You should do a marathon of Brosnan’s movies. That way you can see his evolution as an agent betrayed by a close friend all the way up to him awkwardly pronouncing “mojito”.
@@calvindyson GoldenEye - best Bond movie ever and 5th best movie of all time Tomorrow Never Dies - really good The World Is Not Enough - bad Die Another Day - pain, but I have good memories
GoldenEye-Not as ground breaking as people said at the time [Unlike Casino Royale] but a great bond film. Tomorrow Never Dies-Suffers from production issues and pretty average but solid. The world is not enough-tries to be serious and campy and just ends up being dull. Die another day-Shark has truly been jumped.
One thing I love about your channel is how you’re always happy to talk about the different opinions on the films. You don’t shy away from your own thoughts, even when they go against the grain, but you also don’t dismiss other perspectives. I personally prefer Spectre to Skyfall, which many in the fandom would call sacrilege. But while I would expect some teasing from you, I think if we were to have a discussion about it we would both come away from it having had a good time.
Thanks, Magnus! I’m happy that comes across. It’s weird when people get genuinely angry and/or confrontational with others for having different opinions on films. Particularly Bond which is SUCH a broad church of tastes. Of course it’s fun to joke and tease but I’d certainly never get confrontational with anyone over liking or not liking a Bond film 😅😅
Absolutely! My daughter has a UA-cam Channel and on there, they comment on all sorts of Movies and TV shows so they encounter all KINDS of Ummm...intense....and VERY opinionated fan bases! Lol The Bond community is by far the coolest and most respectful of other fans opinions than ANY other - and Calvin is exactly right!!
Thank God I’m not the only one who prefers Spectre to the pretentious and awfully thought out Skyfall. It’s not irredeemable at all - the opening action scene is phenomenal - but then it just divulges into franchise maintenance (which by that point it had been going for fifty years and we hadn’t needed to see Bond’s home and his parents) and a bunch of meaningless character drama and action that does not propel the story forward at all. Quantum is still worse, but Skyfall ain’t that much better.
First Craig movies: Let's pay homage to the more gritty Connery era films Spectre: Let's pay homage to Moore's Bond I think the biggest goof in Spectre is lifting a plot point straight from Austin Powers.
Brofeld, the poorly written love story (Vesper 2.0), the Nine-Eyes subplot, Craig's uneven performance (think Connery in YOLT), the bland cinematography, and the boring action (with the exception of the train fight) are many reasons that I dislike Spectre. It makes Die Another Day look like a masterpiece film.
I do think there is a missing Craig Bond film between QoS and Skyfall - a standalone mission where he doesn’t go rogue. I’ve always filled that gap in with Blood Stone and GoldenEye WiiLoaded (I suppose you probably wouldn’t want to include a playthrough of those during your marathon) but it does make the whole “you’re suddenly redundant now” thing feel a little less out of nowhere. Not sure how that would muck up your arc analysis though. The end of Blood Stone does lead into Spectre quite well though. And, who knows, maybe 2010 Trevelyan is part of Spectre too - why not? Everyone else is. Maybe I’m charitable to GE WiiLoaded because it includes one of my favourite Craig Bond moments: “SCIENTIST: Are you going to kill me?! BOND: No! [Bonks him on the head and knocks him out]”
I quite agree the games do a good job of filling that gap. Or at least a couple of them do. Blood Stone in particular fits in very nicely with Spectre as you say.
I always like to imagine in another universe where mgm didn’t go bankrupt, Blood Stone would be the 2010 bond film we get (I do hope they did change the plot up a bit, as blood stone works quite well as a game but not as a film)
@@jacliffh9221 The 2010 film would probably have been a direct follow up to Quantum. The longer gap and the 50th anniversary prompted a rethink to a more stand alone adventure.
A few years ago I did all 24 films over the course of about 5 days. The only big difference I found was how much more I appreciated Dr. No then than in any other viewing (probably because of the anticipation). It did kind of burn me out on Bond for a year, which wasn't fun, so I think approaching it in smaller chunks might be enjoyable.
Spectre on the whole feels very “classical” but with modern trappings. I unabashedly liked it from the start. It reminds me of golden era Connery with all that corny zany ridiculous plot stuff and the brother thing but the cinematography and set design is to die for.
Great words Calvin about the diverse opinions on Bond films. One of the reasons why I love this series, there is a film for every fan. Also I agree about the lunch... don’t know why but I just do not like scrabbled egg with smoked salmon... I too prefer poached with salmon... and with bacon
Another original experience that I recommend: Watching Thunderball and Never Say Never Again both at the same time, on two different screens (with subtitles, otherwise it would be impossible to understand the dialogues.) The two movies have almost the same runtime, and, of course, are based on the same story. I tried this experiment one or two years ago. I must admit that I am not a Bond fan, but watching both movies side by side made me realise how good was Thunderball.
@@eduardoestevezvalinas4737 Diamonds Are Forever through Moonraker, methinks. The 1983 non-EON remake, production values notwithstanding, is jarringly similar to those 1970s "official" entries in tone.
@@bonghunezhou5051 Moonraker?, NSNA is more realistic than that. The tone is a Guy Hamilton's movie without Guy Hamilton. It's more like Thunderball dirercted by Guy Hamilton and It works fine.
Last time I watched QoS was right after Casino Royale, and I remember thinking it was better than I remembered it being before. I think Spectre has made me appreciate QoS more - it has a lot of vibrancy and energy to it. Yes its short run time throws up a lot of plot issues, but at least it doesn’t drag like Spectre does. Strange that it’s had such a renaissance all of a sudden - well, perhaps not strange, it was probably bound to happen sooner or later - but I wonder what the catalyst was. Maybe people have been rewatching the whole series in lockdown and watching QoS when they’d usually skip it. Not sure if it’s bounded up my own rankings, but it has gone up from the 20s to the middle/high teens.
For me the things that were negatives initially (short run time, fast pacing, too different comapred to CR) aren't necessarily negatives anymore, because SPECTRE gave me everything I initially wished QoS had (long run time, slow pacing, similar to Skyfall) and those were the things I felt didn't work, so be careful what you wish for I guess, and if you don't like a Bond movie, just wait 10-15 years and try it again!
QOS has some fantastic “Bond” moments In particular how he deals with the death of Mathis, that scene is a fantastic insight into the bond character for the Craig era.
@@flingymingy Yeah, definitely. One of my favourite Bond moments of the series is the ‘teachers on sabbatical who’ve just won the lottery’ bit - it’s a great bit of Bondian swagger.
Me and my friends did a marathon of the whole series over a long weekend back when we were 16. Well, we intended to, we got to GoldenEye before we called it in. My friends, who enjoy Bond but aren’t massive fans, have since said they have difficulty remembering one from the others and that they all blur together in their mind. Really, I think that was the right age, when we had enough bravado and foolhardiness to think watching that many films in such short a time was a good idea. The one thing I remember is one of my friends becoming aggrivated by Blofeld’s continuous presence in the Connery/Lazenby era (I quote: “why isn’t he dead yet? He should’ve died in the volcano”). Fun to do, but I don’t think I’ll ever do it again.
Ooooft I can’t even imagine doing all 24 films in one go. Did you take breaks for sleep or go right on through? I agree that age helps with these things, I feel like I should probably do it someday but I’d need to pause for sleep and meals etc and I don’t know if that’s fully in the spirit of the marathon 😅
@@calvindyson Yeah we most certainly took breaks for sleep and food. We also took breaks from watching the screen so we didn’t get eye strain, which we filled with rounds of Monopoly, which ended up becoming our main focus (as Monopoly often does). So, yeah, we weren’t the most dedicated Bond marathoners, but, oh well, it was more for the fun of it than to complete any challenge. Heck, it wasn’t even James Bond Monopoly, it was just a plain old London board - I don’t even have a James Bond Monopoly board, it’s just the same game with a different coat of paint, hardly seems worth the money.
Empire magazine did a Bond marathon in the run up to the release of Casino Royale. I can't find the review article of their experience but I found the preview article and this was the schedule!!! SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 30 12.00 Dr. No 13.50 From Russia With Love 15.45 Goldfinger 17.35 Thunderball 19.45 You Only Live Twice 22.00 On Her Majesty's Secret Service SUNDAY OCTOBER 1 00.20 Diamonds Are Forever 02.20 Live & Let Die 04.25 The Man With The Golden Gun 06.30 The Spy Who Loved Me 08.50 Moonraker 10.55 For Your Eyes Only 13.05 Octopussy 15.15 A View To A Kill 17.25 The Living Daylights 19.55 Licence To Kill 22.10 Goldeneye MONDAY OCTOBER 2 00.20 Tomorrow Never Dies 02.20 The World Is Not Enough 04.30 Die Another Day (ends 06.37 approx.) The only thing I can remember about their conclusions was that they though Timothy Dalton might actually be the best Bond, which surprised them.
Brilliant take on Craigs run!! As I said - I did this recently and was surprised that they all actually jelled together much better than I had originally thought! The tone was really consistent throughout all four and as you pointed out - the change in Craig’s performance from film to film is really very impressive to see develop when you watch them all back to back in this way! And yes - this time around - not only did Spectre seem much better to me - but Quantum did as well! (You also made a SERIOUS strategic mistake in covering your ears during Quantum’s opening song - that’s grown on me as well! Lol 😳😳)
I always find it crazy how Sean Connery did like 4 films in 4 years yet Daniel Craig had a 4 year gap between Quantum of solace and Skyfall , and spectre and no time to die
Mr. Green is still one of my favorite villains because he's understated, human, extremely capable, and dangerous. The problem with him being in Quantum of Solace is that he feels like a villain in a movie where the main character has to do more detective work than being a blunt instrument. He feels like he's stepped out of the Harry Palmer universe.
6:26 about the only time I liked Green in that film was when Olga K goes 'you tried to have me killed', he just admits it with a 'nobody's perfect, baby' shrug like he was late back from the pub which I found weirdly amusing.
I don't think the main villain is too realistic as someone with that high of a profile would already be under the microscope. What is realistic is how the CIA and MI6 back up coups just so that the price of raw materials stay low. This is historically accurate. The US has staged coups and they have done it over things as petty as bananas (I'm not joking on that one, just look at Honduras). So that commentary is what I like in the film. Sure it's cynical, but it's to the point.
It's actually based on a very real thing that happened. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_privatization_in_Bolivia It's not for everyone but I really do like the idea of Bond dealing with very real world threats
Today watching Roger Moore in the cannonball run nice interview on the disk about how they wanted Roger to be playing JB and in the end he was playing himself
I’ve settled on my own Bond marathon. Start with OHMSS, miss out DAF, then go through the Moore films. If you try to think of them as being in the same continuity, it works; Bond has been chasing Blofeld in some unseen adventures, and can meet him without being recognised. We then pick up Bond a few years later - he’s a more seasoned, less physical, agent. By this time Bond will have flings with women, but after Tracy’s death he doesn’t ever seek commitment. The mention of Mrs Bond in TSWLM puts flesh on these bones. FYEO ties up the whole Blofeld storyline neatly (if bafflingly, with an offer of a delicatessen in stainless steel), with the same neck brace wearing Blofeld from OHMSS coming up against Bond for the last time. By this point Bond’s age is starting to become a factor - most notably when he rebuffs Bibi’s advances. The following two films seem like a fitting end to Bond’s career; the original M has left (retired?) to be replaced by a promoted Admiral Hargreaves. Bond by now in his ‘50s (let’s be generous and say that Moore is playing a younger man, closer in age to Lazenby), and looking like he should/will retire. And so, that story arc is complete - ending on a Carry-On style “oooh!” in the shower with Stacy, while Q sends in a pervy robot dog. A fun eight film marathon, with only the reappearance of Andrea Anders and Sir Hillary Bray in later films to cause a Moore-esque raised eyebrow. 🤨
Great video, Calvin! Having seen NTTD, it's interesting to look back at how each of the films would (or wouldn't) have been a fitting end to the "Craig arc". We've done a couple of all-day Bond marathons - the first, on July 7, 2007, was a six-film event with one film for each Bond performer. The guests voted in advance for their favorite film for each actor and those were the ones screened. Once again, OHMSS was held up as everyone's favorite Lazenby Bond film! Lots of fun.
Love your newfound respect for Spectre. I can understand it’s not in everyone’s Top 10 but I really dig that film. Particularly on the thing you noted: it finally feels Daniel Craig truly being “James Bond”. Plus I love the visuals and it is way better edited and engaging than QoS to me.
He should have gotten a standalone movie inbetween where he doesn’t go rogue or retires, just a normal mission like in the old movies. What i dont like about his tenure is the whole brother story with blofeld.
Impressed you got through four films in one day. Totally amazing. I saw a double bill, OHMSS and Diamonds are Forever, in the cinema in 1978 and I struggled to get through the second one because four hours in one go was too much.
Not quite a marathon, but at some point last year I decided to watch one Bond film for every lead actor on consecutive nights. I didn't have much of a plan, but they ended up all being darker iterations of the character: 'From Russia', 'OHMSS', 'For your eyes only', 'License to kill', 'The world is not enough' and 'Casino Royale'. Turned out to be very satisfying.
0:19 love it if you reviewed that episode one day! 'Stop getting Bond Wrong'. The Spy who loved me recreation is possibly the funnest Partridge has ever got.
tim dalton has got to be the most underrated bond ever he created the seriousness of an on screen bond, craig just polished it further besides the 80s needed a gritty wake up call after the campiness of Moore
When I graduated high school in 2006, a buddy and I watched every James Bond movie in a row. There were 20 back then. Took us three days. I made a top five and bottom three for films, villains, Bond girls, and theme songs. Back then, I put A View to a Kill in my top 5. I don’t think I would rank it that high anymore, but I think it’s a really fun movie that gets a lot of hate because Moore was so old. The other movies in my original top five were GoldenEye, From Russia with Love, Spy Who Loved Me, Live and Let Die. Top 5 Bond girls were Domino, Tracy, Solitaire, Xenia, Elektra King.
17:53 I for sure got that impression. I was sure having watched Spectre in the Cinema that was Craig signing off [though behind the scenes info indicates he was always going to do a fifth].
SPECTRE is a mid-tier film for me.. I don't dislike it, I'm just disappointed in it. For me, the first two-thirds feel like classic, Connery-era Bond. Craig finally has that "coolness" and swagger that were missing from his first three films. Plus you get a SPECTRE meeting room scene with Blofeld in the shadows, an impossibly strong henchman, etc etc. But it's almost appropriate that, after the train scene, the film goes off the rails. Putting all of the MI6 regulars in the field just made it feel like Mission Impossible and the less said about the whole "adopted brother" thing the better. (God, what a stupid decision...) With a little more polish in that third act, SPECTRE could have easily been the very best Bond film but, alas...no.
The problem with spectre is that Blofeld was finally back, and played by a really good actor. It should have been amazing but it was dull. Linking it to all the past villains felt dumb and pointless.
Something I worry over is Bond reacting to other franchises. While I like Moonraker as an openly and indefensibly guilty pleasure, it surely owes too much to Star Wars, and then when Craig brought Bond back there was due worry that perhaps he was trying a little too hard to be Jason Bourne. Where Spectre loses me is how it reminds me way too much of -- Austin Powers. I grant you, it would have been an interesting little cycle to end Craig's career on -- but it would still have been Austin Powers. In case you don't know, the grand conceit of the Austin Powers movies is that Austin's nemesis, Dr. Evil, is in fact his long lost brother, Dougie Powers. It's bad enough to think of the crises of the world being just an ultimate conspiracy to give Bond a bad day, but whenever I see Christoph Waltz as Blofeld all I can think is "Dougie Bond." Sean Bean as an evil 006 worked well once but was about as self-referential as I wanted to get. Overall, I tend to recoil from theories of world evil which feel much too tidy.
Calvin I think you hit the nail on the head regarding QoS as a character piece over a fun plot, but that's kinda why I dig it. That said, I think Casino Royale has the perfect blend of both, which is why it's better.
We see "Bond" kill someone and suffer from it, and he even gets beaten up before Casino R. He kills someone before the guy in the black and white sequence. XXXX kills Jimmy in Layer Cake. That was I think the reason DC was hired. I think to think of being a drug dealer as this Bond's previous life. That was the most unpolished, young opposite to the rounded, been-there-done-that Bond that he has become in Spectre. And no, I'm not saying it's a codename.
After seeing Quantum again I noticed the cool monologue from Dominic as he shows Camille the body in the water and talks about his anger issues. I've never noticed this before and nobody ever talks about it which is such a shame because its decent enough dialogue and if this had been shot and edited correctly it could have been just like Silvas iconic rats speech.
I played the 2010 Goldeneye (Wii version) throughout my childhood, and Trevelyan is actually a great villain even though his story about bankers and bonuses doesn't really make sense😂😂😂 After watching Spectre, it may be assumed that he was also a pawn working for Blofeld!!! Especially when Blofeld says "you came across me so many times yet never saw me"
Glad you were able to appreciate Spectre this go round. I've always loved how the whole Craig era has been about the deconstruction/reconstruction of Bond. Don't know how NTTD will fit into it, but Spectre felt like the final piece of the reconstruction. It's Craig's most traditional Bond movie. Big, brash, and just a bit silly.
I usually watch all the Bond films once a year. From Dr No to Spectre, not in one day but one film per day. It's a bit of a ritual of mine at this point.
Come and live in the UK, they're never off the TV - at least the pre-Brosnan ones aren't.... except the original Casino Royale which they only show occasionally.
Did something very similar in early 2020, thinking the new movie was only around the corner. My observations: Casino Royale is awesome. Quantum of Solace: We need a directors cut, preferably with a different director. Skyfall: How are they ever going to top this? Spectre: They couldn't top Skyfall... the ending is worth it though. and finally after how long?! No Time to Die is definitely an entire third act on its own.
You inspired me to do the same, and I definitely left with a greater appreciation for the era. However, I found that I enjoyed Quantum a lot more (the villain's plot, the CIA and MI6 corruption, and Bond and Camille's parallel revenge plots were all wonderful and yet nice and concise). Spectre, on the other hand, is okay but still dreadfully boring. Casino Royale is of course the G.O.A.T. and Skyfall is beautifully made but suffers from a little fridge logic (which is ultimately unimportant, as you said in the video). All in all, even if they go back to more episodic films after NTTD, it's nice knowing that they tried, and succeeded, to make Bond a deeper series with more intricate plot threads and fuller characterization. I don't mind that Craig's Bond didn't have a "traditional mission" movie, because the whole point is that it's a deconstruction of Bond, what motivates him, how he sees the world, etc. I can't think of any of the first 20 films that even try to get into Bond's head or try to tell a story with a meaningful theme, either psychological or geopolitical (correct me if I'm wrong). Also, I don't think he "becomes Bond" at the end of Skyfall. He's Bond from the very beginning. By Skyfall, he's a seasoned agent who needs a reminder that he's not washed up, and I think bringing back the more traditional M, the old office, Moneypenny, etc was more a nod to the 50th anniversary and a meta-commentary on the franchise itself rather than any statement about "he's the real Bond now".
I did a Craig re watch recently over the course of a weekend, I was a pretty big hater of the Craig films but when watched in sequential order I actually really came to absolutely love them. Quantum went from my least favorite to somewhere in the middle of my ranking, it totally helps to watch after CR. Skyfall is top tier and Spectres art style and first half of film is excellent, I really enjoyed it too recently. Very much looking forward to NTTD now after being somewhat agnostic on it
Before Spectre, I did all the Bond films in release order, though spread out over a couple of weeks rather than a marathon, which would be brutal. The results I had, as I recall: * Connery's performance in the first four evolves from fresh to confident to seasoned, but great all the way through. But he's kinda going through the motions in YOLT, earning his paycheck but no more, and then not even earning his paycheck in DAF, but then comes back swinging in NSNA. *OHMSS has always been one of my favorites, but it elevated this time; it's a perfect send-off to '60s Bond. *DAF lands with a damp thud coming straight off of OHMSS. *Three Guy Hamiltons in a row is torture. *Once you get to Spy Who Loved Me, the Moore films are remarkably fun to watch in a row. View to a Kill may be the weakest of the back five (though I'll still take it over LALD and TMWTGG), but Moore is just so suave by that point that he carries it a surprisingly long way. Aged, but like a fine wine he would lecture you on. *Even so, Dalton's performance in The Living Daylights is the best performance by any actor as Bond in the quarter-century after From Russia With Love. He's absolutely on fire. *Goldeneye both feels very much like the completely different decade that it is from Licence To Kill, and yet thematically seems to flow out of it pretty well. *DAD aged way better than I expected. Was one of my least favorites in '02, but while it's the least of the Brosnans, it's pretty dang watchable, and rather than looking horribly dated, the gratuitous CGI climax just looks and feels like every blockbuster climax these days. *While I think Connery, Dalton, and Craig all maybe peak higher, Brosnan gives the most consistently excellent performance of the Bonds. (Which is saying something next to Dalton and Craig, who never phone it in.) *Nothing will ever make Casino Royale not absolutely rule. Even after all that Bond, it's still just a brilliant movie.
Thanks very much for this detailed rundown, JJ! Made for a great read and you may well have just persuaded me to try this kind of marathon for Connery, Moore & Brosnan too! Thanks again, great read!
Thats great man, thamks for sharing. I watched all the Bonds in a row with Bond 1 week after another in the summer of 1999 when ITV did thier '00 Heaven season' . my perception of Bond changed dramatically
Very, very interesting analysis! The 'tying loose ends up' thing is fascinating to me, as that was Spectre's promise, and you look back on it having succeeded if it had been Craig's last. But now there's No Time To Die, with Craig explicitly stating they wanted to bring everything together and tie everything up. So Mendes wrapped a bow around Bond's story, and Fukunaga has now made that bow undone in the hopes to re-tie it better, which I find very courageous. And I think Fukunaga might succeed in doing so, as those two halves (CR & QOS and SF & SP) might get connected better. With Felix coming back, a new rookie agent at MI6 and a retread of 'Bond is finished' from SF, with continuing parallels between Vesper and Madeleine and the theme of betrayal ("Fool me once, fool me twice"), I think NTTD has more going for it than SP had in terms of thematic call-backs.
Skyfall is just a gorgeous, beautiful movie. The cinematography elevated a great Bond story. I have lost track of how many times I've watched Casino Royal and Skyfall to make times to count. I have even seen Quantum several times. I am honestly surprised that I have only seen Spectre once in the theater. I might have to binge them this weekend.
I thought of Connery right away, but for a different reason. The early Bond films were done with an eye towards preserving the plot lines and feel of the books, while later Bond films were more "Sci-Fi". The Moonraker film was almost nothing like the novel, and Octopussy only had the title in common with the book. I loved seeing Casino Royal finally given a true film treatment instead of the Lampoon that was the first film.
Also, I think the the Craig-Bond movies "even out" a little when watched in the context of one binge sitting (or close to it). There you see a complete story and complete character development, but it really does accentuate the time gap between Quantum and Skyfall.
When I was living in a hostel in Berlin during Covid me and a friend marathoned them all (slightly out of order as we didnt plan it and Goldeneye is my fave so it was a birthday choice) with my hostel mates (one in particular who I shared the room with) we had a revolving door of guests like the fella who fell asleep during thunderball (it wasn't to do with the film haha) will always treasure those memories and wondering about NTTD at the time and having my November 12th birthday plans dashed (was trying to figure out a way to have my bond fanatic father see it with me which I was able to do in the end thanks to the delays) would love an experience like that again. Watched you a lot at the time too. Just popped into my mind rewatching this video to post this today. Much love from Connery's homeland ❤
I just watched all 5 today, and other than Quantum of Solace I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think the Craig ones are the most consistent in quality for me, I've never gotten the hate for Spectre. But also I kinda look at the Dalton ones and Goldeneye as a thematic trilogy in a way since each one seems to play on loyalty and the lines between friends and enemies being blurry in the living daylights and goldeneye, and in license to kill Bond's main motivation is out of loyalty to his friend
I've always been a big defender of Spectre. I have various issues with it, but I think what it comes down to is that many of the people who dislike it actually don't take into account many of the filmmaking aspects behind it. Sure the writing could be punched up a bit more, but it's still got gorgeous cinematography, it's well directed, I think it's well paced, acted, and the actual story involving global surveillance was extremely prevalent at the time.
It's actually my second favourite Bond film behind CR. I'm not sure where NTTD fits in among all this, since I only saw it today, but I like Léa Seydoux and she's in both SPECTRE and that, so...
I’ve done it with all the Lazenby films ;) but all jokes aside, great video Cal. Always fun to hear how people’s opinions can change to the situation. Although CR and SF are still superior to QOS and SP
Lol at you covering your ears when "Another Way To Die" started playing 😂😂. I too rewatched the Craig movies (not all in one day and in a different order) and gotta say Casino Royale and Skyfall were the best out of the bunch!
18:09 Agreed. Bond was doing what M (Dench) wanted, to not always go all trigger happy. Even M (Fiennes) said it earlier in the film, "A license to kill is a license to not kill." Blofeld was a useful asset. I'd love to see you do a marathon with all 5 films someday.
I have to admit QoS has really rose up in my rankings... and I have to tend to agree with the reappraisals. However the shakey cam and the fast cut between Mathis’ villa and the plane still leaves me indifferent.
@4:43 I TOTALLY AGREE! I love too that there is a diversity of opinion. It is sad that nowadays, opinions about movies (and about a lot of other subjects) are so formatted and predictable (the Star Wars movies are a great example of that.)
I recently watched all five on consecutive nights, but I've never done more than one in a single day. I'd love to see you do this again with No Time to Die added.
I think playing through BloodStone between QOS and SF works the best. I mean if I had to travel all around the world fighting all those middle aged guys I’d too feel old and seasoned
That's impressive. Closest I've come to Marathoning, was a Star Wars Marathon. I watched them in order 1 through 9, 1 for each day. Crazy thing was it was meant to only be 1 through 8, but the 9th one landed on a slow weekend, so I went to the Theater to finish it. One thing I will say about both of these Marathons. you catch a lot more brides between the movies that way.
I've thought for some time (and this may not be a unique opinion) that QoS would have been much better if the final scene from Casino Royale was actually the start of the next movie. If CR had finished with Bond and Vesper being together on the boat it would have been a typical bond ending, he gets the girl and all loose ends tied up. QoS then opens with Bond finding out Vesper has betrayed him and the whole Venice scenes... cue the theme song. The film then properly starts with Bond tracking down Mr White and continues with him in the back of the car. Whilst I really enjoy CR, it's quite long and the Venice scene clearly adds to the run time. In contrast, QoS is relatively short by current blockbuster standards and adding the Venice scene to the beginning resolves both of those issues. It also helps to make the revenge aspect of QoS much more relevant, especially if you don't watch them consecutively.
Great video! I don't normally do movie marathons, but last year I did. Last summer, I watched every official Bond film, a Bond film was watched every day (roughly). My perspective on certain films did shift. Marathoning the Moore era was interesting as was marathoning the Brosnan era. It'll be interesting to see how NTTD wraps the Craig era up, I doubt it'll be too open-ended as Bond 26 will almost certainly reboot the series once again.
I got into Bond in the summer of 1997 thanks to GoldenEye for the N64. Rented the VHS. Then caught TND in theaters that December. I then took it upon myself to watch them all, so every weekend for a month, I went to my local Blockbuster Video and rented them three at a time and would watch them overnight Saturday into Sunday. I can't say that I appreciated them then at 14 as I do now.
I watched most of the movies back in December and January, up to Licence to Kill. You Only Live Twice stood out because it was the first Bond movie that was kind of wacky and campy, and even though it's a fun movie, I think that making it before OHMSS (even though the book was the sequel to OHMSS) was a huge mistake. If OHMSS had been made first and then YOLT (assuming Connery had stayed on for both films) it could have been a solid conclusion to his version of the character (also assuming they would ignore YOLT the book's ending for something more positive).
I've been subscribed to your channel for a little over a year now and I'm not sure if you've done it in the past, but similar to watching all the Craig films back to back, what about watching each actors first films back to back(probably leaving out Lazenby since he only did one anyway) and then another of each actors last films. Or each individual actors first and last films to see the growth they had in the role and how they changed and "became" Bond as you said of Craig in Spectre. Again, not sure if you have done this, but it's a cool idea. Great content and keep up the good work.
I did a full 23 Bond movie "marathon" over the course of about a month in the summer of 2013 and it's what made me a Bond fan. That marathon was the first time I'd ever seen the majority of Bond films. Growing up, I thought I was a Bond fan, but I found out after seeing Casino Royale in 2006 that I was just a Pierce Brosnan fan. (Casino Royale is my favorite Bond film now, but I was 12 when it came out and it fell flat for me at the time. Too different from what I was used to at the time & I didn't like change!) By the time Skyfall came out I was 16 and had pretty much forgotten about Bond. One day a friend and I were looking for something to do & decided to go see Skyfall because we heard it was pretty good. I came out of the theater blown away and with a fresh love of Bond. The next summer in 2013, I hung out with a different friend and we got started talking about Bond and he pulled out the huge Bond 50 Anniversary Blu Ray box set. At his recommendation we watched From Russia With Love and Goldfinger (my first time ever seeing both) and I was hooked. I soon found a good price for a used copy of the Bond 50 box set and bought it for myself. Then over the next month I watched them all, starting from the beginning. Again, this was my first time seeing pretty much all of the films (I saw License to Kill at some point as a kid. It's the only non-Brosnan or Craig film I'd ever seen before this summer). I loved the Connery Era (including Diamonds, even though it's my lowest ranking Bond film now), thought On Her Majesty's Secret Service was an absolute gem, embraced the silliness of the Moore era (even if it wasn't quite my cup of tea), thought The Living Daylights was alright, but loved License to Kill, had a full on nostalgia blast during the Brosnan films, and then was shaken to the core when I re-watched Casino Royale and realized what a masterpiece it was and how wrong I was about it for so long. Then I finished it off with QoS and re-watched Skyfall again for the first time since that fateful day at the movies which started all of this). I'll admit some of them blurred together for me as I had trouble remembering which villains/evil plots went with which movie during the late Connery/Moore era, but I loved the experience and didn't really dislike any particular film. I'll also admit to being incredibly confused by Blofeld being played by a different actor every single time he appears and thinking he'd died on multiple occasions (such as in the Volcano in YOLT & when the oil platform blew up in Diamonds). I was really thrown threw a loop by his completely random resurfacing and prompt disposal in For Your Eyes Only as I wasn't aware of the meta-context of that moment. I've since become a mega Bond fan and now know all of the movies like the back of my hand and thoroughly enjoy this channel, particularly the deep debates you do with other Bond UA-camrs!
Isn't it ironic how, despite the flashy "attention grabbing" filmmaking, QoS still ends up being so uninvolving? Goes to show how important a compelling story is.
I don't doubt that when they shot Quantum of Solace, they got enough footage. But I always get the feeling that the editor was trying to convince me otherwise.
Can’t wait to see the ‘I Watched The Whole George Lazenby Bond Film’ episode
😁
speedrun edition
You should do a marathon of Brosnan’s movies. That way you can see his evolution as an agent betrayed by a close friend all the way up to him awkwardly pronouncing “mojito”.
‘The Evolution of Pain Face’ 😂
@@calvindyson GoldenEye - best Bond movie ever and 5th best movie of all time
Tomorrow Never Dies - really good
The World Is Not Enough - bad
Die Another Day - pain, but I have good memories
GoldenEye-Not as ground breaking as people said at the time [Unlike Casino Royale] but a great bond film.
Tomorrow Never Dies-Suffers from production issues and pretty average but solid.
The world is not enough-tries to be serious and campy and just ends up being dull.
Die another day-Shark has truly been jumped.
Goldeneye-Awesome.
Tomorrow Never Dies-Flawed but enjoyable.
The World is Not Enough-Not perfect, but also underrated.
Die Another Day-Dumpster fire.
Yeah if I were to watch all the Brosnan's back to back I would do it in reverse order so each film would be better than the last
I love how you keep your ears closed as “Another way to die” plays.
One thing I love about your channel is how you’re always happy to talk about the different opinions on the films. You don’t shy away from your own thoughts, even when they go against the grain, but you also don’t dismiss other perspectives. I personally prefer Spectre to Skyfall, which many in the fandom would call sacrilege. But while I would expect some teasing from you, I think if we were to have a discussion about it we would both come away from it having had a good time.
Thanks, Magnus! I’m happy that comes across. It’s weird when people get genuinely angry and/or confrontational with others for having different opinions on films. Particularly Bond which is SUCH a broad church of tastes. Of course it’s fun to joke and tease but I’d certainly never get confrontational with anyone over liking or not liking a Bond film 😅😅
Absolutely!
My daughter has a UA-cam Channel and on there, they comment on all sorts of Movies and TV shows so they encounter all KINDS of
Ummm...intense....and VERY opinionated fan bases! Lol
The Bond community is by far the coolest and most respectful of other fans opinions than ANY other - and Calvin is exactly right!!
Thank God I’m not the only one who prefers Spectre to the pretentious and awfully thought out Skyfall. It’s not irredeemable at all - the opening action scene is phenomenal - but then it just divulges into franchise maintenance (which by that point it had been going for fifty years and we hadn’t needed to see Bond’s home and his parents) and a bunch of meaningless character drama and action that does not propel the story forward at all. Quantum is still worse, but Skyfall ain’t that much better.
First Craig movies: Let's pay homage to the more gritty Connery era films
Spectre: Let's pay homage to Moore's Bond
I think the biggest goof in Spectre is lifting a plot point straight from Austin Powers.
Brofeld, the poorly written love story (Vesper 2.0), the Nine-Eyes subplot, Craig's uneven performance (think Connery in YOLT), the bland cinematography, and the boring action (with the exception of the train fight) are many reasons that I dislike Spectre. It makes Die Another Day look like a masterpiece film.
I do think there is a missing Craig Bond film between QoS and Skyfall - a standalone mission where he doesn’t go rogue. I’ve always filled that gap in with Blood Stone and GoldenEye WiiLoaded (I suppose you probably wouldn’t want to include a playthrough of those during your marathon) but it does make the whole “you’re suddenly redundant now” thing feel a little less out of nowhere. Not sure how that would muck up your arc analysis though. The end of Blood Stone does lead into Spectre quite well though. And, who knows, maybe 2010 Trevelyan is part of Spectre too - why not? Everyone else is. Maybe I’m charitable to GE WiiLoaded because it includes one of my favourite Craig Bond moments:
“SCIENTIST: Are you going to kill me?!
BOND: No! [Bonks him on the head and knocks him out]”
I quite agree the games do a good job of filling that gap. Or at least a couple of them do. Blood Stone in particular fits in very nicely with Spectre as you say.
I always like to imagine in another universe where mgm didn’t go bankrupt, Blood Stone would be the 2010 bond film we get (I do hope they did change the plot up a bit, as blood stone works quite well as a game but not as a film)
@@jacliffh9221 The 2010 film would probably have been a direct follow up to Quantum. The longer gap and the 50th anniversary prompted a rethink to a more stand alone adventure.
@@jamesatkinsonja Which would have been fine if they then didn't leap onto Spectre. Instead give the Quantum story a satisfying conclusion.
I’d watch a Mallory spinoff not to mention finally a Moneypenny one
A few years ago I did all 24 films over the course of about 5 days. The only big difference I found was how much more I appreciated Dr. No then than in any other viewing (probably because of the anticipation). It did kind of burn me out on Bond for a year, which wasn't fun, so I think approaching it in smaller chunks might be enjoyable.
Spectre on the whole feels very “classical” but with modern trappings. I unabashedly liked it from the start. It reminds me of golden era Connery with all that corny zany ridiculous plot stuff and the brother thing but the cinematography and set design is to die for.
Great words Calvin about the diverse opinions on Bond films. One of the reasons why I love this series, there is a film for every fan. Also I agree about the lunch... don’t know why but I just do not like scrabbled egg with smoked salmon... I too prefer poached with salmon... and with bacon
Another original experience that I recommend: Watching Thunderball and Never Say Never Again both at the same time, on two different screens (with subtitles, otherwise it would be impossible to understand the dialogues.) The two movies have almost the same runtime, and, of course, are based on the same story. I tried this experiment one or two years ago. I must admit that I am not a Bond fan, but watching both movies side by side made me realise how good was Thunderball.
NSNA is more like Goldfinger or Diamonds are forever. That's the point.
@@eduardoestevezvalinas4737 Diamonds Are Forever through Moonraker, methinks. The 1983 non-EON remake, production values notwithstanding, is jarringly similar to those 1970s "official" entries in tone.
@@bonghunezhou5051 Moonraker?, NSNA is more realistic than that. The tone is a Guy Hamilton's movie without Guy Hamilton. It's more like Thunderball dirercted by Guy Hamilton and It works fine.
maybe I need to rewatch Thunderball again sometime but I remember actually enjoying NSNA over Thunderball in comparison.
Casino Royale and Skyfall are the best James Bond films of The Craig era.
Easily.
Hands down!
I agree except Spectre is my guilty pleasure.
By a million miles. So funny two of each Craig movie is in both best and worst in my ranking.
QoS is the best Craig Bond film.
Last time I watched QoS was right after Casino Royale, and I remember thinking it was better than I remembered it being before. I think Spectre has made me appreciate QoS more - it has a lot of vibrancy and energy to it. Yes its short run time throws up a lot of plot issues, but at least it doesn’t drag like Spectre does. Strange that it’s had such a renaissance all of a sudden - well, perhaps not strange, it was probably bound to happen sooner or later - but I wonder what the catalyst was. Maybe people have been rewatching the whole series in lockdown and watching QoS when they’d usually skip it. Not sure if it’s bounded up my own rankings, but it has gone up from the 20s to the middle/high teens.
I liked QoS much more the second time also. Likewise, perhaps give Spectre a rewatch.
For me the things that were negatives initially (short run time, fast pacing, too different comapred to CR) aren't necessarily negatives anymore, because SPECTRE gave me everything I initially wished QoS had (long run time, slow pacing, similar to Skyfall) and those were the things I felt didn't work, so be careful what you wish for I guess, and if you don't like a Bond movie, just wait 10-15 years and try it again!
No, QoS will always remain an unwatchable, incoherent, drab piece of crap.
QOS has some fantastic “Bond” moments
In particular how he deals with the death of Mathis, that scene is a fantastic insight into the bond character for the Craig era.
@@flingymingy Yeah, definitely. One of my favourite Bond moments of the series is the ‘teachers on sabbatical who’ve just won the lottery’ bit - it’s a great bit of Bondian swagger.
Me and my friends did a marathon of the whole series over a long weekend back when we were 16. Well, we intended to, we got to GoldenEye before we called it in. My friends, who enjoy Bond but aren’t massive fans, have since said they have difficulty remembering one from the others and that they all blur together in their mind. Really, I think that was the right age, when we had enough bravado and foolhardiness to think watching that many films in such short a time was a good idea. The one thing I remember is one of my friends becoming aggrivated by Blofeld’s continuous presence in the Connery/Lazenby era (I quote: “why isn’t he dead yet? He should’ve died in the volcano”). Fun to do, but I don’t think I’ll ever do it again.
Ooooft I can’t even imagine doing all 24 films in one go. Did you take breaks for sleep or go right on through? I agree that age helps with these things, I feel like I should probably do it someday but I’d need to pause for sleep and meals etc and I don’t know if that’s fully in the spirit of the marathon 😅
@@calvindyson Yeah we most certainly took breaks for sleep and food. We also took breaks from watching the screen so we didn’t get eye strain, which we filled with rounds of Monopoly, which ended up becoming our main focus (as Monopoly often does). So, yeah, we weren’t the most dedicated Bond marathoners, but, oh well, it was more for the fun of it than to complete any challenge. Heck, it wasn’t even James Bond Monopoly, it was just a plain old London board - I don’t even have a James Bond Monopoly board, it’s just the same game with a different coat of paint, hardly seems worth the money.
@@calvindyson If you had to pick ONE actor to play James Bond after Daniel Craig leaves, who would you pick and why?
Empire magazine did a Bond marathon in the run up to the release of Casino Royale. I can't find the review article of their experience but I found the preview article and this was the schedule!!!
SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 30
12.00 Dr. No
13.50 From Russia With Love
15.45 Goldfinger
17.35 Thunderball
19.45 You Only Live Twice
22.00 On Her Majesty's Secret Service
SUNDAY OCTOBER 1
00.20 Diamonds Are Forever
02.20 Live & Let Die
04.25 The Man With The Golden Gun
06.30 The Spy Who Loved Me
08.50 Moonraker
10.55 For Your Eyes Only
13.05 Octopussy
15.15 A View To A Kill
17.25 The Living Daylights
19.55 Licence To Kill
22.10 Goldeneye
MONDAY OCTOBER 2
00.20 Tomorrow Never Dies
02.20 The World Is Not Enough
04.30 Die Another Day (ends 06.37 approx.)
The only thing I can remember about their conclusions was that they though Timothy Dalton might actually be the best Bond, which surprised them.
If you do the Brosnan marathon, in the end you will become Calvin Dyson in a body of a North Korean.
Dai Sun Kim, eh?
I always felt that Skyfall followed the pacing of a Fleming novel rather than the previous Bond films.
How do you figure that ?
Good
It's awful
@@guileniam ?
@@guileniam You're awful
This is why love the Craig bond movies. They all flow as one big narrative
Brilliant take on Craigs run!!
As I said - I did this recently and was surprised that they all actually jelled together much better than I had originally thought!
The tone was really consistent throughout all four and as you pointed out - the change in Craig’s performance from film to film is really very impressive to see develop when you watch them all back to back in this way!
And yes - this time around - not only did Spectre seem much better to me - but Quantum did as well!
(You also made a SERIOUS strategic mistake in covering your ears during Quantum’s opening song - that’s grown on me as well! Lol 😳😳)
I can’t EVER imagine that song growing on me but saying that I never thought Spectre could grow on me and here we are 😅
I always find it crazy how Sean Connery did like 4 films in 4 years yet Daniel Craig had a 4 year gap between Quantum of solace and Skyfall , and spectre and no time to die
Mr. Green is still one of my favorite villains because he's understated, human, extremely capable, and dangerous. The problem with him being in Quantum of Solace is that he feels like a villain in a movie where the main character has to do more detective work than being a blunt instrument. He feels like he's stepped out of the Harry Palmer universe.
I like Greene better than Brofeld lol
6:26 about the only time I liked Green in that film was when Olga K goes 'you tried to have me killed', he just admits it with a 'nobody's perfect, baby' shrug like he was late back from the pub which I found weirdly amusing.
YEs me too
The one thing I really like about Quantum of Solace is that the villain's evil plan is super realistic. That's about it.
It is.But not too menacing. A Banker would have done ten times the damage of green...but irl
Confused Matthew identified this too, although he also discovered it was milquetoast compared to a similar scheme that actually happened IRL
I don't think the main villain is too realistic as someone with that high of a profile would already be under the microscope. What is realistic is how the CIA and MI6 back up coups just so that the price of raw materials stay low. This is historically accurate. The US has staged coups and they have done it over things as petty as bananas (I'm not joking on that one, just look at Honduras). So that commentary is what I like in the film. Sure it's cynical, but it's to the point.
It's actually based on a very real thing that happened. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_privatization_in_Bolivia
It's not for everyone but I really do like the idea of Bond dealing with very real world threats
@@goblintwo And the current film feels a lot like the whole Covid situation, both the reality and the wilder ideas about it.
Today watching Roger Moore in the cannonball run nice interview on the disk about how they wanted Roger to be playing JB and in the end he was playing himself
I remember reading about that in Roger’s autobiography! Nice that he felt so loyal to the character and to Cubby to not directly play Bond in a parody
He was great fun in that.
Glad to see you had a slightly better experience with SPECTRE this go around. It's my personal favorite of Craig's tenure.
Spectre is pure trash
Spectre is horrid
I’ve settled on my own Bond marathon. Start with OHMSS, miss out DAF, then go through the Moore films. If you try to think of them as being in the same continuity, it works; Bond has been chasing Blofeld in some unseen adventures, and can meet him without being recognised. We then pick up Bond a few years later - he’s a more seasoned, less physical, agent. By this time Bond will have flings with women, but after Tracy’s death he doesn’t ever seek commitment. The mention of Mrs Bond in TSWLM puts flesh on these bones. FYEO ties up the whole Blofeld storyline neatly (if bafflingly, with an offer of a delicatessen in stainless steel), with the same neck brace wearing Blofeld from OHMSS coming up against Bond for the last time. By this point Bond’s age is starting to become a factor - most notably when he rebuffs Bibi’s advances. The following two films seem like a fitting end to Bond’s career; the original M has left (retired?) to be replaced by a promoted Admiral Hargreaves. Bond by now in his ‘50s (let’s be generous and say that Moore is playing a younger man, closer in age to Lazenby), and looking like he should/will retire. And so, that story arc is complete - ending on a Carry-On style “oooh!” in the shower with Stacy, while Q sends in a pervy robot dog.
A fun eight film marathon, with only the reappearance of Andrea Anders and Sir Hillary Bray in later films to cause a Moore-esque raised eyebrow. 🤨
Yes!! That’s brilliant! That works perfectly
Great video, Calvin! Having seen NTTD, it's interesting to look back at how each of the films would (or wouldn't) have been a fitting end to the "Craig arc". We've done a couple of all-day Bond marathons - the first, on July 7, 2007, was a six-film event with one film for each Bond performer. The guests voted in advance for their favorite film for each actor and those were the ones screened. Once again, OHMSS was held up as everyone's favorite Lazenby Bond film! Lots of fun.
I appreciated how positive your thoughts were in this video. Craig's Bond era has been incredible.
Yes, incredibly shite
Love your newfound respect for Spectre. I can understand it’s not in everyone’s Top 10 but I really dig that film. Particularly on the thing you noted: it finally feels Daniel Craig truly being “James Bond”. Plus I love the visuals and it is way better edited and engaging than QoS to me.
Yeah, love the unexplicable Stockholm Syndrome for a lazy, overly produced piece of garbage
He should have gotten a standalone movie inbetween where he doesn’t go rogue or retires, just a normal mission like in the old movies. What i dont like about his tenure is the whole brother story with blofeld.
Impressed you got through four films in one day. Totally amazing. I saw a double bill, OHMSS and Diamonds are Forever, in the cinema in 1978 and I struggled to get through the second one because four hours in one go was too much.
Everyone needs a pee break to be honest.
Never fancied marathon-ing the whole series continously, would drove me insane. Every period per actor would do it nicely.
Especially the George Lazenby era. Gosh, you won't believe how long it will take to watch all his films
@@qeetuhd 😆😄😆
I marathon the series all the time, in fact that’s the only way I will watch James Bond
Another Calvin video! My day is brightened!
Not quite a marathon, but at some point last year I decided to watch one Bond film for every lead actor on consecutive nights. I didn't have much of a plan, but they ended up all being darker iterations of the character: 'From Russia', 'OHMSS', 'For your eyes only', 'License to kill', 'The world is not enough' and 'Casino Royale'. Turned out to be very satisfying.
I think this is about ready for an update, Calvin. ❤
0:19 love it if you reviewed that episode one day! 'Stop getting Bond Wrong'. The Spy who loved me recreation is possibly the funnest Partridge has ever got.
tim dalton has got to be the most underrated bond ever
he created the seriousness of an on screen bond, craig just polished it further
besides the 80s needed a gritty wake up call after the campiness of Moore
Bob Holness is the most underrated Bond ever.
When I graduated high school in 2006, a buddy and I watched every James Bond movie in a row. There were 20 back then. Took us three days. I made a top five and bottom three for films, villains, Bond girls, and theme songs.
Back then, I put A View to a Kill in my top 5. I don’t think I would rank it that high anymore, but I think it’s a really fun movie that gets a lot of hate because Moore was so old.
The other movies in my original top five were GoldenEye, From Russia with Love, Spy Who Loved Me, Live and Let Die.
Top 5 Bond girls were Domino, Tracy, Solitaire, Xenia, Elektra King.
17:53 I for sure got that impression. I was sure having watched Spectre in the Cinema that was Craig signing off [though behind the scenes info indicates he was always going to do a fifth].
PS. I agree 100%, in Spectre, Craig gives his most "Bondian" performance.
SPECTRE is a mid-tier film for me.. I don't dislike it, I'm just disappointed in it. For me, the first two-thirds feel like classic, Connery-era Bond. Craig finally has that "coolness" and swagger that were missing from his first three films. Plus you get a SPECTRE meeting room scene with Blofeld in the shadows, an impossibly strong henchman, etc etc. But it's almost appropriate that, after the train scene, the film goes off the rails. Putting all of the MI6 regulars in the field just made it feel like Mission Impossible and the less said about the whole "adopted brother" thing the better. (God, what a stupid decision...)
With a little more polish in that third act, SPECTRE could have easily been the very best Bond film but, alas...no.
The problem with spectre is that Blofeld was finally back, and played by a really good actor. It should have been amazing but it was dull. Linking it to all the past villains felt dumb and pointless.
That fast forward camera through Quantum of Solace is going at the speed of light. God I wish this film had better editing.
I would love it if someone took the raw footage from QoS and re edited the opening scene as there is some amazing stunt work there.
@@RighteousBrother yeah I agree, also re-edit to remove the horse race from that other action scene because it adds absolutely nothing
Something I worry over is Bond reacting to other franchises. While I like Moonraker as an openly and indefensibly guilty pleasure, it surely owes too much to Star Wars, and then when Craig brought Bond back there was due worry that perhaps he was trying a little too hard to be Jason Bourne. Where Spectre loses me is how it reminds me way too much of -- Austin Powers. I grant you, it would have been an interesting little cycle to end Craig's career on -- but it would still have been Austin Powers. In case you don't know, the grand conceit of the Austin Powers movies is that Austin's nemesis, Dr. Evil, is in fact his long lost brother, Dougie Powers. It's bad enough to think of the crises of the world being just an ultimate conspiracy to give Bond a bad day, but whenever I see Christoph Waltz as Blofeld all I can think is "Dougie Bond." Sean Bean as an evil 006 worked well once but was about as self-referential as I wanted to get. Overall, I tend to recoil from theories of world evil which feel much too tidy.
Calvin I think you hit the nail on the head regarding QoS as a character piece over a fun plot, but that's kinda why I dig it. That said, I think Casino Royale has the perfect blend of both, which is why it's better.
We see "Bond" kill someone and suffer from it, and he even gets beaten up before Casino R. He kills someone before the guy in the black and white sequence. XXXX kills Jimmy in Layer Cake. That was I think the reason DC was hired. I think to think of being a drug dealer as this Bond's previous life. That was the most unpolished, young opposite to the rounded, been-there-done-that Bond that he has become in Spectre. And no, I'm not saying it's a codename.
Fantastic video as ever! The fingers in the ears and general displeasure as 'another way to die' plays being my highlight!
After seeing Quantum again I noticed the cool monologue from Dominic as he shows Camille the body in the water and talks about his anger issues. I've never noticed this before and nobody ever talks about it which is such a shame because its decent enough dialogue and if this had been shot and edited correctly it could have been just like Silvas iconic rats speech.
I played the 2010 Goldeneye (Wii version) throughout my childhood, and Trevelyan is actually a great villain even though his story about bankers and bonuses doesn't really make sense😂😂😂 After watching Spectre, it may be assumed that he was also a pawn working for Blofeld!!! Especially when Blofeld says "you came across me so many times yet never saw me"
Glad you were able to appreciate Spectre this go round. I've always loved how the whole Craig era has been about the deconstruction/reconstruction of Bond. Don't know how NTTD will fit into it, but Spectre felt like the final piece of the reconstruction. It's Craig's most traditional Bond movie. Big, brash, and just a bit silly.
I usually watch all the Bond films once a year. From Dr No to Spectre, not in one day but one film per day. It's a bit of a ritual of mine at this point.
Come and live in the UK, they're never off the TV - at least the pre-Brosnan ones aren't.... except the original Casino Royale which they only show occasionally.
@@thursoberwick1948 I love the UK! Only been there once a few years ago but all my entertainment comes form there. I"m also a huge F1 fan.
Did something very similar in early 2020, thinking the new movie was only around the corner. My observations:
Casino Royale is awesome.
Quantum of Solace: We need a directors cut, preferably with a different director.
Skyfall: How are they ever going to top this?
Spectre: They couldn't top Skyfall... the ending is worth it though.
and finally after how long?!
No Time to Die is definitely an entire third act on its own.
You inspired me to do the same, and I definitely left with a greater appreciation for the era. However, I found that I enjoyed Quantum a lot more (the villain's plot, the CIA and MI6 corruption, and Bond and Camille's parallel revenge plots were all wonderful and yet nice and concise). Spectre, on the other hand, is okay but still dreadfully boring. Casino Royale is of course the G.O.A.T. and Skyfall is beautifully made but suffers from a little fridge logic (which is ultimately unimportant, as you said in the video).
All in all, even if they go back to more episodic films after NTTD, it's nice knowing that they tried, and succeeded, to make Bond a deeper series with more intricate plot threads and fuller characterization. I don't mind that Craig's Bond didn't have a "traditional mission" movie, because the whole point is that it's a deconstruction of Bond, what motivates him, how he sees the world, etc. I can't think of any of the first 20 films that even try to get into Bond's head or try to tell a story with a meaningful theme, either psychological or geopolitical (correct me if I'm wrong).
Also, I don't think he "becomes Bond" at the end of Skyfall. He's Bond from the very beginning. By Skyfall, he's a seasoned agent who needs a reminder that he's not washed up, and I think bringing back the more traditional M, the old office, Moneypenny, etc was more a nod to the 50th anniversary and a meta-commentary on the franchise itself rather than any statement about "he's the real Bond now".
I did a Craig re watch recently over the course of a weekend, I was a pretty big hater of the Craig films but when watched in sequential order I actually really came to absolutely love them. Quantum went from my least favorite to somewhere in the middle of my ranking, it totally helps to watch after CR. Skyfall is top tier and Spectres art style and first half of film is excellent, I really enjoyed it too recently. Very much looking forward to NTTD now after being somewhat agnostic on it
Before Spectre, I did all the Bond films in release order, though spread out over a couple of weeks rather than a marathon, which would be brutal. The results I had, as I recall:
* Connery's performance in the first four evolves from fresh to confident to seasoned, but great all the way through. But he's kinda going through the motions in YOLT, earning his paycheck but no more, and then not even earning his paycheck in DAF, but then comes back swinging in NSNA.
*OHMSS has always been one of my favorites, but it elevated this time; it's a perfect send-off to '60s Bond.
*DAF lands with a damp thud coming straight off of OHMSS.
*Three Guy Hamiltons in a row is torture.
*Once you get to Spy Who Loved Me, the Moore films are remarkably fun to watch in a row. View to a Kill may be the weakest of the back five (though I'll still take it over LALD and TMWTGG), but Moore is just so suave by that point that he carries it a surprisingly long way. Aged, but like a fine wine he would lecture you on.
*Even so, Dalton's performance in The Living Daylights is the best performance by any actor as Bond in the quarter-century after From Russia With Love. He's absolutely on fire.
*Goldeneye both feels very much like the completely different decade that it is from Licence To Kill, and yet thematically seems to flow out of it pretty well.
*DAD aged way better than I expected. Was one of my least favorites in '02, but while it's the least of the Brosnans, it's pretty dang watchable, and rather than looking horribly dated, the gratuitous CGI climax just looks and feels like every blockbuster climax these days.
*While I think Connery, Dalton, and Craig all maybe peak higher, Brosnan gives the most consistently excellent performance of the Bonds. (Which is saying something next to Dalton and Craig, who never phone it in.)
*Nothing will ever make Casino Royale not absolutely rule. Even after all that Bond, it's still just a brilliant movie.
Thanks very much for this detailed rundown, JJ! Made for a great read and you may well have just persuaded me to try this kind of marathon for Connery, Moore & Brosnan too! Thanks again, great read!
@@calvindyson Cool!
Thats great man, thamks for sharing. I watched all the Bonds in a row with Bond 1 week after another in the summer of 1999 when ITV did thier '00 Heaven season' . my perception of Bond changed dramatically
Sorry for your loss ...
Very, very interesting analysis! The 'tying loose ends up' thing is fascinating to me, as that was Spectre's promise, and you look back on it having succeeded if it had been Craig's last. But now there's No Time To Die, with Craig explicitly stating they wanted to bring everything together and tie everything up. So Mendes wrapped a bow around Bond's story, and Fukunaga has now made that bow undone in the hopes to re-tie it better, which I find very courageous. And I think Fukunaga might succeed in doing so, as those two halves (CR & QOS and SF & SP) might get connected better. With Felix coming back, a new rookie agent at MI6 and a retread of 'Bond is finished' from SF, with continuing parallels between Vesper and Madeleine and the theme of betrayal ("Fool me once, fool me twice"), I think NTTD has more going for it than SP had in terms of thematic call-backs.
I always found it interesting Skyfall plays on mother’s and sons and Spectre plays on fathers and sons
Skyfall is just a gorgeous, beautiful movie. The cinematography elevated a great Bond story.
I have lost track of how many times I've watched Casino Royal and Skyfall to make times to count. I have even seen Quantum several times. I am honestly surprised that I have only seen Spectre once in the theater. I might have to binge them this weekend.
I thought of Connery right away, but for a different reason. The early Bond films were done with an eye towards preserving the plot lines and feel of the books, while later Bond films were more "Sci-Fi". The Moonraker film was almost nothing like the novel, and Octopussy only had the title in common with the book. I loved seeing Casino Royal finally given a true film treatment instead of the Lampoon that was the first film.
It seems the only thing you enjoyed during Quantum of Solace was that glass of blackcurrant juice!
😂😂 can’t beat a bit of Robinsons!
Also, I think the the Craig-Bond movies "even out" a little when watched in the context of one binge sitting (or close to it). There you see a complete story and complete character development, but it really does accentuate the time gap between Quantum and Skyfall.
When I was living in a hostel in Berlin during Covid me and a friend marathoned them all (slightly out of order as we didnt plan it and Goldeneye is my fave so it was a birthday choice) with my hostel mates (one in particular who I shared the room with) we had a revolving door of guests like the fella who fell asleep during thunderball (it wasn't to do with the film haha) will always treasure those memories and wondering about NTTD at the time and having my November 12th birthday plans dashed (was trying to figure out a way to have my bond fanatic father see it with me which I was able to do in the end thanks to the delays) would love an experience like that again. Watched you a lot at the time too. Just popped into my mind rewatching this video to post this today. Much love from Connery's homeland ❤
Side note this included Never Say Never Again, the TV special and Casino Royale 67
It always irritated me that Craig wasn't out of breathe after the epic parkour scene in Casino Royale.
The nightfire music is always appreciated. Much love.
I'm very sorry for you! I hope you recovered.
I love how Calvin looks visibly angrier while watching QOS after Casino Royale.
who wouldn't be?
I just watched all 5 today, and other than Quantum of Solace I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think the Craig ones are the most consistent in quality for me, I've never gotten the hate for Spectre. But also I kinda look at the Dalton ones and Goldeneye as a thematic trilogy in a way since each one seems to play on loyalty and the lines between friends and enemies being blurry in the living daylights and goldeneye, and in license to kill Bond's main motivation is out of loyalty to his friend
I've always been a big defender of Spectre. I have various issues with it, but I think what it comes down to is that many of the people who dislike it actually don't take into account many of the filmmaking aspects behind it. Sure the writing could be punched up a bit more, but it's still got gorgeous cinematography, it's well directed, I think it's well paced, acted, and the actual story involving global surveillance was extremely prevalent at the time.
It's actually my second favourite Bond film behind CR. I'm not sure where NTTD fits in among all this, since I only saw it today, but I like Léa Seydoux and she's in both SPECTRE and that, so...
Interesting insights! I'm inspired to do my own Craig Bond movie marathon now...
I’ve done it with all the Lazenby films ;) but all jokes aside, great video Cal. Always fun to hear how people’s opinions can change to the situation. Although CR and SF are still superior to QOS and SP
I approve that you're also a proud owner of Denise Richards' book The Real Girl Next Door, it's a great read :)
Weird title for a book on nuclear physics
The final fight in Quantum is so good (save how it ends) and the editing nearly ruins it.
Skyfall and Casino Royale are two of my favorites of all time. They are masterpieces.
Lol at you covering your ears when "Another Way To Die" started playing 😂😂. I too rewatched the Craig movies (not all in one day and in a different order) and gotta say Casino Royale and Skyfall were the best out of the bunch!
18:09 Agreed.
Bond was doing what M (Dench) wanted, to not always go all trigger happy. Even M (Fiennes) said it earlier in the film, "A license to kill is a license to not kill." Blofeld was a useful asset.
I'd love to see you do a marathon with all 5 films someday.
I have to admit QoS has really rose up in my rankings... and I have to tend to agree with the reappraisals. However the shakey cam and the fast cut between Mathis’ villa and the plane still leaves me indifferent.
It’s the editing at the Greene Planet party that always gets me… It’s put together with no sense of geography at all 😂
@@calvindyson Really? Next time I see it, I’ll keep any eye out on that scene.
@@calvindyson The time for it has probably passed but I'd love it if they re-edited Quantum so it's easier to follow.
@@jamesatkinsonja same
Best way to watch Bond is catching one while flicking through the channels on a Bank Holiday afternoon.
Great video Calvin!!
I agree that Craig is Bond in Skyfall and Spectre!
I guess it's time for me to rewatch the Bond films. It's been a while since I watched them. Great video!
I am now interested to watch the Kill Bill volumes back to back to see how it flows - since 1 has way more action and 2 has more backstory.
@4:43 I TOTALLY AGREE! I love too that there is a diversity of opinion. It is sad that nowadays, opinions about movies (and about a lot of other subjects) are so formatted and predictable (the Star Wars movies are a great example of that.)
I recently watched all five on consecutive nights, but I've never done more than one in a single day. I'd love to see you do this again with No Time to Die added.
Just watched Casino Royale the other night and it has to be the best Craig film in fact it's arguably the best Bond film ever!
No
@@strikerbowls791 what does no mean? You don't agree with my opinion (which is fine) or are you just being an internet dick?
I think playing through BloodStone between QOS and SF works the best. I mean if I had to travel all around the world fighting all those middle aged guys I’d too feel old and seasoned
I can rival this: I watched the entire Godfather Trilogy in one sitting.
If you can watch the entire Ring cycle in one sitting, I'll be even more impressed.
My condolences! Even one Craig movie is intolerable torture..........
That's impressive. Closest I've come to Marathoning, was a Star Wars Marathon. I watched them in order 1 through 9, 1 for each day. Crazy thing was it was meant to only be 1 through 8, but the 9th one landed on a slow weekend, so I went to the Theater to finish it. One thing I will say about both of these Marathons. you catch a lot more brides between the movies that way.
Thank you for getting me to appreciate another thing about Skyfall! Old dog, new tricks! The meta works!
Excellent video once again
I've thought for some time (and this may not be a unique opinion) that QoS would have been much better if the final scene from Casino Royale was actually the start of the next movie. If CR had finished with Bond and Vesper being together on the boat it would have been a typical bond ending, he gets the girl and all loose ends tied up.
QoS then opens with Bond finding out Vesper has betrayed him and the whole Venice scenes... cue the theme song. The film then properly starts with Bond tracking down Mr White and continues with him in the back of the car.
Whilst I really enjoy CR, it's quite long and the Venice scene clearly adds to the run time. In contrast, QoS is relatively short by current blockbuster standards and adding the Venice scene to the beginning resolves both of those issues. It also helps to make the revenge aspect of QoS much more relevant, especially if you don't watch them consecutively.
Great video! I don't normally do movie marathons, but last year I did. Last summer, I watched every official Bond film, a Bond film was watched every day (roughly). My perspective on certain films did shift. Marathoning the Moore era was interesting as was marathoning the Brosnan era.
It'll be interesting to see how NTTD wraps the Craig era up, I doubt it'll be too open-ended as Bond 26 will almost certainly reboot the series once again.
I literally had a Daniel Craig James Bond marathon yesterday to get ready for No Time to Die, which I am seeing tomorrow night :)
I got into Bond in the summer of 1997 thanks to GoldenEye for the N64. Rented the VHS. Then caught TND in theaters that December. I then took it upon myself to watch them all, so every weekend for a month, I went to my local Blockbuster Video and rented them three at a time and would watch them overnight Saturday into Sunday. I can't say that I appreciated them then at 14 as I do now.
I watched most of the movies back in December and January, up to Licence to Kill. You Only Live Twice stood out because it was the first Bond movie that was kind of wacky and campy, and even though it's a fun movie, I think that making it before OHMSS (even though the book was the sequel to OHMSS) was a huge mistake. If OHMSS had been made first and then YOLT (assuming Connery had stayed on for both films) it could have been a solid conclusion to his version of the character (also assuming they would ignore YOLT the book's ending for something more positive).
There are wacky elements way before then, in FRWL and Goldfinger.
I've been subscribed to your channel for a little over a year now and I'm not sure if you've done it in the past, but similar to watching all the Craig films back to back, what about watching each actors first films back to back(probably leaving out Lazenby since he only did one anyway) and then another of each actors last films. Or each individual actors first and last films to see the growth they had in the role and how they changed and "became" Bond as you said of Craig in Spectre. Again, not sure if you have done this, but it's a cool idea. Great content and keep up the good work.
I like when Alan Partridge impersonates the piano in 'Nobody Does it better. 'GLANG! GLANGALANGALANGALANG!'
What was that, too late!
I did a full 23 Bond movie "marathon" over the course of about a month in the summer of 2013 and it's what made me a Bond fan. That marathon was the first time I'd ever seen the majority of Bond films. Growing up, I thought I was a Bond fan, but I found out after seeing Casino Royale in 2006 that I was just a Pierce Brosnan fan. (Casino Royale is my favorite Bond film now, but I was 12 when it came out and it fell flat for me at the time. Too different from what I was used to at the time & I didn't like change!)
By the time Skyfall came out I was 16 and had pretty much forgotten about Bond. One day a friend and I were looking for something to do & decided to go see Skyfall because we heard it was pretty good. I came out of the theater blown away and with a fresh love of Bond. The next summer in 2013, I hung out with a different friend and we got started talking about Bond and he pulled out the huge Bond 50 Anniversary Blu Ray box set. At his recommendation we watched From Russia With Love and Goldfinger (my first time ever seeing both) and I was hooked. I soon found a good price for a used copy of the Bond 50 box set and bought it for myself. Then over the next month I watched them all, starting from the beginning. Again, this was my first time seeing pretty much all of the films (I saw License to Kill at some point as a kid. It's the only non-Brosnan or Craig film I'd ever seen before this summer).
I loved the Connery Era (including Diamonds, even though it's my lowest ranking Bond film now), thought On Her Majesty's Secret Service was an absolute gem, embraced the silliness of the Moore era (even if it wasn't quite my cup of tea), thought The Living Daylights was alright, but loved License to Kill, had a full on nostalgia blast during the Brosnan films, and then was shaken to the core when I re-watched Casino Royale and realized what a masterpiece it was and how wrong I was about it for so long. Then I finished it off with QoS and re-watched Skyfall again for the first time since that fateful day at the movies which started all of this).
I'll admit some of them blurred together for me as I had trouble remembering which villains/evil plots went with which movie during the late Connery/Moore era, but I loved the experience and didn't really dislike any particular film. I'll also admit to being incredibly confused by Blofeld being played by a different actor every single time he appears and thinking he'd died on multiple occasions (such as in the Volcano in YOLT & when the oil platform blew up in Diamonds). I was really thrown threw a loop by his completely random resurfacing and prompt disposal in For Your Eyes Only as I wasn't aware of the meta-context of that moment.
I've since become a mega Bond fan and now know all of the movies like the back of my hand and thoroughly enjoy this channel, particularly the deep debates you do with other Bond UA-camrs!
This was great to watch :) Please do all of Pierce's film's now 😊
Isn't it ironic how, despite the flashy "attention grabbing" filmmaking, QoS still ends up being so uninvolving? Goes to show how important a compelling story is.
Great vid! Knew I would like this channel as soon as I saw you were dressed like a waiter and had an English accent. Great analysis. Subbd.
HA! Thanks so much 😂😂 really appreciate the sub! Very kind of you
I don't doubt that when they shot Quantum of Solace, they got enough footage. But I always get the feeling that the editor was trying to convince me otherwise.
I honestly would love a re-edit of QoS with extra shots re-instated, esp in the action scenes.
That JW Pepper art is beautiful.