101 replies to this topic

[Nicolas Suszczyk]

he's having an excellent post-Bond career.

No argument there. With the exception of Connery, he is having the best post-Bond career of any of his predecessors.

Indeed, Jag. Many people said Pierce's career was going to the bottom after "Mamma Mia!". His lasts three films seem to prove them wrong.

And I've liked "Mamma Mia!" as well

[O.H.M.S.S.]

Brosnan is a great actor. Its just a shame that he didnt choose to showcase that talent in a Bond film. The dramatic or emotional scenes in his Bond films are just painful to watch. About at the level of a daytime soap actor.

Hmm I think that is a bit unfair, yes TND has those cringeworthy scenes with Teri Hatcher (badly written, badly directed and with no support from an unusually tame Hatcher).....but lets be fair in TND even the awesome Jonathan Pryce can't make the material work.

In GE and Twine he delivers a nicely balanced performace that elevates the emotional and physical aspects of the material imo.

I agree with you on GE and TWINE.

[Turn]

Brosnan is a great actor. Its just a shame that he didnt choose to showcase that talent in a Bond film. The dramatic or emotional scenes in his Bond films are just painful to watch. About at the level of a daytime soap actor.

Hmm I think that is a bit unfair, yes TND has those cringeworthy scenes with Teri Hatcher (badly written, badly directed and with no support from an unusually tame Hatcher).....but lets be fair in TND even the awesome Jonathan Pryce can't make the material work.

In GE and Twine he delivers a nicely balanced performace that elevates the emotional and physical aspects of the material imo.

I agree with you on GE and TWINE.

I respectfully disagree on both GE and TWINE, and TND.

In GE, the audience is asked to emotionally invest in a backstory for a Bond actor in his first adventure. Now I will give you that Brosnan had seemed like a member of the Bond family for years and that makes it easier to take.

But Dalton in TLD, for instance, had a more generic adventure, making it easier to take and GE would have made more sense with him in the since he'd have been established in the role for his third film. For Brosnan in GE, it isn't hard to take that he would easily interact with the Mi6 team, for instance. But to build this whole backstory with a new Bond and a fellow 00 seems a bit much for a new Bond story as well as trying to fit in all the other necessities of a Bond film. I just never bought it.

Physically, I have never found Brosnan to be the most athletic of the Bonds, so I don't find him to have elevated any of the physical aspects of GE. I give Bros points in that he was more convincing physically than I'd imagined him as Bond. But considering what Lazenby and Craig brought to their Bond debuts in terms of physicality, it doesn't help his cause.

TWINE is a mess. I don't know that any actor could have saved that film. It wants to take a Bond film into more emotional territory and character study and Bond ends up looking like a sap, IMO. A Bond early in his career being duped by a Vesper Lynd is understandable. A seasoned 007 falling for Elektra's ruse makes TWINE a tough watch for me.

Then you get the least interesting action in the series and the poor attempts at humor like the attack on Zukovsky's caviar factory. That doesn't leave you with a whole lot.

As for TND, I've always believed it worked the best of the four Brosnan films since it sets its sights on what it wants to do - be a throwback to the YOLT/TSWLM, prevent WWIII adventure. Here's a Bond film, let's have some fun along the way.

The emotional, betrayal aspect that overwhelmed Brosnan's other three films is secondary here. True, the whole Paris Carver lost love thing is pretty bad, I agree, but it does lead to the terrific Dr. Kaufman scene and to a somewhat understandable rivalry between Bond and Carver.

As far as this goes, I'd rather have some inventive action and a film that moves as opposed to being subjected to a lot of underwhelming stabs at character development.

[DR76]

Is Brosnan a good actor? Of course. I've been aware of this since I first saw him in the 1980 miniseries, "THE MANIONS OF AMERICA". And his talent as an actor was definitely showcased in "THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH" and parts of "GOLDENEYE" and "DIE ANOTHER DAY".

[The Shark]

And his talent as an actor was definitely showcased in "THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH"

Surely you jest? That's possibly the worst leading performance in any Bond film to date, with bizarre, stagy hand gestures, Shatner-esque line delivery, inconsistency within character, and the dreaded pain face. It really is something of a mess.

[dinovelvet]

And his talent as an actor was definitely showcased in "THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH"

Surely you jest? That's possibly the worst leading performance in any Bond film to date, with bizarre, stagy hand gestures, Shatner-esque line delivery, inconsistency within character, and the dreaded pain face. It really is something of a mess.

Future generations will study his delivery of the line "Then again, there's no point in LIVING if you can't feel ALIVE, isn't that your motto, Elektra?" as a masterclass in over-the-top emoting.

[Time Agent]

I think every actor who has played Bond is a fantastic actor! Pierce being one of them.

[bogard]

And his talent as an actor was definitely showcased in "THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH"

Surely you jest? That's possibly the worst leading performance in any Bond film to date, with bizarre, stagy hand gestures, Shatner-esque line delivery, inconsistency within character, and the dreaded pain face. It really is something of a mess.

Idiot. That one is a compliment. Shatner is awesome.

[Messervy]

I would say he's average. He's obviously not a bad actor, he knows how to attract attention and catch the audience. But he's not a "great" actor, in that he can't make me feel like he's actually personifying the lines he delivers. He recites more than he really embodies.

The issue I have with Brosnan is that when playing character X, it's "Hey! Look! This is me playing X". I actually never see X, I see Brosnan presenting himself as X. This, to me, is a problem. Eventhough I know Bond is played by an actor named Moore, for instance, when I watch a Bond film with Moore I see Bond, not Moore-as-Bond. Or eventhough I know Michael Corleone is played by an actor named Al Pacino, when I watch The Godfather I see Corleone, I don't see Pacino-as-Corleone.
And this is most apparent in Brosnan non-Bond films. In The Thomas Crown Affair, I just see Brosnan trying to be Thomas Crown, I don't see Thomas Crown.

[Binyamin]

Pierce Brosnan plays Pierce Brosnan. This is not bad, usually, as he is an entertaining and enjoyable personality. But an amazing actor, meaning he can take on many different roles and become a character? No.

[SecretAgentFan]

Pierce Brosnan plays Pierce Brosnan. This is not bad, usually, as he is an entertaining and enjoyable personality. But an amazing actor, meaning he can take on many different roles and become a character? No.

Hmm, sounds like a description of my three other favorite Bond actors...

[Harry Fawkes]

Pierce is a great actor and I like him in all his films. Mind, I think his acting shines in Seraphime Falls with Liam Neeson. I haven't seen one film where I think, 'Christ this guy is a wooden horse.'
Overall I'd give him 8 out 10 in the acting department.

[Jim]

He's a good enough actor for the stuff he's been in.

[TheREAL008]

IMHO: He's a great actor outside of Bond. I loved his work in After The Sunset, Laws of Attraction, and in The Matador. Hes doing great on his own and I'd really would be interested to see him portray Remington Steele one last time.

[DR76]

Future generations will study his delivery of the line "Then again, there's no point in LIVING if you can't feel ALIVE, isn't that your motto, Elektra?" as a masterclass in over-the-top emoting.

And you know this . . . how? Are you psychic? Or are you simply projecting your own feelings upon future Bond fans?

[Colossus]

People ragging on Shatner need to shut their traps. Brosnan is a good actor and he was to this day made for Bond no matter what new-Bond actor revisionism is in swing.

[The Shark]

And his talent as an actor was definitely showcased in "THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH"

Surely you jest? That's possibly the worst leading performance in any Bond film to date, with bizarre, stagy hand gestures, Shatner-esque line delivery, inconsistency within character, and the dreaded pain face. It really is something of a mess.

Idiot. That one is a compliment. Shatner is awesome.

Shatner is awesome (I love the guy) as is Pierce Brosnan, when he's not playing James Bond. However there's little doubt that William Shatner is a god awful actor, and the man himself knows it. He actually embraces it to the full.

Oh, and you've been reported for pointless name calling.

People ragging on Shatner need to shut their traps. Brosnan is a good actor and he was to this day made for Bond

No one is "made for Bond." They're chosen. Quit with the clichés.

I haven't seen one film where I think, 'Christ this guy is a wooden horse.'

Might need to check out Grey Owl.

[tdalton]

To simply answer the question posed in the thread title: No

[Safari Suit]

Oh, and you've been reported for pointless name calling.

That seems a little rich

[jaguar007]

However there's little doubt that William Shatner is a god awful actor, and the man himself knows it. He actually embraces it to the full.

Well, for his role as Denny Crane in Boston Legal, he was nominated for an Emmy six times (won twice)and nominated four times by the Screen Actor's Guild awards. Apparently not everyone thinks he is a god awful actor. Of course he has also been nominated for 3 Razzie Awards

[Safari Suit]

I really wouldn't take the Razzies as a serious indication of anything. Then agian, I might say the same thing about the Emmys.

[dinovelvet]

Future generations will study his delivery of the line "Then again, there's no point in LIVING if you can't feel ALIVE, isn't that your motto, Elektra?" as a masterclass in over-the-top emoting.

And you know this . . . how? Are you psychic? Or are you simply projecting your own feelings upon future Bond fans?

Er...did you really just take that obvious (bad) comedy post of mine literally?

[The Shark]

That seems a little rich

You're implying hubris in that I'm chastising "bogard" for doing something that I frequently do here myself?

Remind me where I've explicitly called certain members derogatory names recently?

Although I'm of a hotheaded temperament, it seems that you and several others are deadest in painting me as a "relentless sh!t stirrer", to quote your own eloquent epithet. That I take serious offence to.

However there's little doubt that William Shatner is a god awful actor, and the man himself knows it. He actually embraces it to the full.

Well, for his role as Denny Crane in Boston Legal, he was nominated for an Emmy six times (won twice)and nominated four times by the Screen Actor's Guild awards. Apparently not everyone thinks he is a god awful actor. Of course he has also been nominated for 3 Razzie Awards

Perhaps a better phrasing would be that he has the "potential to be ridiculously awful on stage on screen", hence the razzie nominations.

Though in many case the razzies cam be unfairly opportunistic, there usually is some twisted logic behind their nominations and awards.

[JimmyBond]

I think Shatner is a great actor. It's not his "badness" that he is embracing in nearly every role he's had post Star Trek. It's the perception people have of him, the "image" that he's embracing.

And for the record, if Shatner played Bond in TWINE it would automatically be my favorite Bond film ever.

[The Shark]

To be as precise as possible, I was thinking more of Shatner sending his acting up, when it came to the TWINE remark.

[tdalton]

And for the record, if Shatner played Bond in TWINE it would automatically be my favorite Bond film ever.

And it probably would have been a far superior film as well.

The biggest problem with TWINE was Brosnan's performance (although there were problems at just about every level of production on that film), and even an actor like Shatner coming in and performing the role with his tongue planted firmly in cheek would have been better.

[JimmyBond]

Imagine Shatner in the torture chair scene. After Elektra turns the first crank Shatner lets out with "I want to live!"

It would definitely do repeat business.

[tdalton]

Imagine Shatner in the torture chair scene. After Elektra turns the first crank Shatner lets out with "I want to live!"

It would definitely do repeat business.

Absolutely. What TWINE needed was an actor who knew he was acting in a terrible (we're talking all-time bad) movie and performed accordingly. I'm not saying that Shatner is a bad actor because, in all honesty, I haven't seen enough of his work to judge his ability, but I do feel that he would have been more up to the task than Brosnan was, who turned in THE worst performance by a Bond actor to date in that "film".

[Time Agent]

It saddens me to see all the dislike for Brosnan....it really does.

[hilly]

I think he is competent rather than good. I went to see "The Ghost" recently and was surprised that, when called upon to display anger(or indeed any strong emotion), how over-the top and hammy he was. The film itself wasn't great, but Brosnan didn't do it any favours either..