Wen 丨 Wu Zeyuan
007 outdated? In fact, this problem has been with James Bond since the beginning of the series in the 1960s. His macho style, his ridiculous loyalty to the declining British Empire, his embarrassing daddy jokes, and the blind confidence that pervaded him forever were at odds with the zeitgeist even nearly sixty years ago.
This is also the reason why 007 has been plagued by spoofs since its inception: from 1967's "007 Tales of the Royal Nightclub", to Stephen Chow's "Domestic Lingling Paint" and the turn of the century's "Ace Spy" series, Bond's confidence and masculinity have always spawned good satirical comedies.
"007 The Royal Nightclub"
But 007 is also tacitly aware of its own sense of humor — Bond's unawareness of his anachronistic qualities is the source of the series's charm as a "comedy" in a sense. After all, before Casino Royale, the 007 movie was just the classic old-school "Kiss Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" style of entertainment, and no one would take its so-called "text" and "core" too seriously.
But perhaps because the post-Cold War version of Brusnan's Bond was improperly overdone, the sixth Bond was destined to be temperamentally reversed.
Dr. 007 No no No
So we see in Daniel Craig the most serious and sincere Bond—his attitude is no joke, and his love and hate are equally real, both in the face of his lover and his enemies. He is no longer an invincible supercharacter, and his personal feelings are no longer immune to betrayal; Craig's version of Bond may be more capable of fighting than his predecessors, but in the end, he is just an ordinary person who is vulnerable.
007: No Time to Die
Matching the change in human design is the realistic trend of the 007 film style of the Craig period. Stunts are no longer crazy, action scenes have become hard, and although the villain is still an overhead ambitionist trying to swallow the world, his temperament is no longer as pompous as in the previous game. In addition to the sensory stimulation, the new phase 007 film is still trying to make some serious expressions, whether it is an exploration of the fortunes of the British Empire or a Freudian excavation of Bond's soul.
But how effective have these attempts been? From a brand perspective, they cater to the times, but they also obscure bond's face. Craig's version of Bond was more in line with the heroic image of other mainstream commercial films of the same period (such as Jason Bourne and Bell's version of Batman). And its core competitiveness seems to have been exhausted in the strategic adjustment of films to adapt to the times. After all, macho figures like Bond don't stand up to scrutiny in this era.
Watching bond films from the Craig period was overall a frustrating process. It is true that we can derive sensual pleasure from sophisticated action scenes and exquisite pictures, but at the same time we have to witness Bond lose everything he once had. In fact, the highest point of emotion in the five Bond films starring Craig was during Bond's vacation with Eva Green in Casino Royale. Before that, Bond got something, and in the four-thirds of the films that followed, only one thing waited for Bond to lose again and again.
In Quantum of Solitaire, Bond uses killing to paralyze the pain of losing his loved ones; in Skyfall and Ghost Party, Bond loses his mother-like boss M and his fantasies about his identity.
In the latest Craig final chapter, "No Time to Die", Bond's loss reaches its peak: he loses his CIA friend Wright, loses the ghost party leader Broffy, who is evil but is a chess opponent with him, loses his years in loneliness and stumbling, loses the code name 007, and finally, he loses his two favorite relatives...
It is not an exaggeration to regard "No Time to Die" as the most bitter and tragic 007 movie. Bond, who used to have no leaves, is now a good man who drags the family and brings his mouth, carries luggage for his partner and makes breakfast for his daughter, and in order to live a quiet family life, he is happy to retire on the same day.
But the villains are destined not to spare their family of three— the two villains of "No Time to Die" – Broffie (Christopher Waltz) and Safine (Rami Marek) act illogically, and the only recognizable motivation for their actions is to make Bond feel better. And they've all been successful in that.
Craig's version of the 007 story seems destined to end in tragedy. He is saddled with too many outdated values, and in a serious context, such a character is doomed to accumulate. So after Bond leaves, M, played by Ralph Fiennes, pays tribute to Jack London's words: "Man's proper function should be to live, not just to live." I'm not going to live just to prolong my life. I'll make good use of my time."
Instead of surviving, it is better to leave in glory. Craig's version of Bond parted in the tragic sunset, such a resolute gesture that preserved the solemnity of the patriots and the grace of a traditional British gentleman. If the 007 series ends here, it won't be a bad way to close the curtain.
But the 007 series clearly has no intention of closing. At the end of the subtitles of "No Time to Die", the words "James Bond will return" reappear. And the film also keeps up with the times, adding a lot of politically conscious content, whether it is the black female agent who replaced Bond to get the 007 code name, Mr. Q's first home date with a same-sex partner, or the highly recognizable line output of "London Life" screenwriter and actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge...
All indications are that the 007 series does not want to die yet, and it is trying to efficiently increase the diversity of the film to leave more room for the development of the series after Craig leaves office.
But at least for now, the future of 007 is unclear. The long-term IP tradition is destined to make it difficult to turn around, whether it is the subversion of the inherent image of the character or the incorporation of diversified elements, it will not be as thorough as the similar commercial films without historical baggage.
The fatigue of maintaining the IP tradition will also be evident in the work itself and the output of the creator: director Kerry Fuyong was obviously less interested in helming "No Time to Die", completely without his sudden inspiration in other works.
Kerry Fuyong and Daniel Craig
Perhaps, sooner or later, the head of 007 should understand that people should make good use of their time, rather than surviving. They could consider taking Disney's approach to the Star Wars franchise and diversifying the IP into lighter individuals; they could also start from the story and let the next stage of 007 return to the "comedy" path while retaining a certain depth.
Otherwise, 007's fate would probably still be to die, but its posture would not be as generous as Craig's.