I have to be honest, TSWLM is perhaps my least favourite of all the Bond novels (LALD, for the obvious reason, might just pip it though).
Heh. You’ve just reminded me of an idea I had a while back for 007; sure, folks often allude to — and sometimes make direct remarks about — him being an unscrupulous jerk, but: what if they leaned into that with the next actor to play James Bond?
I mean, yeah, figure that Q Branch still equips him with cutting-edge gear disguised as stylish accoutrements — so that, for the good of the nation, he can use his cat-burglar skills on the explicit orders of his government — but maybe also figure that he uses that gear and those skills to quietly pocket stuff as the opportunity arises? Heck, maybe he splits the loot with Felix Leiter, or whoever? And so Bond (and his well-paid contacts) succeed at missions that a by-the-book operative would fail at, sure as Bond (and said well-paid contacts) keep profiting from heists along the way?
Amazon. Not as much of a track record with other film franchises takeovers. Hence the fairly unengaging (to me anyway) LotR bit as the cautionary example.
If they “Get” Bond as well as they “got” Tolkien, they’ll eliminate Q and replace him with Santa’s elves, have Bond be celibate and abstemious and never tell his name (specially not using the “Bond, James Bond” phrasing).
Thank God. It seems to have all but died. Daniel Craig was a good Bond, but the franchise shouldn’t end just because he got old and tired of the role. You don’t kill off James Bond.
I think there have been similar pauses between Bonds over the decades that this franchise has lasted. I would not say that it seems to have all but died.
He died in the last movie.
Several super heroes have “died” only to be resurrected via Hollywood magic.
Bond/ Batman crossover. Neither universe is more absurd than the other. Crazy stunts and awesome gadgets.
How about a three-way – Bond/Batman/Dick Tracy crossover. Impeccably perfect hero with outlandish gadgets fighting criminals with eccentric appearances and identities.
Blofeld, Flat Top, and The Joker collaborate on a plot to trap our Hero so that has to look on unable to stop the theft of some outrageously oversized prop plot device.
My off-the-wall suggestion:
James Bond 007 in the mid 1800s. Focus on the Great Game. The British Empire had its tentacles everywhere, which is a great excuse for a globe-trotting secret agent. Lots of political intrigue and action among the Great Powers of the day. Plenty of gristle for an agent to chew on.
But this is James Bond, not a period piece. While the costumes would be period, Bond would use “sci-fi” type weapons more typical of a century later. The bad guys could use steam-punk type devices that’d be fantastical.
The creative part is the writers could critique modern-day countries and politicians while maintaining a façade of historicity. (No, Mr President, this movie is about a cowardly prince in the British Raj, nothing at all to do with you.)
West, James West.
The Wild Wild West TV show was pretty much this, set in America not Europe, with Artemus Gordon as Q. The TV show was great, the movie sucked.
Aside from the anachronistic weapons, this is essentially what they did in the newest “Detective Chinatown” movie, which transplanted the same actors to 1900 San Francisco for a not-so-subtle critique of modern-day racism.
I would have loved to see Desmond Llewelyn show up in each movie wearing increasingly ridiculous disguises the way Artie used to.
Other than the retro Bond, which is my preferred route they take, I’d like to see them do a Next Generation type thing.
The original Bond has either retired, died, or is in prison only to be released for a case only he can handle a la The Rock. After sufficient time a new spy gets the 007 designation and it can be a female or non-white actor and it wouldn’t upset the crybaby fanboys (as much). Or it can focus on other 00s and make Bond like Vera on Cheers, occassionally mentioned but never seen.
Going with a little different mindset here….
They should remake all the films they’ve made up to now (because it’s more expedient than coming up with a new approach), using a different actor as Bond in each one and killing him off at the end of every movie. To varying degrees, this would allow the bad guys to win, bringing a greater sense of reality to the series. It would also allow multiple takes on the character while ensuring an enduring debate on which Bond faced the most spectacular or iconic demise (naturally, a franchise trademark).
My inspiration here is that I always found Bond’s triumph over the giant squid in the novel Dr. No to be utterly unconvincing. This would be a chance to fix it by having the cephalopod win.
Get all the living James Bond actors together for a multiverse thing, and throw in Austin Powers in there for s&g’s
I had an idea to make a James Bond set in the 1700s. Only it wouldn’t have actually been James Bond, just an espionage thriller with swords and horses instead of guns and cars. But it would have the same themes and plot formula as Bond typically uses, with gadgets, megalomaniac villains, femme fatales, and epic action sequences.
I had a whole plot worked out, and tried to write it myself, but I’m not very good at this genre so I was in over my head and my mental energy petered out.
Pimpernel. Scarlet Pimpernel.
How about the 1500’s?