Recast a modern: FRWL Options

[bryonalston]

This might be a bit harder to recast than the other films, since FRWL has assembled one of the most inspired casts in the entire series. Here's how I would recast a 2005 version:

James Bond: Clive Owen or Goran Visnjic- Frankly, either one would do a fine job at replacing Connery in a FRWL remake, maintaining Bond's tough brutality garnished with some fine suave and comedic touches.

Rosa Klebb: Linda Hunt- I frankly don't think that there's a better choice nowadays for the role as Rosa Klebb. Linda Hunt is about 4'9" and despite her short height, she maintains a sense of authority needed by a person like Klebb. She is also a fantastic actress, winning an Oscar for playing a man (not for playing a woman acting like a man--an actual male character) in 1983.



Tatiana Romanova: ???- I really can't think of anyone who could play Tania the same way Bianchi did.

Red Grant: Sacha Baron Cohen- No, I am not crazy, but I actually think that Cohen would be an inspired choice of casting as a henchman in a Bond film. Even though his Red Grant would be a polar opposite character from the one Robert Shaw played, I feel that Cohen's Grant would be more crafty and chameleonic than Shaw's (this is showcased by the many different characters he plays.) This would be essential for a psychopathic stalker like Grant.



Kerim Bey: Jean Reno- Jean Reno is the only person I can imagine playing a charismatic sidekick the same way Pedro Armendariz did, enough said.

Sylvia Trench: Elizabeth Hurley- Even though she is very famous, the role of Trench would be a better cameo for her than the role of Moneypenny, for which she is too famous to play anyways.

Blofeld: ???- Blofeld's identity, as well as the identity of the actor who plays him, should be kept secret.

The rest of the cast can be unknowns.

[k13oharts]

James Bond - I do not want to add to the fanatic wishlist however I do believe that Hugh Jackman could do a convincing Bond for this movie.

Tatyana Romanova - You can actually cast a real Russian nowadays and even Ukrainians (however there is clearly a difference in accent).
My candidates:
Svetlana Pesotskaya (The Naked Truth news anchor, previously a model and actress, born 1975)
Oksana Akinshina (had a Best Actress nomination in 2002 European Movie Awards, and another Best Actress nomination in Guldbagge Awards - Sweden's national film awards, born 1987)
There are quite a few more who are not known internationally.

Rosa Klebb - Linda Hunt seems natural already.
Let's add Kathy Bates as a contender (she could also do Irma Bunt for OHMSS).

'Red' Grant - Sony's Bond candidate (?) Daniel Craig would be perfect. He's blonde too.

Kerim Bey - Can't imagine anyone else in the role for now except for Brendan Fraser. With a good directing he could do a serious Kerim for the action sequences while the rest can be his usual comedic style to balance the movie.

Sylvia Trench - Elizabeth Hurley (lolz, the boys' fantasy can be well cast)

[Spoon]

Bond: Gerard Butler. You want that prizefighter type build for this movie.

Rosa Klebb: I think the tiny Hunt would be far too comical. Kathy Bates isn't very Eastern European. If you want to change the character a bit and present her as having sex appeal beneath the mannish/rigid exterior, you could use Jamie Lee Curtis. Or, how about Bette Midler?

Tatiana: After looking up k13oharts's suggestion of Oksana Akinshina... I agree, she looks like a terrific choice.

Red Grant: Again totally agree with k13oharts... this is where Daniel Craig comes in. I'd also be interested to see Kiefer Sutherland, but Craig would be perfect.

Kerim Bey: Tony Shalhoub

Sylvia Trench: Victoria Beckham... same idea in terms of "persona" as Hurley, but not as famous an actress for a role that, after all, is on screen for approximately two seconds.

[TheSaint]

Bond:Brosnan
M:Dame Judi Dench
Moneypenny:Samantha Bond
Q:John Cleese

Tatiana Romanova:I got nothing
Red Grant:G

[Agent 76]

Bond: Adrian Paul


M: Anthony Hopkins


Moneypenny:Rachel Weisz


Q:John Cleese


Tatiana Romanova: cate blanchett


Red Grant: Ralf Moeller


Rosa Klebb:Meryl Streep


Kerim Bay: John Rhys Davies

[Mister Asterix]

Linda Hunt essentially played Rosa Klebb (brilliantly, I might add) in the spy spoof If Looks Could Kill.

[spynovelfan]

Is it just me, or does this guy look like a better bet to play Bond than any of the supposed 'final four'?

[Turn]

FRWL is one of, if not the, best cast Bond film IMO. I wouldn't want it redone.

[ComplimentsOfSha...]

Is it just me, or does this guy look like a better bet to play Bond than any of the supposed 'final four'?

Visnjic definitely beats him...but the other three....


Bond: Clive Owen

Tatiana Romanova: Oksana Akinshina looks absolutley gorgeous and absolutely perfect.

Kerim Bey: John Rhys Davies

Red Grant: Brad Pitt

Rosa Klebb: Linda Hunt

Slyvia Trench: Rachel Weisz

M: Uhm...No idea. *looks at mainpage* Raymond Benson.

Moneypenny: Camilla Power

Q: John Cleese is a little too silly for FRWL. Not sure about this one either.

Gypsy girls: Monica Bellucci and Aishwarya Rai

[k13oharts]

Tatiana Romanova: Oksana Akinshina looks absolutley gorgeous and absolutely perfect.

You're welcome

Gypsy girls: Monica Bellucci and Aishwarya Rai

Hmmm... I forgot about them...
How's Shakira and Maria Menounos.

[ComplimentsOfSha...]

Tatiana Romanova: Oksana Akinshina looks absolutley gorgeous and absolutely perfect.

You're welcome

Gypsy girls: Monica Bellucci and Aishwarya Rai

Hmmm... I forgot about them...
How's Shakira and Maria Menounos.

Lovely choices

[bryonalston]

Shakira and Maria Menounos would be fantastic choices.

[Max Zorin]

Doesn't anyone else find that that Adrian Paul pic Agent 76 posted resembles a young Connery almost to a "T"? I mean, even the stance and the wardrobe! It looks like a screen capture from one of his early Bond films. Creepy.

Great find in the pic department, man.

[bryonalston]

I suppose Paul looks like Connery in the face, but his frame is much larger than the lean Connery we saw in the Bond films. If Paul wasn't as muscular, then I would say he could pass for Connery's son or clone or something.

[TheSaint]

I like the choice of John Rhys Davis as Kerim Bay.

Once upon a time I frowned upon the casting of Adrian Paul as Bond if only because I didn't want someone cast because he resembled Connery but, after seeing the "final four", I would deal with Paul.

[Moonraker]

First off forget about John Rhys Davis as Kerim Bey. Miguel Sandoval would be much better, he has the looks and personality of Pedro Armendariz

[ACE]

BROSNAN IS BACK!

Albert R. Broccoli's Eon Productions
presents

PIERCE BROSNAN

as Ian Fleming's

JAMES BOND 007

in

FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

starring
Audrey Tautou as Tatiana Romanova
Daniel Craig as Donovan Grant
Kathleen Turner as Rosa Klebb
John Malkovitch as Kronsteen
Vincent Cassell as Krilencu
Javier Bardem as Kerim Bey
Alexi Sayle as Vavra
Ian Holm as General G

with Samantha Bond, Colin Salmon, Michael Kitchen
John Cleese as Q and Judi Dench as M

Directed by Matthew Vaughn
Written by Neil Purvis & Robert Wade
Produced by Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli

This post has been edited by ACE: 12 August 2005 - 23:11

[bryonalston]

I wouldn't get my hopes up just yet ACE. Brosnan might be the flavor of the week (or the day) but there have been hundreds, if not thousands of rumors over the past few years and I don't see why this one stands out very much. And anyways, Brosnan is no Connery (sorry people )

[ACE]

I wouldn't get my hopes up just yet ACE. Brosnan might be the flavor of the week (or the day) but there have been hundreds, if not thousands of rumors over the past few years and I don't see why this one stands out very much. And anyways, Brosnan is no Connery (sorry people )

I agree Bryonalston but whatchagonnado? Tis only the innerned.

If Brosnan doan come back, I'll have Jack Davenport as Bond and maybe replace Daniel Craig with Michael Rapaport.

You want Goran, right?

I'll make him Vavra.

ACE

[bryonalston]

I wouldn't get my hopes up just yet ACE. Brosnan might be the flavor of the week (or the day) but there have been hundreds, if not thousands of rumors over the past few years and I don't see why this one stands out very much. And anyways, Brosnan is no Connery (sorry people )

You want Goran, right?

I'll make him Vavra.

ACE

Wow ACE, that's very funny. So hilarious that I want to puke... I'll stick with Clive Owen or Goran Visnjic anyday over Brosnan. He belongs in big budget crappy action films like MR or DAD and not respectable ones like FRWL, FYEO, TLD or what CR should be. He hasn't shown as much flexibility as Bond, or enough talent for that matter, to be cast in a FRWL or FYEO like Bond film. If he had been put in a film like LTK he would have probably wet his pants when he had his license revoked. He's too old looking and washed up and will always be known as Bond (I doubt he'll be able to break away from the role like Connery did) That's my two cents and frankly there's really nothing left to discuss. Have a nice day.

[ACE]

Clive Owen would make a great James Bond, I agree.

Problem is I don't have the imagination to see Goran in the role.

Sorry we disagree but there you go.

You may be right about Brosnan but we all wouldn't have been here without him.

Chill. I thought, by definition, the forums were the place to discuss things.

BTW, good thread.

Peace

ACE

This post has been edited by ACE: 13 August 2005 - 00:01

[bryonalston]

Problem is I don't have the imagination to see Goran in the role.

I was the same way when I first heard Visnjic suggested a few months back, but it was easy for me to picture him. Here's what I did:
1. Watch a few episodes with him on "ER" so that I can get a taste of his acting abilities
2. Watch any Bond film you can picture him in (for me, it was TLD the best. On ER, his character is very dark and introverted like Dalton's Bond was, but has his suave moments. The best scenes I can picture him in where the scenes with Saunders, as well as the scenes where he's getting irritated by Kara, like during the car chase.)
3. Go over to his page at IMDb and read some of the general public's comments on him (there aren't very many negative things about him. Most of the women think he's gorgeous and there are a few pages that address the Bond rumors.)
*ALSO VERY IMPORTANT- In his biography it lists his hobbies, past-times and achievements. If James Bond was a real person, Goran Visnjic would be him. His list of credentials was EXTREMELY impressive and has yet to be topped by any candidate I've seen!

After I did all of these things, I became fairly confident he would be great in the role. It takes a bit of imagination and an EXTREMELY open mind, but I can assure you that if you do see his potential (and look past his ethnicity) then you will see it too.

[ACE]

OK, thanks for that, Bryon.

Tell me one thing. On all your posts, you seem dead against Pierce returning. Yet looking at your age, it is sensible to infer that it was probably Pierce's cinematic outings that made you a Bond fan (this is an assumption, so forgive me).
Where does your dislike of Pierce returning stem from? You think he is not good as Bond artistically. I am interested in your rationale.

Is that too personal?

ACE

This post has been edited by ACE: 13 August 2005 - 09:57

[bryonalston]

Well, you are right about me getting turned onto the series by the Brosnan movies (DAD in fact, which I've grown to loathe even more in the past 2 years,) however, it was not his movies that made me a fan, it was mostly the Moore and Dalton films that secured me into the series (as well as the Benson books.) The only Brosnan film which I like is GE (and I tolerate TND.) When I compare Brosnan's performance to the performances of the previous Bond actors (not including Lazenby) he seems to have grown and matured with the role the least. Even Dalton managed to evolve in the role with his two films, something which Brosnan did not do in the four that he was awarded (a luxury that was not afforded to Dalton.) Brosnan and his films hold up well on their own, but when you compare them to the past generations, they pale in comparison (with the exception of GE.)

I personallly don't think that Brosnan deserves another chance to try and redeem himself and build the character of Bond anymore (he's had 4 movies, and Dalton managed to do what Pierce should have done in only two films.) Pierce had his chance, and it seems that his idea of depth (not necessarily him, but he must have had some level of creative input) was tacking on superficial elements to his character like the squinting, the wincing, or his overacted intense looks. I do not want to see him suffocate CR with his bloated ego (having the nerve to request 20 million dollars which he doesn't deserve) bloated stomach and generic suaveness (Pierce tries too hard sometimes. He doesn't seem as natural as Connery or Moore were.) I don't like what the series has become and even though people blame P&W (it is largely their fault) they did write the character of Bond around Pierce, since the general public seems to like him (but only as Bond, since his outside films don't do so well at the box office.) I don't think he has enough talent, scope or vision to take the series to where it needs to go right now (can you imagine him in a serious Bond film like FRWL or LTK?) I wish him the best of luck with The Topkapi Affair because that might be (and should be) the last Bondian role he'll have in a long time.

[Pal]

Bond - Alex O'Lachlan
Grant - David Morse (the Green Mile, The Rock, Hack)
Klebb - Frow (from Austin Powers - even though they'd never cast her)
Tatiana - Melissa George
Moneypenny - Rachel Wiesz
Kerim Bay - The bishop from King Aurther (I can't think of his name)
M - Malcolm McDowell
Q - John Cleese
Kerim Bay's Gypsy friend - John Rhyes-Davies

[hcmv007]

I might have done this one before

James Bond-Gerard Butler
Tatiana-Anna Kournikova
Rosa Klebb-Kathy Bates
Grant-Daniel Craig
Kronsteen-Steve Buscemi
Kerim Bay-John Rhyes Davies
M-Terrence Stamp
Q-John Cleese