130 replies to this topic

[MicroGlobeOne]

In an interview discussing The Diving Bell and the Butterfly with The Film Experience, Max Von Sydow was asked to comment on co-star Mathieu Amalric. Of course, it's already been rumored that Amalric has been cast as Bond 22's villain. Sydow's response contains a rather shocking comment: "He's going to be Blofeld in the next James Bond."

Could it be? Is Blofeld back? Or is Sydow, a onetime Blofeld himself, just plain wrong? Personally, I'd love to see the film series reimagine Blofeld for Daniel Craig's era. It could be powerful stuff, and Amalric might be just the man to pull it off. Time will tell...

Interview: Max Von Sydow

Edited by MicroGlobeOne, 03 December 2007 - 05:06 AM.

[Shrublands]

Remember the way Craig refused to comment when Stax mentioned SPECTRE.

I think Max Von Sydow and Mathieu Amalric have had various conversations, as they promote The Diving Bell and the Butterfly as to what they will be doing next, and that Von Sydow has just let something very big slip out.

…on the other hand, he could have got it completely wrong (he once played Blofeld of course) he is told “bond Villain” he thinks Blofeld

But this is a very interesting development.

I am starting to believe that “the organization” is a re-imagined SPECTRE for the 21st century and that something more like Fleming’s Blofeld will be behind it.

No cat, please.

Edited by Shrublands, 03 December 2007 - 11:09 AM.

[tdalton]

I very much hope that he is wrong. If Blofeld returns, it's a sign that the franchise has completely run out of fresh ideas, and I will no longer be a fan of the Bond franchise. Blofeld should be left in the early part of the franchise where he was a decent adversary for Bond. Now, it would be the absolute wrong thing to do to have the character to return when it would be so much more interesting to introduce a new villain and a new villainous organization for Bond to go up against.

[Shrublands]

I very much hope that he is wrong. If Blofeld returns, it's a sign that the franchise has completely run out of fresh ideas, and I will no longer be a fan of the Bond franchise. Blofeld should be left in the early part of the franchise where he was a decent adversary for Bond. Now, it would be the absolute wrong thing to do to have the character to return when it would be so much more interesting to introduce a new villain and a new villainous organization for Bond to go up against.

Are you assuming it would be done in a 60s Eon films way or in a Fleming way, that could lead forward to an adaptation of Fleming’s You Only Live Twice a few films down the line?

Edited by Shrublands, 03 December 2007 - 11:07 AM.

[tdalton]

[quote name='Shrublands' post='802312' date='3 December 2007 - 06:07'][quote name='tdalton' post='802309' date='3 December 2007 - 10:44']I very much hope that he is wrong. If Blofeld returns, it's a sign that the franchise has completely run out of fresh ideas, and I will no longer be a fan of the Bond franchise. Blofeld should be left in the early part of the franchise where he was a decent adversary for Bond. Now, it would be the absolute wrong thing to do to have the character to return when it would be so much more interesting to introduce a new villain and a new villainous organization for Bond to go up against.[/quote]

Are you assuming it would be done in a 60s Eon films way or in a Fleming way, that could lead forward to an adaptation of Fleming

[Shrublands]

[quote name='tdalton' post='802313' date='3 December 2007 - 11:09'][quote name='Shrublands' post='802312' date='3 December 2007 - 06:07'][quote name='tdalton' post='802309' date='3 December 2007 - 10:44']I very much hope that he is wrong. If Blofeld returns, it's a sign that the franchise has completely run out of fresh ideas, and I will no longer be a fan of the Bond franchise. Blofeld should be left in the early part of the franchise where he was a decent adversary for Bond. Now, it would be the absolute wrong thing to do to have the character to return when it would be so much more interesting to introduce a new villain and a new villainous organization for Bond to go up against.[/quote]

Are you assuming it would be done in a 60s Eon films way or in a Fleming way, that could lead forward to an adaptation of Fleming

[tdalton]

[quote name='Shrublands' post='802314' date='3 December 2007 - 06:13'][quote name='tdalton' post='802313' date='3 December 2007 - 11:09'][quote name='Shrublands' post='802312' date='3 December 2007 - 06:07'][quote name='tdalton' post='802309' date='3 December 2007 - 10:44']I very much hope that he is wrong. If Blofeld returns, it's a sign that the franchise has completely run out of fresh ideas, and I will no longer be a fan of the Bond franchise. Blofeld should be left in the early part of the franchise where he was a decent adversary for Bond. Now, it would be the absolute wrong thing to do to have the character to return when it would be so much more interesting to introduce a new villain and a new villainous organization for Bond to go up against.[/quote]

Are you assuming it would be done in a 60s Eon films way or in a Fleming way, that could lead forward to an adaptation of Fleming

Edited by tdalton, 03 December 2007 - 11:32 AM.

[Shrublands]

I was extremely unimpressed with the adaptation of CR, so I wouldn't imagine that the Blofeld character would receive a much better adaptation than Fleming's CR got.

I see.

Well, I suppose we will have to differ on both accounts.
We obviously see merit in very different places.

[Vauxhall]

A very interesting snippet of news and, if true, this will have a very mixed reaction I'm sure... I was very enthusiastic about the idea of creating a new organisation for the 21st century, but I really hope they don't name the head of that group Blofeld. I simply don't think there is any need. Hopefully, this is just a case of Von Sydow getting his wires crossed...

[Mr. Blofeld]

Perhaps Blofeld will be the head of ELLIPSIS...

[Vauxhall]

Perhaps Blofeld will be the head of ELLIPSIS...

But why Ellipsis?! I would have thought that particular name served it's purpose in CASINO ROYALE!

[Mr. Blofeld]

Perhaps Blofeld will be the head of ELLIPSIS...

But why Ellipsis?! I would have thought that particular name served it's purpose in CASINO ROYALE!

It's a pretty sweet acronym; also, it'd be nice if it were both a code word and the name of a terrorist organization!

[Shrublands]

Perhaps Blofeld will be the head of ELLIPSIS...

But why Ellipsis?! I would have thought that particular name served it's purpose in CASINO ROYALE!

It's a pretty sweet acronym; also, it'd be nice if it were both a code word and the name of a terrorist organization!

I think that ELLIPSIS being the security code at Miami Airport and the name of the villainous organization would be far from

Edited by Shrublands, 03 December 2007 - 12:10 PM.

[Mr Malcolm]

While it would be nice to see a fresh evil organisation for 007 to battle, I wouldn't be completely opposed to Blofeld coming back. Remember that this is a reboot of the franchise, so we're essentially starting from the ground up; Felix Leiter is back with all limbs and is now black, so why not Blofeld at some point?

As Shrublands points out, Flemmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmming's Blofeld is different enough from Eon's one - he's much scarier for one thing, not anything like Dr. Evil - and let's face it, Dr. Evil aside, no one really remembers Blofeld now, apart from hard-core fans like us. Hell, if Doctor Who can make the Daleks cool again, why not the Bond series with Blofeld?

EDIT: On reflection, maybe it wouldn't be best to bring Blofeld back just yet, since ideally he should be set up a bit first, something which would need a little more doing at this point. But sometime in the future? Why not?

Edited by Mr Malcolm, 03 December 2007 - 12:44 PM.

[Shrublands]

Hell, if Doctor Who can make the Daleks cool again, why not the Bond series with Blofeld?

The Dr Who and the Daleks comparison is a very good one, the Daleks had been ridiculed by just about everyone. The idea of them as a credible threat was the material of many a comedian.

But the Doctor needed his archenemy and with the right approach they are making a whole new generation hide behind the sofa on a Saturday night.

Blofeld needn

[Shrublands]

EDIT: On reflection, maybe it wouldn't be best to bring Blofeld back just yet, since ideally he should be set up a bit first, something which would need a little more doing at this point. But sometime in the future? Why not?

A path that took us from last years adaptation of Fleming’s Casino Royale to an adaptation of Fleming’s You Only Live Twice (under a new name), over say four films would be ideal.

Casion Royale: we are made aware of "the organization".

Bond 22: the organization is revealed as SPECTRE, Blofeld is the top of the tree but he figures as much as he does in say Thunderball. (nothing to personal for Bond in this instalment)

Bond 23: Blofeld and SPECTER are the main and directly threat. Bond destroys SPECTER but at great personal cost.

Bond 24: is an adaptation of Fleming’s You Only Live Twice in the spirit of the Casino Royale adaptation. (this is the 50th anniversary film in 2012)

Edited by Shrublands, 03 December 2007 - 01:08 PM.

[baerrtt]

[quote name='Shrublands' post='802337' date='3 December 2007 - 12:43'][quote name='Mr Malcolm' post='802332' date='3 December 2007 - 12:24']Hell, if Doctor Who can make the Daleks cool again, why not the Bond series with Blofeld?[/quote]

The Dr Who and the Daleks comparison is a very good one, the Daleks had been ridiculed by just about everyone. The idea of them as a credible threat was the material of many a comedian.

But the Doctor needed his archenemy and with the right approach they are making a whole new generation hide behind the sofa on a Saturday night.

Blofeld needn

[Mr_Wint]

Casting someone as dull as Mathieu Amalric as Blofeld must be a joke. It will never happen.

[Zorin Industries]

Hell, if Doctor Who can make the Daleks cool again, why not the Bond series with Blofeld?

The Dr Who and the Daleks comparison is a very good one, the Daleks had been ridiculed by just about everyone. The idea of them as a credible threat was the material of many a comedian.

But the Doctor needed his archenemy and with the right approach they are making a whole new generation hide behind the sofa on a Saturday night.

Granted, but haven't the Daleks become the most over-used motif in the new reign of DR WHO and that their episodes now are actually the weakest?

I don't think this rumour - and that's all any of us have until next November - is all that bad, if true. BLOFELD does not imply Connery BLOFELD. Why would it? Heck, the cat can even come back - in the right context. Everyone said they couldn't use the Joker in any future Batman films. I think Heath Ledger is about to prove certain returning villain rules quite open to amending...

Edited by Zorin Industries, 03 December 2007 - 01:43 PM.

[HawkEye007]

I really don't see a problem with Blofeld coming back, or SPECTRE for that matter. I'll probably get raked over the coals for this, but after reading the books, IMO Blofeld was mishandled in his original movie appearances. If he is handled more like his appearances in the TB and YOLT novels, I think he could be a good villain for Bond 22, and the Dr. Evil comparisons would cease.

Edited by HawkEye007, 03 December 2007 - 01:24 PM.

[Shrublands]

Hell, if Doctor Who can make the Daleks cool again, why not the Bond series with Blofeld?

The Dr Who and the Daleks comparison is a very good one, the Daleks had been ridiculed by just about everyone. The idea of them as a credible threat was the material of many a comedian.

But the Doctor needed his archenemy and with the right approach they are making a whole new generation hide behind the sofa on a Saturday night.

Granted, but haven't the Daleks become the most over-used motif in the new reign of DR WHO and that their episodes now are actually the weakest?

I don't think this rumour - and that's all any of us have until next November - is all that bad, if true. BLOFELD does not imply Connery BLOFELD. Why would it? Heck, the cat can even come back - in the right context. Everyone said they couldn't use the Joker in any future Batman films. I think Heath Ledger is about to prove certain returning villain rules quite open to breaking...

Exactly.

When they say The Joker is about to reappear in The Dark Knight, nobody is expecting a characterization in the vain of Cesar Romero.

Why should the re-booted Bond series be any less?

Batman, Dr Who and James Bond, part of the fun (for me at any rate) is watching the elements develop over the decades. (and granted, the Daleks now are over due for a bit of a break from Dr Who, but you get my point).

Just at the moment elements like Monypenny are being left out (fine) perhaps other elements such as SPECTRE are being reintroduced (great).

A re-imagined SPECTRE and Blofeld for the 21st century; convincingly threatening, scary and

[Mr. Blofeld]

[quote name='Shrublands' post='802356' date='3 December 2007 - 08:44']Just at the moment elements like Monypenny are being left out (fine) perhaps other elements such as SPECTRE are being reintroduced (great).

A re-imagined SPECTRE and Blofeld for the 21st century; convincingly threatening, scary and

[WC]

I don't mind seeing Blofeld returning, as I'm sure he will be reimagined. But from seeing Mathieu Amalric's photos, doesn't he look a little young to be the head of a criminal organisation? Let's get Max Von Sydow again! lol. He looks more menacing and although he was in an unofficial adaptation of Bond, he does seem more like how one might imagine a much more real and sinister version of Blofeld might appear - more so than the 60s versions of the character.

Incidentally, the way Blofeld was portrayed in FRWL and TB seemed also more sinister and foreboding than his actual appearance in YOLT. I don't think those portrayals are something to be parodied that much.

[Vauxhall]

I don't mind seeing Blofeld returning, as I'm sure he will be reimagined. But from seeing Mathieu Amalric's photos, doesn't he look a little young to be the head of a criminal organisation?

This rings true if we assume that Amalric would be portraying the stereotypical head of a criminal group. If this does come to pass, then we will probably be seeing a reinvention of the traditional ideas, and a younger mastermind may be refreshing.

[Shrublands]

EON would have to get the rights to SPECTRE from the McClory estate first, though...

How do we know they haven’t? I am not saying they have, just speculating.

It is known that Kevin McClory was trying to sell his Bond rights lock stock and barrel before his death.

I don’t know the outcome of that, who can say, lots of things go on behind the scenes.

Incidentally, the way Blofeld was portrayed in FRWL and TB seemed also more sinister and foreboding than his actual appearance in YOLT.

Yes, it was always much better when we didn’t see him, very threatening leaving him to the imagination and watching his underlings shaking in their shoes.

Edited by Shrublands, 03 December 2007 - 03:58 PM.

[00Twelve]

I really don't see a problem with Blofeld coming back, or SPECTRE for that matter. I'll probably get raked over the coals for this, but after reading the books, IMO Blofeld was mishandled in his original movie appearances. If he is handled more like his appearances in the TB and YOLT novels, I think he could be a good villain for Bond 22, and the Dr. Evil comparisons would cease.

Take some solace in knowing that at least I won't be raking you over any coals for that!

I can't think of a way in which Fleming's Blofeld wasn't superior to his celluloid counterpart. Whether it's in the near, distant, or imaginary future, I'd definitely like to see that character jump off the pages into cinematic Bond. Whether he's even called Blofeld or not doesn't really matter though, IMO.

As far as the rumor goes, I really don't know what to think yet. I'll take it with a 5 lb. cowlick of salt. IMO, if they really wanted to go the Fleming route and adapt some of the novels more closely (so much more closely that they bear little or no resemblance to past films) and follow his life as portrayed on the pages, SPECTRE-time is a little too soon in Bond's life.

Either way, I'm confident in the writers this time out, and I'll come to whatever we hear confirmed with a wide open mind.

[MattofSteel]

[quote name='Shrublands' post='802342' date='3 December 2007 - 08:05'][quote name='Mr Malcolm' post='802332' date='3 December 2007 - 12:24']EDIT: On reflection, maybe it wouldn't be best to bring Blofeld back just yet, since ideally he should be set up a bit first, something which would need a little more doing at this point. But sometime in the future? Why not?[/quote]

A path that took us from last years adaptation of Fleming

[Royal Dalton]

I might well be wrong, but I suspect Max von Sydow meant that Amalric will be playing 'the Blofeld' of the film. In other words; the main villain.

[Skudor]

Sometimes the truth comes from strange sources (Craig's mum anyone?).

Whether true or not, I'm all for the return of Blofeld -> If done right!

[Fro]

I don't think this is a mistake...Max von Sydow is very fluent in English and played Blofeld in NSNA. Heck, he was offered to be Dr. No in 1962. He knows how to say "Bond Villain" or "main villain" in English.

I thought Amalric looked like he could be a Blofeld after seeing pics of him.

I'm definitely in favor of Blofeld returning and I think they'll avoid all the cliches of the 60s character.

Edited by Fro, 03 December 2007 - 06:52 PM.