17 replies to this topic

[Blofeld's Cat]

The scene from Live and Let Die:

Bond: There's a remarkable girl back there with a deck of cards.
Strutter: I saw those cards on the way up. Spades, James. Every one of them.

Surely he's not refering to the people in Mr. Big's underground facility, so why would Strutter refer to the tarot cards as being all spades? Is there some tradition in card games, other than the suit of spades of course, that refers to certain card plays as being spades, like a jinx or hex?

And as a side issue, we could also ponder as to how Strutter even knew of the den and was able to walk through it to rescue Bond without the "goons" taking him.

[Xenobia]

If you use a regular deck of cards as tarot cards, that is to read someone's fortune, the Ace of Spades stands for death. It is possible that Strutter was saying that the folks are all deadly.

-- Xenobia

[Blofeld's Cat]

But he most likely wouldn't know about tarot.

[Xenobia]

You never know...it is well known that the Ace of Spades means death in that circumstance.

And for a case, Strutter was probably briefed on tarot.

-- Xenobia

[Genrewriter]

I figure that if James Bond can know about everything from chemical compounds to how to carry a tune, then his CIA contact can have a working knowledge of Tarot.

[iain]

The next line makes it clear that Strutter was making a racial comment. The line is edited out when shown on tv in the US.

[Jim]

I always understood it to be a racıalıst (rather than racist) comment, just making use of an available pun given the card things going on elsewhere.

[marktmurphy]

I can't believe it could be interpreted otherwise. Its racıalıst, quite obviously. Its a joke.
Yet another rather worrying example of people on these boards failing to get jokes in their 'favourite' films.

Hot today, isn't it?

[DLibrasnow]

Yeah, I always took it to mean that Strutter was a racial comment about the people in Mr. Bigs organization keeping track of Bonds movement. Sorry BC but I'm amazed anyone wouldn't get that.

[Dr.Carl Mortner]

LALD ain't the most politically-correct movie and doesn't need to be seeing as it wasn't made in very politically-correct times. Back in the '70s, "spade" was a word that many non-racist people seemed to use for "black." That's the impression I got anyway...

[ChandlerBing]

May I mention that this bit of dialogue comes just after Roger does this whole stupid, hokey "fight" scene where he "knocks" out his two assailants. That was always embarrassing to watch. I also loved the bit where Tee Hee knocks him out after Solitaire "correctly" guesses the serial number on the back of his watch. And then you have Whisper carrying him out the way he does.

[Robinson]

Originally posted by ChandlerBing
And then you have Whisper carrying him out the way he does.

Yeah, like a rolled up newspaper.

There's a similar scene in "Desperado" where this huge guy picks up these two corpses. Worth a chuckle when we saw it in the theater.

[Blofeld's Cat]

Originally posted by DLibrasnow
Yeah, I always took it to mean that Strutter was a racial comment about the people in Mr. Bigs organization keeping track of Bonds movement. Sorry BC but I'm amazed anyone wouldn't get that.

I must be too sensitive to the issues of racial slurs, because I though that "spade," even before the time of the blacksploitation era of Hollywood, was a very derogatory term to use. I just thought that "nah, surely he's not referring to his own kind like that in a Bond movie." When I first heard that I just thought it was too demeaning a remark and had to consider it as something other than the apparent.

Does anyone have any ideas as to the 2nd part of my initial post?

[Qwerty]

It must be a reference to the famed deadly Ace of Spades.

[DLibrasnow]

I think Strutter could get away with making the remark because he is black....just like a lot of black rap artists can get away with using the n-word!

[4 Ur Eyez Only]

the thing that SUCKS for me is... I dont have these early Roger 007's on vhs anymore.. I can them up in trade because I thought the DVD's would be out by NOW!!!!!!:mad::mad::mad:

so I can't answer or make up topics on these.. until they finally put the rest of Roger's 007 dvd's out

man it sucks when you havent seen a roger film in awhile:eek::mad:

[Bond111]

I thought you'd have like eight copies of all of Roger's Bonds, 4 Ur Eyez Only. But I know how you feel, I bought all the Bonds that I could (they were some ridiculus price of $35 so I couldn't buy them very often) and then MGM took them off the shelves! I do own them all counting VHS, but I've viewed those so many times the film is starting to deteriorate to the point that I can't view them any more.

As for the quote in question, I always thought it was just to be funny. But I will admit it is a bit odd.

[4 Ur Eyez Only]

no.. I only have the last Roger dvd's that came out and a Timothy Dalton dvd..

I traded the rest I assumed they would have brought them all out now..

when I need to watch one.. I go to the library and see if they have any of Roger's movies in..

I can't wait for the new batch to come out:cool: