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May

8

New Bond

By Ron Wynn | Filed Under Books, Film, Television 

A fresh James Bond work is coming this month, but it won’t be Quantum of Solace, the 22nd film in the series and second starring Daniel Craig as the latest incarnation of the British superspy.

Instead, it’s a new James Bond novel Devil May Care, penned by Sebastian Faulks. Set for May 28 release, Faulks’ work takes Bond back to the late ‘60s, where he’s again fighting the Cold War.

An ardent admirer of the late Bond creator Ian Fleming, whose 100th birthday is being celebrated this year (Fleming died at 56 in 1964), Faulks recognizes that the best Bond adventures are rooted in simpler times.

The days of Spectre and Smersh, when the villains weren’t anti-heroes and it was the West against the Communists, were tailor-made for the Fleming sagas.

They haven’t translated that well into the 21st century, which is why the producers shifted gears and returned to the very first Bond novel Casino Royale (written all the way back in 1953) to reinvigorate the series. The results were the highest grossing James Bond yet, (170 million in America alone) and the 38th highest in film history.

Daniel Craig’s Bond jettionsed the gadgets, trimmed the wisecracks and re-emphasized the intrigue and coldness that characterize the Bond featured in Fleming’s 14 novels.

They may have updated the visuals and settings, but they otherwise backdated the narrative. Quantum of Solace , thankfully coming later in the year and not stuck in the  middle of the summer blockbusters, is a genuine sequel to Casino Royale. It will continue many elements of its predecessor, right down to more encounters between Bond and the shady Mr. White, Le Chiffre’s associate.

Fleming would probably be pleased to see  current producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson taking the character back to the roots. The 14 Fleming novels were (and remain) an enormous success.

According to a fine article in the current issue of U.S. News and World Report by Thomas K. Grose about Fleming’s accomplishments, more than 100 million Bond books have been sold, and the films have grossed nearly 4.5 billion dollars. Sadly, Fleming only saw two of his books, Dr. No and From Russia With Love, become movies prior to his death.

Just as the Mickey Spillane Mike Hammer pulp novels spawned a host of private eye shows in the ‘50s, the Fleming stories  generated a growth industry for espionage programs during the ‘60s.

You had the James Bond domestic  (I Spy, The Man From Uncle) and foreign versions (The Avengers, Danger Man and Secret Agent), the Bond western (The Wild Wild West), the Bond team (Mission Impossible), the cop turned Bond (Amos Burke, Secret Agent), even the Bond spoof (Get Smart). Eventually the audience grew tired of spy dramas, but J.J. Abrams revived them with Alias from 2001-2006.

Still, no contemporary author of espionage and spy fiction has created a character that’s endeared itself to audiences and become as entrenched a part of the cultural fabric as Fleming’s James Bond.

As a writer Fleming’s not nearly as cynical or surprising as the magical John le Carre. Yet, while such marvelous le Carre novels as The Spy Who Came in From The Cold, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy,  and The Tailor of Panama have been turned into equally fantastic films, he’s never by choice created an ongoing character as appealing as James Bond. Indeed, a great irony is that the best James Bond ever, Sean Connery, was also featured in an outstanding le Carre film The Russia House.

The late Robert Ludlum’s Jason Bourne was superbly played by Matt Damon in three wonderful films, but The Bourne Ultimatum seems to have brought that character to a suitable conclusion.

Anyone who didn’t grow up on the Ian Fleming novels can catch them again since Penquin Books is publishing new hardcover editions of his original volumes. There’s also a new radio production coming of Dr. No. featuring Toby Stephens, who was the villain in Pierce Brosnan’s final Bond flick Die Another Day.

But for now,  those hungry for new Bond fare must temporarily be satisfied with Devil May Care. After that comes a three-disc collector’s edition  DVD  of Casino Royale June 3, with audio commentary, deleted scenes and other features that should bridge the gap until Quantum of Solace. Anyone silly enough to have missed Casino Royale in theaters can also see it this month on Showtime.

Comments

One Response to “New Bond”

  1. Cass on May 9th, 2008 8:32 am

    Yeah, I was silly enough to miss Casino Royale in the theatres, but I did see it on Showtime. It was awesome!
    i don’t have time to read a lot of books these days, but it is nice that it’s there.

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