Both Tommy and Ramon hate the new James Bond. While Tommy and Ramon are two incredibly, resolutely, routinely different fellows and it is possible, no, probable that they have not yet met, I find if I think hard enough, creatively enough, I can imagine them getting along well. The same sensibilities, the same cut-to-the-chase if-you-will. And they both detest the new James Bond. Tellingly, in their pronouncements of disgust, they both cite the oft maligned Roger Moore as preferable. In fact, these two guys probably genuinely prefer the Roger Moore James Bond to any of the other four or five odd James Bonds available. This is no small statement of preference when heard by a Bond aficionado (a status I feign when it suits my aims, eschew when it does not.) The point is this: Tommy and Ramon don't like the new James Bond and I am not inclined to agree.I see an illuminating confluence of current events and social dispositions with the ever changing make-up of James Bond actors. In the contemporary iteration we see a perfect addition to the grand Bondian filmic narrative. We consumed the hard-smirking, woman-beating, heavy-drinking 60s Connery and the dippy, fey, unathletic 70s-80s Moore. We consumed the toasted tough guy boredom of late 80s Timothy Dalton and the ridiculous theatrics of 90s Remington Steele.
Equally, fittingly, the Daniel Craig version simply fits these times. The angry, furrowed, humourless man fighting against his own system to save the system. A man who has stretched his credit thin in service to society, defaulting on his super-spy loans through little fault of his own, he must battle back in the face of it all to reset the business on course and return the proper working order for everyone who has done (and will do) him wrong.
And so shall we.
Dislike him at the risk of a future disliking your past self.
I'll not mention George Lazenby here, if only because he was tossed into the rubbish bin far too quickly for my tastes.
5 comments:
for the record: I liked Timothy Dalton as 007
Yes!
Toddy, after getting over my initial disbelief, I asked myself "well which one do they prefer then?". I thought for sure they'd say Connery. when I heard Roger Moore I thought to myself, "but he's so...fey." And then you used the same word to describe him. It fits him perfectly. Then I thought, "my generation grew up with the worst James Bond ever." It's so upsetting, but I feel D.Craig makes up for a lot of that 80s lameness that we had to endure. How could someone not like him, particulary someone who grew up with Roger Moore? He's like the antidote to that weasely ponce.
Funny enough I always liked Moore the best. I knew that Connery was more classic, held a little more behind his eyes. But I liken it to my love for basketball. A true fan likes college ball. Not me. Give me the NBA, give me Moore.
Ultimately I don't think anyone has done a poor job with Bond. Although I thought it was a bad casting choice to bring in Curtis Armstrong for that one giant flop. But even Curtis made a go at it and we all watched it straight through.
I don't know if I can ever pull for a Bond so given to jump suits and double breasted suits. Wait, maybe I can't pull against that. . .
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