396 replies to this topic

[dinovelvet]

Well, someone threw out the Coen Bros. as an idea somewhere back there. But yeah, wishful thinking.

And can you imagine how VIOLENT a Coen Bros. Bond film would be?(not that the Bond films aren't violent already )

Stranger things have happened. Who knows, maybe the Coens are closet Bond fans, and like the idea of having a blockbuster on their resume.

[honour]

Good call. I do believe he was actually considered for QUANTUM OF SOLACE.

Show you how much I pay attention..I didn't know that about him being considered to direct QOS.

But he's got back to back to back work(State Of Play,which he finished already,a movie about Bobby Fisher, and another political thriller),which is why he didn't do it

Edited by honour, 12 May 2008 - 08:47 PM.

[mister-white]

I think with the choice of Mr. Forster to helm QoS, it was EON's way of showing us that they were headed in a new direction, but yet the right one. I've never really understood why for the longest time you had to have a long history of big action movies, but yet be a bit of a unknown name. I think really any director could direct Bond, as long as they surround themselves with the right people who can handle the stunts and let the director do what they're supposed to be doing, working with the actors, making sure the film has a nice flow of story and such. It's not really the directors job to arrange the action, sure they get to come up with what the final product looks like, but really they shouldn't need a ton of action experience to direct a Bond. So, with Forster, they're clearly going in this direction, and I hope more people like him follow in the role of director. Paul Haggis is a bit of an obvious one, but another one who no one's brought up that I think is almost too perfect is Jason Reitman, who I know has done comedies, but everything seems to be more grounded in reality and emotional based, so I think he would be a good choice.

[honour]

Re:Reitman-they could have Bond trying to protect a pregnant teenage girl(played by Ellen Page )

sorry,I couldn't resist.

[Golden Claw]

Tony Scott?

Or maybe Roger Spottiswoode should get another chance to redeem himself for a forgettable TND?

Maybe Lee Tamahori should get another chance with a much better script? The first half of DAD is not bad, actually.

As I said in the Female directors thread, Deepa Mehta should be considered. Check out 'Fire' (1996), '1947: Earth' (1998) and 'Water' (2005).

Gurinder Chadha should also be considered. check out 'Bend it like Beckham' (2002) and 'Bride and Prejudice' (2004, a Bollywood-style adaptation of Pride and Prejudice). I feel they could handle action films.

Edited by Golden Claw, 24 May 2008 - 08:06 AM.

[sthgilyadgnivileht]

It goes without saying that one of the most-talked about things regarding QoS has been the choice of director Marc Forster, who is the first director to take on the Bond films that carried with him a certain artistic pedigree and a level of critical acclaim. In some ways, he's a director's director, with films like MONSTER'S BALL, FINDING NEVERLAND, STRANGER THAN FICTION, and THE KITE RUNNER under his belt. Upon his announcement, one news article rather snobbishly declared, "This guy's too good for Bond."

Many of us noted the pretty dramatic change in directors this signalled for the franchise. Now that EON has established that they're in the market for directors who are artists, not the typical workhorse directors of the franchise. Now they can't really go back to hiring John Glens or Roger Spottiswoodes, now can they? So who does EON go for next?

Obviously someone with some clout and critical acclaim, but I doubt EON will be looking at the huge names. I don't think we'll see Steven Spielberg or Ridley Scott doing an EON Bond film... they have busy schedules, plenty of projects of their own, and probably would want complete control, rather than having to collaborate with EON. So we're looking for directors with artistic credibility but still below the top tier.

The one suggestion that comes off the top of my head is Stephen Frears (THE QUEEN). He was already on board with JINX, and that's enough to get his hat into the ring for a future Bond film.

You could say Lewis Gilbert was the first directors director. He had massive success with Alfie, and prior to that did other movies to acclaim like Reach for the Sky.

[Agent 76]

Guy Ritchie.

[Ian-FZer007even]

With the massive success of TDK, Bond producers might/most likely/probably/for sure give Christopher Nolan a call and maybe even have him write it with his brother.

I still vote for Andrew Niccol ...

[Mr. Blofeld]

Guy Ritchie.

Do you seriously want to get Madonna involved again?

[Blofeld's Cat]

Guy Ritchie.

Do you seriously want to get Madonna involved again?

Not after the divorce.

[Mr. Blofeld]

Guy Ritchie.

Do you seriously want to get Madonna involved again?

Not after the divorce.

Well, Ritchie's only made crap films after he married her; just look at Revolver, for pete's sake!

[Orion]

With the massive success of TDK, Bond producers might/most likely/probably/for sure give Christopher Nolan a call and maybe even have him write it with his brother.

I would LOVE Christopher Nolan to direct a Bond film, he is my favourite director and, in my opinion, is yet to make a bad film

Following-Excellent
Memento-Brilliant
Insomnia-easily his worst but still very good
Batman Begins-Brilliant
The Prestige-Brilliant
The Dark Knight-Incredible

whatsmore, he actually is a Bond fan, and has talked alot about how the Bond films influenced him for Batman Begins and The Dark Knight in terms of how they use their villains (in the Interview with him thats in the Batman Begins shooting script he discusses how it was insipred by the best Bond films which he says give us really colourfull villains yet don't outshine Bond)

[dodge]

With the massive success of TDK, Bond producers might/most likely/probably/for sure give Christopher Nolan a call and maybe even have him write it with his brother.

I would LOVE Christopher Nolan to direct a Bond film, he is my favourite director and, in my opinion, is yet to make a bad film

Following-Excellent
Memento-Brilliant
Insomnia-easily his worst but still very good
Batman Begins-Brilliant
The Prestige-Brilliant
The Dark Knight-Incredible

whatsmore, he actually is a Bond fan, and has talked alot about how the Bond films influenced him for Batman Begins and The Dark Knight in terms of how they use their villains (in the Interview with him thats in the Batman Begins shooting script he discusses how it was insipred by the best Bond films which he says give us really colourfull villains yet don't outshine Bond)

Well said about the villains. I was just thinking of how part of TDK's appeal--for Bond fans at least--must be presence of a magnificently charismatic villain who does, yes, have his comic side, but isn't a cartoon. It's been a long time since Bond offered us that. Let's get the new era in gear a.s.a.p.--and I'd love to see the Nolan brothers' magic get a shot.

[BoogieBond]

I am with most of the suggestions so far.
I think it is definitely possible to get a top rated director, but not perhaps a superstar director(Yet) for future bonds.

I would agree with Christopher Nolan, as he is a OHMSS fan as well, and directs action and drama/story equally well.

Some of the other suggestions Paul Haggis is one I would like to see direct.
But I would say, for 1 film only, why not get a superstar director, even Spielberg, to take it on, could it hurt the franchise that much, and would he want that much more autonomy than Marc Forster is getting now, perhaps EON could come to a compromise.

[Skudor]

Nolan has got to be on top of my wish-list at the moment (along with Ridley Scott). I'm intrigued by the idea of Lasse Hallstrom.

[Harmsway]

Christopher Nolan would be a great choice (same with Ridley Scott), but in all liklihood nothing like that will ever happen. Too big.

But Lasse Hallstrom? He's a natural choice. Just small enough to sit comfortably under the EON umbrella, and with just enough credibility to keep up the veneer of an "arthouse" Bond.

[Simon]

Roger Donaldson.

(If not mentioned earlier)

[Mister E]

I am with most of the suggestions so far.
I think it is definitely possible to get a top rated director, but not perhaps a superstar director(Yet) for future bonds.

I would agree with Christopher Nolan, as he is a OHMSS fan as well, and directs action and drama/story equally well.

Some of the other suggestions Paul Haggis is one I would like to see direct.
But I would say, for 1 film only, why not get a superstar director, even Spielberg, to take it on, could it hurt the franchise that much, and would he want that much more autonomy than Marc Forster is getting now, perhaps EON could come to a compromise.

No not Speilberg, he would only want to do a nostalgia film and George Lucas will give him stupid ideas to put in. I would want Christopher Nolan or for a quiter film I would choose Frank Oz. I know Oz has done mostly comedies but THE SCORE convinced me he could do a more down to earth Bond with dry humor.

[Mercator]

Lee Tamahori
Steven Sommers
Rob Cohen
Mark Neveldine
Brian Taylor
Justin Lin
John Singleton
Brett Ratner
Michael Bay
Roger Donaldson

[Mister E]

Roger Donaldson

Good choice.

[Harmsway]

Donaldson's okay. He'd probably do a decent job with a Bond film, but his career isn't that impressive. I wouldn't complain much, but I wouldn't actually ask for him, either.

[Loomis]

Mira Nair (SALAAM BOMBAY!, MONSOON WEDDING) seems to me an extremely exciting and credible choice. She has solid, critically-acclaimed recent feature film experience to add to a hugely impressive early lineup of films. Her CV is very much that of "Eon's kind of director" - it's full of "serious" and "worthy" fare, and she has a background in documentary. Heck, she's practically the female Michael Apted meeting the female Marc Forster, as well as a great visual storyteller.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0619762/

And in case anyone doubts that Nair could summon a British Sensibility ™, which is something that a lot of Bond fans talk about when it comes to directors, she directed 2004's VANITY FAIR in the United Kingdom, and was offered the director's chair on HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX. Also, there's nothing remotely American in flavour about the film which made her name, SALAAM BOMBAY!, which is if anything strongly influenced by the British "kitchen sink" school of the 1960s.

Nair is currently working on SHANTARAM (replacing original director Peter Weir), an adaptation (by Eric Roth) of Gregory David Roberts' astounding semi-autobiographical novel about a bank robber who escapes an Australian prison and reinvents himself in Bombay as, among other things, a slum doctor and member of the Indian mafia. I've no idea how Nair and co. are going to streamline Roberts' unbelievably sprawling epic, but I do know this: SHANTARAM (starring Johnny Depp and Amitabh Bachchan) will be one of the films to look out for in 2009. If Nair directs BOND 23, it'll be her KITE RUNNER. Before SHANTARAM, though, Nair will be bringing us the Amelia Earhart biopic AMELIA, starring Hilary Swank, Ewan McGregor and Richard Gere.

If Nair isn't at or near the top of Eon's directors wishlist for BOND 23, I'd be very surprised.

[Harmsway]

Nair wouldn't be a bad choice by any stretch, but I'm not at all convinced she's someone on EON's wishlist. The fact that she's a woman is the one thing that I think would keep her from the director's chair.

[Loomis]

The fact that she's a woman is the one thing that I think would keep her from the director's chair.

Well, unless Barbara Broccoli and co. are sexist, I don't see why Nair's gender would even be a problem, let alone bar her from the director's chair. One might as well claim that her ethnicity would be an issue. Heck, BOND 23 (like all films) needs a few unique selling points, as it were, and "FIRST WOMAN TO DIRECT A BOND FILM" would certainly make headlines and stoke anticipation.

Bond may (or may not - it may just have been coincidence that all the directors to date were male) have been a boys' club back in the day, but the hiring of Forster (the series' first non-UK/non-Commonwealth director) shows that the old Eon rulebook has clearly been modified in recent years.

I suspect it would come down to whether Nair is interested in Bond (and I've no idea whether she is or not - for all I know she'd be about as eager to do BOND 23 as she'd be to do RAMBO V) rather than whether Eon would consider her a viable choice. Because I can't think of any other director, male or female, who'd be a more appropriate or intriguing one, very much in tune with where the series is currently at.

[Mister E]

Nair wouldn't be a bad choice by any stretch, but I'm not at all convinced she's someone on EON's wishlist. The fact that she's a woman is the one thing that I think would keep her from the director's chair.

You forget that Barbra Brocolli is a women ?

[Harmsway]

I didn't at all forget that Babs was a chick, so I don't think there's any real sexist bias, but EON has not, as of yet, gone after a female director, so the track record doesn't really point in Nair's favor. Maybe I'm wrong, and Nair will be consulted on BOND 23, but I'm not betting on it.

There's also a sense in which I imagine most women wouldn't be interested in directing Bond. I know that's a sweeping generalization, and that there are plenty of female 007 fans, but there's definitely something to be said for Bond being a very masculine franchise. There aren't many female hard-edged action flick directors, after all.

[Mister E]

There's also a sense in which I imagine most women wouldn't be interested in directing Bond. I know that's a sweeping generalization, and that there are plenty of female 007 fans, but there's definitely something to be said for Bond being a very masculine franchise. There aren't many female hard-edged action flick directors, after all.

Yes I agree that they're probably aren't any women around that would like to direct Bond films.

[honour]

*puts on flameproof suit*

Spielberg?Absoultely not. I just don't understand the loyalty he inspires in people even though he's made his fair share of duds.

Edited by honour, 11 August 2008 - 11:37 PM.

[mister-white]

Here's a list I've now come up with (in no particular order):

- Paul Haggis (Good chance he's at the top of the list).
- Chris Nolan (Duh, have you seen anything he's done).
- Roger Spottiswoode (Hey, he did my favourite of the Brosnan era, and has since done some pretty good dramatic stuff)
- Mike Newell (He's always been good to deliever a nice British feel and he can handle the action/ emotional balance)

[Skudor]

Christopher Nolan would be a great choice (same with Ridley Scott), but in all liklihood nothing like that will ever happen. Too big.

But Lasse Hallstrom? He's a natural choice. Just small enough to sit comfortably under the EON umbrella, and with just enough credibility to keep up the veneer of an "arthouse" Bond.

Agree on Scott and Nolan - too big - they would be great for a proper reboot though. The producers giving up most of the control in order to rejuvinate the franchise.