GoldenEye | the m0vie blog

James Bond Skyfall Teaser Released…

Posted on May 21, 2012 by Darren

I’m a big Bond fan, so any bit of news about Skyfall is going to be of interest. Sony have released the teaser, which seems like the one that debuted at Cinema Con a little while back. I have to admit, I like the look of it. It looks to retain the same psychological complexity of the better recent Bond films (Casino Royale or GoldenEye) but with sacrificing any of the class or sophistication (like Quantum of Solace did, arguably). Featuring a stunning cast, an amazing director and released to celebrate the franchise’s fiftieth birthday, this is definitely one to watch. Check out the teaser below. It looks beautiful, featuring wonderful saturation in places – almost like one of the sixties films but with the character work from more modern instalments.

Filed under: Movies | Tagged: casino royale, daniel craig, GoldenEye, james bond, James Bond in film, quantum of solace, Skyfall, sony | 6 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Leon (The Professional)

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Darren

What makes Leon so fascinating is the combination a wonderfully disturbing script that puts a novel and unsettling twist on that “suddenly a father” subgenre, Besson’s understated direction, Eric Serra’s atmospheric score and a trio of fantastic central performances. The movie is never less than completely engaging, especially when it’s being very deeply uncomfortable. The movie is very much a “messed up”portrait of the survivor of a family massacre and her unconventional surrogate father figure, with the difficulties that both have adapting to their situation, although it’s probably Gary Oldman’s powerhouse villainous performance that you’re going to leave the film thinking about.

Leon is a bit daunted by the scope of fatherly responsibility...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: adam sandler, arts, Éric Serra, Besson, fiction, film, gary oldman, george clooney, GoldenEye, hollywood, Jean Reno, Léon (film), Leon, madonna, Mathilda, Movie, Natalie Portman, New York City, non-review review, Oldman, rain man, review, Shopping, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy | 5 Comments »

Non-Review Review: RED

Posted on February 22, 2011 by Darren

The way that society treats its elderly makes for great fodder for films. After all, what happens to us when we climb over that hill – when we make it all the way to retirement and cease to contribute in the most conventional manner? Will anybody care? Will anybody notice? It’s something that will (hopefully) happen to a lot of us, but it’s not necessarily something we give a lot of thought to – perhaps because we wouldn’t be too comfortable with the answers we’d find. “I never thought this would happen to me,” Joe Matheson confesses at one point as he strolls around “Green Spring Rest Home” with his old colleague, Frank. When Frank asks what he means, Joe elaborates, “Getting old.”

Up to their old tricks...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: brian cox, bruce willis, Ernest Borgnine, films, GoldenEye, helen mirren, john malkovich, Julian McMahon, Mary Louise Parker, Morgan Freeman, Movies, non-review review, RED, retired extremely dangerous, review, Richard Dreyfuss, spies, warren ellis | 2 Comments »

John Barry, RIP

Posted on January 31, 2011 by Darren

I had hoped to end James Bond January as a celebration of one of the most iconic film franchises ever produced. It as a fantastically organised event – thanks to the legend that is Paul Thain over at Paragraph Film Reviews. Through the month, we had some surprising good news. Despite the shadow that loomed over MGM, the next Bond film (Bond 23, as it is known) would enter production. It would be released for the film’s fiftieth anniversary, would see Daniel Craig return and would be directed by Oscar-winner Sam Mendes. That was good news, and it really contributed to the atmosphere of the month.

1933-2011

Unfortunately, as the month came to a close, there was bad news. It’s tragic to end the month with the passing of John Barry. Barry had a tremendous career that others can do far more justice to than I would dare attempt. A legendary composer, his work is instantly recognisable – even if you don’t know you’re listening to it. It’s rare for a composer to exude pure and refined class and sophistication, while still remaining truly accessible. Barry did that. He won an Oscar for his work on Born Free, a soundtrack that I can sing along with even though I have never seen the film. I imagine there are more than a few readers who can say the same thing.

There are those who will sum up his career more eloquently than this truncated blog post, but he was a master. He worked on twelve of the Bond films, however his work was so iconic that the only major departure from his style occurred with GoldenEye (and this was promptly corrected for Tomorrow Never Dies). Perhaps his most iconic Bond theme is for Goldfinger. There’s a video below embedded of Barry conducting an instrumental rendition.

However, my own personal favourite John Barry theme comes from You Only Live Twice:

And I have a soft spot for Diamonds Are Forever, where he famously coaxed Shirley Bassey to give it lots and then some.

Rest in peace.

Filed under: Movies | Tagged: Academy Award, born free, daniel craig, diamonds are forever, GoldenEye, Goldfinger, james bond, James Bond music, John Barry, john barry rip, rip, sam mendes, Shirley Bassey, you only live twice | 4 Comments »

James Bond January in Review

Posted on January 31, 2011 by Darren

It’s been a while since I’ve written one of these, and I’m not sure I should bring them back – but, hey, it might be nice to have an index of all the James Bond January shenanigans I got up to this January. Let’s start with the reviews of the 22 films – all of them:

Sean Connery
- Dr. No
- From Russia With Love
- Goldfinger
- Thunderball
- You Only Live Twice
George Lazenby
- On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
Sean Connery, again
- Diamonds Are Forever
Roger Moore
Timothy Dalton
- The Living Daylights
- Licence to Kill
Pierce Brosnan
- GoldenEye
- Tomorrow Never Dies
- The World is Not Enough
- Die Another Day
Daniel Craig
- Casino Royale
- Quantum of Solace

I also did some James Bond related posts in the month. I wondered about the “James Bond is just a codename” theory, pondered what Bond 23 might have in store for the franchise and wondered if Bond gets away with so much because we dismiss a lot of its British nationalism as “quaint”.

Apart from all that, I wondered if the film 300 was actually racist, and dared to suggest it wasn’t. I took a look at Matthew Vaughn’s upcoming X-Men: First Class and superhero nostalgia. I also pondered what Christopher Nolan’s Bane might look like. It was a fun month, and I hope that next month will be just as exciting.

Thanks again to Paragraph Films for throwing the whole “James Bond January” thing together. It was a joy to take part.

Filed under: Months in Review | Tagged: films, George Lazenby, GoldenEye, james bond, james bond january, Movies, On Her Majesty's Secret Service (film), pierce brosnan, Scotland, sean connery, the living daylights | 2 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Casino Royale

Posted on January 28, 2011 by Darren

This post is part of James Bond January, being organised by the wonderful Paragraph Films. I will have reviews of all twenty-two official Bond films going on-line over the next month, and a treat or two every once in a while.

Casino Royale was breath of fresh air for the Bond franchise. The twenty-first film in the series, it represented something akin to a “back to basics” philosophy, pulling back from the camp excesses of Die Another Day to offer us a version of Bond which was a thriller rather than an action comedy. It’s a familiar pattern for low-key entries to follow over-the-top instalments (after all, the producers followed Moonraker with For Your Eyes Only), but arguably not to the same extent. While other movies made the pretense of operating within the same continuity (with numerous references, for example, to Bond’s marriage from On Her Majesty’s Secret Service), Casino Royale was an attempt to completely start from scratch, with a new actor playing a James Bond who was new to his 00-agent status.

What’s on the cards for Bond?

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: casino royale, daniel craig, eva green, GoldenEye, james bond, james bond january, mads mikkelson, Movies, non-review review, pierce brosnan, quantum of solace, quentin tarantino, review, Roger Moore, vesper, vesper lynd | 7 Comments »

Non-Review Review: The World Is Not Enough

Posted on January 26, 2011 by Darren

The World is Not Enough is a mess of a film, even by the standards of the Bond films. It proposes some interesting ideas and has some neat concepts, but there’s also some really stupid moments thrown in as well. If Tomorrow Never Dies was Pierce Brosnan doing tribute to later Sean Connery films, this him stuck in homage to Roger Moore – a few smart and emotional moments scattered over a large serving of camp, like vanilla pods mixed into the most bland vanilla ice cream you could imagine. It’s not a terrible film, but it’s so wildly inconsistent that it’s far less satisfying than generally weaker instalments.

That's the crushing weight of expectation, right there...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: arts, Christopher Nolan, Elektra King, GoldenEye, james bond, james bond january, judi dench, m, Movie, non-review review, pierce brosnan, renard, review, robert carlyle, Roger Moore, sean connery, sophie marceau, The World Is Not Enough, tomorrow never dies | 7 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Tomorrow Never Dies

Posted on January 25, 2011 by Darren

What the hell is he doing?

His job.

– Admiral Roebuck and M watch Bond do the impossible before the opening titles

I have a confession to make. I unapologetically love Tomorrow Never Dies. It’s the first Bond movie I saw in the cinema, with my dad and brother while on a shopping trip up North. I believe the girls went to see Titanic. It’s my first cinematic Bond experience, a perhaps that’s why I am somewhat fonder memory of the film than most – but, even on reflection, I still hold the movie in high regard. I just think it’s the perfect companion piece to the superb GoldenEye. While Martin Campbell’s film was about deconstructing the spy, showing how useless he was in times of peace and arguing he was “a relic of the Cold War” who needed updating and introspection, this Bond film was about how he can do all the cool stuff he used to, even after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Sure, it’s not as deep, smart or sophisticated as the earlier film, but it’s an unashamed throwback to the classic Bond films – and what’s wrong with that?

By the way, how telling is it that – while Bond used to drive a snazzy sports car in the sixties – he drives a family sedan in the nineties?

I'm pretty sure that the only reason Tomorrow Never Dies is because Bond never tried to kill it...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: British Empire, China, daniel craig, Elliot Carver, ernst stavro blofeld, film, GoldenEye, james bond, james bond january, jonathan pryce, List of James Bond villains, m, michelle yeoh, Movie, Nintendo, non-review review, paris carver, pierce brosnan, review, sean connery, teri hatcher, tomorrow never dies, uk, Vincent Schiavelli, war, Wii | 8 Comments »

Non-Review Review: GoldenEye

Posted on January 24, 2011 by Darren

GoldenEye saved James Bond. Bond had wallowed in obscurity for six years by the time that Pierce Brosnan’s first appearance in the role was released. As a kid, James Bond was something that was dead to me. Sure, it came on television from time to time (mostly on holidays) and they filled up a shelf at the videostore, but I always felt like they were something that had happened in the past – like the original Star Wars movies, or any Star Trek films featuring Captain Kirk. Even though I lacked the sophistication to articulate it at the time, I think I felt that the entire James Bond franchise would be reruns for me. There was nothing new happening.

And then GoldenEye was released.

Brosnan is Bond...

And it meant business.

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: 006, alan cumming, alec travelyn, bond, Cold War, famke janssen, films, GoldenEye, jack wade, james bond, james bond january, joe don baker, martin campbell, Movies, non-review review, pierce brosnan, revenge, review, sean bean, sean connery, Soviet Union, Tina Turner, Wii, xenia onatopp | 12 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Licence to Kill

Posted on January 21, 2011 by Darren

This post is part of James Bond January, being organised by the wonderful Paragraph Films. I will have reviews of all twenty-two official Bond films going on-line over the next month, and a treat or two every once in a while.

Licence to Kill is the Bond movie that almost killed the franchise. The gap between the release of this movie in 1989 and GoldenEye in 1995 is the longest period that the film series has been left dormant. Although the legal issues surrounding the series hardly helped ensure the British secret agent’s return to the big screen, there’s also the fact that this movie was something of a box office dud in the States. (Although it was quite successful elsewhere.) Licence to Kill is perhaps the most divisive of the Bond movies – even more so than On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Detractors see it as a poor attempt to emulate Miami Vice, indulging in ridiculously over-the-top violence and darkness for the sake of darkness. Fans argue that the movie is a lot closer to Ian Fleming’s original novels, and feels more like the recent relaunch of the franchise – it’s a perfect bedfellow with Casino Royale or Quantum of Solace. My opinion is somewhere in the middle.