You only live 24 times…and counting
Some theories say “James Bond” is a codename, passed down from agent to agent; others claim he’s the angel of death, reincarnated time after time to perform the sinful necessities of his country. Regardless, he — and his films — endure.
Whereas most franchises, after two or three films, dip in quality or lose the public’s interest, the Bond series continues strong, despite being more than 50 years old and coming up on its 24th film, “Spectre.”
Even a franchise as huge as “Star Wars” comes and goes in short bursts. And the Superman films were riding high in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, but after two failures, the franchise vanished for nearly 20 years before returning in 2006.
The Bond series’ 23rd film, “Skyfall,” released in 2012, ranks third amongst the franchise’s films in box office gross, adjusted for inflation, behind only 1964’s “Goldfinger” and 1965’s “Thunderball.” Likewise, it attained almost universal critical approval and won an Academy Award for “Best Original Song.”
Like its titular character, the franchise has been able to successfully adapt to the situation — modernizing enough to attract new audiences, whilst keeping its foot in the door of tradition to appease older fans.
One of those older fans, Jeff Marsili, a self-described “true blue James Bond maniac,” ascribes the franchise’s ongoing success to a fervent fan base.
“There must be a lot of nuts out there like me,” Marsili said.
Marsili also mentions the mainstays of the films and credits them for creating a sense of coming home, specifically citing the “opening gun barrel,” “exciting pre-credit sequence,” and the “main titles accompanied by a hit theme song.”
Another aspect of the franchise that sets it apart from its contemporaries, is the Broccoli family, who have been behind the films as producers since the beginning, as the duties have passed from Albert Broccoli to his daughter, Barbara Broccoli, and her half-brother, Michael G. Wilson.
“[The Broccolis] are every bit as passionate about our hero, as we fans are,” Marsili said. “They have protected it from the greedy studios, which I’m sure, would have ruined it a long time ago.”
Writer Simon Winder, author of a book on Bond, “The Man Who Saved Brittain,” takes the Bond fascination a bit deeper in a recent article for The Guardian, comparing it to a religion.
“[F]aith is impervious to failure,” Winder writes. “Also comparable to the behaviour of a church has been the Broccolis’ obsession with remaining contemporary without sacrificing core meaning.”
Sex and violence has always been a focal point of action/adventure fiction, but, in both of these instances, Bond aims for the knee rather than the head.
James Chapman, professor of film studies at the University of Leicester and writer of “License to Thrill: A Cultural History of the James Bond Films (Cinema and Society),” finds the sex and violence of the Bond films conducive to a broad appeal.
“I don’t think the (rather mild) sex of the Bond films requires much explanation — this is something that can appeal to both men and to women,” Chapman said, “while the violence is expressed more in terms of action (smashing up cars and buildings), which feeds our appetite for destruction (think also of cartoons) rather than being realistic or sadistic violence.”
When discussing the success of the Bond films, one would be remiss to ignore the front-man, James Bond, of which there have been six.
The power of the character can be exemplified by the fact that A-list actors are not often looked to when searching for a new Bond, but instead actors who serve the character, rather than the other way around — quite unlike the Batman films which tend to go with the up-and-coming leading man of the time (Val Kilmer, George Clooney, Christian Bale).
“Spectre” is a particularly special Bond film, as it reunites the franchise with classic elements that have been missing since 1971’s “Diamonds are Forever,” because of a legal dispute between Ian Fleming, the author of the Bond novels, and Kevin McClory, who collaborated with Fleming on a screenplay entitled “Thunderball.”
Fleming used the screenplay to write a new book without McClory’s knowledge or recognition and was sued as a result. Their screenplay introduced the Spectre organization and Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the leader of said organization, both of which fell under ownership of McClory.
In 2013, MGM — the distributer of the Bond films — and Danjaq, LLC — the Broccoli’s company—reached a settlement with Kevin McClory’s estate, reclaiming the rights to Spectre and Blofeld.
“Nothing lasts forever,” Chapman said, “and at some point Bond will probably run out of economic and cultural energy, but I don’t expect it to happen for some time yet.”
