Tell us all about your BONDATHON

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  • Posts: 266
    NicNac wrote: »
    I agree. This 'Connery looks bored' argument is truly ridiculous. People repeat it without really looking at the films and the evidence.

    I always ask people to show me any scene in YOLT or DAF where Connery looks bored, but so far no takers.

    I think the problem is, the films got pacier and didn't altogether suit Connery's laid back, casual style as the earlier films did. As such it's the in-thing to say he looks bored.

    I know what you mean, i am not a big fan of DAF, it is in my bottom 3 but i do agree Connery is enjoying himself and having fun.

    As for YOLT i think he was a bit fed up with what was happening off screen but i dont think he was bored, after watching it again recently i dont think he actually has much to do in the film, that is because the script is tailored to gadgets and fantasy and i think Lewis Gilbert wanted a fast paced film and it doesn't give Connery much to do, that is what i thought when watching it again.

    Connery is my favourite Bond though so i may be seeing things differently.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,686
    I completely agree with @NicNac, about 2 months ago I watched YOLT for the first time in a long while, I loved it and was left wondering where the whole 'Connery is bored' thing came from. Sure he's not as alert as in TB or FRWL, but he didn't appear bored in any scene by any stretch of the imagination IMO. Connery was still very much THE man in YOLT.

    And, on another note, Sharky's epic 23 films in 3 days makes me want to do another Bond-a-thon. I already got the urge for this when I saw the SPECTRE teaser trailer. I've never been so pumped up, I feel like I could watch a Bond film or 2 every day for weeks! :D
  • Posts: 159
    In YOLT Connery's performance becomes mediocre on the 2nd half of the movie, I believe.
  • suavejmfsuavejmf Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England
    Posts: 5,131
    Sharky wrote: »
    NicNac wrote: »
    I agree. This 'Connery looks bored' argument is truly ridiculous. People repeat it without really looking at the films and the evidence.

    I always ask people to show me any scene in YOLT or DAF where Connery looks bored, but so far no takers.

    I think the problem is, the films got pacier and didn't altogether suit Connery's laid back, casual style as the earlier films did. As such it's the in-thing to say he looks bored.

    I know what you mean, i am not a big fan of DAF, it is in my bottom 3 but i do agree Connery is enjoying himself and having fun.

    As for YOLT i think he was a bit fed up with what was happening off screen but i dont think he was bored, after watching it again recently i dont think he actually has much to do in the film, that is because the script is tailored to gadgets and fantasy and i think Lewis Gilbert wanted a fast paced film and it doesn't give Connery much to do, that is what i thought when watching it again.

    Connery is my favourite Bond though so i may be seeing things differently.

    I totally agree with Nick Nack. If Terence Young had directed....you would have seen a better film and 'more for Connery to do".
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,686
    My current Bondathon has been halted to a very brutal stop after watching my #1 Bond film, TMWTGG, only to be utterly disappointed by it. This may very well be the last time I watch the films in chronological order. I'll start rewatching in random order, based on whichever film or actor I'm in the mood for. I am completely lost at sea adrift right now. I've had sudden changes of heart about some of the outings before, but usually it is when an outing vastly improves. When an outing drops in my ranking, it drops gradually. This day has been very saddening. LTK now inherits the #1 position in my ranking.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,686
    I'll keep you posted @Birdleson.
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    My current Bondathon has been halted to a very brutal stop after watching my #1 Bond film, TMWTGG, only to be utterly disappointed by it. This may very well be the last time I watch the films in chronological order. I'll start rewatching in random order, based on whichever film or actor I'm in the mood for. I am completely lost at sea adrift right now. I've had sudden changes of heart about some of the outings before, but usually it is when an outing vastly improves. When an outing drops in my ranking, it drops gradually. This day has been very saddening. LTK now inherits the #1 position in my ranking.

    It is a trend. MayDaydiVicenzo stopped idolising AVTAK, Benny lost his overblown adoration for OP. Next thing you know, I will start hating on OHMSS.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,686
    I very much hope @MayDaydiVicenzo hasn't stopped loving AVTAK, his love for that film infected me and I now watch it with renewed interest!
  • MayDayDiVicenzoMayDayDiVicenzo Here and there
    Posts: 5,080
    I very much hope @MayDaydiVicenzo hasn't stopped loving AVTAK, his love for that film infected me and I now watch it with renewed interest!

    Fear no more! It's still in my top ten, but whereas it used to be no.2, it's now around 7 or 8... The issues I had with AVTAK originally sort of bugged me more than usual with my last viewing, such as the rather tired feel of some of the scenes (including the fight in Zorin's warehouse).

    I'm sorry to hear that TMWTGG has fallen in your estimation. I always associate the so called "lesser" Moore films with individual members on here, as Thunderfinger points out!
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,686
    @MayDayDiVicenzo perhaps I was just not in the mood. I'll rewatch TMWTGG soon, and hopefully it will improve again.
  • Posts: 266
    @DaltonCraig007, stick with it, keep us updated.
  • edited April 2015 Posts: 205
    NicNac wrote: »
    I agree. This 'Connery looks bored' argument is truly ridiculous. People repeat it without really looking at the films and the evidence.

    I've personally held the opinion that he looks "bored" ever since I first saw YOLT. Maybe the word "bored" isn't exactly correct, but what people mean by it is that he simply doesn't seem as charming or active as he was in the last 4 movies. Something is missing, some twinkle in his eye, some boyish enthusiasm that is there in the other ones.

    But I've also always felt that the main reason he gives off this "bored" impression is simply a failure of the movie giving him anything to DO. He's forced to be a bystander 90% of the time. The movie drags him from one fight sequence to the next with little to do inbetween besides stare at the camera while other people monologue and explain the plot. The movie seems far more concerned with scaring blofelds cat with huge explosions than developing the chemistry between Connery and his co-stars. It doesn't help that he spends the second half of the movie being forced into the worlds worst halloween costume just to satisfy someones drunken gamble:

    -"Hey, hey you think we could fool him into wearing a kimono for the next 24 hours?"
    -"Oh god that is a BRILLIANT idea, but HOW?"
    -"We could just make up some nonsense about how he needs a "disguise" to get on the island, he would believe anything we tell him"
    -"This is the greatest idea you've had since you fooled your cousin to show up in a chicken costume to his own wedding. Now all we need are some make-up artists willing to play along." -
    -"Well my niece loves painting her cats blue and dressing them up..." -
    -"Call her, NOW. And tell her to bring some friends along. LIN, YOU GO GET THE CAMERA AND HIDE IT IN HIS BEDROOM"


    I don't really feel the same way about DAF. He might of been much less enthusiastic about filming it in real life, but the script in that one is so breezy, humorous, light and full of non stop puns and ridiculousness that it at least makes it SEEMS like Connery is having fun.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,686
    @Sharky I got it going again, watched TSWLM and MR last night, now just finished FYEO and OP. Unto AVTAK now.

    I've posted the last message in the last Bond movie watched thread, so I'll wait until someone else posts a review to give my thoughts about OP, to avoid a double post. While that happens, it's best I start AVTAK now so I'll post both reviews at once.
  • Posts: 266
    @DaltonCraig007 Good work, I'm glad you got it going again. And I'm sure you will fall in love with TWTGG again at some point.
  • edited April 2015 Posts: 1,595
    Connery, who was known for being rather reclusive for a movie star, was really bothered both by Henry Saltzman and the paparazzi by the time YOLT came around.

    I don't think he looks bored in the film, but he's definitely lost a little of that sparkle in his eye and a bit of that razor's edge. He's still good though, and overall I enjoy his 5th performance.
  • Posts: 1,595
    I could maybe agree with that. Although I'm not necessarily sure that intensity is entirely synonymous with quality? I find his first four performances equally captivating in their own way.

    DN/FRWL - Lots of Fleming, lots of fierce intensity
    GF - Hamilton's influence, cinematic flair, towering charisma, presence, and suave charm here. Hitchcock's Marnie may have had something to do with it.
    TB - With Terence Young back, it feels like a blend of his Bond from the first two films with Hamilton's ultra-cool direction from GF.

    I dunno, I see a lot of intensity in GF and TB, just not the same kind of intensity as in the first two. And I think he's having much more fun in DAF than in YOLT.

    I see what you're saying, though. I just personally couldn't slot any one performance out of his first four as the outright best. To me they're 4 equal arguments for his status as a legend.
  • Posts: 1,595
    Birdleson wrote: »
    Quality of films, not necessarily, no, but I definitely prefer his performance a tad less with each consecutive outing.

    I'm saying quality of performance. I'd just argue that his "intensity" diminishes simply because the characters is molding and changing. Once GF hits there's a suave smoothness to his performance that was there in the previous two, but not to the extent it is in GF andTB. Some of that viciousness and aggression (intensity, perhaps) seems to take a back seat to other aspects of the performance. At least, that's the way I see it.

    YOLT was the first film where I felt Connery was occasionally disengaged and disinterested. In the previous four, although his performances varied a bit from film to film, he always looked invested and always had that sparkle in his eye, if you will.

  • edited April 2015 Posts: 159
    Birdleson wrote: »
    YOLT was the first film where I felt Connery was occasionally disengaged and disinterested. In the previous four, although his performances varied a bit from film to film, he always looked invested and always had that sparkle in his eye, if you will.

    I fully agree. It's quite evident, I wonder why some people in here don't see it... or don't want to accept it.
  • suavejmfsuavejmf Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England
    edited April 2015 Posts: 5,131
    Good Job DAD is near the end and followed by the excellent CR if your watching in order!
  • NicNacNicNac Administrator, Moderator
    Posts: 7,567
    Kostas_P wrote: »
    Birdleson wrote: »
    YOLT was the first film where I felt Connery was occasionally disengaged and disinterested. In the previous four, although his performances varied a bit from film to film, he always looked invested and always had that sparkle in his eye, if you will.

    I fully agree. It's quite evident, I wonder why some people in here don't see it... or don't want to accept it.

    I don't see it because it isn't there. If Connery looks bored please tell me which scenes specifically. Watched the film dozens of times and he seems the same to me.
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    He looks bored while kissing.
  • Posts: 11,189
    He does look like he's put on a little weight too.

    It's well documented he wasn't happy during the filming of YOLT so maybe that contributed to him looking like he was going through the motions a bit.
  • edited April 2015 Posts: 159
    NicNac wrote: »
    Kostas_P wrote: »
    Birdleson wrote: »
    YOLT was the first film where I felt Connery was occasionally disengaged and disinterested. In the previous four, although his performances varied a bit from film to film, he always looked invested and always had that sparkle in his eye, if you will.

    I fully agree. It's quite evident, I wonder why some people in here don't see it... or don't want to accept it.

    I don't see it because it isn't there. If Connery looks bored please tell me which scenes specifically. Watched the film dozens of times and he seems the same to me.

    There are no scenes in particular... e.g. in the opening scene where he says the famous line (why do Chinese girls...), he looks so uninterested. Also, his looks and moves are those of a bored man.

  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    As the Japanese journalists hounded him even into the toilet, he was most likely very constipated.
  • edited April 2015 Posts: 1,595
    NicNac wrote: »
    I don't see it because it isn't there. If Connery looks bored please tell me which scenes specifically. Watched the film dozens of times and he seems the same to me.

    There are no specific scenes, because it is pervasive. Compare his mannerisms, his facial expressions with his first four performances. The sparkle has begun to fade - the ever-present smirk lingering beneath the surface - the lethality lingering just below the smirk. It was all there, and in YOLT it just gets sort of muted. I don't think it's a bad performance, and I certainly only use the word bored in relation to his other performances in which he is so virile.

    Something must have worn him down in the two years following TB. Maybe there's something to that. The first 2-year gap between films in his tenure. Maybe they shouldn't have given him the extra time off, haha. He certainly used it to pack on the LBs. The best word I can use is muted, because feigning disinterest was always a wonderful knack of his in the earlier films, a kind of noir-esque nonchalance. The difference with YOLT is that the indifference/disinterest/and muted charisma don't seem integrated into his performance. Rather, they are extensions of the negative effects his environment (Harry Saltzman, the incessant paparazzi) were having on him.

    I don't mean to insult you, your intelligence, or your opinion, and I don't mean to offend. It just really baffles me when I hear people say they don't notice that anything is missing from his performance in YOLT. I've always noticed it, since I was a kid. Obviously it's all opinion, because I don't think it can be proven objectively one way or the other, but I've just always seen it pretty clearly. It's just missing some oomph. He doesn't demand attention or command the screen like he did in the preceding four (one of many reasons why they're handily superior as well).
  • NicNacNicNac Administrator, Moderator
    Posts: 7,567
    Bondathon (in viewing order)

    The World Is Not Enough
    The Spy Who Loved Me
    Dr No
    Octopussy
    You Only Live Twice
    Casino Royale
    Moonraker
    The Living Daylights
    Die Another Day
    From Russia With Love
    For Your Eyes Only
    Diamonds Are Forever
    A View To A Kill
    _____________________________________________________________________________

    My slow Bondathon continues. Sir Rog's final bow looks magnificent with some great scenery and beautiful locations - truly worthy of the series' globe-hopping style.

    I suppose my problem with it is the same as everyone else. Roger's 'Saint' smirk is never far from his lips so he comes across as a bit of a dirty old man pursuing girls half his age. And the pace of the fight scenes are slowed down to compensate for Roger's lack of mobility.

    A pity really because the film has a pretty good cast, a decent enough story (lifted liberally from GF) and some nice set pieces.

    It isn't Roger's worst Bond film but it may arguably be his worst performance as Bond.

    Next up....Quantum Of Solace.
  • Posts: 462
    Current Bondathon (in viewing order):

    Casino Royale '54
    Casino Royale '06
    Quantum Of Solace
    Dr. No
    From Russia With Love
    Goldfinger
    Live And Let Die
    Thunderball
    You Only Live Twice
    Diamonds Are Forever
    The Man With The Golden Gun
    On Her Majesty's Secret Service
    For Your Eyes Only
    The Spy Who Loved Me
    Moonraker
    Octopussy
    A View To A Kill
    The Living Daylights
    Licence To Kill


    Just watched both Dalton films back to back. I'll be putting my comments about the films in the Last Bond Film Watched thread but needless to say, I loved Dalton's all too short run as Bond and he has moved up a notch in my rankings.
  • NicNacNicNac Administrator, Moderator
    Posts: 7,567
    Bondathon (in viewing order)

    The World Is Not Enough
    The Spy Who Loved Me
    Dr No
    Octopussy
    You Only Live Twice
    Casino Royale
    Moonraker
    The Living Daylights
    Die Another Day
    From Russia With Love
    For Your Eyes Only
    Diamonds Are Forever
    A View To A Kill
    Quantum Of Solace
    _____________________________________________________________________________

    A short Bond film, full to brimming with frantic action. Bond is still a loose cannon ( he grows up a little in Skyfall), but Craig pulls it off beautifully.

    I was a little less impressed this time round and I guess I like it least of Craig's films. But it's ok despite that. I'm less happy that the director thought a short, high speed film actually suited a Bond film. That isn't what Bond is about.

    Next up...Thunderball.

  • JohnHammond73JohnHammond73 Lancashire, UK
    Posts: 4,151
    I have a Bondathon currently going. Up to now I have watched the first four movies. When I take on a Bondathon (generally once, maybe twice, a year) I always watch them in the order they are released. So, the next one up for me is You Only Live Twice.
  • MooseWithFleasMooseWithFleas Philadelphia
    Posts: 3,332
    I am on a Bondathon as well. Though its really just a year long celebration of Bond leading up to the SPECTRE release. I am up to TSWLM. I am going to finish too early though. Reading through the books as well.

    Last time I did a formal marathon was before Skyfall release. I did one a night, sometimes two and I ended up getting through them all in about 3 weeks.

    I've done mini marathons of watching 4-5 in a day or 7-8 in two days, but I don't think I will every try the megathon. I've stayed up for 50+ consecutive hours as a kid so it's possible, but I honestly don't think it would be too fun after a while. If I had a large enough group of Bond friends I would love to organize a party where people can come and go as they like over the three days, but I'm afraid it's just too daunting!
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