James Bond: The backstory
An entertaining documentary on what's made Bond a silver-screen rage
On the eve of ‘Skyfall’, commemorating 50 years of James Bond films, comes a neatly produced ode to the movies and the 007 phenomenon—a PR exercise, venerating Cubby Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, who together conjured up the Bond magic on screen.
‘Everything Or Nothing: The Untold Story of 007’, produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, is the story of how Bond became what he is. Director Stevan Riley leaves Bond dissenters safely out of his narrative, focusing mainly on the two movie moguls—their break-up and eventual reconciliation—and on the melancholic and fascinating figure of Ian Fleming, who did not live to see his creation achieve dizzying success worldwide. The film was screened at the just-concluded Mumbai Film Festival, and it released in the UK in early October.
There are interviews with actors, including the Bond men Roger Moore, George Lazenby, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig—but not Sean Connery, who remained estranged from the producers for many years.
There’s a lot to enjoy in this crisply produced, trivia-filled story behind Bond. The success of Bond is a reassurance of the magic of the movies, of movies as the ultimate vehicle of escapism. The film reiterates that Bond is as relevant as the fantasy to be sexy and invincible—a fantasy that trumps difficulties to place Bond in the new world order where the enemy is undefined.
‘Everything Or Nothing’ is expected to be available on Amazon or Flipkart after the release of ‘Skyfall’.
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