BRIAN'S BOND BEEFS

 

There are certain things that an avid BOND fan just can't get over or forget. Here are some of mine ...

 

1. After refusing to be a part of ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE (1969), Sean Connery had the audacity to be very negative towards this Bond classic in some interviews that were conducted while he was on the set of the very idiotic DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER (1971). Well, Mr. Connery, you had your chance to participate in Peter Hunt's James Bond 007 masterpiece and you blew it! Instead you made one of the worst James Bond films of all time! Perhaps this was a case of sour grapes syndrome?

2. A note to the BOND filmmakers: James Bond is NOT a celebrity! James Bond is supposed to be a secret agent, okay? The emphasis is on SECRET -- got it? Why do the producers of the James Bond films insist on having various non-espionage types know so much about 007 -- even down to his drinking habits? I mean, when a spent piece of used jet trash like Tiffany Case knows exactly who and what James Bond is, it's really high time that Agent 007 gave up the MI6 gig for good.

3. Another note to the BOND filmmakers: bring back John Barry-like BOND music! The very least that the BOND producers could do is to hire a composer that is truly a fan of John Barry's James Bond music. Enough of this techno-pop! I really miss the skillful use of the 'James Bond theme' and the '007 theme' from the early BOND films! So many of the action scenes in the last few classic BOND films were disparately in need of the John Barry touch. In short, these recent BOND soundtracks really bite!

4. And still another note to the BOND filmmakers: bring back the Peter Hunt style of film editing! A few too many of the recent BONDs have been lacking in this department with several lackluster action sequences. What is truly needed here is that ol' Peter Hunt "punch" within the film editing style. This was especially true in THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH (1999): the opening boat chase was fine, but that blasted ski chase put me to sleep! Please don't use the MTV-type editing that is plaguing the current cinema.

5. Let me declare now that not one frame from the first three James Bond films needed to be cut prior to their original broadcasts on the ABC television network. Yet for some unfathomable reason, the censors at ABC felt that the fight between Bond and Grant had to be edited prior to airing FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE (1963). Even though it was touted in TV Guide magazine as one of the most famous fight scenes in cinema history, ABC pared it down to about half its original length. Why!?!

6. Well, now all of us James Bond fans have the "Ultimate Edition" DVDs for the first 20 EON Productions of the 007 film series. However we still don't have the complete CBC interview with Ian Fleming or the complete BBC interview with Sean Connery among the supplement discs. Why? Plus we don't have the 1971 documentary entitled "A Spy for all Seasons" with Connery on the set of DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER. How about calling these DVDs the "Almost Ultimate Editions?"

7. A "remember when" BOND moment: do any of you recall the ABC television premiere of ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE (1969)? It was reedited into an abominable two-part movie with some twit hired to mimic George Lazenby as James Bond for a totally ludicrous voice-over narration! Part One started in the midst of the first ski chase and the whole thing was treated as a flashback with footage repeated again and again to pad out the film over two different nights. Ugh!!!

8. Another "remember when" BOND moment: does anyone recall the ABC television premiere of THUNDERBALL (1965)? The ABC network constantly warned viewers that "parental discretion is advised" because of the violence, despite the ABC announcer calling it "a typical James Bond film." However, it was censor overkill to edit out the animated blood during the trademark gun barrel opening, and cutting the sound over a few of Bond's amusing one-liners before a commercial break. Ack!!!

9. And still another "remember when" BOND moment: does anyone out there recall the ABC television premiere of YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE (1967)? Some imbecile had the gall to reedit the film's opening, so that the first scene in the pre-credit sequence was suddenly interrupted with a jump cut from the Gemini capsule to the film titles -- which begins on the image of a very "dead" Bond! This jumbled mess somehow survived years later to the premiere on HBO as well as in the first rental video release!

10. Just why exactly did someone over at MGM Home Video feel there was a need to add subtitles on the 1995 video releases of FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE (1963) and YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE (1967)? There are a few brief sequences in both films where a foreign language is spoken, but it is very clear what is being said because of the context of each scene. Hence, there was never a need for subtitles in the first place. Subtitles? We don't need no stinking subtitles for these BOND films!

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