MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > Is James Bond a good guy?

Is James Bond a good guy?

posted 3 years ago by TheMan18 (13176)
15 replies | jump to latest

Kind of a trick question also, do you think he is simply a good guy hero (although in most movies of the series, he is) or is it not actually as simple as that (there is also some controversy, I believe in "Goldfinger" (1964), that he may have done something particularly wrong to a woman who did nothing bad to him and even if she was a flawed figure, did not deserve it at all, and by its nature no-one would), and maybe, he is just a spy on a mission against other spies etc?

And his enemies are not all evil maybe either, although there are exceptions, just folks with different agendas, right?

007, how good are thou, cheers?

[–] ShogunofYonkers (78448) 3 years ago

Tricky question indeed Man18

Bond has straight up murdered dozens of supervillains and their primary henchmen AND several battalions worth of uniformed bullet-catchers, so for that I'd say he's an all time movie hero

Perhaps the #MeToo movement has a problem with a few of his sexual conquests during all of that totally cool killing spree, but I don't pay attention to that stuff...Bond is a suave murderer, we need a guy like that in real life

He 'offs' bad guys and gets a tad 'handsy' with the Ladies...Let the court decide on this latter matter

[–] TheMan18 (13176) 3 years ago

But then in most cases, it was less murder than self-defense killing. Maybe a dark hero then?

Also, funny how in "The Spy Who Loved Me" (1977) Jaws characters was mostly a villain, but then in "Moonraker" (1979) him and James Bond become "friends" all of a sudden?

[–] ShogunofYonkers (78448) 3 years ago

I read the original Ian Fleming novels and the John Gardner continuation books

Bond is an assassin, he gets a name and a general location of a problematic individual and he goes and kills them

In one of Fleming's original novels, it might have been 'The Spy Who Loved Me,' James realizes that he's just a hired killer and goes into a reflective period where he struggles with the weight of it all and if he wants to continue being an assassin

[–] BullSchmidt (3189) 3 years ago

It's been a long time since I've read any of them, but in Fleming's first novels, wasn't Bond especially cold blooded, almost a sociopath?

[–] ShogunofYonkers (78448) 3 years ago

I must admit it's been 30 years since I read them all but I recall the Bond character not being the invincible super hero the movies turned him into

In the books he sometimes wondered why he committed violence so easily, he drank and smoked too much, he was fighting a German villain on a train one time and got beat up pretty badly...I think he had to shove that guy off the moving train LOL...whatever does the trick I say!

I'm not sure what 'sociopath' means and psychologists seem to have differing opinions on this term (I read a lot of serial killer stuff and none of the 'experts' seem to agree

The Bond character in the books was a very proficient killer and extraordinarily loyal to his task-masters, the perfect attack dog

[–] samoanjoes (58491) 3 years ago

Hey, all of his sexual liaisons were consensual. Unprofessional seeing how Bond was boning the babes while working, but they were never forced.

[–] TheMan18 (13176) 3 years ago

Probably true, but then, I have little idea of what was implied, but that "Goldfinger" bit did raise some controversy in some circles, maybe it was assault of some sort or inappropriate touching?

[–] ShogunofYonkers (78448) 3 years ago

I tend to agree, Bond is one handsome, smooth fellow

But you know how everything offends a certain portion of the audience all the time now...It wouldn't surprise me if there has already been a twitter ruckus over Bond's rampant macho man behavior lol

[–] samoanjoes (58491) 3 years ago

Good guy. Collateral damage comes with the job.

[–] ShogunofYonkers (78448) 3 years ago

Great literary character as well

His job was killing and he was the best, but the original author was wise enough to portray Bond as a fairly normal if suave and violent
man who sometimes questioned his mission and knew when an opponent was way too dangerous, so he'd have to adjust his tactics and trick them in order to whack them

[–] samoanjoes (58491) 3 years ago

It's public domain now. Get ready for Bond vs. Jason Bourne.

[–] ShogunofYonkers (78448) 3 years ago

I hope MI6 sends him after Jason Vorhees

THAT would be the stupidest and most amazing movie of all time!

C'mon Hollywood, make this happen

[–] Otter (24464) 3 years ago

No. He's basically amoral, he doesn't have ethics... he has standards!

The only difference between Bond and a contract killer is that Bond works for his government, and his posh background has given him a veneer of civilization.

[–] DoctorThirteen (15227) 3 years ago

Good guy - but only because he works for us. Thug, killer - but our thug and killer. Necessary.

[–] [deleted] 3 years ago

I'd say he's a good guy, but there's something amoral about him. I don't think he has trouble sleeping at night, despite all the people he's killed. Especially Bond the way Fleming wrote him.

Bond tended to be more ruthless in the books. For Your Eyes Only is one of my favorite Bond movies because Bond was a little more like he was in the books there. At one point this assassin who's killed many people in cold blood and has been trying to take out Bond is trapped in a car, teetering on a ledge. Instead of trying to save him, because he's better than the assassin, Bond just cooly walks up to the car and gives it a good kick, sending it over.

FYEO is a little underrated, IMO. We got to see Moore in a Bond movie that didn't try to be a camp comedy. They actually got the blend of humor and action about right. It doesn't get mentioned as one of the best entries, though.