The Dark Knight Rises

[wurwolf]

I think Inception ruined me for Christopher Nolan, and probably Memento as well. TDKR was ruined for me because I felt as though it was a little too much like Inception. He seems to like that puzzle wrapped within a riddle wrapped within an enigma thing a little too much for my liking. I'm afraid he'd do the same to Bond -- which has been, from its beginning, a fairly straightforward venture.

Really? Even knowing the Bond movies from seeing them ad nauseam on TV, half the time I have no fucking idea what the overall plot is. I know the set-pieces, because that's how I think Bond works ("oh, this is the part where they get dragged behind the boat."  "Oh, this is the part where he runs across the alligators." Etc.)  But I think they're usually not very straightforward.

By that I mean with Bond films there is generally nothing to be unraveled, no mystery to unfold. They exist to show you fast cars, cool guns, softcore fighting techniques, snappy dialog, bizarre villains/henchmen, and women with heaving bosoms. I see Nolan getting a hold of the Bond-verse and turning it into some muddled mysterious thing that you're never quite sure about and leaves unanswered questions at the end.

[Tripe]

Then you've obviously not been shocked at the revelation of the relationship between Mr Big and Dr. Kananga in Live And Let Die, I was amazed, amazed I say!

[ScottotD]

I think Inception ruined me for Christopher Nolan, and probably Memento as well. TDKR was ruined for me because I felt as though it was a little too much like Inception. He seems to like that puzzle wrapped within a riddle wrapped within an enigma thing a little too much for my liking. I'm afraid he'd do the same to Bond -- which has been, from its beginning, a fairly straightforward venture.

Really? Even knowing the Bond movies from seeing them ad nauseam on TV, half the time I have no fucking idea what the overall plot is. I know the set-pieces, because that's how I think Bond works ("oh, this is the part where they get dragged behind the boat."  "Oh, this is the part where he runs across the alligators." Etc.)  But I think they're usually not very straightforward.

By that I mean with Bond films there is generally nothing to be unraveled, no mystery to unfold. They exist to show you fast cars, cool guns, softcore fighting techniques, snappy dialog, bizarre villains/henchmen, and women with heaving bosoms. I see Nolan getting a hold of the Bond-verse and turning it into some muddled mysterious thing that you're never quite sure about and leaves unanswered questions at the end.

Besides the ambiguous ending of Inception I can't imagine a Nolan movie leaving you confused.

[Darth Geek]

I think Inception ruined me for Christopher Nolan, and probably Memento as well. TDKR was ruined for me because I felt as though it was a little too much like Inception. He seems to like that puzzle wrapped within a riddle wrapped within an enigma thing a little too much for my liking. I'm afraid he'd do the same to Bond -- which has been, from its beginning, a fairly straightforward venture.

I see what you mean. I would like to see Nolan make a movie with a much more straighforward plot. That would just make how well thought out his movies usually are even better.

[Nunyerbiz]

Besides the ambiguous ending of Inception I can't imagine a Nolan movie leaving you confused.

I think Momento was designed to be confusing, it's really the main interesting thing going for it, the fucked up structure with the varying black and white versus color scenes breaking up the narrative. It certainly wasn't designed to be straightforward for the audience... and it was a gimmick that I didn't fully figure out until the final act.... and even then I had to watch it again a week or so later to confirm that I sorta had figured it out.

Inception on the other hand, wasn't quite as challenging, twist ambiguity at the end withstanding... In fact, the second time I watched the movie (for Rifftrax purposes) I was bored over long stretches... primarily when Leo spends 25 minutes explaining to the audience... errr Ellen Page... how the plot of the film was going to work. It was exposition on complete overdrive... necessary the first time out as to not leave the audience cold, but tough to sit through on a second viewing.

[wurwolf]

I'm not saying there's anything wrong with Nolan's film making. He's made some pretty amazing movies. Memento in particular was good for its starting at the end and working backwards theme. It's just not my thing at all, really, and I don't think his approach would work well for Bond.

[Nunyerbiz]

I think he shoots action pretty well, doesn't indulge in Michael Bay/Bourne Identity shakycam... hasn't bowed down to framing everything for 3D... gets good performances from his actors... Maybe it could work better if he agreed to shoot somebody else's script... but I think his general style behind the lens would work fine.

[Darth Geek]

I do think that Nolan is smart enough to adjust his style to fit the characters and type of movie he is trying to make.

[wurwolf]

I do think that Nolan is smart enough to adjust his style to fit the characters and type of movie he is trying to make.

Do you think, though, that there's enough meat in a Bond film for a director like him? God knows I love James Bond movies, but to be completely frank, they are kind of plain ol' dumb fun. Nolan seems to enjoy making movies with a psychological twist to them, and I just think it would be an unhappy pairing.

[Darth Geek]

I do think that Nolan is smart enough to adjust his style to fit the characters and type of movie he is trying to make.

Do you think, though, that there's enough meat in a Bond film for a director like him? God knows I love James Bond movies, but to be completely frank, they are kind of plain ol' dumb fun. Nolan seems to enjoy making movies with a psychological twist to them, and I just think it would be an unhappy pairing.

I do agree that Bond is just plain old fun. Which means that if Nolan did do a Bond movie, it would be him deliberately going out of his wheelhouse a little bit, and just having fun.
Or he could pull an Ang Lee HULK, and try way too hard on a relatively simple property, and fail miserably.
...either way, I think Quiptracks should riff it!

[D.B. Barnes]

I do think that Nolan is smart enough to adjust his style to fit the characters and type of movie he is trying to make.

Do you think, though, that there's enough meat in a Bond film for a director like him? God knows I love James Bond movies, but to be completely frank, they are kind of plain ol' dumb fun. Nolan seems to enjoy making movies with a psychological twist to them, and I just think it would be an unhappy pairing.

That's a really good point. Unless they want to take the overall Bond experience to an entirely different level, Nolan is complete overkill. If they brought him in to just do another standard Bond film (especially one written by someone else), I imagine he'd feel creatively boxed in and end up feeling unchallenged, perhaps even bored. In a way, it would be a waste of his talent. There are plenty of people more than capable of effectively shooting an action movie. Nolan is capable of bringing so much more to the table.

I'm a huge fan of Nolan, both as a writer and director, and I want to see him devote his time and energy to projects in which he has as close to complete creative freedom as a director can get.

[wurwolf]

From tumblr:

"Every great magic trick consists of three parts or acts. The first part is called The Pledge.The magician shows you something ordinary: a deck of cards, a bird or a man. He shows you this object. Perhaps he asks you to inspect it to see if it is indeed real, unaltered, normal. But of course... it probably isn't. The second act is called The Turn. The magician takes the ordinary something and makes it do something extraordinary. Now you're looking for the secret... but you won't find it, because of course you're not really looking. You don't really want to know. You want to be fooled. But you wouldn't clap yet. Because making something disappear isn't enough; you have to bring it back. That's why every magic trick has a third act, the hardest part, the part we call The Prestige."

[Relaxing Dragon]

An oldie but goodie, that is:

And a quick word on what folks have been discussing, Nolan is all about puzzle stuff but that doesn't mean he can't do a straightforward narrative. Insomnia is pretty cut-and-dry in that regard, and he still manages to make a damn fine film of it. Nolan's just usually a big fan of creating a very precise structure in a very unusual way (as seen in Memento or The Prestige). More power to him, I say, since he makes some damn interesting and spectacular stuff that way.

[Relaxing Dragon]

cut-and-dried, not *cut-and-dry.

Hear here.

[Russell]

cut-and-dried, not *cut-and-dry.

Hear here.

I second that emotion.