Is that little bald statue stroking a white cat? It wouldn't be a surprise if it was, given the news that Bond's next big challenge is to take down an Oscar.
Bond, James Bond has pulled off some tricks in his career but if the rumours are true that director Sam Mendes plans to ditch action scenes in favour of “characterful performances”, then this could be the hardest job 007 has ever had to tackle.
Daniel Craig has previously said he'd like to bring more “emotional depth” to the role and he probably wasn't expecting that to happen in a film called Skyfall (if that really is Bond 23's title).
Stranger things have happened...
“There are growing rumours Sam Mendes is cutting out the action scenes and making it Oscar-friendly,” an unnamed source told The Express.
The same report claims that “action scenes in India have all been axed” though scenes in Istanbul and Duntrune Castle in Argyll “are still there for the moment”.
“This could be a disaster in terms of sales at box office. Given that this 007 needs to make at least £300million to break even, it may be a very high price to pay for an Oscar nomination,” the source said.
If any Bond film is going to have a shot at Oscar glory, it's one directed by Mendes and starring Craig, Javier Bardem and Ralph Fiennes.
Forget Skyfall. Mendes' film could turn out to be The Man With The Golden Gong.
Source: The Express
Bond 23 to include 'acting'? What next, Die Hard 5 to be an extended group therapy session between John McClane and some terrorists? Post your Comic-book Guy 'Worst. Bond. Ever.' responses below!
Comments
demmike
Oct 25th 2011, 10:48
Reminds me of Team America. Acting.
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jaykays hat
Oct 25th 2011, 11:03
No action in a Bond film??? Bollocks to that.
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albongo
Oct 25th 2011, 11:22
Not true. Simply not true. More character? Yes, that makes sense, but less action? Never. Besides, who cares about the Oscars? An action movie can be full of character without ever actually aiming to win an Oscar. It's not like winning an Oscar is meaning of quality anyway.
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Devilangeldude
Oct 25th 2011, 11:25
They've tried this before and the result was: 1. Never Say Never Again - (not in the Bond series but still) 2. For your eyes Only Both pretty c**p. Casino Royale was good attempt at acting, it's not really the stunts that spring to mind when thinking of it. No need to deviate much from CR
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writerdave87
Oct 25th 2011, 11:54
Dalidab you don't know the difference between s**t and french fries. I have faith in Mendes- the cast of this film is bloody epic, be nice to experiment with a different take on the genre.
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mustangphil84
Oct 25th 2011, 12:07
Surely, setting out to make a film in the hope of winning an Oscar is a bad idea. Why not just concentrate on making the best Bond film you can. There's a HUGE difference between being oscar worthy and quality. I can just imagine Mr Mendes on set with a clipboard with a checklist attached. "Rousing speech set in the face adversity, check!". If they wanted a Bond film to cater to the oscars then why didn't they just hire Daniel-Day Lewis as Bond and Ron Howard to direct. BTW Christopher Nolan for the next bond film please.
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alexr
Oct 25th 2011, 12:07
Does this mean Bond will set up surveillance equipment in a Tesco's car park to catch footage of a carrier bag doing 'wind ballet'?
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McSerious
Oct 25th 2011, 12:33
The Dark Knight, The Bourne Ultimatum, Hurt Locker, Avatar, Inception... All films which bagged Oscar nominations and wins while still being action packed. I'm sure they'll be providing both action and quality acting for 'Skyfall'
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demmike
Oct 25th 2011, 14:52
they better act like they never acted before. They better eat, sleep and breathe acting. Or I won't be interested.
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Hadouken76
Oct 25th 2011, 15:38
Mendes has always been an Oscar brown-nose its no surprise. (The single take tracking shot in Atonement screamed "Look at me! I'm the new David Lean! Honest!"). The whole point of Bond is escapism and fantasical action, if they wanted some misery-guts navel-gazing they should of give the job to Stephen Daldrey (another Oscar suck up).
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np009
Oct 25th 2011, 16:07
This is exactly what I was hoping for! Sounds like Mendes is taking advantage of the stellar cast he's put together with Bardem and Fiennes - bring some real depth and complexity into Bond. Quantum was too inundated with useless action. Looking much more for a spy/espionage thriller in the vain of the early Connery films. This is promising news and hopefully a great trend for Bond moving forward.
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np009
Oct 25th 2011, 16:13
Btw, really like the love for Bond on Totalfilm, gotten all the news/rumors here.
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FBGKennedy
Oct 25th 2011, 16:22
Hadouken76 in the interests of accuracy Sam Mendes didn't direct Atonement. That was Joe Wright. He did however direct Road to Perdition which has fantastic characters, a proper plot (unlike the last Bond) and stunning action sequences. Nuff said.
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joker16
Oct 25th 2011, 17:01
I'm sorry but Grand Theft Auto V has just been announced. Everything else is irrelevant.
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Hadouken76
Oct 25th 2011, 17:05
Thanks FBG Kennedy, had a bit of brain fade there oops!
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fuzzydunlop1
Oct 25th 2011, 17:12
I was worried until I saw the words 'Unnamed Source' and 'The Express'. I remain confident that this will be a must-see.
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StevePotter
Oct 25th 2011, 19:25
I, for one, hate Quantum of Solace. Also, Mendes directed Road to Perdition? I have faith in this film.
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joker16
Oct 25th 2011, 20:04
@dalidab I'd like to see you a$$ raped with a ski pole.
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Mattsimus
Oct 25th 2011, 20:19
Sorry guys news just in.....heard they have also renamed it!!!!....."BOND WITH THE WIND" HAHAHAHAHAHAHA....................gotta say im looking forward to the movie n its been far to long since the last one and since QOS wasnt awful, it was far weaker than CR.....infact who cares come on CCCRRAAIIIGGGG!!!! XMATTMANX
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PanicLord
Oct 25th 2011, 20:34
I thought Casino Royale was a perfect blend of performance, character, and action, and that Quantum Of Solace had too much frenzied action. Bond films should be more than just action films, so it's good to hear more focus on acting, as long as there's still enough humour and action to make it fun.
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SiMan
Oct 25th 2011, 22:26
I'm all for trying to bring something new to a genre, but why is Mendes wanting to do it with the Bond films. Isn't amazing setpieces and spectacular action the whole point of the films. I personally want them to bring back the gadgets and the secret lairs, but obviously ground it a little like in Nolan's Batman films (I think we all agree an invisible car was a little silly, although if i had one i would sit outside Scarlett Johannsens house and honk my horn)
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StevePotter
Oct 26th 2011, 2:35
One problem I had with Quantum of Solace was the laughably bad CGI in a lot of the action scenes. I was a KID and it p****d me off.
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MikeyRix
Oct 26th 2011, 10:59
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAhahahahahaha. Yeah right. It's a Bond film, acton is in the job description!
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Murphy0806
Oct 26th 2011, 11:05
Can people stop mentioning Christopher Nolan please. The man can't direct everything and nor should he. I'm genuinely wondering when everyone is going to stop creaming over him.
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demmike
Oct 26th 2011, 13:17
unfortunately I just nutted over a picture of Chris Nolan. And I'm not even gay!!
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writerdave87
Oct 26th 2011, 19:10
Anyone else notice the irony in Dalidab, the only t**t who's stupid enough to like the Resident Evil movies, having a go at GTA for being a tired franchise?
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writerdave87
Oct 26th 2011, 19:13
On topic, I thought Quantum of Solace had some fantastic, above-average action setpieces. The shootout in the opera house, silent apart from the aria in the background, was a brilliant bit of work. They just left out the story for the film. This 'source' sounds like bollocks- he's talking in jargon. Mendes isn't sitting there tailoring the film to win an oscar, he's making it tighter, more realistic... I'm fascinated to see what he comes out with.
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aragorn01
Oct 27th 2011, 3:27
sorry...but, if this is for real, then SAM MENDES is the BIGGEST d*****s filmmaker out there. no wonder Kate Winslet left his sorry a**e. i mean, come on...it's JAMES friggin' BOND. who cares if it doesn't get any Oscar nod, it's a movie TO MAKE MONEY. getting recognized is NICE, but that ain't what a james bond film is all about. it's about good story, acting and action all put together to give us a thrilling, exciting fun entertainment. if Mendes is eyeing that prize, then he shouldn't be working on Bond. a gifted director should know what HAT to wear for each film he's working on. and James Bond doesn't require an OSCAR hat. sides...to get a great film doesn't necessarily mean they have to cut out action scenes...high-costing action scenes (especially, those that've been shot already).. look at Casino Royale (the 2006 version, not the 1967 one). that movie is well received by both the audience and the critics. it's well made, smart and kick-a**e at the same time. if this is really what Mendes is pondering, then Bond should practice his target shooting on his buttock. WTF....this is just too stoopid.
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writerdave87
Oct 27th 2011, 16:37
Calm down dear. You're reading a lot into far too little.
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MadMatt
Oct 28th 2011, 14:53
Folks, let's be realistic - look at the source. This is a tabloid article. There's no way the producers would allow all the action sequences to be taken out of a Bond movie in favour of turning it into an arthouse yawn-fest. As has been previously mentioned, Casino Royale had the perfect balance of character work, atmosphere and action, a terrific film (which far outclassed the Bourne franchise in my opinion). That should be the model. The problem with the last Bond film - and possibly the next, too - is that Craig has been given a touch too much clout and has had input on director selection. I believe I read somewhere that he didn't like Martin Campbell, which is why we haven't had another capable action director working on the franchise since. Mendes is far more gifted than Marc Forster in terms of visual imagination, and at least in his films you can actually see what the hell is going on, unlike the appalling editing that ruined some great choreography in Quantum Of Solace, so there's every reason to be cautiously optimistic about 'Skyfall' (and at least that title lends itself to a bombastic pop song, eh?).
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sallen
Oct 29th 2011, 9:18
Big Bond fan but not of craig.changing the subject,has anyone got any news on the 24 film,jack bauer...CTU and all that!! thanks
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internetart66
Oct 29th 2011, 22:08
I don't like this New bond Actor anyway! so I don't care what kind of character emotions they layer this with! ..it stinks...get a new actor to play bond, bring back the old years of bond! with new actors... Check out this movie trailer: 74 Hours Trailer 1 http://studios.amazon.com/projects/3016?ref_tag=twitter via @Amazon_Studios
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