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In a rare press interview, Timothy Dalton talks
about the James Bond series and pushes for 'Skyfall'
and the
007 franchise
to receive Oscar glory...
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Give 007 Oscar Glory
2nd January 2013
Timothy Dalton has talked
before about
the direction his incarnation of 007 took and how it may have
laid the foundation for Daniel Craig's grittier take on the role,
and now the former James Bond actor is heaping even more praise
on the latest era and especially "Skyfall".
Talking to the Sunday Express this week, Dalton said it was
time for the Academy Awards, an organisation that has typically
snubbed Bond movies, to recognise the franchise in its 50th anniversary
year and for the critically acclaimed 23rd film "Skyfall".
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"It is absolutely time
for Bond to get proper attention at the Oscars," Dalton
said. "On almost every level this Bond movie is right
at the forefront of what cinema is capable of. It is an
absolutely modern James Bond, a movie truly of its time.
Daniel Craig is fantastic and it feels very real. It has
also got a great story about M with a nice streak of cynicism.
I thought the film was fabulous."
Back in 1982, producer Albert R. 'Cubby' Broccoli was
awarded the prestigious Irving
Thalberg Memorial Award for career achievement at the 54th
Academy Awards. Many consider it an 'honorary Oscar',
but Dalton feels that is time that the family get further
recognition for their contribution to cinema and keeping
the 007 series fresh and exciting for 50 years (Barbara
Broccoli and step brother Michael G. Wilson now produce
the films).
"It is a remarkable and hugely special
achievement," Dalton said. "That family have
shepherded Bond for more than half the time of modern cinema
history. I think it is amazing and something to be very
proud of." |
Although it suffered poor results at the box-office back in
1989, Dalton's second and final Bond movie "Licence To Kill"
is now viewed favourably by many fans and was perhaps too far
ahead of its time. "A lot of people have said Licence To Kill
was a forerunner of Bond today and in a sense that is what Cubby
and I were trying to do, " Dalton explained. "The Bond movies
were becoming pastiches of themselves but they were still successful
and people
were
not ready to embrace a new formula. There was a lot of innate
resistance to change."
Seeing 007 bleed and having more realistic violence
compared to the Roger Moore era was considered shocking back
in the late 80's, but Dalton counters that the Bond movies
have always pushed barriers. "They were scandalous when they
[first]
came
out. That
you could have a hero who would kill a person in cold blood!
Even the fact of the beautiful, gorgeous Ursula Andress coming
out of the water in a bikini was shocking. These were not movies
for children and that is almost what they became at a certain
time."
Above: Dalton's 007 (right) faces off against Sanchez
in the climax of "Licence To Kill"
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Dalton does not court a lot of press and interviews about his
time as 007 are pretty scare, so it was with much delight that
fans saw him take an active role in the 50th anniversary documentary
"Everything or Nothing".
But Dalton was not entirely pleased with the end result, which
focused a lot on the real-life drama and
litigation that has weaved its way through the 50 year saga.
"To tell you the truth, I wish they had concentrated more on
why
the movies have lasted 50 years and given more understanding
and illumination about the brilliant work that has gone into
the makings of those movies and how it has been protected and
shepherded by the family, " he said.
