Emotional storytelling - before and after the reboot

[MrKiddWint]

Been there. Done that.

[David_M]

@ChrissBond007

But I do fear that elements of the Craig era such as having Bond as a tragic victim, family drama and the ‘‘becoming Bond’’ angle might just be permament elements for future Bond films.

I really think this approach was a personal fetish of Barbara’s and probably not of interest to the suits at Amazon. I imagine that outfit as a room full of bots, really; assembling a script and casting a lead based on algorithms, and “emotionally tortured loner with Mommy issues longing for the family he can never have” is not what most AI engines are going to spit out when you ask, “Who is James Bond?”

In the past the series was able to move on… from Bond in space after MR,

?? You say that like it was a bad thing!?

But will Bond be able to move on from 5 films being a miserable character who hates his job, having a family and essentially comitting suicide in the end?

Well, yes. None of that is essential to Bond, none of it is how most audiences think of Bond, and none of it is “Flemingesque.” It was an interesting road to travel down, but there’s no need to go back, and no way to go further as the road has reached its end.

@Jim

One might not like the imaginative angle they went down most recently, but it was at least stimulating, for better or worse.

If I have a problem with it, it’s that it went on for so long. The strength of the series has always been its ability to adapt, pivot, respond, change tack. That’s a lot harder when you lock yourself into a five-film storyline that takes 15 years to unfold. As much as I enjoyed CR, I’m not sure I’d have had as much fun if they’d told me up front I was committing to such a long, long run of one take on Bond.

[secretagentfan]

@David_M

I imagine that outfit as a room full of bots, really; assembling a script and casting a lead based on algorithms, and “emotionally tortured loner with Mommy issues longing for the family he can never have” is not what most AI engines are going to spit out when you ask, “Who is James Bond?”

With AI being just a giant mixer it now will be exactly spitting out that.

[secretagentfan]

That question mark is looking interesting.

[David_M]

You scared me enough to actually pose the question the ChatGPT. Happily (?) the answer was very much skewed to “Classic Bond.” In fact, so much so that the Craig films can hardly be made to fit the definition at all.

[ChrissBond007]

@David_M

I really think this approach was a personal fetish of Barbara’s and probably not of interest to the suits at Amazon. I imagine that outfit as a room full of bots, really; assembling a script and casting a lead based on algorithms, and “emotionally tortured loner with Mommy issues longing for the family he can never have” is not what most AI engines are going to spit out when you ask, “Who is James Bond?”

That’s what I pointed out earlier about Barbara. It’s clearly something she has wanted to inject into the series every since Goldeneye really. I just hope Amy Pascal, who Barbara had a close working relationship with during the Craig era, will not just simply follow that direction. Same for Denis Villeneuve, who clearly seems to have a preference for the Craig era films. In that case I actually wouldn’t mind some AI engines explaining what and who James Bond is

@David_M

?? You say that like it was a bad thing!?

For the record, Moonraker is at #4 in my ranking of the films. Bond going back to space in Bond 26 is actually high on my wishlist.

All those examples I named (such as the volacano lair in YOLT, OHMSS’ romantic drama, yes even DAD’ science fiction aspects) are all reasons why I love this series, there’s so much variety. But the series sometimes needs to course correct, and I think now it’s even more needed than ever.

[sharpshooter]

@David_M

You scared me enough to actually pose the question the ChatGPT. Happily (?) the answer was very much skewed to “Classic Bond.” In fact, so much so that the Craig films can hardly be made to fit the definition at all.

I think that response from ChatGPT fits. The Craig era deliberately went against certain Classic Bond expectations. The source it mined from existed first and any deviations don’t make sense without that context.

@secretagentfan

If Amazon does a great enough job at marketing the next phase, people will remember that more than the Craig era.

Certainly plausible. A lot of people focus on what’s new and consider the past outdated and inferior. The Craig era had the advantage of newness but that’s slipping away by the day. Casino Royale was 19 years ago.