All The Bond Men

It all began at a drive-in movie theater somewhere in New Jersey when I saw my first James Bond film, “The Spy Who Loved Me” starring Roger Moore. My father is to blame; he is the one who started all of us – mom, sister, me, and the grand kids – down this path of fandom. And it is a path my son and I have followed proudly for years. Our loyalty to the franchise has even extended to a nice little catalog of James Bond DVD’s.

Over the years, I have had the opportunity to see all the films, and with the recent release of “Quantum of Solace,” I began thinking about how each actor interpreted the character of James Bond 007. The following is a summation of my thoughts on the subject.

In his one role as the most famous spy, George Lazenby was dull and flat, and lacked screen charisma.

Sean Connery was the quintessential Bond. Although his portrayal was the most chauvinistic of them all, he brought a debonair sophistication to the role and laced it with sarcastic humor.

Roger Moore was good. He was more centered than the rest; he took his job seriously, but he also knew how to have fun.

Timothy Dalton. What can I say about him? There was a cold arrogance in his portrayal, and in order for one to view James Bond as a hero there has to be some sort of redemptive quality in him, which was missing in Dalton’s interpretation.

Pierce Brosnan. Ah….what a fine specimen. As you can tell, he is my second favorite. He brought a manly sensitivity to the role. He was in touch with his feelings, and get this, he actually cared about his female counterparts, and treated them like equals (well, as much as a man can).

Finally, there’s Daniel Craig. I know many people have referred to him as the best Bond ever, but I’m not feeling him. He’s too short, too blond, and I don’t find him attractive. Sexy maybe, but not attractive. His portrayal is rough, and lacks the witticism true fans have come to expect from James Bond.

As for “Quantum of Solace,” I was disappointed. The scenes were so action-packed that I couldn’t tell what was going on, except that someone was getting beat up and would eventually be killed. And where was Miss Moneypenny? And how can it be classified as a Bond film without the introduction of the latest spy gadgets from Q? Desmond Llewelyn had a predecessor, so what happened to him? There were just too many missing staples; it just seemed like a regular action film with the James Bond 007 logo attached to it.