I love Villeneuve‘s ARRIVAL, PRISONERS and BLADE RUNNER 2049. His DUNE movies are impressive to look at but lack fun, indulging in the portentous.
Why was he chosen for Bond?
Definitely not because his previous films scream „just what Bond needs“.
After the big success and award nominations for his two DUNE movies he is a huge name.
That’s why Amazon chose him. Name recognition.
In that regard, they continue in the late EON tradition.
So don’t expect the next film to lighten up. It will look fantastic. But it will stay gloomy and feel „weighty“ (especially the running time). Those who thought Mendes brought too much of that will yearn for Mendes‘ humour.
Next up: Timothy Chalamet practicing his British accent.
I’ll say this for Villeneuve’s BOND 26, it’s likely the more approachable film than DUNE MESSIAH is going to be. That he helms that story is saying something for his risk taking. Wonder what he pitched to Amazon and who is going to write the script.
Interestingly announced as a hourly headline news item on one’s (otherwise) seriously minded radio station of choice. They don’t do this sort of thing for Star Wars or other big franchises. The extraordinary hold “Bond” has on the British consciousness in particular seems to persist. Someone directing a film is not a national story; someone directing Bond, is. Wow.
As for the chap himself, I haven’t seen the Dune films but did enjoy Sicario, which had some tense moments so perhaps he could bring some of that into Bond, which would be interesting.
Happy with this decision. It is an exciting and intriguing one. He certainly is a fan of the franchise, that bodes well for the movie. Bring on the writer and the new 007.
There is some enormous but secret field of Bond underneath the North Sea. Actually, Brent crude is a negligible deposit; Britain secretly sells Bond in exchange for Dubai crude, which it then reclassifies as ‘Brent’.
Don’t tell anybody, it could lead to major economic havoc if this was public knowledge…
Denis is known for “characters who struggle with their identities in worlds of isolation”. If he does something similar in Bond 26 we could see the existence of a spy without any real attachments and perhaps the MI6 crew stripped back. Focusing more on the man than before, which would be appropriate not just for a debut but a complete reintroduction. That’s what a lot of people have been calling for, regardless if the tone is light or dark.
I like the idea of playing up to the romanticised loner with the routine of the cold showers and the breakfasts, sitting in his hotel room and swimming in the pool alone. As Fleming put it, “loneliness becomes a lover, solitude a darling sin.”
I think that the hiring of Villeneuve sends a clear message: we won’t do cheap.
One doesn’t spend billions of Dollars on MGM, lots of extra millions on getting rid of Eon, hire one of the best directors and then put all the money on an unknown lead and F-list supporting actors.
One doesn’t get himself a bespoke tux, a Turnbull & Asser shirt and bow tie and some Sterling cufflinks and then go to Burger King (even though a photo exists of some CBn staffers doing exactly that – after the CR premiere ).
I’ve noticed much of the official press releases are emphasising Pascal and mention Villeneuve being approached for NTTD. Getting the impression Amazon are putting them forward as they already had a link to what came beforehand.
“We aren’t throwing the baby out with the bathwater!”
I hope so. I was lucky enough to see him perform live in Boston last year and he mentioned when discussing Bond that he “hoped that they’d let him take another crack at it.”
At the time I thought Hans would be one and done, but with Denis as the director it’s a very real possibility he comes back. Which I’d be happy about. I’ve long been a fan of his work and liked his NTTD score. I don’t want Craig era actors returning, but some background creatives from the past wouldn’t be a bad thing.
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