In honor of last night's Quantum of Solace benefit premiere, featuring Daniel Craig and his diamond-cutting blue eyes, let us pause and revel in the class and elegance that is Sir Roger Moore, the second James Bond, who may be older than God (OK, older than Jesus) but still exudes British charm.Right.
Now that we're done with that...
At the London premiere of Quantum of Solace, Moore told Reuters that he was distressed with the "violent" turn that the 007 franchise has taken. (Was he expecting a Care Bears movie?)
“I am happy to have done it, but I’m sad that it has turned so violent,” Moore said.
He recalled being appalled at the violence in “A View to a Kill,” the 1985 movie which was the last of the seven in which he played Bond. “That wasn’t Bond,” he said.
While making “The Man With the Golden Gun,” director Guy Hamilton wanted Bond to be tougher and had him threaten to break Maud Adams’ character’s arm to get information, he writes. “That sort of characterization didn’t sit well with me, but Guy was keen to make my Bond a little more ruthless.
“I suggested my Bond would have charmed the information out of her by bedding her first. My Bond was a lover and a giggler, but I went along with Guy,” the British actor said.
Moore perfectly illustrates a common sentiment in Hollywood: it seems to be perfectly OK to depict mind-blowing (literally, mind-blowing) violence with illegal automatic weapons and no remorse or repercussions (Quantum of Solace is rated PG-13), but Gods forbid a woman takes her bra off...well, instant outcry and "R" rating! (And you'll sooner get hit by lightning than see a full-frontal male scene with a PG-13 rating)
Still, Moore makes an interesting observation: Sean Connery is viewed as the quintessential James Bond (it's the brogue, methinks) because anyone can see the tempered rage stewing just beneath the surface. Daniel Craig was accepted by Bond fans nearly immediately because he, like Connery, has the presence of cold-rolled steel (and those eyes, dear Gods!). Even Pierce Brosnan, the most recent Bond, had an air of a quiet storm. But Timothy Dalton's Bond was forgettable, mostly because he was so bland, and only the staunchest Bond fan will know the words "George Lazenby."
One look at Moore's Bond, however, and you can instantly see the template which Michael Meyers used for Austin Powers. Oy.
But never let it be said that Roger Moore is ungracious. Of Daniel Craig, Moore said, “Daniel has done one Bond and he was in ‘Munich’ and … he’s done a lot of stuff, but his face, after one Bond film, that’s all he needs. He is Bond.”
