19 replies to this topic

[TheLazenby]

I read on IMDB that an edit of "Casino Royale" (the Niven one) produced for Swiss television reduces the film to 93 minutes, removing nearly an hour of footage. ("The Look of Love" is gone, but eh.)

Apparently it airs fairly often on Swiss TV - would anyone with access to Swiss TV be able to tape this version? I'd love to see how they scaled the film down.

[larrythefatcat]

I read on IMDB that an edit of "Casino Royale" (the Niven one) produced for Swiss television reduces the film to 93 minutes, removing nearly an hour of footage. ("The Look of Love" is gone, but eh.)

Apparently it airs fairly often on Swiss TV - would anyone with access to Swiss TV be able to tape this version? I'd love to see how they scaled the film down.

I can't help you out in terms of getting you a copy of this edit, but since you say "The Look of Love" is gone, my guess is that Evelyn Tremble (along with Le Chiffre, I suppose) is pretty much completely excised from the film and that the focus is on (Niven) Bond and Mata Bond... I could be wildly incorrect, however.

Otherwise it's an all-around cut-down... I'm sure that a lot of Berlin could be cut without missing anything plot-wise. Heh, I'm giving CR '67 the credit of having an actual 'plot'.

[AMC Hornet]

I did my own edit several years ago (while waiting for news about Bond 17). My version was 65 minutes, and included 'The Look of Love,' which I used for the end scene (after le Chiffre was shot and Sir James went into #10). I simply left out everything from M's wake through the pheasant hunt, Mata's recruitment and adventures in Berlin, "Dr. Noah" and the big casino brawl. The film still doesn't make much sense, but compared to the original release....

[The Shark]

I wish there was an equivalent for the '06 reboot.

[AMC Hornet]

I wish there was an equivalent for the '06 reboot.

What would you lose, and how would the rest of the narrative make sense without it?

I'm not being facetious here (for once), but genuinely curious.

For me the real story starts with Bond meeting Vesper (rather like the novel), but since his mission requires a briefing, and since the briefing scene involves a dead girl in the Bahamas and talk of a near disaster in Miami, some backstory becomes necessary. Plus I have no issue with the (eventual) climax of the film - it's exciting enough, plus it's hard to have Vesper die without the shootout in the sinking building to explain how she got that way.

Personally, I would have preferred less talk about 007's promotion, so it could read either as a reboot for those who wanted it, or as a continuation for those who didn't (rather like how TLD nearly was).

Short of going back and creating new scenes, what sort of nipping and tucking could shorten CR without compromising its narrative integrity?

[The Shark]

I wish there was an equivalent for the '06 reboot.

What would you lose, and how would the rest of the narrative make sense without it?

I'm not sure how I'd reconstruct it, but I'd be sure to cut a lot of the Vesper-Bond stuff in the third act, and perhaps a lot of the Miami chase. I'd also dial-out (not use) a lot of Arnold's music, or track in different music. I think the shower and torture scenes would work a lot better without any music.

[AMC Hornet]

As Sir Sean himself said when pressed for an opinion, "It was half an hour too long and the music was ."

Not that I necessarily agree, but his opinion seems to mirror your own.

...Just sayin'.

Edited by AMC Hornet, 24 August 2011 - 08:42 PM.

[The Shark]

Pretty much. I'd say Sean was on the mark there.

[Dustin]

Can't agree there. With Vesper the way to go would be to add on her, not cut. If the character would appear in the first half there would be no need for the compressed screwball scene in the train so many complain about ( not that this bothered me a lot ). The affair would get room to develop and convince. Some of the action would be cut back, less explosions and machine guns.

Otherwise I would not change a lot.

[The Shark]

If the character would appear in the first half there would be no need for the compressed screwball scene in the train so many complain about ( not that this bothered me a lot ).

Well, that's less of an edit and more of a re-shoot. Kind of like what Terence Young had do with THUNDERBALL. I'd gladly do with introduction scenes for Vesper (maybe at the HM Treaury at 1 Horse Guards Road) instead of the drawn out Miami sequence (which is only a set-up for the main plot).

Some of the action would be cut back, less explosions and machine guns.

Can't disagree there.

[TheLazenby]

I'm actually trying something I *always* felt should've been done - putting the 1967 version into the order that was obviously intended. In other words, Vesper and Evelyn aren't seen until AFTER Mata goes to Berlin; Evelyn in Q Branch leads right into him punching the customs man; and the pre-titles sequence is moved to where it belongs in the story. I can see why they moved things around, because it takes a VERY long time for Peter and Ursula to show up this way (about 90 minutes), but at least the story makes sense.

Oh yeah, and in place of the PTS, I'm going to try and mimic one of Feldman's scrapped ideas - I'm going to have Bob Simmons walk across the gunbarrel (he's the closest match to David Niven - even has the right hat!), and dub the pop of a cork gun when he fires.

[Mr. Blofeld]

I can see why they moved things around, because it takes a VERY long time for Peter and Ursula to show up this way (about 90 minutes)

Even after you've trimmed most of Castle McTarry and Mata Bond out of the picture?

Well, that's less of an edit and more of a re-shoot. Kind of like what Terence Young had do with THUNDERBALL.

Terence Young? I thought it was Peter Hunt who ended up having to do a lot of the inserts, and such...?

[doublenoughtspy]

Kind of like what Terence Young had do with THUNDERBALL.

??

Terence Young left Thunderball early to film The Poppy is Also A Flower. Peter Hunt did the reshoots.

[The Shark]

Yeah sorry, I meant Hunt.

[AMC Hornet]

Terence Young left Thunderball early to film The Poppy is Also A Flower. Peter Hunt did the reshoots.

Johnny Carson: "I did not know that!"

Is TPIAAF available anywhere for viewing? I need to see this.

[doublenoughtspy]

Johnny Carson: "I did not know that!"

I guess you haven't had the pleasure of reading my senses-shattering expose on TPIAF?

http://commanderbond...o-a-flower.html

[AMC Hornet]

I guess you haven't had the pleasure of reading my senses-shattering expose on TPIAF?

http://commanderbond...o-a-flower.html

Actually, yes - I read it right after I made my last post.

Very informative and entertaining. It also confirmed something I'd read a long time ago: that Fleming had strained himself swimming the day he died. Since I hadn't found any mention of that subsequently (including John Pearson's and Andrew Lycette's bios) I concluded that I'd confused that incident with someone else's demise.

There are some bits & pieces of Poppy on YouTube, but not enough to tell the whole story.

Maybe someday....

[doublenoughtspy]

Very informative and entertaining....

There are some bits & pieces of Poppy on YouTube, but not enough to tell the whole story.

Maybe someday....

Glad you enjoyed the article.

I know free ala Youtube is always preferred, but Poppy can be easily bought - for example one dealer has it on eBay for a wallet busting $1.50

http://www.ebay.com/...=item4aaba448cd

[TheLazenby]

Mr. Blofeld, for this one, I'm not trimming anything out. I'm just shuffling the movie into a more logical order. McTarry and Mata are intact.

[AMC Hornet]

Mr. Blofeld, for this one, I'm not trimming anything out. I'm just shuffling the movie into a more logical order. McTarry and Mata are intact.

There's a more logical order?

Even Val Guest couldn't make sense out of what he was handed.