13 thoughts on “A Quick Reference Guide to the Movies and Books”

1. I'd be interested to know which film is your favourite and why, Matt.

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2. Hi JON,
   My favourite film is On Her Majesty's Secret Service. It has a great story and great script, and the actors are all excellent except for George Lazenby. But at least Lazenby had a great tailor and looked the part.

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3. You and I must be long lost brothers. Everyone gives me blank stares when I tell them my favourite is OHMSS. If Connery had stayed in the part for one more, OHMSS would get the credit and praise it deserves. I also vote for Lazenby's style as my favourite. And believe it or not, Telly Savalas is my fav of all Blofelds.

   But I get shivers thinking about how incredible the film wouldve been with Connery, or even Roger Moore.

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   • I couldn’t agree more!

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4. Goldeneye has to be the best in my opinion! Great film.

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5. GoldenEye was good, but I have such a problem with the terrible musical score that it nearly ruins the entire film for me. Had David Arnold composed it, it would be fantastic. Eric Serra's weird techno crap ruins the whole "Bond" feel.

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6. JON, that's exactly the way I feel about GoldenEye. Had John Barry agreed to do GoldenEye it would've been a much better film to me. I find that a lot of young people like GoldenEye because they confuse the movie with the video game. It made a better video game than movie.

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7. I have fantastic memories from junior high of playing GoldenEye for hours after school, but unfortunately it doesnt change my opinion of the film. Also, Brosnan seemed a bit uncomfortable, a bit too stiff. He was much better in Tomorrow Never Dies and really came into his own with The World Is Not Enough.

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8. I think George Lazenby would've grown into the role of Bond. The story in OHMSS (very little removed to that of the book) requires James Bond to fall in love. For an inexperienced 29 year old non actor taking over the role I think Lazenby acquitted himself quite well. Better in fact than some of the actual actors who later adopted the role.

   OHMSS is, for Lazenby, it's story line (one of the best Fleming novels)fellow actors and locations, a one off. A special entry in the 007 canon

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9. Unfortunately I felt Lazenby brought OHMSS down too much. It wasn't quite a "The Matrix" situation either. Keanu Reeves isn't much of an actor, but he was very committed to the fight choreography and stoic/inoffensive enough that the movie still worked. (Can you tell I really like that movie? )

   I think another thing that killed OHMSS in the public's eye was the marketing. They tried to downplay the fact that Sean Connery wasn't returning. It turned out to be a terrible decision for a number of reasons.

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10. Goldeneye's score is unfairly maligned in my opinion. But, then I've always been a fan of Eric Serra's work in "Léon" and "The Fifth Element."

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11. Though it’s not my favourite I’m a big fan of OHMSS and I don’t think Lazenby let the film down at all. He had everything against him from the start: the first to follow the supposedly irreplaceable Connery and a lot of clucking critics and fans determined to make noise about it; lack of acting experience; the technical gaff of choosing to dub his voice as Sir Hilary Bray.

    Most people agree that he shined in the action scenes and that his wardrobe was largely good. He’s a worse actor than Daniel Craig, but had far better ‘Bond presence’ than the current pouting, hyperactive incumbent.
    Moore had considerable acting experience and yet he was also sometimes a bit wooden, the reviews of Lazenby are really just a lot of accumulated repetition. I think he did well in the the film and I accept him as a legitimate Bond without reserve.

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12. Dr No and Live and Let Die have particular significnce to me, as I lived in Jamaica at the time of the filming, and learned to sail where filming took place around Kingston harbour. I believe the Kinston hotels used in Dr No have been demolished and tourist trade development has taken its toll on other areas.

    Live and Let Die was particularly popular in Jamaica when it came out, both for its use of the island and the wonderful New Orleans characters that appealed to the Jamaican sense of flash and style.

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