any measure, but are still mostly watchable)
Craig (not a popular opinion but IMO lacks charisma and sophistication; a solid actor with excellent turns in SF and CR, but I have never really bought him as Bond... my loss, I know)
Here I’m gonna repeat my ranking even though it didn’t change much.
My bonds ranking
1 Pierce Brosnan
2 Sean Connery
3 Daniel Craig
4 Timothy Dalton
5 Roger Moore
6 George Lazenby
S: Dalton, Brosnan
A: Moore
B: Lazenby
C: Connery (later films)
Anyway, here is my ranking...
1. Craig
2. Dalton
3. Connery
4. Brosnan
5. Lazenby
6. Moore
Sorry, Rog. You're still fab to me!
1. Connery
2. Moore
3. Craig
4. Lazenby/Dalton/Brosnan
2. Sean Connery
3. Pierce Brosnan
4. Daniel Craig
5. George Lazenby
6. Roger Moore
Craig
Dalton
Connery
Moore
Lazenby
2. Timothy Dalton
3. Sean Connery
4. Roger Moore
5. Pierce Brosnan
6. George Lazenby
For what it's worth, I like them all. Brosnan and Moore could interchange depending on my mood, and Lazenby is only really last by default. OHMSS remains one of my top favourites and I think he's quite good in it considering the lack of experience.
Craig (out on front by quite some way).
Connery - Dalton (just about tied: I'm actually minded towards Dalton, but give it to Connery on the basis of The Hill).
Moore - Brosnan (just about tied again, but tip it to Sir Rog on the basis of The Man Who Haunted Himself).
Lazenby (sorry George; a truly great final scene but...).
Sean Connery THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING (1975) John Huston, a masterpiece in every way
George Lazenby SAINT JACK (1979) Peter Bogdanovich, the movie is tough to get through, but George does a fine job
Timothy Dalton THE LION IN WINTER (1968) Anthony Harvey, the screen debut of both Dalton and Anthony Hopkins
I hate to say it, but as much as I love Roger, he's never really impressed me in anything outside of his great Bondman moments.
Good call. He's great in that film. Also he's very good in 'The Matador'. I quite liked him in Martin Campbell's 'The Foreigner' and 'The Tailor of Panama'. I think in the hands of a clear director like John Boorman or dare I say his name...Roman Polanski...Brosnan is capable of delivering some really nuanced performances. But when he's left to his own devices he can be indulged in his worst tendencies.
Hey, when you're right, you're right!
The Best: Connery & Dalton
My Man: Brosnan
Cool Beans: Moore
Excellent Placeholder: Lazenby
The Bourne-like guy I initially wasn't thrilled with that I came to accept because I had to but went out in a way I REALLY wasn't thrilled with: Craig
2) Brosnan
3) Craig
4) Moore
5) Dalton
6) Lazenby
Another lover of The Matador! :)>-
1. Connery
2. Lazenby
3. Brosnan
4. Craig
5. Dalton
6. Moore
2.Moore
3.Brosnan
4.Lazenby
5.Dalton
6.Craig
Now, I’d like to point that I like every single Bond actor so far. With no exception.
7. David Niven
I included CR67 in my film ranking, so I’m including David Niven here too. Now I love David Niven. He is one of my very favourite actors, and I can’t remember not liking a single performance I’ve seen from him. Back in the day when I joined KTBEU, Niven was my avatar. That being said, this is a Bond actor ranking, which makes it hard to put any of the others lower than him, since David only portrayed a version of Bond in the chaotic spoof that is CR67. So with pain in my heart, Niv comes in at 7.
6. Daniel Craig
The latest incarnation has been a bit hit-and-miss for me. I love the energy Dan Craig brought to the table in his first two outings, but the washed up energy-free has-been portrayal of Bond in SF was not to my taste. In SP and NTTD he gets a little bit more jovial at times, but the heights of his more Daltonesque performances in CR and QOS were never reached again.
5. Pierce Brosnan
The 007 of my youth, I grew up with Pierce and I’ll always have a soft spot for him. I loved playing the Bond video games of the time too, and I don’t even mind that TWINE and DAD almost feel like they are one at times. Having said that, Brosnan was also born to wear a suit, the man has a confident swagger to him that few can match. Questionable oneliners and adolescent writing keep him away from the top spots though.
4. Sean Connery
Definitely controversial, but putting all his Bond portrayals together, this is where I’d rank this cinema giant’s 007 career. Connery in the Terence Young films is the archetype of a great Bond performance, but YOLT might possibly be the dullest incarnation of the character yet. His returning efforts in DAF and NSNA, while not up to his own early standards, at least brought some joy back into his eyes. Sean in DN-FRWL-TB is top 2 for me, but Sean in YOLT is near the bottom.
3. Roger Moore
Capable of much mo(o)re than many would give him credit for, Rog’s Bond is like an old friend who’ll always be welcome at my table. Silly at times for sure, but always with much gusto, even in the most berserk situations. The only outing that I feel is a bit less, is LALD, where I think he’s still searching a bit. Apart from that he’s always great, even when visibly way too old like in AVTAK. If you can get away with clown makeups and Bondola escapes, “you must be good”.
2. George Lazenby
Personally, I’ll never understand why George is the bottom finish, by definition almost, on practically every online ‘Bond actor ranking’. The Laz was stylish, confident, yet ultimately also very relatable. I do not agree with the criticism that his acting is wooden, since I just do not see that. Moreover, this non-professional actor manages to convincingly carry the most heart-breaking scene in Bond history. That indeed did not happen to any of the other fella’s.
1. Timothy Dalton
It’s never been a secret that this fan’s favourite 007 is Timothy Dalton. Striking the right balance between the sophisticated gentleman-spy, literature-inspired finesse, and human vulnerability, Dalton is equally believable when he’s interrogating Pushkin as he is when he picks out a different champagne because the other one was ‘questionable’ or when he silently observes the battlefield of his revenge with a melancholic sigh. It’s all in the details with Tim, more than with anyone else. This man can say more with one gaze than other actors can say with a thousand words. Not only is Tim my favourite Bond, he might even be my favourite actor.
2) Moore/Dalton
3) Brosnan
4) Lazenby
5) Craig
Great to see some appreciation for Tim! I love his portrait of Bond and him as an actor in general. Great class. Such a shame we couldn’t see more of him as 007.