12:55 AM
It's difficult to imagine that 2012 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the James Bond films. While 007 appears to once have been with us for ever - and for many people, including me, that truly is the case, the was a time before 1962 when James Bond existed only between the covers of Ian Fleming's books.
The series of films, of which there are at the current time 22, was made by Albert "Cubby" Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, whose production company EON Productions continues the series today under Broccoli's stepson Michael G. Wilson and girl Barbara Broccoli. Saltzman ran into financial problems in the 1970s and was forced to sell his slice of the company, which ended up in the hands of MGM.
While the original films, beginning with Doctor No and From Russia With Love, stayed quite devoted to the books, the filmmakers couldn't resist adding gadgets from Goldfinger onwards; that is the film that features the Aston Martin DB5 with an entire array of added extras including an ejector seat.
While Goldfinger's widgets remained fairly creditable, by the point of the Roger Moore time in the 1970s and early '80s, any attempt at realism or trying to remain steadfast to Ian Fleming had disappeared, with a few notable exceptions.
By the time of The Spy Who Loved Me 007 was kitted out with a Lotus Esprit that turned into a submarine once it entered the water; highly improbable and the films played for laughs and nothing like the espionage thrillers of Sean Connery's first films.
A low point was probably reached with Moonraker, which had a gondola that turned into a hovercraft at the flip of a switch, and saw Bond sent to the space station of villain Drax. However , having reached this nadir it took a long while to reverse that downward trail in spite of the occasional guarantee from the producers.
Moonraker was followed by For Your Eyes Only , which was primarily based on two short stories and set a more serious tone that its predecessor; and Timothy Dalton's The Living Daylights was an improvement notwithstanding some silly moments the filmmakers just could not leave out. And while Pierce Brosnan was a favored choice as 007, his films exhibited many of the worst facets of the Roger Moore films.
When Daniel Craig was selected as James Bond in 2005 there was a uproar from many Bond fans. But when Casino Royale was released the next year a lot of the doubters changed their tune and it enjoyed massive imperative as well as business success.
The follow up, Quantum of Solace, as not nearly as good; however , with Sam Mendes on board as list there are high hopes for the following film, currently known simply as Bond 23. The film starts shooting in Nov 2011 and will premiere in London in October 2012. With a four-year wait since the last film many Bond fans find it difficult to wait.
The series of films, of which there are at the current time 22, was made by Albert "Cubby" Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, whose production company EON Productions continues the series today under Broccoli's stepson Michael G. Wilson and girl Barbara Broccoli. Saltzman ran into financial problems in the 1970s and was forced to sell his slice of the company, which ended up in the hands of MGM.
While the original films, beginning with Doctor No and From Russia With Love, stayed quite devoted to the books, the filmmakers couldn't resist adding gadgets from Goldfinger onwards; that is the film that features the Aston Martin DB5 with an entire array of added extras including an ejector seat.
While Goldfinger's widgets remained fairly creditable, by the point of the Roger Moore time in the 1970s and early '80s, any attempt at realism or trying to remain steadfast to Ian Fleming had disappeared, with a few notable exceptions.
By the time of The Spy Who Loved Me 007 was kitted out with a Lotus Esprit that turned into a submarine once it entered the water; highly improbable and the films played for laughs and nothing like the espionage thrillers of Sean Connery's first films.
A low point was probably reached with Moonraker, which had a gondola that turned into a hovercraft at the flip of a switch, and saw Bond sent to the space station of villain Drax. However , having reached this nadir it took a long while to reverse that downward trail in spite of the occasional guarantee from the producers.
Moonraker was followed by For Your Eyes Only , which was primarily based on two short stories and set a more serious tone that its predecessor; and Timothy Dalton's The Living Daylights was an improvement notwithstanding some silly moments the filmmakers just could not leave out. And while Pierce Brosnan was a favored choice as 007, his films exhibited many of the worst facets of the Roger Moore films.
When Daniel Craig was selected as James Bond in 2005 there was a uproar from many Bond fans. But when Casino Royale was released the next year a lot of the doubters changed their tune and it enjoyed massive imperative as well as business success.
The follow up, Quantum of Solace, as not nearly as good; however , with Sam Mendes on board as list there are high hopes for the following film, currently known simply as Bond 23. The film starts shooting in Nov 2011 and will premiere in London in October 2012. With a four-year wait since the last film many Bond fans find it difficult to wait.
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