For as long as there has been James Bond, there has been the James Bond "girl." And for as long as there has been the James Bond "girl," there have been people rightfully noting that this descriptor is a bit demeaning. After all, these character are women and should be treated accordingly.
And the James Bond "woman" has run the gamut over the years. People have rightfully called out the franchise over the decades for its often shallow, childish sexism, teaming up Agent 007 with bimbos bearing ridiculous names. The laziest films in the series reduce the female co-stars to shallow eye candy, existing to be impressed by Bond and to be rescued in the climax. But we can't ignore the movies that get it right. For every film that gets the Bond woman wrong, there's one that gets it right — characters with complex motivations, intriguing backstories, wry senses of humor,...
And the James Bond "woman" has run the gamut over the years. People have rightfully called out the franchise over the decades for its often shallow, childish sexism, teaming up Agent 007 with bimbos bearing ridiculous names. The laziest films in the series reduce the female co-stars to shallow eye candy, existing to be impressed by Bond and to be rescued in the climax. But we can't ignore the movies that get it right. For every film that gets the Bond woman wrong, there's one that gets it right — characters with complex motivations, intriguing backstories, wry senses of humor,...
- 1/13/2024
- by SlashFilm Staff
- Slash Film
Taron Egerton doesn’t think he fits in the James Bond mold.
The “Tetris” actor reacted to the rumors that he’s in the running to be the next 007 in the famed franchise following Daniel Craig’s final appearance.
“I don’t think I’m the right choice for it,” the “Rocketman” star Edgerton told The Telegraph. “You have to be consistently statuesque to be that guy. And that’s something that I am still striving for. I’ve always struggled with my weight.”
Edgerton added that playing Bond “is a bit like being a brand ambassador as well as being an actor. And that could be really fun in microcosm, but I’m sure I read that [producer] Barbara Broccoli said that it’s a 15-year commitment.”
The “Blackbird” star continued, “It’s sort of irrelevant how I feel about it, anyway, because I can tell you there have been zero phone calls.
The “Tetris” actor reacted to the rumors that he’s in the running to be the next 007 in the famed franchise following Daniel Craig’s final appearance.
“I don’t think I’m the right choice for it,” the “Rocketman” star Edgerton told The Telegraph. “You have to be consistently statuesque to be that guy. And that’s something that I am still striving for. I’ve always struggled with my weight.”
Edgerton added that playing Bond “is a bit like being a brand ambassador as well as being an actor. And that could be really fun in microcosm, but I’m sure I read that [producer] Barbara Broccoli said that it’s a 15-year commitment.”
The “Blackbird” star continued, “It’s sort of irrelevant how I feel about it, anyway, because I can tell you there have been zero phone calls.
- 3/23/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Our month-long focus on James Bond continues with a look at the ten best Bond screen villains. Check it out!
A good Bond villain does not always make for a great Bond film, but it doesn’t hurt. It’s common knowledge that a film with good conflict will be more engaging to watch, and the conflict between the protagonist and antagonist is the driving factor of the James Bond franchise. Therefore, along with one of the most well-known and legendary protagonists of all time, the franchise is also home to some of the most well-known and legendary antagonists as well. This is a list that honors the best antagonists in the Bond franchise. They’re the ones that are the most creative, memorable, or relentless, all characteristics which help make their respected films that much better. They’re the ones that left the biggest impact on audiences and the franchise as a whole.
A good Bond villain does not always make for a great Bond film, but it doesn’t hurt. It’s common knowledge that a film with good conflict will be more engaging to watch, and the conflict between the protagonist and antagonist is the driving factor of the James Bond franchise. Therefore, along with one of the most well-known and legendary protagonists of all time, the franchise is also home to some of the most well-known and legendary antagonists as well. This is a list that honors the best antagonists in the Bond franchise. They’re the ones that are the most creative, memorable, or relentless, all characteristics which help make their respected films that much better. They’re the ones that left the biggest impact on audiences and the franchise as a whole.
- 11/15/2015
- by feeds@cinelinx.com (G.S. Perno)
- Cinelinx
In the second of our James Bond retrospectives, we look at From Russia With Love, starring Sean Connery...
Two films in and the James Bond franchise reaches its artistic highpoint. Downhill from here? Certainly for some; others won’t see what the hype is. Yet critically, From Russia with Love remains the darling: a gritty, almost-plausible tale of gypsies, Spectre and sex tapes. It boasts a whole array of brilliant characters and a fight scene to make Daniel Craig crap his paints. Anyone who claims the film is slightly dull has my opposition and my sneaking respect.
The Villain (s): Spectre. A real team effort here. Until the release of Bond 24 (which it seems fair to bet will feature the organisation pretty heavily) From Russia With Love remains the definitive exploration of the creatively acronymed gang. (SPecial Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion.) Chief of Operations Rosa Klebb is calculating,...
Two films in and the James Bond franchise reaches its artistic highpoint. Downhill from here? Certainly for some; others won’t see what the hype is. Yet critically, From Russia with Love remains the darling: a gritty, almost-plausible tale of gypsies, Spectre and sex tapes. It boasts a whole array of brilliant characters and a fight scene to make Daniel Craig crap his paints. Anyone who claims the film is slightly dull has my opposition and my sneaking respect.
The Villain (s): Spectre. A real team effort here. Until the release of Bond 24 (which it seems fair to bet will feature the organisation pretty heavily) From Russia With Love remains the definitive exploration of the creatively acronymed gang. (SPecial Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion.) Chief of Operations Rosa Klebb is calculating,...
- 2/12/2015
- by simonbrew
- Den of Geek
Ah, the Cold War. Growing up as I did in the Eighties, there was no greater Bad Guy in film or print as evil or subversive or insidious as the Russians. They were the eternal enemy, lurking across the ocean at the business end of a fleet of ICBMs. It was a time of uncertainty, of mistrust, of a vague feeling that global nuclear catastrophe could happen at any time. Not just that you might die, or your brother in the service might die, but that everyone might die. That the culmination of human endeavors to this point might just end after the hasty push of a big red button.
The Cold War was not a war of armies or military strategy, but one of ideology and secrecy. We were we and they were they. They thought differently from us, they structured their economy and their politics differently from us.
The Cold War was not a war of armies or military strategy, but one of ideology and secrecy. We were we and they were they. They thought differently from us, they structured their economy and their politics differently from us.
- 3/18/2013
- by Eric Schlelein
- Boomtron
With Skyfall being released today and receiving nothing but glowing reviews from the critics and fans alike I felt it was only appropriate to take a look back and see what other films starring the British Secret Agent were a cut above the rest. Bond . . . James Bond has appeared in 22 previous action packed adventures that stem from writer Ian Fleming’s popular books. Over the years the films have garnered over $12 billion dollars and have spawned fans all across the world. The film series was officially launched in 1961 thanks to Albert R. Broccoli (also known as “Cubby”) and Harry Saltzman when they formed Eon Productions. A year later the tuxedo suit wearing, Aston Martin driving, and martini drinking spy stepped out onto the big screen. Some of the films released since 1962 were “shaken not stirred” into the perfect concoction of espionage, intrigue, and excitement, while others were forgettable adventures for...
- 11/10/2012
- by Michael Haffner
- Destroy the Brain
With The Spy Who Loved Me, Ian Fleming took an ambitious gamble: abandoning Bond for much of the book in favour of a female narrator. As Skyfall opens, Richard Williams remembers a surprising heroine
Vivienne Michel is perhaps the least well-known of the women for whom Ian Fleming arranged assignations with James Bond, and yet none of her more celebrated sisters, from Vesper Lynd through Tatiana Romanova and Pussy Galore to the Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, succeeded in engaging the author's interest to the same extent. To her alone is accorded the honour of a Bond book written entirely in her voice, with 007 making a late appearance in a supporting role. And although, unlike some of the others, she survived to tell the tale, she was destined to suffer a different kind of literary death.
Few novelists in Fleming's position, riding the public's voracious appetite for the adventures of a fictional hero,...
Vivienne Michel is perhaps the least well-known of the women for whom Ian Fleming arranged assignations with James Bond, and yet none of her more celebrated sisters, from Vesper Lynd through Tatiana Romanova and Pussy Galore to the Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, succeeded in engaging the author's interest to the same extent. To her alone is accorded the honour of a Bond book written entirely in her voice, with 007 making a late appearance in a supporting role. And although, unlike some of the others, she survived to tell the tale, she was destined to suffer a different kind of literary death.
Few novelists in Fleming's position, riding the public's voracious appetite for the adventures of a fictional hero,...
- 10/26/2012
- by Richard Williams
- The Guardian - Film News
'Ian Fleming's novels offer the opportunity to glimpse, even to revel in, how things used to be before progress and equality spoiled all the fun'
Some staples of our common culture are so established, so embedded in the collective consciousness, we think we know them even if we don't. Everyone knows Shakespeare, Dickens or the Beatles, even if they haven't seen one of the plays, read the books or played the music in years, if ever. They somehow linger in the air, ready to be imbibed as if by osmosis.
So it is with James Bond, perhaps the single best-known literary character of the 20th century. Everyone thinks they know James Bond. The terms – M, 007, licence to kill – have not just entered the English language, they are part of a global common currency, readily understood across the planet. When Danny Boyle sought to project Britain to the global...
Some staples of our common culture are so established, so embedded in the collective consciousness, we think we know them even if we don't. Everyone knows Shakespeare, Dickens or the Beatles, even if they haven't seen one of the plays, read the books or played the music in years, if ever. They somehow linger in the air, ready to be imbibed as if by osmosis.
So it is with James Bond, perhaps the single best-known literary character of the 20th century. Everyone thinks they know James Bond. The terms – M, 007, licence to kill – have not just entered the English language, they are part of a global common currency, readily understood across the planet. When Danny Boyle sought to project Britain to the global...
- 9/28/2012
- by Jonathan Freedland
- The Guardian - Film News
To mark the 50th Anniversary of one of the most successful movie franchises of all time and with filming now complete on James Bond’s 23rd official outing in Skyfall due for release later this year, I have been tasked with taking a retrospective look at the films that turned author Ian Fleming’s creation into one of the most recognised and iconic characters in film history.
Following Roger Moore’s departure from the lead role after starring in the previous seven films, the fifteenth James Bond film, The Living Daylights, was seized upon as an opportunity to reboot the series with not only a new Bond but a new approach to the franchise that had become rather formulaic over the past 25 years. Taking the title from one of Fleming’s short stories, writers Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson took the character back to his roots making a conscious...
Following Roger Moore’s departure from the lead role after starring in the previous seven films, the fifteenth James Bond film, The Living Daylights, was seized upon as an opportunity to reboot the series with not only a new Bond but a new approach to the franchise that had become rather formulaic over the past 25 years. Taking the title from one of Fleming’s short stories, writers Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson took the character back to his roots making a conscious...
- 6/20/2012
- by Chris Wright
- Obsessed with Film
For the next 22 weeks, MTV Movies Blog will be running what we call the Bond-a-Thond. Every Wednesday we're taking a look back at a single (official) Bond film, giving you the vitals and seeing how it holds up, right up until the release of "Skyfall" on November 9. Feel free to watch along with us and share your thoughts or just kick back and enjoy the Bond.
From Russia With Love (1963)
Title Meaning: The phrase James scrawls on the picture of Tatiana Romanova, the supposedly defected Soviet agent who requested Bond specifically.
Plot: Wanting revenge for the death of Dr. No in Jamaica, the evil international organization Spectre concocts an elaborate scheme to both murder Bond and steal a code breaking device from the Soviets.
Bond: Sean Connery
Villain: Spectre assassin Donald Grant played by a delightfully platinum blond Robert Shaw. He is given orders by Rosa Klebb, who in turn answers to Ernst Blofeld,...
From Russia With Love (1963)
Title Meaning: The phrase James scrawls on the picture of Tatiana Romanova, the supposedly defected Soviet agent who requested Bond specifically.
Plot: Wanting revenge for the death of Dr. No in Jamaica, the evil international organization Spectre concocts an elaborate scheme to both murder Bond and steal a code breaking device from the Soviets.
Bond: Sean Connery
Villain: Spectre assassin Donald Grant played by a delightfully platinum blond Robert Shaw. He is given orders by Rosa Klebb, who in turn answers to Ernst Blofeld,...
- 6/20/2012
- by Kevin P. Sullivan
- MTV Movies Blog
James Bond is back, hunky, handsome and shirtless as ever, and once again played by Daniel Craig, in his third outing as Agent 007. Unveiled on Monday: the trailer for Bond's 23rd screen adventure, Skyfall, due in U.S. theaters Nov. 9, and costarring Javier Bardem and French actress Bérénice Marlohe as the new Bond Girl, named Severine. In the brief film clip, Bond/Craig is shown against a variety of international locations, while a location posting states that the production is currently in Turkey. Scenes were recently shot in the Grand Bazaar of Istanbul, where nearly half a century...
- 5/21/2012
- by Stephen M. Silverman
- PEOPLE.com
(L-r) Director Sam Mendes, Daniel Craig and Producer Barbara Broccoli attend a photo conference to mark the filming of Skyfall, the 23rd James Bond adventure, in Istanbul, Turkey. It is the 3rd time in the 50 year history of the film franchise that the city has served as a backdrop. The photo call took place at the Ciragan Palace Kempinski Hotel on Sunday, April 29, 2012 in Istanbul, Turkey.
Daniel Craig and cast and filmmakers of Skyfall, the 23rd adventure in the longest-running film franchise of all time, have arrived in Istanbul, Turkey. Their arrival marks the third time a James Bond adventure has filmed in the historic city. Previously, Istanbul served as a backdrop for scenes in From Russia With Love and The World Is Not Enough.
Skyfall locations in Turkey include Adana, Fethiye and Istanbul. At a photo call and press conference today to mark the occasion were producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli,...
Daniel Craig and cast and filmmakers of Skyfall, the 23rd adventure in the longest-running film franchise of all time, have arrived in Istanbul, Turkey. Their arrival marks the third time a James Bond adventure has filmed in the historic city. Previously, Istanbul served as a backdrop for scenes in From Russia With Love and The World Is Not Enough.
Skyfall locations in Turkey include Adana, Fethiye and Istanbul. At a photo call and press conference today to mark the occasion were producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli,...
- 4/29/2012
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Each week within this column we strive to pair the latest in theatrical releases to worthwhile titles currently available on Netflix Instant Watch. This week we offer alternatives to Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Young Adult, & New Year’s Eve.
This week a subtle spy faces off against a mean girl and a cavalcade of celebs in theaters nationwide. Want more thrilling espionage tales, badass black comedies and schmaltzy star-studded stories? We’ve got you covered with some stellar selects that are Now Streaming.
Based on John le Carré’s espionage novel, Ttss centers on stoic MI6 agent George Smiley (Gary Oldman), who is in the midst of a mole hunt. Colin Firth, Benedict Cumberbatch and John Hurt co-star. Tomas Alfredson (Let the Right One In) directs.
Like your thrillers with British accents? Sure you do!
Sherlock (2010) Ttss co-star Benedict Cumberbatch stars in this extraordinary BBC sleuth series as a sociopathic Sherlock,...
This week a subtle spy faces off against a mean girl and a cavalcade of celebs in theaters nationwide. Want more thrilling espionage tales, badass black comedies and schmaltzy star-studded stories? We’ve got you covered with some stellar selects that are Now Streaming.
Based on John le Carré’s espionage novel, Ttss centers on stoic MI6 agent George Smiley (Gary Oldman), who is in the midst of a mole hunt. Colin Firth, Benedict Cumberbatch and John Hurt co-star. Tomas Alfredson (Let the Right One In) directs.
Like your thrillers with British accents? Sure you do!
Sherlock (2010) Ttss co-star Benedict Cumberbatch stars in this extraordinary BBC sleuth series as a sociopathic Sherlock,...
- 12/8/2011
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
As James Bond prepares for his 23rd official outing in Skyfall and to mark next year’s 50th Anniversary of one of the most successful movie franchises of all time I have been tasked to take a retrospective look at the films that turned author Ian Fleming’s creation into one of the most recognised and iconic characters in film history.
Following the huge success of the first James Bond film Dr. No, producers Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman were keen to start production on a follow-up. With United Artists offering the pair $2 million, double the budget of Dr. No, to quickly get a sequel in the works Broccoli and Saltzman were left to decide which of Fleming’s novels to adapt next.
In an interview with Life magazine the then Us President John F. Kennedy had mentioned the Bond novel From Russia With Love in a list of his top ten favourite books.
Following the huge success of the first James Bond film Dr. No, producers Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman were keen to start production on a follow-up. With United Artists offering the pair $2 million, double the budget of Dr. No, to quickly get a sequel in the works Broccoli and Saltzman were left to decide which of Fleming’s novels to adapt next.
In an interview with Life magazine the then Us President John F. Kennedy had mentioned the Bond novel From Russia With Love in a list of his top ten favourite books.
- 11/30/2011
- by Chris Wright
- Obsessed with Film
Our James Bond retrospective continues with the second installment of the James Bond franchise- From Russia With Love, considered by many to be the finest film of the series. Do I agree? Read on... From Russia With Love Plot: Bond goes to Istanbul to aid in the defection of a Soviet agent named Tatiana Romanova (Daniela Bianchi)- all the while being dragged deeper and deeper into a sinister scheme involving a Russian decoding machine sought after by the sinister...
- 10/28/2008
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
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