No Time To Avoid Partisan Politics

The unavoidable shouting match playing out ad nausea in every facet of western humanity.

 

Whatever the reason for the delay of No Time To Die’s release, whether it be the noble, heroic effort to save lives as spelled out in the MI6-HQ “open letter” or a cynical attempt to maximize the money this film makes by insuring there’ll be more butts in seats come November, the one positive side effect will be more time for the controversy surrounding this film to cool down. For the last six months plus it’s been wall to wall outrage over female 007, tampons and all around “wokeness.” So hopefully this seven month delay will give the film a chance to distance itself from this turmoil.

 

Daniel Craig: “We struggled to keep Trump out of this film, but of course it is there. It’s always there, whether it’s Trump or whether it’s Brexit or whether it’s Russian influence on elections or whatever.”

 

Ugh, here we go!

 

Craig makes his statement in this article from GQ magazine, your go to source for the latest in douche bag culture, that is when you can’t find a copy of Esquire of course.

Next issue’s cover boys.

 

Craig handles himself in his usual urbane, gentlemanly manner:

Bombs away!

 

Not to be outdone, Lashana Lynch chimed in over at the Telegraph with her own terminal case of foot in mouth disease. Essentially stating Bond is nothing more than an office pervert.

Your bust line has me shaken and stirred!

 

I could write an entire series of rants based on these articles alone, but I can’t muster the “quantum of solace” necessary to undertake the task. Reporting on 21st century Bond has become tedious, I’m finding the task of covering these soapy melodramas more and more tiresome.

Oh look more anti Bond vitriol from the stars of his latest film.

 

After Craig’s comments, right on cue all the politically charged pundits came galloping out to do battle. Some of which ironically have life sized posters of the craggy one over their shoulders as they rail against the man! All it took was Craig stating the obvious about his politics to send these folks running for pitchforks. Apparently these wunderkind haven’t been paying attention, four years ago Craig threw his support behind devout communist Bernie Sanders.

The name’s Breadlines… Long Breadlines.

 

Then there’s this:

Or this:

 

So to be taken aback by Craig’s comments seems a bit foolish.

I can’t believe Daniel Craig would ever spout leftist polemics!

 

As to the comments themselves, politics in film have their place and Dan has every right to his opinion, however to interject those opinions into an action adventure film meant as a bit of escapist entertainment seems misguided and decadent. I’m not saying there is no place in Bond for political themes or current events, they’ve been done almost since the beginning, however the more political the story the more dated the film and the politics were never partisan… at least until now.

New poster for No Time To Die?

 

Look I’m no fan of the Donald, I didn’t care much for him before he got into politics and I can’t say I’ve gained any newfound respect for the man since. I’m also no fan of the left, their screeching has become insufferable, as a political agnostic I’m suspicious of politicians of ether party stripe. So to shoehorn such divisive themes into Bond is just bad business, you kill a good portion of your audience immediately and the rest will avoid it out of political fatigue. What Hollywood, the media and the left at large don’t understand, is the more they keep shouting about Trump the more they sound like Chicken Little and we stop listening.

The Trump is falling!!!!!!!!!!

 

It seems the orange man is permeating every facet of life to the point of revulsion. Whether pro or con I can’t stand still for 10 seconds without hearing someone screaming about Trump and I’m bloody well tired of it!

Somebody mention my name?

 

I, as I’m sure is the case for most of you, watch Bond films to escape the trials and tribulations of life and now it seems Danny Craig and his rag tag team of literary guns for hire have seen to the end of that. Speaking of the crafting of Bond films under Craig’s tenure, he had this to say:

“I’ve kept my mouth shut before and I’ve stayed out of it and I’ve respected it and I’ve regretted that I did.”

So what do we make of this rambling set of non sequiturs? Dan regrets respecting Bond? But I thought he was the purest form of the character? It also seems old Craig’s memory is fading, that or he’s hoping ours is. I recall when Craig was pressed into writing duties for Quantum Of Solace due to the writer’s strike and the producer credits he got on Skyfall and SPECTRE. But now I guess we are meant to believe he had nothing to do with those films and it is finally now he gets to contribute! Each successive film in the Craig era has been worse than the one before and with each film Craig has been given more and more input, coincidence? Well I wouldn’t expect any less from a man who has countlessly stated his disdain for the material.

 

Needs more polarizing rhetoric

 

I guess now we can also add Craig’s name to the rotating list of seven scribes to have contributed to this film by committee, what was that old saying about too many cooks?

Production meeting on No Time To Die.

 

A few other odd tidbits from the GQ article:

Once again some free advertising for the site:

Outraged fans set up websites – blondnotbond.com, danielcraigisnotbond.com – to register their displeasure.

Thanksh again old boy!

 

You know I don’t really know who owns the DCINB site, I was just plucked from the forum some time ago and given the honor to write here. Considering how much this site is mentioned in sanctioned EON propaganda, I have to wonder if it isn’t in fact owned and operated by EON themselves?

If so then…

Well played EON, well played indeed!

 

Upon completion of shooting “Craig’s stunt double was in tears.” I bet he was, I can’t imagine there being much call for an aging, plug ugly doppelganger willing to throw himself off of buildings these days.

Out of a job.

 

And as for the iron lady of EON, Barbara Broccoli, that pinnacle of strong willed womanhood. She is quoted on the subject of Craig’s departure thusly: “Honestly, I don’t know, I can’t… I don’t want to think about it.” There she goes pulling that duvet over her head again!

That caption has never been truer.

 

Then there was this:

The spray tan is strong with this one!

 

That photo is from the deepest recesses of the most fertile crescent in the uncanny valley. How is it Craig’s skin is smoother now at 51 than it was 15 years ago in Casino Royale when he was 38?

I guess the world will never know.

 

Looking at that photo above all that comes to mind is this:

I hear EON is already working to cast him as the next Bond!

 

On a personal note, take care and stay healthy during these trying times everyone, remember like Craig as Bond nothing lasts forever!

  10 comments for “No Time To Avoid Partisan Politics

  1. Excellent article DB.
    There is only so much “Boo-hoo, snivel, Orange Man baaaad” that one can take before it becomes just plain wearisome, especially for us non Americans who just don’t give a toss.
    When will these overly privileged idiots realise?

    I can certainly think of one prolific Youtube pundit who’s love affair with the “craggy one” has ended in rather amusing fashion. Sadly it’s not Calvin or the chap who collects the 007 underpants, but it’s still immensely satisfying to see at least one zealot turn on his false deity with a mixture of disappointment and horror…

    • Thank you my friend, I’m glad you enjoyed it! Yes the Trump frenzy has become unbearable, I can’t imagine what it’s like for those outside the U.S. to hear this non stop pablum.

      I think you and I are referring to the same pundit, but I dare not speak their name for fear of the incessant wrath of that loony and that of their unhinged minions!

      • Everyone is entitled to political opinions including Craig. But it should it never enter a “ Bond” film.

  2. The original movies had a touch of the space race, Signals intelligence Without actually being pulled from the headlines or based on reality. One place the books and movies departed was SPECTRE replacing SMERSH (which actually existed in soviet Russia at one point) as the film makers tried to separate themselves from making Russia and the Cold War their permanent bad guy. For some reason Babs Broccoli thinks her movies need to be mini social commentaries that call out the real bad guys, like how Bond and Felix moped about in a bar the morning how awful their governments are.

    Pierce Brosnan was fired because Babs reasoned a Bond had to change to answer 9/11 (and the Bourne threat), forgetting Die Another Day was released over a year after 9/11 and was a record breaking Bond movie of the time, also broke home video records. The success of bond films is a moving scale not counting inflation or how much the market grows. The same 70-80 million suckers buy tickets every time a new movie is released.

    Die Another Day had its flaws especially with the second half however for Bond it had the right tone and was the right kind of escapism right after the world was plunged in to a war on terror. The lesson should be Bond doesn’t have to be mirroring the headlines, what it should be doing placing cutting edge tech before it hits the news. not product placement for their new corporate sponsor. Sony product placement was the most maddening thing about the Sony bond movies, as it is with any Sony movie.

    Craig and Babs are left leaning politically and they’ve been being that in to the movies, early on they avoided making any waves. One time Babs wrote Bill Riley to criticize him about Cindy Sheehan, but that was low key and personal. Now they feel like they have to be Crusaders for a cause, I’d rather not know how they feel about any topic and they concentrate on making a movie they’ll be good in 20 years not just for today’s flash mob audience.

  3. If you go back to Fleming or the Saltzman and Broccoli years it was always clear that Bond was purely fantasy entertainment and real world politics has no place in it. To para phrase Fleming ” These books are fairy tales for adults” and that’s the way to approach the books and the films.

    Regarding Mr.Craig I cant add much more than has always been said but cast your mind back to when he first got the gig and was asked who was his favourite Bond? his response was
    “..Red Grant…” and that sums the guy up. However, he would have made a reasonable Red Grant ( or any kind of thug to be fair), I will give him that, but Bond? Nah ! never in a million years.

    These champagne socialists always make me laugh the hypocrisy is tremendous, he makes millions of dollars/pounds/yen and then cracks on like he despises capitalists but everything he does his money driven and at the same time disrespecting the hand that feeds him i.e. us, the poor schmucks who pay to see the movies.

    He has never been a Bond fan, and has devoted his tenure to trashing the series and its legacy. So job done, I suppose? and let those sycophants on the other “fan” sites drool on, ad nauseum, whilst another beloved franchise is sacrificed at the alter of Woke.

    I care about Bond, because its been with me since I started watching films and reading the books as a teenager, but I have no interest in NTTD ( because its not Bond, really) and anyway the world seems to having bigger issues on its mind at the moment but wouldn’t a break from harsh reality be just what people want when C19 is over? not another glum fest of Craig gurning and moping around?

    just a though

    stay safe

    • Well said Chris, Bond is indeed fantasy for adults and Cubby/Saltzman got that, when the Vietnam conflict raged on the nightly news were there any references to it in Bond? No. When Richard Nixon became the original poster boy for politician overreach was there any mention of “Tricky Dick” in the films? Of course not and if they had the films would have been terribly depressing and dated.

  4. The Bond series was a long running adventure, fantasy series. If the producers wanted to make a more serious movie discussing issues of the day, then they should have made a separate movie series.

    • Ah but Capt, don’t you see, you can force your politics on a much larger audience by selecting a beloved film series, shoehorning it full of tired, overwrought talking points and hope the viewership is gullible enough to mindlessly ingest it while mesmerized by the various pretty colors created by the copious pyrotechnic explosions. Plus writing new material is hard (see The Rhythm Section), much easier to just remake, reboot and revamp.

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