Roman J. Martel: Ranking the Bond (007) Films by Actor

The great Roman J. Martel of Roman's Reviews and Musings has taken up the challenge and ranked, according to his preferences, the 007 Films by actor.

Roman writes:

"Well John you do realize you asked for this right? I’m not one for short responses, so here you go.

Sean Connery:

When it comes to the Connery films I think director Terrance Young had the right idea and concept for the character and how the movies should work. Focus on thrills over action. I place all three of his films over the rest of the group. FRWL works the best all the way around, but I really love “Thunderball”. I agree it goes on too long, and trimmed down it would easily be one of the best Bond films ever. I know its blaspheme, but I found “Goldfinger” to have a really messy script that is fun, but never has that danger that Young’s films capture. And I’m not on board with “Never Say Never Again”. I love “Thunderball” and Fiona Volpe too much. But I will say that Von Sydow is an excellent Blofeld.

1.      From Russia with Love
2.      Thunderball
3.      Dr. No
4.      Goldfinger
5.      You Only Live Twice
6.      Never Say Never Again
7.      Diamonds Are Forever

Roger Moore

When Roger was on, he was on. But it took them a bit to find that sweet spot with him. “Spy” is a ton of fun, maybe the most fun James Bond film of the series, and it just works on nearly every level for pure entertainment. But I like my Bond movies with a bit more danger, so FYEO gets my top spot. I love the location shooting in Greece and the focus on top-notch stunts and thrills makes it one I watch nearly every year. “Moonraker” has grown on me over the years. It is a fun Bond parody that straddles the line of spectacle over substance, but still keeps things fun. And yeah I’ve got a soft spot for the horribly bad AVTAK. Walken’s over the top performance, the Duran Duran song and the oh so 80s-ness of it just work for me. Well that and it was the first Bond film I ever saw in theaters.

1.     For Your Eyes Only
2.     The Spy Who Loved Me
3.     Moonraker
4.     A View to a Kill
5.     The Man with the Golden Gun
6.     Live and Let Die
7.      Octopussy

Timothy Dalton

I’ve got to say that Dalton is probably my favorite actor in the role of James Bond. He just hits all the right points, and if he had been given one more great script I think his legacy would be assured. LTK is the better of the two films, but it feels more like a “Miami Vice” episode than a James Bond film. But Dalton brings the goods and he is a force of nature in this film. TLD has a lot of great moments, but the script is a mess. That opening scene in Gibraltar is one of my favorite pre-credit sequences of the franchise. What a great way to introduce the actor and his take on the character.

1.      License to Kill
2.      The Living Daylights

Pierce Brosnan

I’m with you, I think Brosnan could have been one of the best of the Bonds. He has the acting skills, he has the look, he has the ability to play serious and comedy and a mix of both perfectly. But time and again the scripts fail him. The four films are exercises in frustration, with great moments overpowered by horrible ones. “Goldeneye” is my favorite of the group, but a lot of that is nostalgia admittedly. Still, I think Sean Bean’s 006 is one of the best villains Bond ever faced. I like how TND starts, but it really falls apart halfway through the movie. TWINE has a great core story and so much potential. But I get the feeling the studio got cold feet with a deadly serious Bond script and injected a bunch of ridiculous moments (and characters and casting) to lighten it up. It is one of the most frustrating movies of the series, because you can see a really great film buried in there. I still feel bad that Brosnan never got a Craig script that would have ended his tenure with a bang.

1.     Goldeneye

2.     The World is Not Enough

3.     Tomorrow Never Dies

4.     Die Another Day

Daniel Craig

So yeah, if  Dalton is my favorite Bond, then you can guess that I really like Craig. His run has been the most consistent of all the Bonds. Even QOS has a very good story at its core, but is tripped up by poor execution – and still it is an entertaining movie (thanks to the crisp editing and short run time). “Casino Royale” may be the best Bond film yet made: great script, great cast, great build up and execution, and a killer ending. On top of that David Arnold’s score is amazing. Just a hell of a ride all the way through. “Skyfall” comes close, but is a little too close to “The Dark Knight” for comfort. “Casino Royale” proves that no one does it better than Bond.

1.     Casino Royale

2.     Skyfall

3.     Spectre

4.     Quantum of Solace

Stop by Roman J. Martel's movie review blog at http://romansreviews.blogspot.com

Reader Results: The Ten Greatest Science Fiction Films of the 1970s

Well, another Reader Top Ten has come to an end, and the participation for this go-round has been amazing.  I want to thank everyone who submitted a list.  I loved reading your selections, and also your reasons behind those selections.

The subject this time was the ten best science fiction films of the seventies, and I asked when I started, if you recall, whether darkness and dystopian-ism would triumph for readers, or if Star Wars-style swashbuckling would carry the decade.

I'm afraid the list doesn't provide a definitive answer, as you shall see. 

We have a tie for tenth and eleventh place:

Silent Running (1972)

Westworld (1973)

In spaces 7, 8, and 9, there is another tie:

THX-1138 (1971)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

Superman: The Movie (1978)

In 6th place is....

A Clockwork Orange (1972)

In 5th place:

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

In 4th place:

The Andromeda Strain (1971)

At third is...

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1978)

And we have a bloody TIE for first and second place.

Both of the following films drew exactly 32 votes (which is precisely twice the amount of votes our third place winner, CE3K accrued).

Star Wars (1977)

Alien (1979)

So, as you can see, darkness and light battled it out right until the end in the 1970s, didn't they?  We had new hope and alien terror going hand-in-hand into the 1980s.

It's also intriguing to note that both Robert Wise and George Lucas made it onto the list for two films apiece. And Michael Crichton material was at the heart of both Westworld and The Andromeda Strain.

Above ten and eleven, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes and Mad Max would have tied at twelfth and thirteenth. Colossus: The Forbin Project and Rollerball were tied for fourteenth and fifteenth.

In terms of my own feelings, I was especially gratified to read all the reader love for Star Trek: The Motion Picture.  That film is a great, visually-dazzling work of art, and too often dismissed as bad Star Trek.  

So, what do you think?

Reader Results: The Top Ten Greatest Horror Films (1960 - 2000)

The votes have been counted and re-counted.  The results are in.  We have our list of winners for this month's Reader's Top Ten: the Greatest Horror Films (1960 - 2000).

As selected by the readers of this blog, the top ten greatest Horror Films of the period 1960 - 2000 are (drum-roll please...):

Tied for 9th and 10th place:

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Jaws (1975)

At number 8:

The Shining (1980)

Tied for sixth and seventh place:

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

The Wicker Man (1973)

At fifth place:

Psycho (1960)

Tied for Third and Fourth Place:

Alien (1979)

John Carpenter's The Thing (1982)

Our runner up, at second place is...

The Exorcist (1973)

And the number one horror film 1960 - 2000 is...

Halloween (1978)

Well, what do you think?

I feel the list represents a remarkable canon or catalog, a basis for a "beginning" of a horror collection in other words.  

I find it extremely interesting that Alien (1979) and The Thing (1982) tied, since both films involve hostile alien life forms that, in one way or another, shift their forms. 

Also, the genuine surprise on the list, I would say, is very high placement of The Wicker Man (1973). It's a great film, of course, but its selection shows, I think, that this list runs deep, not just to easy or mainstream horror titles.

I would like to thank everybody who contributed to this month's reader's top ten.  These lists aren't possible without your participation, and I always enjoy reading your explanations/descriptions and selections.

Now, please join me tomorrow for the beginning of Halloween-a-thon 2013. I'll be reviewing horror movies Monday through Thursday, including many of the titles that got mentioned on the reader lists. 

Reader Results: The Top Ten Greatest Science Fiction Movies circa 2000 - 2013

Well, we have now come to the end our fourth Reader Top Ten series, and I suspect this exercise has been the most difficult yet for many of us.  Certainly, after reading all of your fine top ten catalogs, I realized I wish I had twenty slots to play with.

There are many more great films from this recent time period, I think, than I had remembered or reckoned on when I composed my list at the beginning of this enterprise.

Great job to everyone who passionately argued their cases, and especially those who turned me on to new titles that I can watch and then review here on the blog...

So without any further delay, here are is our Reader's List of Top Ten Greatest Science Fiction Movies of the Era 2000 - 2013.

Tied at numbers 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 are:

Pitch Black (2000)

Ghosts of Mars (2001)

Sunshine (2007)
Cloverfield (2008)

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

Cabin in the Woods (2012)
Pacific Rim (2013)

At number #8 is:

Star Trek (2009)

At number #7 is:

Children of Men (2006)

At Number #6 is:

Minority Report (2002)

At Number #5 is:

Wall-E (2008)

At number #4 is:

Prometheus (2012)

At number #3 is:

Serenity (2005)

In second place is...

Moon (2009)

And the number one ranked movie by readers for 2000 - 2013 is:

District 9 (2009) 

Well, what do you think?

Despite all the ties, I'm satisfied with the list.  There are only five titles here that ultimately overlapped with my own tally (Ghosts of Mars, Minority Report, Prometheus, Wall-E and District 9).  That's my lowest average so far on these lists!

I suppose this result could suggest that there is less consensus about recent films than there is about vintage films, a point that I believe Simon Pegg made recently.  Newer films, perhaps, we haven't had as much time to absorb and process.

Other top contenders -- just 1 vote each outside the tally -- were Dredd (2012), A.I. (2001) and Primer (2004).

It might be fun to revisit this topic in five years and see how the list holds up.  In the meantime, be sure to come back next month, late September, for the next Reader Top Ten!

Reader Results: The Top Ten Greatest Science Fiction Film Endings

The votes have been tabulated and the results are in.

Here are the readership's "top ten" Greatest Science Fiction Film Endings of All Time.

Three-Way Tie for 11, 10 and 9: The Emprie Strikes Back (1980),  Blade Runner (1982) and E.T. (1982)

Four-Way Tie for 5, 6, 7, and 8: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), The Thing (1982), Escape from L.A. (1996) and Donnie Darko (2002)

4. Star Wars (1977)

3. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

2. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

and in first place...

1. Planet of the Apes (1968)

I think what's so fun about this list is that the endings really run the gamut in terms of narrative.  

We have a traditional "happy" ending (Star Wars), a surprise and shock (Planet of the Apes), transcendence (2001) and death (Wrath of Khan, Donnie Darko), anti-authority triumphant (Escape from L.A.), scintillating ambiguity (The Thing, Blade Runner), a cliffhanger (The Empire Strikes Back), a tender goodbye (E.T.) and even Evil Triumphant (Invasion of the Body Snatchers).  Very well done, everyone.

Join me again Monday August 26 at 3:00 pm for the next "Reader Results" Top Ten List!   If you have any thoughts on what the question should be, e-mail 'em to me.

Finally, I want to thank everyone who contributed to this tally, and wrote such impassioned and detailed descriptions of their favorite s.f. movie endings.