Bond 23 - Skyfall

Ten directors have hollered ?Action? on a James Bond picture.

And in 47 years and 22 movies, they?ve all been blokes. In the equal opportunity 21st century, this begs a question: isn?t it time Bond was directed by a bird?*

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Bond 23 is two years away. Regular writers Neal Purvis and Robert Wade have been hired alongside Frost/Nixon scribe Peter Morgan to craft a suitably incendiary, continent-hopping action adventure.

No director is attached. Used to be, they?d return for repeat business, but in the last two decades only Martin Campbell has sat in the Big Chair twice.

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The film itself is somewhat underrated: it?s a tense enough thriller and, hair aside, Dalton wasn?t a bad Bond. He was just a terribly grave one... all frowns and angst and inner turmoil. Daniel Craig take note: Bond needs to have fun.

So, discount the rumours which suggest Bond 23 will have a drug-themed plot, with 007 returning to Afghanistan for the first time since Dalton?s debut, The Living Daylights. It would be spectacularly ill-advised, given the real-world carnage over there, and Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson are not idiots.

Taste aside, they should also remember the lesson of 007?s screen history: don?t take Bond too seriously for too long.

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So, if he?s to be brash, rash and go ballistic once again, why give the megaphone to a woman? Because the woman is Kathryn Bigelow and with The Hurt Locker she shows she knows what Bond is all about: adrenaline.

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Wait a minute stop the press...Craig's not coming back?

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Forbidden Eye said:

Wait a minute stop the press...Craig's not coming back?

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Dr.Sartorius said:

What are you talking about?

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bennihana123 said:

I know Daniel Craig says he wants Moneypenny and the classic Bond elements in this one.

Michael Sheen as Blofield would be perfect.

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Well we certainly didn?t see this one coming. Just yesterday, we reported that Bond 23 was put on hold due to MGM?s many troubles. I figured that we wouldn?t be hearing much else about the movie for some time, but now we?ve learned that Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Away We Go) is is negotiations to direct the film.

While this may seem like yet another scenario where the producers chose to go with an artsy independent director (a la Marc Forster and Quantum of Solace), I?m actually excited about the news because this isn?t the first time Mendes has directed action; 2002?s Road to Perdition ? which also co-starred Daniel Craig as the main villain ? was actually a decent action film, while also carrying Mendes?s trademark sensibilities.

For some strange reason, nobody seems to talk about Road to Perdition, and I know many film lovers who haven?t even seen it yet. I?m not entirely sure why it?s been so forgotten, because the film had a lot going for it. Tom Hanks took on a pretty atypical anti-hero role (at least, for him) and handled it well, Thomas Newman?s score was excellent, and Conrad L. Hall?s cinematography was gorgeous. Throw in Paul Newman and Daniel Craig as father and son, Jude Law as a ruthless killer for hire, and some memorable shootouts, and you have all the makings for a classic gangster film.

Ever since Perdition, I?ve been hoping that Mendes would take another shot at action, and now it seems like that may be happening. Matthew Vaughn is still my current dream director for Bond, but Mendes is no slouch either. For one, we can look forward to action scenes that aren?t rapidly edited to hell like Quantum?s. I?ve always found Mendes? films to be visually striking as well, which means that Bond 23 has a good chance at being the best looking Bond film ever.

Let?s just hope that Mendes doesn?t turn Bond into an ennui-stricken suburban American.

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tambourineman said:

Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace are the best Bond movies the series has seen in a long time, cant wait for Craig's third!

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Morning Bell said:

I really enjoyed QOS and I'm anxious to see where this next film with take the series. QOS had several references to the older Bond films and having them bring in someone like Moneypenny, Q, or a Blofeld-type character could be a lot of fun if done properly.

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Finn said:

As a sidenote, there actually is a Bond 23 - or should we say 22.5 - just out this week... in the form of a video game called Blood Stone that has an all-original story.

I had the privilege to try it out recently, and while it's nothing overly fancy it's still a pretty slick experience that acts and plays a lot like an actual Bond movie. It reminded me a lot of the last original Bond game, Everything or Nothing, both being third-person shooters with seamlessly implemented hand-to-hand combat and cinematic driving secquences.

It uses Daniel Craig's likeness for Bond and as an added bonus, the man himself actually also does the VO for 007, not a soundalike. So if you're a fan, you should definitely check it out while waiting for the new movie.



<small>Whoa... that came out totally NOT like a paid advertisement. It's not. Really.</small>

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