Long list: Batman Forever, Flash Gordon, The Shadow, The Phantom and many many more. Why some deride Temple of Doom will forever confuse me.
For me personally the Bonds have never and will never be treated with the respect they deserve, almost as a victim of the series’ success. LTK is where I draw the line in the sand, as the Brosnan era is where all the real modern issues started cropping up. They have their moments but all four have deeply problematic flaws despite my continual defense of them.
The first sixteen though are inscribed upon my being. LTK was long bashed about until modern sensibilities “rediscovered” it and now it is TLD that is the forgotten film. It absolutely kills me when I see deep negativity concerning what are labeled as lesser entries. Not liking a particular style is one thing, but to write off films when the writer clearly did not understand the tone or aim is another entirely. Derision about the Mankiewicz trilogy (DAF, LALD, TMWTGG) gets me right in the gut. The first is a dark humored cartoon strip for adults, the second a back to basics two fisted adventure story, and the third an attempt to bring back grandeur. Additionally there were the declining fortunes of the British film industry to consider, the falling box office returns and the dissolution of the Saltzman-Broccoli partnership during this time.
Moonraker long gets derided for the admittedly off putting humor, but overall it tries to go beyond TSWLM in terms of scale. Octopussy suffers from its messy script but overall works as a fine piece of craftsmanship-and absolutely obliterates the pitiful NSNA.
AVTAK is an oddball. It was clear the series was downshifting amidst changing times, but by keeping Roger on for another go, it allows for a much more somber and refreshing tone of older age to begin seeping in that provides much more interest in what is admittedly a far lower key story.
The ultimate I may be mad entry? I absolutely adore the 1967 Casino Royale now. Madcap, balls to the wall insane, but really quite damn hilarious and quirky-with a cast you couldn’t even dream up. I think it is not only the best worst film ever made, but unforgettably masterful. The Herculean effort of bringing the multitude of materials into something even resembling cohesion finally sank in and I actually think in some strange way it actually works.
As you guys all know the current era made me want to go jump off a cliff, but they’ve managed to go steadily downhill ever since. The worst was Spectre because now that they want to finally reintroduce classic elements it becomes painfully obvious that it just doesn’t work with the current style. Spectre was literally like a beyond dull unending fashion/fragrance/car advertisement. At the very least QoS tried to introduce some gritty never before done elements despite having a script crisis far worse than TND did.
I will admit that I’ve only been absolutely destroyed by how devastatingly bad a picture is a handful of times. One was CR 2006. One was Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. One was TFA. And then there was what happened to poor Speed. Oh gosh it’s like reopening a fresh wound. My curiosity got the better of me and I went to Speed Racer in what was an empty theater during its second week. I get what they were going after in terms of tone, but jeez how could you literally miss 99.99999% of what the original was about? Most painful was that the actual heart and spirit of the show was absolutely nowhere to be found. This should have been the greatest car film ever made, it should have been about racing and misadventures, it should have been deeply rooted in Japanese ethics. But bright colors beyond any comprehension. Hubba Hubba.
Again these are my own thoughts and if you liked any of these that’s absolutely your prerogative.