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John Logan Gives Bond 24 Script Update


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#31 tdalton

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Posted 06 March 2014 - 08:15 PM

 

 

So, if I were a betting man, I’d put my money on this being a two film story concerning the rise and fall of Blofeld and SPECTRE with it’s emotional impact on Bond, most probably because of the death of Tracy along the way. Now if any or all of that were the case, they'd want to keep it undercover. 

 

 

If they were to go this route, I'd much rather they stretch it out into a three film arc and find a way to extend Craig's contract for the third film.  Before bringing Tracy into the fold, I think it would be wise for them to establish Blofeld and SPECTRE as the threat that they are before they head off into some sort of pseudo-remake of On Her Majesty's Secret Service.  If anything, there would need to be a good amount of time spent establishing the Bond/Tracy romance.  Even though that romance was handled much better in On Her Majesty's Secret Service than was the Bond/Vesper romance in Casino Royale, it was still somewhat rushed, and both of those films have fairly long running times.  I think maybe the first film could focus primarily on Blofeld and SPECTRE, with Tracy coming into the fold very early on in the second film or maybe even towards the end of the first, and then the third would focus on being an adaptation of You Only Live Twice.



#32 Walecs

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Posted 06 March 2014 - 08:38 PM

tdalton, I like your ideas a lot, especially the one of introducing Tracy in the first movie.


The bringing down of Quantum perhaps? I’d say we’ve seen the last of them. Now they have reintroduced Q (complete with his Q Scrabble mug) an organisation that featured most prominently in a film that the makers would rather draw a vial over seems unlikely, especially since they have a Q as their emblem. Wouldn’t it all be a bit confusing to a general audience who have forgotten all about Quantum the dastardly criminal gang?

 

 

The audience had to be really stupid if they confused Q with Quantum, and if they're stupid, then Bond franchise is not for them, and I'd suggest them to watch twilight, or some other silly stuff.

 

About "forgetting Quantum", no problem, just introduce this evil organisation named Quantum, say that they're the bad guys, and mention Bond already facing them. Problem solved.



#33 tdalton

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Posted 06 March 2014 - 08:45 PM

About "forgetting Quantum", no problem, just introduce this evil organisation named Quantum, say that they're the bad guys, and mention Bond already facing them. Problem solved.

 

They would have to have some kind of exposition at the beginning to explain what Quantum has been up to in the seven years since we last saw them, so you're absolutely right in saying that it wouldn't be a problem in terms of finding a way to remind the audience of Quantum. 



#34 S K Y F A L L

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Posted 06 March 2014 - 09:59 PM

I think if they were to bring back Quantum or Specter, they should use both. Let Bond 24 be about Quantum only to find out that it leads to Specter and Bond 25. That would be the day. 



#35 Agent 76

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Posted 06 March 2014 - 10:02 PM

The theory that Quantum could be a subsidiary of SPECTRE makes perfect sense for me. I wouldn't mind that story arc at all. 



#36 Shrublands

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Posted 07 March 2014 - 09:30 AM

tdalton, I like your ideas a lot, especially the one of introducing Tracy in the first movie.


The bringing down of Quantum perhaps? I’d say we’ve seen the last of them. Now they have reintroduced Q (complete with his Q Scrabble mug) an organisation that featured most prominently in a film that the makers would rather draw a vial over seems unlikely, especially since they have a Q as their emblem. Wouldn’t it all be a bit confusing to a general audience who have forgotten all about Quantum the dastardly criminal gang?

 

 

The audience had to be really stupid if they confused Q with Quantum, and if they're stupid, then Bond franchise is not for them, and I'd suggest them to watch twilight, or some other silly stuff.

 

About "forgetting Quantum", no problem, just introduce this evil organisation named Quantum, say that they're the bad guys, and mention Bond already facing them. Problem solved.

 

What I mean is that it would seem rather sloppy and untidy having a criminal organisation called Quantum that uses the letter Q as their emblem and a good guy character who goes by the code name Q in the same film. 

 

I think if Quantum is mentioned at all, it should only be in passing and that many of its members have now become part of the more dangerous SPECTRE, similarly used as the various organisations mentioned in the novel Thunderball, when SPECTRE is introduced there. 



#37 RMc2

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Posted 07 March 2014 - 09:48 AM

I think if they were to bring back Quantum or Specter, they should use both. Let Bond 24 be about Quantum only to find out that it leads to Specter and Bond 25. That would be the day. 

 

 

The theory that Quantum could be a subsidiary of SPECTRE makes perfect sense for me. I wouldn't mind that story arc at all. 

 

 

 

tdalton, I like your ideas a lot, especially the one of introducing Tracy in the first movie.


The bringing down of Quantum perhaps? I’d say we’ve seen the last of them. Now they have reintroduced Q (complete with his Q Scrabble mug) an organisation that featured most prominently in a film that the makers would rather draw a vial over seems unlikely, especially since they have a Q as their emblem. Wouldn’t it all be a bit confusing to a general audience who have forgotten all about Quantum the dastardly criminal gang?

 

 

The audience had to be really stupid if they confused Q with Quantum, and if they're stupid, then Bond franchise is not for them, and I'd suggest them to watch twilight, or some other silly stuff.

 

About "forgetting Quantum", no problem, just introduce this evil organisation named Quantum, say that they're the bad guys, and mention Bond already facing them. Problem solved.

 

What I mean is that it would seem rather sloppy and untidy having a criminal organisation called Quantum that uses the letter Q as their emblem and a good guy character who goes by the code name Q in the same film. 

 

I think if Quantum is mentioned at all, it should only be in passing and that many of its members have now become part of the more dangerous SPECTRE, similarly used as the various organisations mentioned in the novel Thunderball, when SPECTRE is introduced there. 

 

 

It always struck me how small was the Quantum group that we saw in QoS. Perhaps, to avoid the sloppiness Shrublands mentions, QoS' baddies could be retconned as a rogue sub-group of SPECTRE, trying to hit out on their own before Bond foiled them?

 

Personally I'm undecided on whether I want SPECTRE to return. I love how the Craig films set themselves apart; resurrecting Connery's nemeses may undermine that somewhat.

 

Maybe EON should save Blofeld and SPECTRE for the next actor, so they can really run with the characters if they want to.



#38 RMc2

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Posted 07 March 2014 - 09:55 AM

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks. I do tend to interpret it as a dismissal of back-to-bak filming, but I take your point that it also reads as a dismissal of the two film idea. And I can't help remembering the times they dismissed the Eve Monypenny story. If they have a secret, they will be ambiguous, as always.

 

 Mike Fleming at Deadline was the first person anywhere to reveal that Bardem had been approached to appear in Skyfall, along with a lot of other accurate inside information.

 

He was also first with the story that Logan would be writing the next two films, which has subsequently also proven true. At the time, he said that his source had told him that it was a two film idea that Logan had pitched during the making of Skyfall. At this stage, I see no reason to doubt Mike Fleming or his sources.

 

The question for me is - what idea could warrant 2 films?

 

The bringing down of Quantum perhaps? I’d say we’ve seen the last of them. Now they have reintroduced Q (complete with his Q Scrabble mug) an organisation that featured most prominently in a film that the makers would rather draw a vial over seems unlikely, especially since they have a Q as their emblem. Wouldn’t it all be a bit confusing to a general audience who have forgotten all about Quantum the dastardly criminal gang?

 

I’d speculate, that it all revolves around a re-booted Blofeld, SPECTRE and possibly Tracy too. Mendes has talked about the Bond of the later books and his psychological state. Logan has talked about the books being a big influence on the new script.

 

I really can see this all building to something of an adaptation of Fleming’s YOLT for Bond 25, especially now that Blofeld and SPECTRE are in the hands of Eon and MGM.

 

So, if I were a betting man, I’d put my money on this being a two film story concerning the rise and fall of Blofeld and SPECTRE with it’s emotional impact on Bond, most probably because of the death of Tracy along the way. Now if any or all of that were the case, they'd want to keep it undercover. 

 

 

I think you're on the money there. However, do you want them to adapt the OHMSS storyline again? I'm all for properly adapting YOLT (under a new title, of course) but I've always felt the Bond reboot should stay away from remaking earlier films, partly because it presents such an obvious opportunity and strays into 'cynical studio spin' territory. I dunno, I'd probably change my tune if the remake was good.

 

The only factor that might go against your bet is Sam Mendes, I think. Pretty sure he'd want to tell an entirely new, fresh story. Logan and he might certainly be inspired by those stories, though.



#39 Turn

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Posted 07 March 2014 - 01:40 PM

If they do a two-part thing, will the series be accused of following trends -- the way Harry Potter and Twilight split their final story into two that seems to be the rage these day, or an epic trilogy like the Hobbits or Dark Knight, etc.?

 

Someone mentioned a sort of remake of OHMSS, which I would really be against. Not only is that a perfect film already in the series, but whereas in the books Bond losing two important women in his life made sense, doing so twice in the film series with the same actor over the course of 5 films seems excessive. I'm all for the new direction the series has taken, but it may take some convincing for me to accept that arc.

 

I love the book of YOLT, I'm just not sure how it could translate successfully to the screen these days. SF almost seems a variation with Bond depressed and out of it and going away from it all living on an island only to come back. There's still a good potential story about Quantum, whether it's SPECTRE or not and Bond wanting to destroy it for Vesper and not have to drag the events of OHMSS/YOLT into it.



#40 Pushkin

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Posted 07 March 2014 - 03:54 PM

Personally, I always found the name SPecial Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion to be a bit dated. I recognize that others likely see this differently.

 

I would rather they just stick with Quantum and think the back story on what they have been up to could easily be taken care of during a briefing by M. If they do decide to use SPECTRE, I really hope they don't spell out the acronym.

 

Cheers



#41 Walecs

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Posted 07 March 2014 - 05:38 PM

http://www.digitalsp...john-logan.html

 

When asked about Quantum, Logan told the Empire: "There might be!"



#42 tdalton

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Posted 07 March 2014 - 10:31 PM

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks. I do tend to interpret it as a dismissal of back-to-bak filming, but I take your point that it also reads as a dismissal of the two film idea. And I can't help remembering the times they dismissed the Eve Monypenny story. If they have a secret, they will be ambiguous, as always.

 

 Mike Fleming at Deadline was the first person anywhere to reveal that Bardem had been approached to appear in Skyfall, along with a lot of other accurate inside information.

 

He was also first with the story that Logan would be writing the next two films, which has subsequently also proven true. At the time, he said that his source had told him that it was a two film idea that Logan had pitched during the making of Skyfall. At this stage, I see no reason to doubt Mike Fleming or his sources.

 

The question for me is - what idea could warrant 2 films?

 

The bringing down of Quantum perhaps? I’d say we’ve seen the last of them. Now they have reintroduced Q (complete with his Q Scrabble mug) an organisation that featured most prominently in a film that the makers would rather draw a vial over seems unlikely, especially since they have a Q as their emblem. Wouldn’t it all be a bit confusing to a general audience who have forgotten all about Quantum the dastardly criminal gang?

 

I’d speculate, that it all revolves around a re-booted Blofeld, SPECTRE and possibly Tracy too. Mendes has talked about the Bond of the later books and his psychological state. Logan has talked about the books being a big influence on the new script.

 

I really can see this all building to something of an adaptation of Fleming’s YOLT for Bond 25, especially now that Blofeld and SPECTRE are in the hands of Eon and MGM.

 

So, if I were a betting man, I’d put my money on this being a two film story concerning the rise and fall of Blofeld and SPECTRE with it’s emotional impact on Bond, most probably because of the death of Tracy along the way. Now if any or all of that were the case, they'd want to keep it undercover. 

 

 

I think you're on the money there. However, do you want them to adapt the OHMSS storyline again? I'm all for properly adapting YOLT (under a new title, of course) but I've always felt the Bond reboot should stay away from remaking earlier films, partly because it presents such an obvious opportunity and strays into 'cynical studio spin' territory. I dunno, I'd probably change my tune if the remake was good.

 

The only factor that might go against your bet is Sam Mendes, I think. Pretty sure he'd want to tell an entirely new, fresh story. Logan and he might certainly be inspired by those stories, though.

 

 

My feeling is that if they are ever going to do any kind of a faithful adaptation of You Only Live Twice, then at least one element of On Her Majesty's Secret Service must be revisited, which would be Tracy.  They can put that storyline into an entirely different plot from On Her Majesty's Secret Service and get away with it, I think.  But that particular plot point in the Bond canon is a must for a faithful take on You Only Live Twice to ever occur.



#43 Shrublands

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Posted 08 March 2014 - 09:36 AM

 


 

My feeling is that if they are ever going to do any kind of a faithful adaptation of You Only Live Twice, then at least one element of On Her Majesty's Secret Service must be revisited, which would be Tracy.  They can put that storyline into an entirely different plot from On Her Majesty's Secret Service and get away with it, I think.  But that particular plot point in the Bond canon is a must for a faithful take on You Only Live Twice to ever occur.

 

 

Exactly, it doesn't need to be a remake of OHMSS , and i'd prefer it not to be. I'd add that Tracy needs to die at the hands of Bond's archenemy Blofeld. Then the events of the book YOLT can play out as a screen version say as closely as the events of the book CR played out in that film. 



#44 S K Y F A L L

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Posted 08 March 2014 - 03:09 PM

Please do NOT bring back Tracey. Ever! Have her referenced like in FYEO or LTK if need be. I'm not worried about it though, Logan would know better. 

 

I'm wondering how much of the script/scripts Logan has written. During SF he pitched the ideas for Bond 24 and 25, right? So he could have been working on them ever since SF...



#45 SecretAgentFan

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Posted 08 March 2014 - 03:40 PM

Doubt it.  He worked on several plays and did the "Penny Dreadful"-series with Mendes.  And there are surely many projects which haven´t been disclosed yet.

 

I guess he wrote a treatment or outline during the production of SKYFALL, to capitalize on his position as the new golden boy, got it sold when SKYFALL broke B.O. records.  Then he put it back to work on his other stuff and started late last year or at the beginning of 2014.  EON usually plans the big stunts and action sequences much earlier so that the writer "only" has to incorporate them in the story.



#46 tdalton

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Posted 08 March 2014 - 04:09 PM

 

 


 

My feeling is that if they are ever going to do any kind of a faithful adaptation of You Only Live Twice, then at least one element of On Her Majesty's Secret Service must be revisited, which would be Tracy.  They can put that storyline into an entirely different plot from On Her Majesty's Secret Service and get away with it, I think.  But that particular plot point in the Bond canon is a must for a faithful take on You Only Live Twice to ever occur.

 

 

Exactly, it doesn't need to be a remake of OHMSS , and i'd prefer it not to be. I'd add that Tracy needs to die at the hands of Bond's archenemy Blofeld. Then the events of the book YOLT can play out as a screen version say as closely as the events of the book CR played out in that film. 

 

 

I would hope that they would do a better job of adapting You Only Live Twice than they did Casino Royale.  Regardless, I'm not sure that this is where they're headed with the next two films anyway.  There's just simply not enough time to develop the storyline over the course of two films, and I think that a screenwriter like Logan would be aware of that.  Still, assuming that they go for acting prowess over looks when casting Craig's replacement, they revisit the Tracy/YOLT storyline.



#47 Guy Haines

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Posted 09 March 2014 - 12:37 PM

I may as well chip in on the speculation here, although with my track record I'll probably be proved staggeringly inaccurate!

 

First, as I've commented elsewhere on Cbn, I'd like to see the re-introduction of Blofeld & SPECTRE, though not simply transplanted, Mao style suit, Persian cat and all, from the 1960s to the 2010s. This villain and his organisation has to be reconfigured for the here and now, if at all.

 

That said, we may have a two or three story-arc consisting of either:-

 

(1) The return of Quantum and Mr White, who may be the head of that organisation, or may just be its shadowy enforcer on behalf of an arch-villain or a committee of villains. No involvement of Blofeld or SPECTRE at all.

 

(2) Quantum becomes SPECTRE. White may still be involved, but answerable to Blofeld, who was the head of Quantum all the time, and, as in the novel Thunderball, has terminated a previous crime/espionage syndicate when things got too hot to handle, only to re-emerge years later as head of SPECTRE.

 

(3) SPECTRE/Blofeld are Bond's new adversaries, at least for the next two or three films. Blofeld has subsumed Quantum and a number of other crime/espionage/terrorist groups into one syndicate - not quite the same as at point 2, above.

 

(4) Or, quite as likely I think, neither Quantum nor a new SPECTRE play any part in the remaining Daniel Craig Bond films, but Bond faces a villain whose activities pre-occupy  him over two or three films, leading to a final showdown.

 

Contributors above have wondered how, assuming Blofeld is re-introduced, the "revenge" element can also be involved without a full scale OHMSS remake. I think we could use the following elements from the Fleming novels. In Bond 24, 007 is teamed with a fellow agent named, say, Gala Brand. He falls for her but she seems only friendly. Mission accomplished, save that the head villain has eluded the authorities, Bond thinks he can whisk Gala away somewhere romantic, only to be introduced to Gala's fiancé.

 

Then just as Gala and future husband drive off into the sunset, and Bond is leaving, a slightly sadder but wiser man, tragedy strikes. The villains have tracked Bond down, and tried to assassinate him, but end up murdering Gala and her fiancé instead.

 

Bond 25 - M sends Bond after our arch villain - shall we call him Shatterhand? - who is eventually tracked down to a bizarre plantation (not necessarily in Japan - other places cultivate killer plants) which is his private estate. The whole world is after him after the events of the previous story, but Bond is determined to get him. It's not out of revenge (OHMSS) nor closure (QoS) but justice. Shatterhand threatened the world but also killed two people, one who Bond worked with but one who was wholly innocent. A bit like his motivation in LTK but without the "this time it's personal" tag, because he only worked once with Gala, and his attempts at romance were brushed off. Nevertheless, he feels responsible for putting them both at risk, and wants to bring the person behind their deaths to justice.

 

In the final quarter of the film we learn that Shatterhand is Blofeld and like the novel You Only Live Twice, he attempts to justify his crimes. Financing terror through Le Chiffre in CR? Might it be all to the good, forcing governments to confront corrupt banking practices & money laundering that brought the world economy to the brink in 2008? The events in QoS? Again, Blofeld/Shatterhand is providing a public service, reminding the world of how precious water is. And SF? Yes he backed Raoul Silva to prove to the world how vulnerable it is to cyber-crime - how was he to know that Silva was a lunatic with a mother complex?

 

The final confrontation takes place, though without the end we recall from the book. Instead, for once, Bond gets the girl - whoever she might be in 25,  and makes contact with M - who asks Bond to return pronto, because there's a little problem out in Jamaica that needs sorting out! ;)



#48 Walecs

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Posted 09 March 2014 - 02:09 PM

@Guy Haines I really like your ideas, but I'd like to have Quantum included some way. Shatterhand could work for Quantum.



#49 SecretAgentFan

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Posted 09 March 2014 - 03:10 PM

I may as well chip in on the speculation here, although with my track record I'll probably be proved staggeringly inaccurate!

 

First, as I've commented elsewhere on Cbn, I'd like to see the re-introduction of Blofeld & SPECTRE, though not simply transplanted, Mao style suit, Persian cat and all, from the 1960s to the 2010s. This villain and his organisation has to be reconfigured for the here and now, if at all.

 

That said, we may have a two or three story-arc consisting of either:-

 

(1) The return of Quantum and Mr White, who may be the head of that organisation, or may just be its shadowy enforcer on behalf of an arch-villain or a committee of villains. No involvement of Blofeld or SPECTRE at all.

 

(2) Quantum becomes SPECTRE. White may still be involved, but answerable to Blofeld, who was the head of Quantum all the time, and, as in the novel Thunderball, has terminated a previous crime/espionage syndicate when things got too hot to handle, only to re-emerge years later as head of SPECTRE.

 

(3) SPECTRE/Blofeld are Bond's new adversaries, at least for the next two or three films. Blofeld has subsumed Quantum and a number of other crime/espionage/terrorist groups into one syndicate - not quite the same as at point 2, above.

 

(4) Or, quite as likely I think, neither Quantum nor a new SPECTRE play any part in the remaining Daniel Craig Bond films, but Bond faces a villain whose activities pre-occupy  him over two or three films, leading to a final showdown.

 

Contributors above have wondered how, assuming Blofeld is re-introduced, the "revenge" element can also be involved without a full scale OHMSS remake. I think we could use the following elements from the Fleming novels. In Bond 24, 007 is teamed with a fellow agent named, say, Gala Brand. He falls for her but she seems only friendly. Mission accomplished, save that the head villain has eluded the authorities, Bond thinks he can whisk Gala away somewhere romantic, only to be introduced to Gala's fiancé.

 

Then just as Gala and future husband drive off into the sunset, and Bond is leaving, a slightly sadder but wiser man, tragedy strikes. The villains have tracked Bond down, and tried to assassinate him, but end up murdering Gala and her fiancé instead.

 

Bond 25 - M sends Bond after our arch villain - shall we call him Shatterhand? - who is eventually tracked down to a bizarre plantation (not necessarily in Japan - other places cultivate killer plants) which is his private estate. The whole world is after him after the events of the previous story, but Bond is determined to get him. It's not out of revenge (OHMSS) nor closure (QoS) but justice. Shatterhand threatened the world but also killed two people, one who Bond worked with but one who was wholly innocent. A bit like his motivation in LTK but without the "this time it's personal" tag, because he only worked once with Gala, and his attempts at romance were brushed off. Nevertheless, he feels responsible for putting them both at risk, and wants to bring the person behind their deaths to justice.

 

In the final quarter of the film we learn that Shatterhand is Blofeld and like the novel You Only Live Twice, he attempts to justify his crimes. Financing terror through Le Chiffre in CR? Might it be all to the good, forcing governments to confront corrupt banking practices & money laundering that brought the world economy to the brink in 2008? The events in QoS? Again, Blofeld/Shatterhand is providing a public service, reminding the world of how precious water is. And SF? Yes he backed Raoul Silva to prove to the world how vulnerable it is to cyber-crime - how was he to know that Silva was a lunatic with a mother complex?

 

The final confrontation takes place, though without the end we recall from the book. Instead, for once, Bond gets the girl - whoever she might be in 25,  and makes contact with M - who asks Bond to return pronto, because there's a little problem out in Jamaica that needs sorting out! ;)

 

Sounds reasonable and quite interesting!  Kudos!



#50 tdalton

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Posted 09 March 2014 - 07:52 PM

If we're going to have to revisit Blofeld, I would prefer that we get a faithful take on You Only Live Twice out of it.  This would necessitate Bond getting married again, albeit it doesn't have to necessarily be Tracy and it wouldn't take place within the confines of a remake of On Her Majesty's Secret Service.  Personally, I wouldn't be against a remake, as it would be nice to see such material in the hands of a capable Bond actor, but EON's not going to be remaking any of the previous films, so it's a moot point.  

 

I like the idea of Blofeld trying to justify the actions of Le Chiffre, Dominic Greene, and Raoul Silva from the previous three films, but I'm not sure that I'd want to see Bond trying to avenge Gala Brand simply out of a sense of bringing Blofeld to justice.  If they're bringing back Blofeld, this would probably be the last opportunity for a true adaptation of You Only Live Twice, and I'd really like to see that book done justice on the big screen.


Edited by tdalton, 09 March 2014 - 07:57 PM.


#51 Matt_13

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Posted 09 March 2014 - 08:06 PM

I imagine if Quantum is mentioned at all, it'll be brief, and will be in the vein of its members having joined with SPECTRE along with many other criminals from different terrorist groups across the globe. They could also weave it in by saying that it is part of a far reaching network of organizations that belong to SPECTRE. That being said, I'd be very surprised if we get a mention. Might be nice to see it on a dossier, though, even if it is for nothing more than tying up the loose end.

Love Logan's tease of " You ain't seen nothing yet!" That's exciting. I know it's just press and drum beating, but he is so clearly in love with the material. That's excellent news for us.



#52 Tiin007

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Posted 09 March 2014 - 08:09 PM

Someone mentioned a sort of remake of OHMSS, which I would really be against. Not only is that a perfect film already in the series, but whereas in the books Bond losing two important women in his life made sense, doing so twice in the film series with the same actor over the course of 5 films seems excessive. I'm all for the new direction the series has taken, but it may take some convincing for me to accept that arc.

 

I fully agree with you. The Vesper romance occurred in CR, the aftermath in QoS. So merely having one film (Skyfall) as a buffer zone before revisiting the storyline of Bond falling in love (maybe even getting married this time) and losing the girl seems quite redundant. Almost as if the powers-that-be can't come up with any good storylines that don't involve Bond losing someone close to him (and yes, I have noticed that Vesper, Mathis, and M have all died in Bond's arms). So if they would ever reintroduce a storyline similar to Tracy (i.e. marriage and her death at the hands of the villain), it should be saved at least for the next actor, and preferably not at the beginning of his tenure.



#53 Guy Haines

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Posted 10 March 2014 - 12:22 AM

Thanks for the feedback about my Bond 24/25/26 idea. As I mentioned in my previous contribution, I'll more than likely be proved 100% when Bond 24 is released next year.

 

The villain seeking to justify the crimes in CR, QoS & SF (and presumably Bond 24) would tie in with an attempt to adapt the novel "You only Live Twice", because of course that is exactly what Shatterhand/Blofeld did in the book - trying to present the theft of atom bombs and the threatened devastation of the UK economy through biological warfare as, somehow, benign. I can easily imagine the head of Quantum/SPECTRE in Craig's final Bond film trying the same line of argument. And it would be a different line of argument from the kind we've come to expect from Bond movie villains in the past.

 

I deliberately didn't have Bond married off at the end of 24, pretty much for the reasons mentioned by Tiin007 above. Two intense but tragic romances over five or six films might seem too unlikely. Instead Bond feels culpable for the deaths of a female agent he fancied but in the end came to respect and her fiancé, a man wholly innocent. It would be unfinished business for Bond on two levels - bringing the villain (Blofeld/Shatterhand/head of Quantum?) to justice on behalf of society, but also atonement  for two unnecessary deaths. Not, I admit, the "personal revenge" scenario of YOLT the novel, but again "this time it's personal" has already been done more than once in the Craig era. As for what "bringing the villain to justice" would mean, well, put it this way - knowing Bond, it's unlikely to involve a trial!



#54 tdalton

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Posted 10 March 2014 - 02:58 AM

I understand what the storyline would be trying to accomplish, and I agree that a lot of it would be nice to see on the big screen.  The only reservations that I would have would be bringing in Blofeld to feature as the villain for such a plot.  The proposed plot could, in theory, be carried out by any adversary, which would lead me to suggest that EON simply create a new recurring antagonist to carry out the villainy. 

 

If Blofeld is brought back, it really represents the last chance that we have at seeing a truly faithful adaptation of You Only Live Twice.  The things that, for me, separate Blofeld from the pack of the rest of the Bond villains is the personal toll he takes on Bond.  If we're looking to not use those elements of his character's story arc, and it's very reasonable to not want to at this stage of the reboot due to Bond just having lost Vesper, then I would propose that the villain could essentially be anybody and not necessarily Blofeld.



#55 Guy Haines

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Posted 10 March 2014 - 07:44 AM

I think you have a point, which is why I refer to the villain as "the villain", or by more than one possible name. The scenario could work with an adversary who isn't Blofeld, although Bond fans familiar with the novel You Only Live Twice would realise that much of the final showdown is based on that novel. The problem with a "faithful" adaptation of YOLT the novel is you would need the emotional "kick" of Bond having lost someone close to him, which has already happened within recent memory in CR 2006. Also, another point that occurred to me after my previous post - doesn't Bond go to pieces early in the novel YOLT? Hitting the bottle, taking up drugs, becoming a security risk? Again, within the Craig era, it's already been done, in SF, which borrowed, loosely, from the novels YOLT and TMWTGG in having Bond come back from the dead and redeeming himself.

 

There are problems, but I think a future film based on the novel YOLT could be produced, but I'm not sure if it could be an exact, faithful adaptation.



#56 SecretAgentFan

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Posted 10 March 2014 - 09:26 AM

If one avoided a re-telling of Tracy one could, of course, use Vesper again.  To give Craig-Bond real closure with her, this new Blofeld/Shatterhand could be exposed as being the mastermind behind her betrayal.  

 

That way, Craig-Bond would really get his quantum of solace when he kills Blofeld in his last film of his tenure.

 

Just a thought.



#57 Walecs

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Posted 10 March 2014 - 12:30 PM

If one avoided a re-telling of Tracy one could, of course, use Vesper again.  To give Craig-Bond real closure with her, this new Blofeld/Shatterhand could be exposed as being the mastermind behind her betrayal.  

 

That way, Craig-Bond would really get his quantum of solace when he kills Blofeld in his last film of his tenure.

 

Just a thought.

 

Epic win.



#58 seawolfnyy

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Posted 10 March 2014 - 01:24 PM

Has anyone considered the possibility that Mr. White is in fact Blofeld?



#59 tdalton

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Posted 10 March 2014 - 01:28 PM

I guess I'll have to respectfully disagree with the general idea that EON should try to incorporate a loose adaptation of You Only Live Twice into the finale of the Craig Era.  My feeling on You Only Live Twice is that they should either adapt the novel faithfully (or at the very least as a semi-faithful adaptation like Casino Royale) or leave the story and its elements alone.
 

Has anyone considered the possibility that Mr. White is in fact Blofeld?

 

I would be surprised if they went that route, if only because of the comments Jesper Christensen made about the franchise in the lead-up to Skyfall.  I think they'll just either let his character simply remain a loose end or, if they do bring back Quantum, we'll learn his fate in a comment made by M or Bond during a briefing or something like that.


Edited by tdalton, 10 March 2014 - 01:33 PM.


#60 SecretAgentFan

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Posted 10 March 2014 - 02:19 PM

I would prefer that Mr. White really only was one of Quantum´s many members.  For its head I would want a much more charismatic type, someone who does not take part in the schemes but orchestrate them.