New writers?
#1
Posted 30 May 2012 - 11:18 AM
Don't get the wrong impression, I'm not against them - I'm just putting the idea out there.
#2
Posted 30 May 2012 - 12:39 PM
We tend to regard the course the series has taken as a given, an unchangeable set-in-stone destiny. And do not realise how prone to chance and accident the whole mess really was. And how often things could have turned out drastically different. Much more different than just Lazenby staying on board, or Burt Reynolds instead of Moore. On some occasions the pressure to remain at the top apparently pulled all the stops from the whole Bond machinery. I'd like to see a bit of that spirit coming back, and the current regime seems like providing the best chances for this, if ever.
As said above, a return of the days of screenwriting 'virgins' like Dahl in his day will likely never happen again, not on this scale any more. And this needn't be a bad thing. A writer familiar with the art will have better chances to fully realise the potential of it. Still, from time to time one would like to see thinking outside the box coming back to Bond. If it can be said to ever have been part of the deal - not a given - so 'coming back' may be the wrong phrase.
It seems the industry has developed a certain MO leading to teams of writers/directors working closely together on several consecuitive productions, or even exclusively; Christopher Nolan and his brother spring to mind. While I doubt this kind of independence is granted to Bond personnel I'd be intrigued to see what results such a team would have with Bond.
#3
Posted 30 May 2012 - 01:12 PM
#4
Posted 30 May 2012 - 03:02 PM
#5
Posted 30 May 2012 - 03:17 PM
#6
Posted 30 May 2012 - 04:05 PM
But they must do something pretty well - otherwise EON wouldn´t have re-hired them again and again.
My suspicion is: they are much better than anybody gives them credit for. Even better than the "A-list" writers that are brought on by the directors to "punch" everything up. From my experience, directors are very hostile towards writers they don´t know personally - so they always go with their special friends, feeling more secure then.
#7
Posted 30 May 2012 - 04:43 PM
#8
Posted 30 May 2012 - 04:46 PM
Purvis and Wade are a double-edged sword. Clearly they understand the Bond world; they are always trying to bring elements of the novels to the scripts. But at what point do they get stale? Most writers don't have an infinite number of stories in them. Eon seems to be counterbalancing the old guard of Purvis and Wade with new blood in the form of script doctors like Haggis et al.
On the flip side, when Eon gives total script control to someone who doesn't really get how to construct a Bond story, they get the calorie-free simulacrum of TND.
#9
Posted 30 May 2012 - 08:41 PM
#10
Posted 30 May 2012 - 08:44 PM
I miss the days of Richard Maibaum doing the main work. Purvis & Wade seem to be his successor by providing the main frame of a Bond script which is then doctored or re-written by more famous writers (Haggis, Logan).
Without all the drafts, you can't know definitively. But there are potential clues. There is a Casino Royale draft that some collectors have a copy of. It was dated Dec. 13, 2005 and on the title page says, "Screenplay by Neal Purvis & Robert Wade, Second set of revisions by Paul Haggis."
Through most of the script, the part is listed as BOND (the traditional practice), but on some pages it's JAMES and will sometimes change back and forth over the course of several pages. Anyway, the title page suggests it definitely started out as a Purvis-Wade script with Haggis coming in as a script doctor.
#11
Posted 30 May 2012 - 11:00 PM
#12
Posted 30 May 2012 - 11:25 PM
#13
Posted 30 May 2012 - 11:45 PM
Quoted for truth.The thing is: who knows what´s written by them or what isn´t?
But they must do something pretty well - otherwise EON wouldn´t have re-hired them again and again.
My suspicion is: they are much better than anybody gives them credit for. Even better than the "A-list" writers that are brought on by the directors to "punch" everything up. From my experience, directors are very hostile towards writers they don´t know personally - so they always go with their special friends, feeling more secure then.
#14
Posted 30 May 2012 - 11:49 PM
I'd like to see Jonathan Nolan get involved with the writing.
Why? Dialogue and humour ain't exactly the strong point of Chris Nolan's films, to say the least.
#15
Posted 31 May 2012 - 12:10 AM
I'd like to see Jonathan Nolan get involved with the writing.
Why? Dialogue and humour ain't exactly the strong point of Chris Nolan's films, to say the least.
Something different, shake things up a bit.
#16
Posted 31 May 2012 - 01:30 AM
I'd like to see Jonathan Nolan get involved with the writing.
Why? Dialogue and humour ain't exactly the strong point of Chris Nolan's films, to say the least.
Agree on the humor and dialogue. Solid observation. But the Nolans are great at creating high concepts. Let someone else polish the dialogue, humor and relationships.
#17
Posted 31 May 2012 - 01:33 AM
I'd like to see Jonathan Nolan get involved with the writing.
Why? Dialogue and humour ain't exactly the strong point of Chris Nolan's films, to say the least.
Agree on the humor and dialogue. Solid observation. But the Nolans are great at creating high concepts. Let someone else polish the dialogue, humor and relationships.
Indeed. I would love to see what this (dynamic?) duo could some up with. I think they deserve a shot. If it fails (and it won't) there are always more Bond films in the future.