In Praise Of Dalton... (1 Viewer)

[Paul_Scott]

haven't seen DAD so i can't comment on that, and i don't want to hijack another thread to talk about this, but as i look back over my stash of Bond flicks, i'm really disappointed that Dalton only made two.
both of his films, imho, are two of the strongest in the series.
the biggest knock against him, that i continually hear, is that he lacks charisma.
this kind of baffles me, as i'm pretty much riveted by interpretation.

it seems like people were thanking the heavens when Brosnan took over, and in '95 i was happy to see him finally get a shot at it, but 4 films later, PB has done nothing for me in regards to this character, and i still keep going back to Daltons films and wistfully thinking about what might have been...

the snatches i've seen from DAD seem like Brosnan may have finally matured comfortably into the character, but all the talk about MTV camera work, and cgi nonsense totally put me off

 

[Peter Kim]

Same here...I completely enjoyed Dalton as Bond. I thought that he lent a rough hewn edge to 007. While I'm fine with Brosnan, he strikes me as a little too measured/polished.

Although these sentiments coming from someone who believed George Lazenby set the paradigm as the ultimate Bond.

 

[Quentin]

I really liked Dalton...but, he had two faults:

1) While he can act and has style, he doesn't have the charisma necessary for Bond. He's a character actor and tends to underplay his role. Not great for Bond.

2) They tried to reinvent the franchise by going back to the hardcore Bond of the books and the first films and audiences hated it. Personally, I love it. I'm a big fan of the books and I dig hardcore Bond.

I also dig Lazenby, but Connery is my fave.

 

[Peter Kim]

Yeah, forgot about that highlander. He was pretty good...I even like him in Never Say Never Again.

2) They tried to reinvent the franchise by going back to the hardcore Bond of the books and the first films and audiences hated it. Personally, I love it. I'm a big fan of the books and I dig hardcore Bond.

Exactly why I liked Dalton's run. Nevertheless, this is the reason why the franchise has endured. A Bond for all seasons.

 

[Tim Glover]

I too, liked Dalton. But didn't care for License to Kill. He was good, just didn't like the movie. Loved Living Daylights though. Wasn't he also in The Rocketeer?

I have liked all the Bond potrayals although my fave was Roger Moore. Probably because he was Bond when I was old enough or allowed to watch them!

 

[Michael Martin]

I have liked all the Bond potrayals although my fave was Roger Moore.

Interesting. I like Dalton's Bond a lot almost as a direct result of Moore's version. Dalton lent a dangerous energy to the character that Moore either did not or could not.

It's been a while since I've seen either Dalton Bond movie, but I've always been surprised at how negatively they are portrayed. I really liked the rougher, more human Bond, and thought Dalton had the acting chops to do it.

Having said that, I also think Brosnan does a great job with the role.

 

[Jim J]

Another member of the Dalton Fan club here.
One of my favorite moments was, in Living Daylights. He kills a guy in a car. It was an intense moment, and well potrayed. When it was over, Bond took a moment to compose himiself, straighten his tie, let his adrenalin subside, etc. It just was perfectly played, like I imagine Bond. No silly quips or sly smile.

Any, just got to seeing DAD last night. Pretty good ride. I really liked the first half of the movie. Gritty, a bit raw. Brosnan has made the role his own now.

I agree that some of the CG was out of place.

 

[Bill Street]

I'm a fan of the scripts from the Dalton Bond era. It was nice to see them cut through the cheesey silliness that had come through in the latter Roger Moore movies.
I liked Dalton's Bond portrayal, but I think Connery and
Brosnan are my two favorite Bond actors. The Dalton scripts, however, are among the strongest of the series. They stand right up with On Her Majesty's Secret Service and From Russia With Love.
Unfortunately, the public rewarded quality, character driven scripts with low box office, complaints about a lack of the "Bond magic", and disdain. The message was loud and clear. The public *demands* the Bond by the numbers formula! It's a shame. :frowning:
I think Brosnan is an excellent Bond, but the movies he has been in, while entertaining, have been mediocre. He hasn't been given a chance to give us insight into Bond's character. To his credit, he has tried to inject humanity into the role in the very small ways he could, but he hasn't had much time for it in the midst of the "shoot-em up" video game pacing of his movies.
Bill S.

 

[Randy Korstick]

I'm another big fan of Dalton. I would have to give my favorite to Sean Connery probably because he had more films. I also wish Dalton was given more than 2 films.

I grew up with Roger Moore and liked him the best at that time but I later realized that he was way to comical with too many one liners and his movies became cheesier and cheesier as a result. Brosnan is similar to Moore in many ways but manages to add a little of the Dalton/Connery seriousness.

I don't get the Charisma knock on Dalton either. I mean James Bond is an agent that is Licensed to Kill. His job is to be a paid assasin. I don't think that type of job would lead you to have this happy go lucky, stand up comedian attitude of Moore. He was just way too much to be Bond. Bond was created and defined in books and anyone who has read the books knows that Roger Moore is nothing like Bond.
Sean Connery played Bond serious and with a slight wit and sense of humor similar to the books. Dalton did the same but added the brooding, dark personality of the character from the books which would be a result of his profession.

The way I see it we have two Bond Camps:
Connery/Dalton: The Book Bonds played believably.
Moore/Brosnan: The Comic Book/Action Hero Bonds played unbelievably and simply for fun.
Lazenby would probably be in the Bond/Dalton camp although its hard to say with only one Bond film.

I am a big Bond fan and as a result I do like all the Bond films even the bad ones so even if it doesn't sound like it, I do like all the Moore/Brosnan films. I just see them in the different ways I mentioned above.

 

[Malcolm R]

Count me in. The Dalton "Bond" films are among my favorites in the series and the only "Bond" films I ever purchased on laserdisc. Vastly underrated IMO.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

No silly quips or sly smile.

But that's what we identify cinematic Bond with as a culture! Personally, I fall into the common denominator group, I guess. Dalton didn't do it for me, easily the worst Bond of the series. Connery and Brosnen are my favorites, as a reference. Going to see Die Another Day this weekend, hopefully.

 

[Steve Christou]

I really liked Dalton as Bond, I have every single one of his Bonds in my collection.
He was tough and ruthless, he even angrily pushed 'M' aside in one film to go after whatsisname um Pancho Sanchez.
I would have loved to see Brosnan kick 'M's ass in the new film after she coldly told him he was no use to her, grrrr, where's Dalton when you need him.

 

[Todd Phillips]

I like Dalton, but I think his films suffered from lower production values and the 80s film-making styles. They seem very dated to me, and the direction has little flair.

 

[Tony Whalen]

Another Dalton fan here. Like others, I enjoyed the 'dangerous' edge he brought back to the series. It was very refreshing.
Bonds in order of preference:
1. Connery
2. Brosnan
3. Dalton
4. Lazenby
5. Moore
(Even though I grew up with Moore... he never really did it for me...)

 

[Carlo_M]

Count me in as another who thought Dalton was a fine Bond. I think the cheesiness of Moore had driven the franchise so deep into the ground that no one was going to succeed in those following films, I think the public had just had enough of Moore (I know I think him the worst of the actors that have played Bond).
Although the plots aren't going to win any Oscars (and didn't) I find myself enjoying the Dalton Bond movies. Still don't own any Moore Bond movies.

 

[Joseph Young]

View to a Kill had one of the best Bond Themes in memory (i have a soft spot for 80's Duran Duran). But I always thought, and it's my opinion, that Dalton looked really uncomfortable and twitchy as Bond.
Roger Moore was just a little bit too sleazy for my tastes, but Connery will always be the perfect Bond for me. At least Adam West never got the role.
Dalton was great as the villian in The Rocketeer.
~j

 

[Steve Christou]

Dalton was great as the villian in The Rocketeer.

I totally agree, Dalton was superb as the villainous Neville Sinclair, and one of the three big reasons I like that film so much, the luscious Jennifer Connelly being the other two reasons.
I hope The Rocketeer gets a remastered dvd transfer with extras in 2003, but I doubt it, shame, great fun movie, fantastic score by James Horner.

 

[TheLongshot]

This got me to watch "The Living Daylights" again. A few things got my attention:
As someone else has said, it does look dated, not a surprise, since it is another one of John Ford's Bond films, which means it looks like all of his other films with Roger Moore.
Surprisingly few puns out of Bond. I guess I've been watching too many of the recent films.
A pretty elegent plot. It wasn't the deepest thing in the world, but it works for the most part.
Nothing particularly over the top, unlike the Brosnan Bond films. They stayed within the bounds of possibility, and didn't really strech credibility.
Jason

I totally agree, Dalton was superb as the villainous Neville Sinclair, and one of the three big reasons I like that film so much, the luscious Jennifer Connelly being the other two reasons.

Also, Dalton was in that really cheesy Flash Gordan film back in the 80s. You know the one, the one where Queen did the soundtrack. Cheesy fun.
Jason

 

[Michael Martin]

Dalton was in that really cheesy Flash Gordan film back in the 80s.

Prince Baron!!!!
I will always have a soft spot for the 1980 Flash Gordon, for a few reasons:
1. It was the first movie I saw with a girl.
2. Brian Blessed as Voltan - BB rocks!
3. Ornella Muti -

It's been a while since I've seen either of the Dalton Bond movies, but having read this thread and re-read Ebert's reviews, I agree that what I liked about it probably is what most people didn't - he actually took the character seriously, and tried to ground the movies in an emotional reality.
If my local video store has Living Daylights, may have to rent it and see what I think now.

 

[Jacinto]

As a big fan of the books, Dalton is my favorite cinema Bond. I've just never bought any of the action scenes with Moore or Brosnan; I'm pretty sure my mom could whip both of them in a fight. But Dalton, Connery, and Lazenby were all believable kicking butt. Dalton definitely took the role very seriously, which I liked. Any of the minor quips he made were more real-to-life, not like some cheesball ladies man trying desperately to score. Dalton's Bond never had to rely on lame smarmy come-ons and one-liners to bed the women; the women just threw themselves at him because his intense personality was melting their panties from across the room. That, to me, is James Bond, not a white version of Tim Meadows as the Ladies Man.

While I thought several elements of License to Kill were a little goofy, I still think the The Living Daylights holds up as one of the best Bond films. From the story to the performances to the action, it's definitely one of my favorites. For me, it's also the last time a Bond stunt sequence took my breath away; now they're all a little dumb, or CGI, or both. But who can forget the two guys fighting on the cargo net hanging out the back of the plane? That was some SERIOUS stuntwork.

Yeah, I really wish Dalton had been given more films...