In 2006, when Daniel Craig took over the mantle of Bruce South, many people shouted their disappointment at the new James Bond, accusing him of not conforming to the elegant British 007 image, like an American cowboy broke into the United Kingdom A noble party . Surprisingly, 007: Battle for Casino Royale was a box-office success, with critics hailing even the greatest Bond film . Craig also stood his ground and shot 5 007 series in a row.
This article will interpret from three aspects of shooting skills, characters and feminism , how James Bond played by Daniel Craig has achieved a classic with subversive meaning .
1. Skilled shooting skills, perfect combination of art and business
The eternal mission, the eternal adventure, and the eternal excitement are the eternal themes of the 007 series of films . The positioning of commercial films determines that the primary purpose of the film is the box office . The novelty of the subject matter satisfies the audience's curiosity, but conceals the naivety of the film's shooting techniques. The combination of technology + beauty + handsomeness has become a routine that 007 can't take off. The first time you watch it, you will be nervous and exciting, and if you watch it too much, you will feel like a soap opera.
"Casino Royale" announced a brand new start to the Bond franchise, a perfect blend of commerciality and artistry . Breathtaking action scenes, concise and sharp character dialogues, and skilled and superb shooting techniques make this film surpass the previous 007 series and become one of the most groundbreaking action films.
1. From soft science fiction to hard action
Film is an art. Not only literary films pay attention to shooting skills, but also action films are increasingly focusing on mature shooting techniques. Clint Eastwood's "The Dead Man Trilogy" interprets the essence of Western films.
In recent years, the success of films such as "Bourne Bourne" and "Mission: Impossible" has opened up a new trend of action movies, marking that the realistic style has replaced the traditional classical romance . "Casino Royale" is also affected by this ethos, and the action scenes have changed from fancy and gorgeous to real.
Influenced by the US-Soviet hegemony in the 1960s, the previous 007 films preferred Cold War themes such as missile crisis and space war. The film was full of scenes such as space stations, invisible cars, and UFOs. Bond was also equipped with a large number of so-called "secret weapons". Gimmicks, showing off industrial technology beyond the common sense of physics, which made 007 break away from the British MI6 agent character setting and turned into a bizarre soft science fiction film.
"Casino Royale" is a full-scale murder. The film is adapted from the first step of the original novel, reviewing Bond's experience from a rookie agent to a cold-blooded killer. The film also gave up fancy moves and elegant martial arts, and the action scenes were clean and neat, with punches to the flesh and blood, and a sense of power.
The big bang scene that is common in 007 movies disappears, and there is only a small-scale explosion scene at the beginning. The film pays more attention to building a suspenseful and tense spiritual atmosphere , and the highlight of the Casino Royale gambling plot took 1 hour, which was unheard of in the previous 007 series. This group play has not only the intellectual contest between the pros and cons, but also the life and death struggle of the government, gamblers, and terrorists. It also adds the emotional drama of the hero and heroine, which supports the whole film.
2. Shooting techniques from naive to mature
If you watch the previous 007 series several times, you will find that the lighting is flat, the composition is monotonous, and it is almost impossible to talk about the artistic skills of photography. "Casino Royale" completely overhauled the camera effects of the 007 series, achieving a textbook-level aesthetic upgrade .
Whether it's the 3-minute black-and-white scene at the beginning of the film or the torture scene of Bond's villain in the cell, the lighting, composition, and movement of "Casino Royale" are impeccable. spy world.
It is also a simple running shot. "007 Dies Another Day" chose a positioning shot to shoot , repeatedly used panning in the scene, and did not follow the characters to run. "Casino Royale" uses hand-held camera skills to make the camera follow the movement of the protagonist, which is more exciting, and can also express a sense of urgency and speed.
With great emphasis on camera, the sequel "Skyfall" invited Hollywood's best photographer Roger Deakins. His "Blade Runner 2049" won the Best Cinematography Award at the 90th Academy Awards, and "Skyfall" was also shortlisted for the Best Cinematography Award at the 85th Academy Awards .
2. The characters are full and vivid, and the image depicts profound changes
In the past 007 movies, the characterization has been downplayed. What the audience sees is only a beautiful body, a dazzling fight, and what they can remember is the sexy Bond girl. The images of Bond, Bond Girl, MI6, and various villains are all stereotyped and single, and it is difficult for the audience to see the inner world of the characters.
For the first time, "Casino Royale" puts character characterization in the first place , traces the history of Bond becoming 007, the dark past of MI6, and leads the audience to truly understand Bond, Boss M, the villain, and everyone's behavior. With sound logic, everyone impresses the audience and inspires empathy or sympathy in people's hearts.
As mentioned earlier, Craig's role as 007 has caused a lot of controversy, after all, he does not belong to the traditional gentleman image. James Bond, played by Sean Connery and Bruce South , is a typical suave and suave . In the past 007 movies, the villain was always beaten beyond recognition, and Bond's injury must not affect the image. In 1999's "Black Sun", Bruce Nan, who was tied to a chair, did not forget to flirt with Sophie Marceau, and easily broke free. Although it is Yushu Linfeng, it is really funny.
Casino Royale's greatest success is that it answers what Bond is like .
Perfect physique, strong will, humorous language, even the classic image of Sean Connery, they just deal with these rhetoric, ignoring the inner portrayal of the characters. In Craig, Bond is not a superhero, but a flesh-and-blood soul.
Craig completely subverted the elegant image, and highly restored the image of a real agent. It's not an exaggeration to describe "Casino Royale" with flesh and blood. Every duel is a hand-to-hand fight, and Bond is beaten with blood, nose and face. The film also shows us the scene of Bond being tortured. He was ravaged by various torture tools naked and felt pain across the screen.
"Casino Royale" does not deny elegance, but adds a layer of quality, wild and violent are the premise of elegance and gentleman . The panic when he killed the first time was like a novice who had just joined the job; the second time he performed the task, he had already mastered the task and learned to control the rhythm. Just upgraded to a level 00 agent, Bond blew up the embassy because of his recklessness. Poisoned by Lee Keefe at a casino. Bond stumbled back to the car to save himself. When he found that the first aid was ineffective and he was unable to inject adrenaline, his desperate eyes made the whole character stand up and the audience was moved.
Bond is not perfect and has a growing process. Bond has always faced various setbacks in the process of becoming 007, let us know that he is also a mortal, he will fail, and he will be afraid of death, but he will definitely fight. That's the real charm of Bond .
The exploration of the character's heart continues in the following films. In "Skyfall", for the first time, Bond was unable to do anything because of his age. After returning to the identity of a special agent, he repeatedly missed the target during training, and smashed the target in anger. This may be the common pain of men suffering from midlife crisis.
3. Independence and autonomy, the rise of feminism
It is no exaggeration to say that the charm of the 007 series will last forever, and it is inseparable from the beautiful and charming Bond girls. Every time a movie is released, the sexy and enchanting Bond girl is the object of conversation after dinner. In "Casino Royale", the Bond girl is still beautiful, but by no means a vase character, her image is evenly matched with Bond.
From a historical perspective, not all 007 female characters are negative. After several worlds of struggle, women finally got their independence to vote, watch movies and watch games like men. Reflected in the art of film, people are becoming more and more open and tolerant to the concept of sex. Female characters in the film have short hair, miniskirts, smoking and drinking are becoming more common, and they also talk about sex without any scruples.
However, the films of this period obviously have the disadvantage of objectifying women , because equality of rights does not mean equality of status . In a patriarchal society, women are always the appendages of men, the "vases" for people to appreciate. "Throw it away" is 007's philosophy of life, and women are just tools used to highlight Bond's charm.
Film theorist Laura Mulvey argues that men are spectators, connoisseurs, critics, while women are in a position to be watched, appreciated and commented on by men. The relationship between men and women in the relationship between seeing and being seen implies the relationship between active and passive, strong and weak: the charm of women can only be given by men. Men project all kinds of fantasies about women onto women, and women are treated as sexual objects, viewed by men to cater to their desires. So the sexier the woman, the happier the man is.
1969's "The Queen's Secret Service" contained a true love story, which is quite rare in the entire 007 series, but overall failed to achieve the deviation from the classic conventions of the 007 series, especially the discrimination against female characters, One of the women in the film throws her arms around Bond, and the other is sexy as the villain, and the flat attributes are deeply ingrained.
With the rise of feminism , film and television dramas such as "Sex and the City" and "Desperate Housewives" that praise the independent image of women continue to appear, and the 007 series also keeps pace with the times. The surging ME TOO movement in the past two years has profoundly changed the film and television industry. It is said that the next Bond in the 007 series will be played by black women.
Bond girl Vespa Lind, played by Eva Green in Casino Royale, established herself as an independent woman in her first appearance. Instead of the sexy and enchanting appearance of the past, the Bond girl appeared in black neutral clothing, and in the tit-for-tat conversation with Bond, she showed a strong edge .
This independent image continues throughout the film. As the pair prepared to enter the casino, Bond pulled out a revealing evening dress for her to change into, saying "you have to dress up so you can distract people". She responded immediately and chose an evening dress for Bond. Bond, who claimed to be dressed in high taste, felt dominated and provocative, and protested to Linde aggressively, but he could only accept it. The short 2-minute selection of clothes shows the delicate relationship between men and women, revealing the powerful aura of women.
In the film, Bond fell in love with Linde, and was willing to give up his career for her, once again declaring the victory of feminism. Bond was so in love with women for the first time in the 007 series of films . Later, although Linde's image was reversed, it explained her difficulties. Betrayal was true, and love was true. In the elevator trapped underwater, Linde decided to kill herself, and Bond desperately rescued him. The scene of Bond hugging the cold body tightly and crying is heartbreaking.
At the end of "Casino Royale", Bond, who experienced an emotional test, killed the real murderer behind the scenes and said his name: James Bond. The movie came to an abrupt end, and Bond had become a cold-blooded killer.
A brand new 007 was born.
View more about Casino Royale reviews
