In Praise Of Dalton... (1 Viewer)

[Brajesh Upadhyay]

I'll chime in as well. I had a big debate with my family members over Thanksgiving--they insisted Dalton sucked & I insisted that he was one of the best. Damn mob over-shouted me . Dalton is my 2nd fav Bond after Connery. Dalton's Bond was edgy/dangerous, flawed/emotional & more human/believable. Moore mostly sucked. He was suave, but I could never buy the notion that the guy could inflict any harm. Brosnan is pretty good, especially in "Die Another Day". Having acted in "The Thomas Crown Affair" & "The Tailor of Panama" did him good. He brought some of his edginess from those films to this 007 film.

I too, liked Dalton. But didn't care for License to Kill.

I think "License to Kill" is Dalton's best Bond. Very few gimmicks/gadgets, a good villian & a rogue 007 on the loose. It's one of the best Bond films ever!

 

[Paul_Scott]

i love Dalton in the role, but i will agree he looked somewhat uncomfortable. he just wasn't that polished, slick, GQ posterboy that most people seem to expect/want for this.
for that reason, i don't think he ever really clicked with the females, and since they weren't hot for him, most males didn't find him a personality to envy (like Connery or Brosnan).
although i could buy a select few female characters finding his edginess/dangerousness/intensity to be a turn on, i would never buy him as the one man to walk into a room causing all the women turn their heads.
i think he was uncomfortable because he knew this wasn't an aspect of the character as played by him that would come across believably, yet there was probably no way the producers were going to abandon this quality, as being obsessivly desired by every female you come into contact with, is an unspoken fantasy of just about every male Bond moviegoer.

while i really haven't read any of the books, i have heard the literary character described as harbouring a hatred and resentment for his profession of goverment-employed killer.
I think Tim , more than any other, had this always bubbling under the surface.

i guess i like him for all the reasons the masses don't.

 

[Randy Korstick]

quote:

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But I always thought, and it's my opinion, that Dalton looked really uncomfortable and twitchy as Bond.
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This is the one of the things that made him closest to the book Bond. Looking Uncomfortable fits with the book idea of Bond being remorseful and feeling guilty over his profession which I think is very believable for anyone in that type of profession who is supposed to be a good guy.

 

[Joseph Young]

Hm, I never thought of it that way. Right on, maybe I'll rent one of the Dalton movies (it has been a while since I've seen them) and give it another shot.
cheers,
joseph

 

[Tim Glover]

This is a good thread. We all have our opinions and differ somewhat but are respecting each other's views as well. Much different than the passion/unmitigated devotion/bias/fanboy syndrome on the Star Wars and LOTR threads. Of course I stand guilty on contributing to those as well!

I used to have nearly the same fervor for the Bond movies as I do for Star Wars. Call it a late '70's and early '80's thing. I had the soundtracks, books, movie illustrated versions etc...

Dalton was good but maybe he was a victum of bad luck and timing. I also think people liked the charm and tongue in cheek humor of Roger Moore. His films were very successful at the box office. I will admit that the tongue in cheek humor was over the top some too. Regarding the timing of Dalton's Bond. The middle '80's brought us Ahnuld and his movies that while not Bond, gave us a different kind of hero. Plus the Die Hard movies had that killer edge to them and human element at the same time. Hard to compete with those.

Just my .02 cents.

 

[Andrew 'Ange Hamm' Hamm]

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.

The industry term for that is "acting," and it's the reason Dalton is by far my favorite Bond.

 

[Dalton]

Yeah, I was a pretty good Bond wasn't I? :wink:
Seriously though, I enjoyed Dalton's 2 Bond films. Especially Licence to Kill

 

[John Stockton]

Great Thread
So good to see so many people praise Dalton. As been mentioned, Dalton is my favorite as well for the same reasons other people don't like him.
He was not charismatic because the character in the books was not charismatic. (did you really think a fine actor like Dalton couldn't be charismatic if he wanted to be)
He was cold and you could sense he does not like his job too well the same way the character in the books was cold and unhappy with his job.
In an interview with Dalton in 1986 they asked him how his approach to the role will be and he answered:
My approach to the role has to be based upon its foundation. And the foundation is all those terrific books of Ian Fleming, which all these movies have sprung from.
If anyone does not care for Dalton's performance, they obviously have not read any of the books and have no idea what Fleming's Bond was like.
I think in time, his popularity will grow and his two performances will gain acceptance and praise among the cult fans.

 

[Justin Doring]

I'm a big Dalton as Bond fan as well, although I confess that I like all the actors who have played Bond, as they each brought something different to the role.
As far as Dalton not having enough energy, he has plenty of energy, but it is intense and internal, which means that the average moviegoer can't see it, and therefore doesn't like Dalton doing Bond. Like many others it seems, I think that Dalton is, by far, the most realistic Bond.
Excellent thread, by the way!

 

[Alex-C]

damn, I thought this thread was about Roadhouse

 

[JonZ]

I see I'm not alone.
I always felt Dalton was never really given a chance.
He was a great Bond.

"Dalton lent a dangerous energy...."
Yes! I liked the harder edge Dalton brought to the part.I also really like Brosnan in the part but the last few Bond flicks havent been great IMHO. I havent seen Die Another Day though.

"I love Dalton in the role, but i will agree he looked somewhat uncomfortable"

He had big shoes to fill. Moore was bad(worse than usual)in Live and Let Die.

I know this is blasphemy, but my favorite Bonds have been the 2 most recent.

BTW, I have 2 copies of License To Kill DVD if anyone wants to make a trade for one. Let me know.

 

[Dharmesh C]

I'm a huge Dalton Bond fan, as the years pass bym more and more folks realise that he was a terrific Bond. I'm glad the series took a different direction.
Dated? Treat the films as a period piece, there's nothing dated about it.