Need help in compiling an essential James Bond movie collection on DVD

I listed it twice? Oops.

Ah...The Spy Who Loved Me, or as I call it, Moonraker set underwater. Both films have similar plots except one has a madman who wants to destroy the world while he lives under water rebuilding his new race of people, and the other has a madman who wants to destroy the world while he lives in space rebuilding his new race of people. Both have Jaws as a henchmen. Both get a from me, although Spy was a much better film. Also, Barbara Bach

Sean

 

Also the fact that both Roger Moore and Lois Maxwell (Moneypenny) were both 100 years old when they filmed A View to A Kill didn't help.

A View... is average. I didn't review all of the films.Just the ones that were either really good or really bad. I left out Dr. No, Tomorrow Never Dies, and A View to a Kill. They're OK. Dr. NO is alright. Not one of my favorite films. I don't think it was a strong choice for the first Bond film. I think From Russia... would have been better first. Also the book came out first (I believe).

Sean

 

I picked up a book called "The Essential Bond" a couple years back. Very intersting book.

BY the way, the Fleming novels are back in print as softbacks. Highly recommended. Which movies are the most faithful tot the books?

Dr. No - Pretty close to the book.

From Russia With Love - Also another pretty close adaptation.

Goldinger - The movie is a bit more stylzed but not too bad adaptation wise.

Thunderball - This is the only book I haven't read. It's on my "To read" list.....

You Only Live Twice - First off, the book takes place after OHMSS. I don't like that the films are out of order. The book is EXCELLENT, great follow up to OHMSS. Great book, poor film. They followed about 50% of the book, at best.

OHMSS - The best adaptation of Flemings writing. My favorite Bond book and a great movie too!

Diamonds Are Forever - A loose adaptation at best. The book is better but not by much.

Live and Let Die - Completely re-written. The character names are the same, but the plot is different. The scene in "Licensed To Kill" where Felix is fed to the shark comes from this book. Also, the in "For Your Eyes Only" where Bond is tied to the boat being dragged across the coral comes from Live and Let Die.

The Man With the Golden Gun - I don't think the screenwriters ever read this book. It's a shame as the book is very very good and the movie is very very bad.

The Spy Who Loved Me - This is the only book that Fleming won't allow to be made into a film, but the producers loved the title and used it and made up a whole new story based around it.

Moonraker - The book is real good, too bad the screenplay writers have seemingly never read it. The only similarities between the film & the book is that the bad guy is called Hugo Drax.

For Your Eyes Only - There is a book of Bond short stories called "For Your Eyes Only" with 5 short stories in it. The movie version takes 2 of the stories and does a great job of combining the two. Another short story in the book is called "From a View To a Kill".

Octopussy - Octopussy is a short story that was published in a book with The Living Daylights. The book version of Octopussy takes place before the film. The film is essentially a sequel to Flemings story.

A View To A Kill - The title is taken from a short story in the book "For Your Eyes Only". Like The Spy Who Loved Me, they took a title and made a whole new story around it.

The Living Daylights - The last Bond film to be based on Ian Fleming's writing. The Living Daylights is a short story that was published together with Octopussy. The first 10 min of the film, before the opening credits, is the entire short story. The rest of the film was written for the movie.

I'm such a nerd...

Sean

 

It would have been very interesting to see how they would have translated the novel to film, had Fleming consented to an adaptation. The original story is basically told in first person by the woman (hence the title), and Bond himself doesn't even show up until the book's half over.

 

I agree. I've heard conflicting reasons as to why Fleming didn't want that book adapted. I heard he was very proud of the book and didn't want it touched. Then I think I read somewhere he hated how the book turned out and didn't want it used. I'm not sure which is correct.

Sean

 

I am in the same dilemma. I have read that the upcoming DVDs (which are rumoured to be expanded to two disc sets) will have all new extras and documentaries, though some parts of the current DVDs will undoubtedly be carried over. I don't know if they will use the commentary tracks from the current DVDs, but perhaps they will since some of the participants have since died.

One thing I'm hoping for is to have Roger Moore do a commentary on his films - he has such a great sense of humour that it would be pretty wicked. I doubt that MGM would be able to get Connery to do the same because he's been fighting with them over money for decades...

I read that the upcoming 2005 DVDs will all have new surround mixes, which in some cases will require alternate music cues, new foley and new sound effects. This is a scary proposition, but I believe that the original mono or stereo mixes will be included as an alternate audio track.

And of course, after the new series of DVDs are released in 2005 I'm sure MGM will announce the Hi-Definition "super edition" DVDs soon after...

 

Do you have any evidence to suggest that the original soundtracks will be included? I hope they are but it is not that common with modern re-issues in my experience .

 

Hey, did they ever fix the problem with the miscut on the OHMSS DVD? I've been living with that problem too long...

 

I never noticed a miscut. Where is it?

Sean

 

I always thought that Timothy Dalton is highly underrated as 007. Me thinks Dalton is par to Connery and therefore WAY better than that living wardrobe who plays Bond now will ever be. "License to kill" is one hell of a tough Bond movie!
By the way: the later the Brosnan Bonds, the worse. The last two films were a total disaster to me; especially the latest, which IMHO betrayed the whole Bond concept with all that CGI gimmicks and the transparent Aston Martin. What the **** did they think when they made this? The best actual character is Dame Judi Dench as M; again, she's tougher than Bond himself.
And while Lazenby wasn't quite convincing as 007; the movie itself was very good with some of the best hooklines and a good story.

 

Alright, I'm a big nerd and a lifelong Bond fan, having inhaled the Fleming novels before leaving high school, so here is a page where I write a small, honest review for each film and rank them:

http://www.listology.com/content_show.cfm/content_id.7722

Obsession ain't pretty, eh?

Shalom, y'all!

L. Bangs

 

I quite enjoy Pierce Brosnan in the role. It seems to me that he provides a nice blend of the Connery and the Moore styles.

 

I wonder if they'll fix the end title music in GOLDFINGER? It is supposed to be an instrumental version of the Goldfinger theme, not a cut-up reprise of the Shirley Bassey vocal.

 

Hi Malc,

I was going by the information in this article;

http://www.mi6.co.uk/sections/articles/dvd_remastered.php3

Of course, the remastered discs are in the preliminary stages and things could always change. And the mi6 website could be wrong, etcetera etcetera. As usual, one hopes for the best and prepares for the worst...

 

Sounds promising if, as they are saying, the upcoming editions have both the new 5.1 soundtrack and the original mono .

If the 5.1 is the only major "upgrade" with these new editions (it doesn't sound like the picture quality will be upgraded significantly) I'll stick with my current DVDs - I'm happy with the mono soundtracks and I don't need any more extras than the ones on the Special Editions.

 

You can never go wrong with Connery. I cant stand the Roger Moore films. I think the only good thing about Live and Let Die is the title song, in fact, the last time I rented it, it was for the title song! I really like the Pierce Brosnan Bond movies, although the one with Denise Richards wasnt that great, mainly because of her acting, or lack of it. I watched one of the Timothy Dalton Bonds several months ago and it wasnt as bad as I remembered.

 

The films are currently being re-transferred and archived in Hi-Def by Lowry Digital in California. The articles I've read only mention Hi-Def transfers of the first six or seven films, but I can't imagine the others won't be upgraded also. So the picture quality on the DVDs upcoming in 2005 will be upgraded in addition to the soundtracks and extra features. I believe Eon/MGM's plan is to digitally archive all the original material while it still exists and is in usable condition.

A google search of "John Lowry" or "Lowry Digital" will find interesting articles about him and his DVD work (Indiana Jones box set, Citizen Kane, North By Northwest, etcetera).

Lastly, I'll stick up for Roger Moore! Connery was first and I think he was the best - but I like Rog too...

 

Great play-by-play on the books vs. movies though. Thanks!

 

No prob. I haven't read the books in a while so I'm going from memory.

Someday I will read "Thunderball"!

Sean

 

Am I the only Roger Moore fan here?
The Spy who loved me and Octopussy were the best Bond movies ever. While I love Connery's classics, Moore's are more fun to watch. Great humour.
Dalton (a great actor bu the way) was just in the wrong role thogh Living Daylights was OK. The second one was a disaster.
Bronsnan blows IMHO.

 

I read in the NY Times that they are using a new process to transfer these films. Something on the order of hundreds of chained G5's are used to make the transfer, frame-by-frame. Apparently, the results are astounding.

Best Bond flicks? Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesties (oh, if only Connery had been in it!!!!!) Secret Service, Dr. No, From Russia With Love.

I have officially erased Roger Moore from my memory-banks. All the later Bonds seem too nostalgic for the Moore era.

 

Well, if there were any justice....

That'll be news to most of the Bond fans around the world...I like both of 'em, but 'best'? We should do a poll on that....

The early Bond films were also the freshest, darkest, and cleverest of the bunch; as time went on, they became more predictable and fossilized, not less. By the time Dalton and Brosnan turned up, they were almost afterthoughts. A lot of noise and action, but nothing new. Most of all, Connery had a screen presence and gravitas Moore was incapable of; he came off more of a fop than the licensed killer he was supposed to be.

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY is my fave of the Moore's, with LIVE AND LET DIE 2nd....

 

Anton,

Count me as a Moore fan. He was "my" Bond growing up in the late '70s and the '80s, so I enjoy his Bond immensely. At the same time, I appreciate the greatness of the early Bonds with Connery and enjoy them very much as well.

 

I have to say that You Only Live Twice is not one of the best. Passing Connery off as Japanese? C'mon. He looked tired in the roll. And...I know it is not admitted as to it being a blooper or intentionally...but saying perfect to "Stirred...not shaken..." No one caught that? One wonders if those in charge of making that film were tired as well.

Brian

 

You're not the only Moore fan. I like Moore as Bond, just most of his films aren't too good. The best Moore films are Octopussy, For Your Eyes Only, and Live and Let Die.

I'm in complete disagreement with you over Brosnan. I think he's excellent.

Sean