I always thought it was kind of badass how he could kill tons of people and be so utterly charming and polite about it.
I agree completely. In many way’s Moore’s Bond was more dangerous than Connery’s, I mean you knew Connery was dangerous, it’s his default (some would say only) setting. But Rog…Rog could be charming, urbane, amiable…then drop you off a rooftop, kick you off a cliff, shoot you in the balls. And he is a better actor than people give him credit for, much like Shatner he became a bit of a parody of himself, but he could be very subtle. See his seething anger when Scaramanga suggests they’re two peas in a pod or, my favourite moment, the look in his eyes when Anya mentions Tracy…
In terms of him being a cold blooded killer, people should watch The Wild Geese, particularly his opening scene...shit that man is cold)
Anyway I need to differentiate them from their acting as Bond to their acting elsewhere I think…
As 007
1. Dalton My Bond, managed to give Bond a harder edge without pushing him over into being depressing, more of a dangerous assassin than Craig’s thuggish action man, yet keeps that note of distain for what he has to do as a 00 agent. Manages to utterly convince as a killer (the scene in Pushkin’s mistresses’ hotel room is brilliant “If I believed Koskov we wouldn’t be talking.” But also as a human being, his love affair with Kara is not only convincing, but sweet and romantic, probably even more naturally romantic than Lazenby/Rigg. Plus no one does seething anger like Dalton.
2. Craig Great actor and a great Bond, like Dalton is funnier than people think, just so long as you keep the humour dry. My main complaints are the battering ram approach he sometimes uses, in conversation he comes across like Bond, but sometimes in the action scenes he could just be AN Other action hero. One thing I love about him, which people rarely pick up on, is the way he disposes of things. Watch him, car keys, mobile phones, guns, girls, even people (Mathis) when they’ve served their purpose. It does at times seem like his Bond has no pleasure in life however.
3. Brosnan In many ways the best Bond, because he manages to straddle all the other iterations (certainly before him) he can be funny and ruthless, cold blooded and vulnerable. Of course this is also his curse, he represents all Bonds, but the downside is there isn’t anything new or unique he particularly brings to the table which every other Bond has. That said there is a certain boyish glee he has, which I think comes from Brosnan himself. Unlike DC he did at least seem like he loved being Bond. Watch the scene with him in the back of the BMW in TND. You can almost hear Brosnan’s inner voice “I’m James Bond, I’m bloody James Bond!
4. Moore Stayed in the role too long and did become too much of a parody, but certainly in the early days perfectly cast
5. Lazenby Has a very natural physicality, and a vulnerability no other 007 has had. The only Bond who you feel might actually be mortal, who doesn’t seem to be always in control of the situation. Lousy actor of course but…but…that final scene is truly superb, which is why he’s above…
6. Connery Yeah I know controversial eh? The trouble with Connery’s Bond is that, when it comes down to it, I just don’t like him (as in his Bond not Connery) He has no weaknesses, precious few emotions, he doesn’t care about anyone so why should I care about him? Just try and imagine Connery doing the final scene in OHMSS, it would have been terrible, because Connery’s Bond could never care about someone that much
As actors
1. Craig
2. Dalton
3. Brosnan
4. Connery
5. Moore
6. Lazenby
And Connery is the only one of the bunch who has an Oscar -- and not from playing Bond.
