Seven time "M" actress Judi Dench has recently commented about her time as James Bond's boss. She admits she was spoiled by the filmmakers... "You know, I had a wonderful time, but you have to be realistic. Would MI6 really not have given me the push by now, there aren’t [enough roles], considering the amount of people who are my age. But then there never have been. Look at Shakespeare: there aren’t enough women parts in Shakespeare. You feel very, very lucky if you get to play any. You feel very lucky indeed." It has recently been confirmed that the role of "M" will be fulfilled by Ralph Fiennes in the fourth-coming 24th James Bond adventure, scheduled for release in the UK on 23rd October 2015
Ralph Fiennes confirmed earlier this week that he will be returning in "Bond 24". In "Skyfall" he was introduced as Gareth Mallory. But those who have seen the film know that his character takes over as "M" the MI6 Chief; a role previously filled by Dame Judi Dench. "I think everyone knows that, I don't think that's particularly a secret. I'm looking forward to it very much." Ralph Fiennes on playing M in "Bond 24" As the latest continuation novel of secret agent 007 is released in book stores, many papers have got their hands on it and have published their thoughts... So it's good to report that Boyd has immersed himself in the character, the author and his oeuvre and come up with an Afro-American adventure that's triumphantly the equal of the great Bond adventures, Casino Royale and From Russia, with Love. In Boyd's novel, Bond is dispatched to a fictional west African state to track down its warlord, the Scorpion, nearly dies, and then pursues a score-settling mission to the US where he reconnects with his old chum and CIA man, Felix Leiter. It's not the real thing - how could it be? - but, dare one say, a brilliant imitation that's occasionally superior to the prototype. For the moment, the predators in the shark/alligator pool can stop circling. Dr No, Goldfinger et al. have met their match. Boyd IS Bond. The poised, lyrical writing is a pleasure to read, the prose sprinkled with apt similes ('He was incredibly thin, his arms and legs like vanilla pods'). But it's also where the book gets bogged down in an increasingly convoluted plot. Boyd's Bond works on the streets of Chelsea but in Africa he abandons his journalist cover and morphs into a pseudo-mercenary, at one point orchestrating the military recapture of an entire village. Quite what the Fleming estate made of the endless battle scenes is anyone's guess. We do know that it had misgivings about the final part of the book, set in America, when a vengeful Bond goes rogue - or, solo. Plotwise, it's fine, but the psychological justification for it is overstated, with too much telling of motive, and not enough showing. 'There was only one objective now,' Boyd writes. 'James Bond would kill Kobus Breed.' Really? It reads more like a note to self. |
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