Martin Campbell - Appreciation Thread

edited March 2020 in General Movies & TV Posts: 4,400
http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=107174

I really like Martin Campbell, but the guy really does pick some iffy sounding projects. He really knows what he's doing when it comes to tackling the Bond character. He understands the world so well, so it was perplexing for me to comprehend him not doing TND or QOS. Aside from the first Zorro movie he's made some real tripe; Beyond Borders despite having it's heart in the right place is still overly sentimental and arguably vulgar. Vertical Limit is close to a categorical failure; the film strives to be tense but instead is dull, hokey and repetitive. I recently watched Legend of Zorro this weekend and the film is hokey and misjudged but it still has a lot of charm which come courtesy of the lead actors and the great action.

It's a wonder why EON hired him to do CR, because aside from GE, Campbell has had a consistently unlucky streak producing deeply flawed films. The shocking thing is that CR was fantastic and re-established Campbell as director with not only a firm grasp on action but also story and character. Edge of Darkness looked promising as it was a very director-driven project but it was mediocre at best and the less said about Green Lantern the better.

I'm glad to see him still at it, but can he pick something better than Alpha? Campbell should have stuck with Bond.

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Comments

  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    Posts: 13,350
    It's nice to see him get another film out there. I would have hated for Green Lantern to have been his last.
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 17,728
    Thanks for the update on this great Bond director, @Pierce2Daniel. Much appreciated.
  • Posts: 6,396
    I really liked The Mask of Zorro. Good old fashioned film making. The sequel wasn't bad but was probably 30mins too long. I wouldn't be surprised to see him return for a 3rd Bond at some point, even though he's said in the past he'll do no more.
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 17,728
    I really liked The Mask of Zorro. Good old fashioned film making. The sequel wasn't bad but was probably 30mins too long. I wouldn't be surprised to see him return for a 3rd Bond at some point, even though he's said in the past he'll do no more.

    I'd very much welcome his return for a third as GoldenEye and Casino Royale are both brilliant Bond films.
  • M_BaljeM_Balje Amsterdam, Netherlands
    edited July 2013 Posts: 4,416
    Sound like a movie for Denzel Washington and the earlier this year past a way Tony Scott. The writer of Minority Report who also wrote the first Wolverine movie who whas not very good. That writer of 25th hour wrote the sequel, the ''Brothers'' remake where heard good things about and funny enough he wrote also 2 Marc Forster movies ''The Kite Runner'' and it unknown ''Stay''. Mabey a problem can be there get on this moment already 4 writers with also more unknow writers Carl Ellsworth and Graham Roland. I have seen Red Eye when i finish it with much dificylty i give it 4/10 and the only movie i mabey wil like who is written by him is Disturbia. Getting the writer of Prison Break S4 sound also as bad idea.

    On this moment Casino Royale is only movie missing from Martin Campbell that i need and Green Latern is movie i like to check out. Edge Of Darkness mabey. For the rest i own 4 (Beyond Borders, Vertical Limited, Mask Of Zorro and Legend Of Zorro) of his non Bond movies besides GE.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,687
    the less said about Green Lantern the better.
    The FX were nice, the story moved along at a good clip, the actors were engaging, the music was fine, it had a lot of action & humour, yeah, what a crappy movie.
    8-}
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 17,728
    chrisisall wrote:
    the less said about Green Lantern the better.
    The FX were nice, the story moved along at a good clip, the actors were engaging, the music was fine, it had a lot of action & humour, yeah, what a crappy movie.
    8-}

    I have this one on DVD and I really must watch it this week as I'm on holiday!
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,687
    Okay, it WAS a bit uneven. Still, a fun flick.
  • I recently watched Campbell's BBC serial Edge of Darkness.

    It really is a great piece of television and a real testament to the medium. The show is cleverly laced over a 6 hour period and it uses it's time well. The first episode (which is by far the best) is all about the grief this man suffers over the death of his daughter and its rather harrowing seeing this tough Yorkshire policeman crumble.

    The show is very zeitgeist-y so it works well as reflection of issues in the 1980's. The programme therefore focussing on nuclear power, ownership and production of plutonium, American and British relations and the large environmental movement at the time.

    Campbell's direction is rather stylish and the show itself is very brave and at times has the pace and thrills of a Bond adventure. There is some great camera-work on show as well. For instance, there is a great shot in the first episode of Craven walking out of his London hotel through the backdoor corridor and pulling out his gun. Bob Peck is excellant throughout and part of me thought he could have made a great Bond. Joanne Whalley is also good and rather beautiful. Joe Don Baker is on scene-stealing form as well. Furthermore, Michael Kamen and Eric Clapton nail the score.

    For me the most interesting thing in the film was the relationship Craven has with his daughter. There are clear incestous undertones that run throughout which are very complex and intriguing especially considering this is a BBC political thriller and not some arthouse film. Craven's visions of his daughter are also very well-done as he openly accepts them and is even angry when she doesn't talk to him. The man is truly on the cusp of entering the Abyss and descending into madness.

    Craven is such a great character, I'm interesting if people thought he may be gay? I thought it very interesting how he manipulated his informers by sexually advancing on them. It was a bizarre trick but it works as it puts Craven in an odd and macabre light.

    Good show on the whole. I'm looking forward to watching the film again as it's a long time since I saw it last and I hadn't seen the show before to compare them.

  • Posts: 1,407
    Campbell is very talented. The failures of Green Lantern were not his fault. He shot the script he was given. Although his casting of Hector Hammond I will question. But the direction, the acting (besides Sarsgard as Hammond), and the effects were all fine. But the script was awful. Not Campbell's fault. I'd love for him to get another shot at something big since I think his Bond days are over. It doesn't hurt that tons of actors like Ryan Renolds, Daniel Craig, Pierce Brosnan, and Mel Gibson have always spoke very highly of him.
  • edited October 2013 Posts: 4,400
    http://www.deadline.com/2013/10/abc-buys-las-vegas-drama-from-martin-campbell-legal-show-from-jonathan-shapiro-betsy-borns-matt-gross/

    Another show Campbell has attached himself too. I really think he still has plenty of big films left in him and I hope he gets back out of director's jail soon, Green Lantern was 2 years ago now.

    Also for those who have seen the Edge of Darkness movie, is it any good?
  • Posts: 6,396
    http://www.deadline.com/2013/10/abc-buys-las-vegas-drama-from-martin-campbell-legal-show-from-jonathan-shapiro-betsy-borns-matt-gross/

    Another show Campbell has attached himself too. I really think he still has plenty of big films left in him and I hope he gets back out of director's jail soon, Green Lantern was 2 years ago now.

    Also for those who have seen the Edge of Darkness movie, is it any good?

    You may enjoy it if you haven't seen the TV series but personally I didn't think the movie was anywhere near as good. Bob Peck was far better than Mel Gibson in the lead role.
  • edited October 2013 Posts: 4,400
    http://www.deadline.com/2013/10/abc-buys-las-vegas-drama-from-martin-campbell-legal-show-from-jonathan-shapiro-betsy-borns-matt-gross/

    Another show Campbell has attached himself too. I really think he still has plenty of big films left in him and I hope he gets back out of director's jail soon, Green Lantern was 2 years ago now.

    Also for those who have seen the Edge of Darkness movie, is it any good?

    You may enjoy it if you haven't seen the TV series but personally I didn't think the movie was anywhere near as good. Bob Peck was far better than Mel Gibson in the lead role.

    I recently watched Bob Peck's version and enjoyed it. Peck in particular was great, I reckon he could have played a good tough Bond. The prods should have ditched Moore after MR/FYEO time and got Peck. He may not have been very handsome but he looks tough and could have really won people over; ala Daniel Craig.

    eod460.jpg

    The trailer for the remake actually does seem rather exciting, if not slightly melodramatic:
  • Anyone planning on watching the Edge of Darkness film: Don't.

    Campbell is such an odd director. He seems to have occasional blimps where he makes great movies (and in the case of CR fantastic films) but in the most part he's a bit of hack.

    I enjoyed the Edge of Darkness show and the film is a very competently made piece of work but that's kind of all it is. Campbell's direction is good for 2/3rd of the film and keeps the thing from falling apart even if it is slightly pedestrian/meat-and potatoes-ish.

    But the film really lacks the bite that the show did. Obviously a lot had to fall by the wayside in adapting a 6 hour show into a two hour movie but all that made the show compelling and interesting is shelved and instead the film is slightly typical routine affair.

    The writing is also really sloppy and Danny Huston's villain feels a bit like a hangover from Campbell's Bond days (Northmoor's headquaters looks straight out of a Bond film). The final act reeks of reshoots - it's so out of place and makes the film very uneven. It doesn't know if it's a straight revenge flick or a conspiracy crime thriller. The final film does feel compromised in places with action sequences crammed in likely after the film was shot to make it a bit more exciting. However, Campbell handles the action very well.

    Also it's surprisingly mawkish considering the show never was, which is a shame. Despite this Mel Gibson is great in the film as is Ray Winstone even if he is slightly superfluous to the plot.

    Overall it's a little weak considering what this could have been. The trailer above is better than the film.
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    edited November 2013 Posts: 13,350
    I hope the film at the start of this topic, Alphas, happens soon. It would be nice to see him get another film in at some point. Green Lantern, Campbell's last film, used the tagline, from the director of Casino Royale. I doubt now so much time has passed, they'll use that again.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,372
    I enjoyed the film, but it could be because I never watched the original show or anything. I like Mel Gibson, I love Campbell, and I thought the film was overall entertaining, albeit ending on a very cheesy note.
  • Campbell has just signed on to direct 'Hunter Killer'. This all souds very typical, Campbell signs on to do a film and we will likely never hear about the film again. 'Green Lantern' was ages ago! It's time someone let him out of director's jail!

    http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=123015
  • Posts: 11,425
    It is odd that Cambell did not make another immediately after GE or CR. Having said that, I am not a fan of GE at all and think TND was a step up on the direction front. CR feels like it was made by a completely different director. He seems an allusive character.
  • TND is the worst directed film in the franchise (after DAD of course). Roger Spottiswood shouldn't have been let anywhere near a Bond film.
  • Posts: 2,400
    Getafix wrote: »
    It is odd that Cambell did not make another immediately after GE or CR. Having said that, I am not a fan of GE at all and think TND was a step up on the direction front. CR feels like it was made by a completely different director. He seems an allusive character.

    Yeah. Yeah sure. Spottiswoode is a better director than Martin Campbell. Yep. Definitely. There's no grounds to refute that statement. Not at all. Jonathan Pryce doing mock kung-fu? Nope, that's just 100% excellent Bond material!
  • Posts: 14,800
    Getafix wrote: »
    It is odd that Cambell did not make another immediately after GE or CR. Having said that, I am not a fan of GE at all and think TND was a step up on the direction front. CR feels like it was made by a completely different director. He seems an allusive character.

    Yeah. Yeah sure. Spottiswoode is a better director than Martin Campbell. Yep. Definitely. There's no grounds to refute that statement. Not at all. Jonathan Pryce doing mock kung-fu? Nope, that's just 100% excellent Bond material!

    Just for the way Carver humiliated Way Lin with it, I love this scene.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 23,449
    Spottiswoode doing a better job with the Bond films than Campbell? Wow, @Getafix, I'm afraid I cannot agree. ;-) I don't know if Spottiswoode directed for example the underwater scenes in the sunken Devonshire, but those always bore me to death. The climax of the film doesn't belong to the world of Bond but to B action flicks. I feel like I get better material out of my own moments in a shooter game.

    By comparison, every scene works for me in GE. Perfectly staged, shot, lighted, ... Not a single angle bores me, not a single shot is either too long or too short. The action thrills me and feels of a much higher level of quality than almost every other action film of '95. (I say almost. ;-))
  • DarthDimi wrote: »
    Spottiswoode doing a better job with the Bond films than Campbell? Wow, @Getafix, I'm afraid I cannot agree. ;-) I don't know if Spottiswoode directed for example the underwater scenes in the sunken Devonshire, but those always bore me to death. The climax of the film doesn't belong to the world of Bond but to B action flicks. I feel like I get better material out of my own moments in a shooter game.

    By comparison, every scene works for me in GE. Perfectly staged, shot, lighted, ... Not a single angle bores me, not a single shot is either too long or too short. The action thrills me and feels of a much higher level of quality than almost every other action film of '95. (I say almost. ;-))

    Not to mention, the editing in TND is all over the place. Hideous.
  • edited September 2014 Posts: 11,189
    There are a few clunky moments in GE (Desmond reading off camera) but overall I get the feeling Campbell had more of a handle on the film than Spottiswode did for TND. Dies isn't THAT bad and there are a few good scenes in the first half (mainly with Geoffrey Palmer) but the action controlls the story rather than the other way round.

    To me Campbell's action in Goldeneye does feel a more modest compared to TND. Funny as the former features Bond driving a bloody tank around St. Petersburg.
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,459
    I love GE and TND, but GE is better directed and edited, yes.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    Dear me. Yes I'd agree that Campbell is a bit of a water carrier but Spottiswode is the journeyman's journeyman.

    Campbell = Didier Deschamps
    Spottiswoode = Carlton Palmer
  • edited September 2014 Posts: 11,425
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    Spottiswoode doing a better job with the Bond films than Campbell? Wow, @Getafix, I'm afraid I cannot agree. ;-) I don't know if Spottiswoode directed for example the underwater scenes in the sunken Devonshire, but those always bore me to death. The climax of the film doesn't belong to the world of Bond but to B action flicks. I feel like I get better material out of my own moments in a shooter game.

    By comparison, every scene works for me in GE. Perfectly staged, shot, lighted, ... Not a single angle bores me, not a single shot is either too long or too short. The action thrills me and feels of a much higher level of quality than almost every other action film of '95. (I say almost. ;-))

    You misunderstood me.

    CR is without doubt far superior to TND. My point was that it is also a much better directed movie than GE, and that GE seems more in keeping with the rest of Campbell's underwhelming output.

    CR feels like a grown up Bond movie, whereas GE is utterly forgettable bargain bucket material, as far as I'm concerned. GE has all the visually uninspired production values of the Glen era, but without Barry, Maibaum and the great editing and narrative drive/tension that John Glen so consistently brought to the table. Of course without the wit and charm of Moore, or the acting chops of Dalton, Campbell's job on GE was always going to be difficult.

    TND is simply a better paced and more entertaining film than GE IMO, although that's not saying much. I am not here to heap praise on Spottisewood - merely to say I think he did a better job on TND than Campbell did on GE.

    CR is not without its faults for me (overlong, meandering, occasionally superfluous action, like the Miami airport chase), but overall it marks a remarkable step up after the Brosnan era, and I give a huge amount of credit to Campbell for managing that so well. DC obviously gave a helping hand, but Campbell did a really great job.
  • It looks like Campbell will direct the next instalment of the GI Joe series

    http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/nailbiter111/news/?a=111325

    This is seriously disheartening. What happened to Campbell after CR? He made some real tripe and considering quite how excellent his Bond films are I'm surprised he has been relegated to such lacklustre material. I hope he regrets not making QOS now.

    After the dismal 'Green Lantern' he's mostly done TV commercial work and some of it has actually been pretty good.

    http://www.themill.com/work/ford-b-max-dive.aspx
  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    Campbell ' s career is almost like a Shakespearean or Greek tragedy; post his first run in with Bond.
  • doubleoego wrote: »
    Campbell ' s career is almost like a Shakespearean or Greek tragedy; post his first run in with Bond.
    Well let's not overdo it. For a guy with such a mediocre creative talent he's come actually quite far.
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