Quantum of Solace is the best film but George Lazenby is the best Bond. Kidding. I'm going with Daniel Craig as my favorite and Casino Royale or Dr. No as the best in the series.
Quantum of Solace isn't actually terrible once you realize it needs to be watched as part 2 of Casino Royale. I enjoy Craig a lot, and SkyFall was probably the best Bond movie ever, in my mind. The Connery ones were kinda rapey, and Brosnan was straight corny (Goldeneye will always have a place in my generation's heart though, thanks to the N64).
I think From Russia With Love is the greatest Bond film but my favourite to watch is Octopussy, an incredible action-comedy that throws in everything but the kitchen sink for the sake of entertainment. Favourite Bond girl is Carey Lowell in License to Kill.. Sexy, smart and fearless. Skyfall I love more every time I watch it. It's my favourite one featuring Craig, it's such a great homage to the classic nature of the series and it's also a much more personal Bond film. Also it is fucking BEAUTIFUL to look at. Hong Kong, Maccau, Scotland....gorgeous. Moonraker is the worst. Laser gun fights in outer space. There's nothing else you need to know, just don't fucking watch it.
I'll just address actors portraying Bond for the moment. The closest to the books, both appearance and attitude, by far, is Pierce Brosnan. He did a fantastic job of being true to the books. Connery is probably my favorite, though, closely followed by Craig. I think Moore is very underrated, and people forget his early Bond films had more grit to them. By the 80's, it was written very kitschy and gimmicky, but I don't think that's Moore's fault, the franchise moved in that direction. It got to the point of ridiculousness, and then they changed to Timothy Dalton, and the style went just the opposite way. He was very wooden and humorless as Bond, but I think we all know that Dalton is a fine actor so I'm blaming the writing and direction for his turn as Bond. Lazenby? Eh, not bad from a physical sense, but he really didn't have the time to develop the character either. I really like Craig, but while he is much more dark and tough guy than Dalton, I'd like to see more of the light side/humor return. I thought Connery and Brosnan combined the best of both sides of Bond. Overall, I think all the actors have done a fine job. However, due to the length of time of the franchise - 50 years - each Bond is definitely the product of his time, for good and bad.
I think if Ian Flemming were alive he would have probably liked Timothy Dalton the best. He played Bond as the womanizing badass with a simmering mean streak similar to the novels, it's a shame he wasn't given a better shot because he was given two very weak stories for his films. Moore's films were silly and cartoonish mostly (Moore is four years OLDER than Connery). I love Octopussy but For Your Eyes Only is a fantastic shout-out to the meat & potatoes Bond that Flemming wrote with no ridiculous henchmen or space-age gadgets. That movie is a hidden gem. I think Craig is fantastic, aside from his demolition derby approach he has all the charismatic panache that Connery used to franchise this series so well. Bring on S.P.E.C.T.R.E. Can't wait.
In terms of actors? Connery, not least because of this: That is truly a do-not-give-a-fuck expression, and oozes class. I also like Craig, however his role has been a product of the recent move towards "dark and gritty" that has happened in film over the past few years. Here's hoping they give him some good comedic scenes in SPECTRE. Nothing too in your face, enough to show a different side of this iteration of Bond. Movies? I'd say Dr No, From Russia With Love and Casino Royale are my favourites, each with their own merits.
I too think Dalton was the best book-Bond. Living Daylights and, especially, License To Kill get a majorly bad rap. Those are some dark, mean movies. The guy in the books kind of sucks. He fights a giant squid in Dr. No, which is kind of cool. If you're into that sort of thing. But I prefer Craig. He developed his own character in the first 30 minutes of Casino Royale. Which is also a testament to the fantastic writing. Craig's attitude was just... fucking cool. I never stepped out of a theater so satisfied. He was a dangerous, dangerous guy. Charming, funny without being a clown, plus he could rip someone's head off. The scene where he seduces Dimitrios' wife was so damn slick; I was giggling through the whole thing. Connery is runner up, if only for the amount of shit that came out of his mouth. The 60's were a different time. Thunderball is my second favorite because it's two and a half hours of Connery just swaggering the shit out of life. It was the last one before it got too goofy: volcano lairs, satellites. One of my goals in life was to use the line, "It's just the right size, for me that is," when a woman is talking about her mouth (ala From Russia With Love), and I got to do it last month. It was everything I hoped for and more. Next, I need to meet a woman named Plenty. Named after her father perhaps. Skyfall came very close to ruining me for every other action flick. When the filmmakers channeled Dark Knight for the escape sequence, that didn't sit well with me. We've seen that before, many times. But god, what a visually arresting flick. They should have given the Severine character another 15 minutes. She smoldered in that casino scene.
None of the actors who played Bond was particularly bad, but my favorite portrayals, from best to worst: 1. Moore 2. Connery 3. Craig 4. Dalton 5. Lazenby 6. Brosnan For the Bond films that I like, I rank them as: 1. Tomorrow Never Dies 2. Moonraker 3. Live and Let Die 4. Dr. No 5. The Man with the Golden Gun 6. A View to a Kill 7. You Only Live Twice 8. Diamonds Are Forever 9. Goldeneye 10. Octopussy 11. For Your Eyes Only 12. Thunderball The worst film in the series is, by a mile, Die Another Day. The World is Not Enough, Quantum of Solace, and both of Dalton's entries are bad, but even those look like masterpieces compared to Brosnan's swan song. And Ursula Andress, as Honey Ryder, will forever be the best Bond girl.
Actors: 1) Connery 2) Craig/Dalton 3) Moore 4) Brosnan 5) Lazenby Films: 1) Goldfinger 2) From Russia with Love 3) Dr. No 4) Casino Royale 5) Skyfall 6) Live and Let Die 7) Man with the Golden Gun 8) Golden Eye 9) Licence to Kill 10) Thunderball (b/c jetpack, obviously). With the rest getting honourable mentions. I love them all in their own way, I just like these 10 a tiny bit more than the others.
If we're doing Top Ten, mine would have to be... 1) Octopussy 2) From Russia with Love 3) Skyfall 4) Casino Royale 5) GoldenEye 6) For Your Eyes Only 7) Goldfinger8) The Man with the Golden Gun 9) License to Kill 10) You Only Live Twice Spoiler The Five Worst are: 1) Moonraker *mouth fart* 2) A View to a Kill (although Walken is soooooooo sensuous in blonde hair) 3) Die Another Day (CGI!!!!! Dream machines!!! Kite surfing from deadly sun beam! Etc!!!!!!) 4) On Her Majesty's Secret Service (You cannot convince me this movie doesn't entirely suck) 5) Never Say Never Again (series-insulting ego stroke for a butthurt producer) Of course, there's no question who the greatest Bond villain of all time is... Spoiler
Only one I didn't like was Moonraker. I know a lot of people didn't like Brosnan, but I am going to have to agree with what VI wrote above. I like Craig as an actor, he is the only one that physically looks like he can do what he does in the movies, but he just doesn't fit what I think Bond is.
I think Casino Royale's first major action sequence (the parkour chase through the construction site) is the best of the entire series, one of the best in action movies period. Adrenaline-pumping to say the very least.
That is a good one, but nothing beats this one: The part where the parachute opens is just incredible. As to the movies? I'll have to say my favorites are Casino Royale, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, For Your Eyes Only and Diamonds are Forever (Jill St. John is SOOOOOO hot). Most are very good, but Moonraker, Her Majesty's Secret Service, Quantum of Shit, and License to Kill all suck balls.
Favorites in no order - Goldeneye - From Russia with Love - Casino Royale - The Island of Dr No - Goldfinger - The Man with the Golden Gun I actually liked Quantum of Solace better than Skyfall. I just thought the third bond movie for Craig was way too early to start with the 'you're too old for this shit' mantra. That, and I couldn't get past the computers can do anything silliness. Either go for realism or just run with the hijinks like the old Bond movies did. Yeah, he fits what they've decided to change Bond into, but he's missing the charm and humor all the other Bonds had. Brosnan did a good a portrayal, just happened to have a run of shit scripts after Goldeneye. But I love Craig, and while he doesn't fit my image of Bond either I can't really complain. _________________
Skyfall had amazing cinematography and probably the best Bond song. In terms of being a good movie, not just a good Bond movie, it hit the mark. But Craig will always be a controversial choice, I think because he's not a charismatic or funny. But that's a tall order for any actor. I am a fan of Idris Elba being the next Bond. Best Bond: Connery Moore Craig Brosnan Best Bond Movie: From Russia With Love. It's just...iconic. Best Bond girl? I am sick that Olga Kurylenko had a sexier turn in a fucking Hitman movie than in QofS. Skyfall finally had a decent Bond girl, because Eva Green and Olga K were disappointing.
See, I feel the exact opposite. I do find Craig charismatic, but while humorous, he isn't "haha" funny. He's pretty slick, but still mean as a snake, a killer. He's just as cruel, as unaffected, as Connery in Dr. No and FRWL. Olga Kurylenko was one of the better parts of Quantum. She was decent with what she got, especially her last lines. That was a helluva scene. Whoever wrote that, where the hell was that guy the other 100 minutes? Eva Green is the best Bond girl precisely because she didn't carry herself like a Bond-girl tart. She was spell binding. I don't understand the love for Goldfinger. Goddamn that shit was pure cheese. Connery also has the most questionable "love" scene in film history. "I musht have appealed to her maternal inshtinctsh... by shexually ashaulting her in shum hay." Oh, Pushy. Fucking great name. Someone should have gotten an Oscar for that.
I know I will catch shit for this, but I don't get where all the Eva Green love comes from, I cant stand her.
She smolders. Watching her be super naked in The Dreamers may have colored my judgment, which was reinforced by watching her also be naked in the Camelot series.
I agree with this. As great a henchman as Oddjob is, that movie is BORING. It is shorter than most of the other Bond films, but feels longer. Plus, Goldfinger is a mediocre villain, at least compared to some of the ones who came later. I will also never understand the appeal of From Russia with Love, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, The Spy Who Loved Me, Casino Royale, or Skyfall. They are not terrible films, but the Bond movies work best when a "purely entertaining" approach is taken. To that end, they fall far short of the 12 that I listed above. In regards to Eva Green, I didn't think that she made a good Bond girl. But if there was an award for the hottest Bond girl based only on looks, she would probably be my pick.