Goldfinger, Lost in Adaptation ~ The Dom

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[@Tekrothebountyhunter]

Hey Dom, any chance we can one day have a REVERSE Lost in Adaptation episode, where you review the differences between a movie and one of those weird movie novelizations that nobody reads?

[@all-stargam3rpunk]

what's even the point of those

[@Broadwaychica]

ALL-STAR GAM3RPUNK Encouraging kids to read, basically. At least in my experience.

[@all-stargam3rpunk]

Broadwaychica not yhe idea of the reverse lost in adaptation i mean the novalization of certian movies

[@braveng7909]

Sometimes they add something in. Like the force awakens novelization tells you how Poe survived the tie fighter crash and how he got back to the resistance.

[@Asexual_Individual]

I actually asked him that in his Q&A, his answer was no because of how bad novelizations tend to be.

[@jliller]

Pussy Galore may still be the most ridiculous name ever, but in the context of leading a troupe of lesbian trapeze artists it makes a weird kind of sense. I can't imagine that name making it into a PG-13 film today though.

[@lisamarie5937]

I know this comment is old, but the name Pussy Galore was used in the movie adaption of RENT. It's PG13.

[@JonathanRossRogers]

The PG-13 rating was created in the 1980s, about twenty years after "Goldfinger" was released. "Goldfinger" was rated "PG." The first Bond movie to be rated "PG-13" was "License to Kill." AFAICT, the MPAA ratings are much more about marketing than "parental guidance."

[@UGNAvalon]

The G-rated kids’ show Arthur once dropped the term “Octopussy” (tho in the context of “octopus-cat-hybrid” monsters).

[@silviasanchez648]

Funnily enough, I always understood it as "Pussy Glow". 🤣

[@MintyCoolness]

So, basically, Pussy Galore is an Ace Attorney character?

[@ChaoticEnigma92]

In Bond's defense of the shaken martini, as a special agent, perhaps the watered down drink allowed him to drink longer with getting drunk as fast. Just a thought.

[@Dominic-Noble]

+ChaoticEnigma A few people have suggested that... my response is to ask why he would bother when half the time he's drinking alone... in a hotel room.... with the lights off...

[@ChaoticEnigma92]

The Dom Good point

[@Nionivek]

Damn Martini drinkers and having preferences that don't conform to the status quo!

[@l.tc.5032]

+The Dom Eh everybody has their weird tastes. I like to add scrambled eggs to pasta (mainly for extra protein) I guess watered down drinks are his.

[@2wingo]

Shaking it also breaks up the impurities in certain types of Russian vodka, making it on the whole more palatable. Also, if your bartender is an attractive woman, it gives you a little show (he explicitly mentioned this in one book, though I can't remember which).

[@NelsonStJames]

That "knuckle sandwich" line would probably be the most memorable quip in a Bond film ever if they were to use it one day.

[@gingerstorm101]

My Papa uses that line often. I think my dad has even used it

[@gerardcollins80]

"He's just drinking because he does not give *a fuck* anymore." Honestly the most relatable sentence I've heard.

[@EilsTheDaydreamer]

I kind of want to see a modern adaptation or spin off showing Pussy Galore and her lesbian trapeze gang, preferably without the offensive angle in the book. I would definitely watch a movie about them doing a heist or something.

[@melodramaticdragon5826]

Holy fuck, yes.

[@MintyCoolness]

YES! ALL OF MY YES!

[@jiggusfiggus]

You mean Ocean's 8? the movie nobody saw?

[@masontrupe9047]

When you realize Sterling Archer is a closer character adaptation to James Bond than film-Bond is.

[@Oliviagarry69420]

And yet he’s still more like able.

[@aucarter]

I will never view Archer the same way! 🤣🤣🤣

[@nickbrown638]

Yeah, I can totally imagine the book bond asking a woman to grill him a cheese

[@bigfloridapimp]

​@@nickbrown638Waltz in here dressed as some sort of cattle rapist. Waving a cleaver and reeking of what I hope to god is meat and that's all you have to say?

[@ConnorNotyerbidness]

Tbf....ian fleming Knew he was writing James Bond as a prick. He was supposed to be a cold prick because to Ian fleming, a spy should be a cold distant killer (which is actually pretty true to real life..note ian fleming had ties to espionge) he was also supposed to be unrefined, hence the recipe for the martinis is very non traditional and by conniseurs isnt even considered a martini at all (the key being a vesper is a vodka martini)

[@mrhypnagogia]

the knuckle sandwich joke is a masterpiece of comedy

[@nightdockedoar]

I knew a girl in high school who was reading Thunderball. Sometimes she would read me passages she thought were amusing. My favorite was "It was a room shaped room with furniture shaped furniture, and dainty curtains."

[@etharchildres3976]

I love this. I want a book that's like: “They walked to the ocean. If you don't know what an ocean looks like then you have more important problems than understanding this book.”

[@erikbihari3625]

@@etharchildres3976. Funny.

[@juliagoodwin9510]

Hello, Department of Redundancy Department?

[@judahofjudea4601]

Sometimes I'll read a few random chapters at Barnes and Noble, they got all the books there. They are very descriptive with the sex scenes.

[@edgarallenhoe3518]

​@etharchildres3976 there's a bit in philip k dick's "a scanner darkly" along the lines of "he went into the phone booth and did a phone thing. ring ring ring." i still can't tell if this is because the main character is losing his mind or if it's just bizarre writing

[@ohfilms1]

9:06 In the novel of Live and Let Die, Felix was fed to sharks by the villains. He survived but lost a hand and a leg. This plot point was later used for Timothy Dalton's Licence to Kill.

[@Dominic-Noble]

+OH! Productions I prefer yarrr

[@ohfilms1]

The Dom So do I...

[@mrcritical6751]

+The Dom could you do a lost in adaptation of Tintin secret of his the unicorn and the water horse

[@UncleJoeNeonCherry]

Actually, there WAS a special unit called SMERSH. But it was active only in the years of WWII and operated in the areas near the current battlefront, its main task being preventing German spies from infiltrating the Red Army units in disguise. Basically, they were active counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism. Fleming probably heard about them during his time in the British special services because SMERSH operatives were the best of the best among Russian agents and military officers... and probably had a couple of wartime British agents (operating in secret from the USSR) by the balls. What he didn't know is that SMERSH no longer existed by the time he started writing, replaced by KGB, SVR and GRU.

[@baburik]

also in lieu of USSR abbreviations and naming schemes of that time SMERSH stood for SMERt SHpionam (Death to Spies!). No fancy highly descriptive organization names like in the Rotting Capitalist West. Keep It Simple, Stupid.

[@pawelabrams]

@@baburik to be fair, NKVD was an abbreviation for national commission on internal affairs, which is a fancy descriptive name! :)

[@baburik]

@@pawelabrams there is also this lesser known one - СССР. jeez, get a joke.

[@JasperJanssen]

“Smersh no longer existed”? Excellent, comrade! Our propaganda has worked, they’ve swallowed it hook, line, tinker tailor soldier spy!

[@OscarDirlwood]

​@@pawelabrams Ik this is a few years pld, but it was "People's commissariat of interior affairs". 'peoples commissariat' was the equivalent of a Ministry - and would later be replaced by the (still existing) MVD

[@Rocketboy1313]

So Goldfinger met the same fate as that Yellow Bastard ("Sin City")? That Golden Bastard?

[@SnoriSnorison]

It seems to me that the "Shaken, not stirred" vodka martini thing is a smart strategy a spy might use to trick villains into thinking the spy has had far more alcohol than they've had in actuality. James Bond would have a much clearer head than the bad guys suppose--which is a definite advantage.

[@Nick_C1997]

Huh, that’s pretty clever

[@uanime1]

They tested shaken vs stirred in Mythbusters. Shaking it makes the Martini more crisp, thus it's a matter of taste rather than one being correct.

[@kyletowers9662]

from what I understand it also has to do with the liquor used in the martini. at gin martini is stirred while a vodka martini has to be shaken. I think it has something to due with the oil in vodka

[@BR-jt6ny]

+uanime1 Yea, the Dom's comment surprised me. I don't drink and i know absolutely nothing about cocktails but I always thought martinis didn't have ice. Do they?

[@benphillips2947]

No ice actually ends up in the glass when it's done, but ice is used while mixing a martini.

[@JuriAmari]

They also tested the gold paint death theory. It's actually plausible since depending on the paint composition, it can reduce oxygen intake but not through the skin as the story explained.

[@Fickji]

Being covered with certain paints can also cause overheating like heat stroke. Which may have lead to the "breath through the skin" notion as one of the symptoms is difficulty breathing followed by coma and death.

[@RFEM520]

Funny thing. The same person who wrote James Bond also wrote Chitty Chitty bang bang.

[@DavidTSmith-jn5bs]

And Gert Frobe appeared in BOTH films!

[@jenniferschillig3768]

@@DavidTSmith-jn5bs As did Desmond Llewellyn! (And Albert R. Broccoli produced it.)

[@DavidTSmith-jn5bs]

@@jenniferschillig3768 A friend of mine who was a freelance writer gave me a major shock when he told me that Lionel Jeffries, who played the father of Dick Van Dyke's character, was actually YOUNGER than Van Dyke was! As Bond said in THIS film, "Shocking!"

[@jenniferschillig3768]

@@DavidTSmith-jn5bs And Dick van Dyke's still busting dance moves at ninety-three!

[@DavidTSmith-jn5bs]

@@jenniferschillig3768 I know, right? The man obviously has exceptional genes!

[@brookedoesacraft982]

The extreme detail in the mundane shit that bond does is very much era specific. The book was written in the early fifties and is pure escapism. Britain really was in a bad spot after World War Two so for men hearing bond jet set to places in Spain and talking about how they were chips of butter on ice was seen very much as a luxury lifestyle because of rationing through the war up until 1954. It does seem like fluff now a days but it serve a purpose for the male British public to be able to at least read about a fantastic luxury instead of the reality they were apart of.

[@andreworders7305]

The gold paint seems like a stupidly time consuming way to murder someone

[@farmerproductions9869]

As an archer fan I liked the reference

[@LadyTylerBioRodriguez]

+FarmerProductions Yep. Though to be fair, Bond probably would understand the core concept of helium not being hydrogen.

[@KMmouse20]

That Archer twist in the middle of the review slayed me, haha

[@waddlesdpuffin]

The movie at the time wasn't quite the cliche fest because it was really the first Bond movie to use this formula. The previous two Dr. No and From Russia With Love had a slightly different feel to them. Goldfinger is considered to be movie where the Bond formula came together. Also it's considered by Fleming fans to be one of the weaker and most offensive novels for all the reasons you outlined

[@bomcabedal]

The whole genre hadn't been properly fleshed out at the time of course. But having said that, I still find this a hugely overrated film. For the reasons of contrivance and plot holes mentioned, as well as the sexism (contrary to popular opinion common, but hardly a universal preference in the early 1960s). But mostly because Bond is so absolutely rubbish in it. He is phenomenally ineffective as a spy, getting caught continually and not getting much done until he rapes Ms. Galore into submission. You could even claim that he's detrimental to the security agencies' work as they do nothing, expecting Bond to deal with Goldfinger. It seems that the Bond franchise has veered back and forth continually between a (moderately) more realistic approach (symbolized in From Russia with Love) and "arcade Bond" (typified by Goldfinger). Dalton and Craig can be said to represent the former, Moore and Brosnan (excluding Goldeneye) the latter approach. To be honest, cartoon Bond doesn't really age well. As for Goldfinger? It's very much a symbol of its time and loved for that reason, but as a film? Nah.

[@jenniferschillig3768]

Yup...Desmond Llewellyn showed up as Q in From Russia With Love (a different actor played "The Armourer" in Dr. No), but all he did was pop in with the briefcase, explain it, and pop out. None of the personality of the Q we grew to know and love, no quirky lab, none of that.

[@shmee123ful]

with the amount of woman Bond has bonked over the years, he's got to have more bustards running around then Robert Baratheon

[@jonathancampbell5231]

Given what happened to his balls in Casino Royale...

[@Toneill029]

The man must have every STI/STD in the book at this point too.

[@LynnHermione]

Ironically in the books he is very happily a boytoy of married older women and marries or almost marries (very happily! the almost were because the women didn't want to!) 4 times

[@Pubs9495]

Bond Novel Spoiler The reason felix had a hook for a hand was because in the second novel "Live and Let Die", Felix gets captured by bad guys who have him attacked by a shark (very similar circumstances to the scene in license to kill). Felix survives but lost his hand and thus has a hook for a hand

[@ackbarfan5556]

Pubs9495 Funny enough, the Felix actor in LALD actually reprised his role in LTK, something which at that point hadn't happened because they kept switching actors do to their incident with the Felix actor from Dr. No. The guy wanted more money, screen time, and to be billed next to Sean for this film.

[@jenniferschillig3768]

Yup, they cut-and-pasted that into License to Kill.

[@HrothgarXII]

Every good film review needs a Blackadder reference - 10/10

[@harrietamidala1691]

My favorite part: "Archer isn't a James Bond parody--he's an accurate portrayal!"

[@RollinBones]

You're a brave man for talking crap about probably the most beloved Bond movie of all time. Also, the reason that Felix Lieter had a hook hand in the book was because he was mutilated by a shark in the novel Live and Let Die.

[@jarrodreaves243]

Preach

[@smithryansmith]

He's pretty much just virtue signaling, unable to see anything beyond his own self-ritiousness. If he had half a brain, he's have known that Fleming was a reporter and his attention to detail was what reporters used to be trained to do. Also, Fleming often pointed out that Bond was a bad guy who just happened to be fighting on the good guy's side. He's the kind of guy who protects little flowers like our host here by doing the dirty stuff to protect his effete arse. All so this little prick can look down on guys like bond from the safety of his trigger-warnings.

[@ZekeAxel]

Um... SMERSH is not actually fictional, it was a group of counter-intelligence groups within the Soviet Union, during WW2. And the abbreviation was actually "SMERt' SHpionam" - Death to Spies. And they mostly worked to undermine German spies... Which, considering this was still when Stalin was around, meant a lot of repressions. However, apparently, they were not aimed at dissidents and were actually the more professional and goal-minded among the NKVD. The one you provided is "Special Methods of Uncovering Spies", which is not something any sensible Russian would call an organization. I guess you can throw in Russophobe to that description.

[@Questron71]

I have seen the kind of Russian/Soviet that appears in Flemings writing... you'd have to search long and hard to find one even halfways sensible amongst that bunch :P

[@thomastakesatollforthedark2231]

To be fair they were enemies at the time

[@ZekeAxel]

@@thomastakesatollforthedark2231 SMERSH existed during WW2 when UK and USSR were in fact allies tho... Afterwards he could have just said KGB.

[@thomastakesatollforthedark2231]

@@ZekeAxel I meant more Russia in general but yeah you're right

[@Weirdman3214]

RIP Sean Connery

[@meercat4559]

Felix had a hook hand because his original one was eaten by a shark in “Live And Let Die.”

[@eugenideddis]

There are some of these that I feel should have a "never heard of the book" category.

[@Spike-Prime]

It hadn't occurred to me until now, but Flemming was a special agent/intelligence officer before becoming an author (apparently basing, though massively exaggerating, some real missions he was on). I wonder if he described things to this insane detail going on and on because he had to for his previous job? Like, the intelligence reports had to be detailed like this to avoid missing something? Idunno, it'd explain some stuff.

[@LynnHermione]

actually the descriptions came from his current day job. Fleming was a travel writer. The Bond novels were at first a hobby, he made a living by going to places and writing very white British guy chronicles of them. That's why many novels feel like travel blogs with spy plots mixed in.

[@jessicawurm23]

@@LynnHermione Yep, but he did base Bonds exploits off a real Secret Agent in WWII.....Sir Christopher Lee

[@jiggusfiggus]

@@jessicawurm23 It's a well-known lie. Bond was based on several agents he met during the war. Yes, he was a long distant cousin of Christopher Lee, and a friend of Roald Dahl, but they were not "inspirations" in any way. This looks like some Buzzfeed-level rumor to the same taste as the awful 'codename theory'. Fleming himself never appeared in the field, he was described as a 'desk sailor', but he did conjure a couple of successful operations during the war, his most famous was operation: goldeneye, involving counter-intelligence in Spain I believe. As for the events of the books, Fleming in an interview said that the events in the books were inspired by PERSONAL EVENTS but he never used actual military information in his works, due to security concerns.

[@rodrigocornelio9566]

Blue is the Warmest Color, Lost in Adaptation. I know this is yet another grapic novel but I think it would make a pretty cool LiA episode.

[@Elementa2006]

I would like to request another Bond comparison for On Her Majesty's Secret Service, considered by many to be the best book in the series and the film was said to be really faithful but no doubt has some changes too. While I know its a personal thing, I think the fact that a lot of people, casual readers and literature buffs do enjoy the books despite their questionable content (Goldfinger is considered one of the weaker entries in the book series), definitely proves that the Flemming books aren't as easily dismissed for new readers as you make them out to be, just thought I should let you know.

[@carlrood4457]

OHMSS was arguably too faithful an adaptation. Since the films were made out of order, the previous film had Bond and Blofeld meet face to face, which hadn't happened in the books by this point. As a result Bond's undercover mission shouldn't have worked at all if you dismiss the fan theory of multiple Bonds.

[@GrennaskolanV]

03:20 Actually shaken breaks down peroxide better the stirred does so it healthier for you. Plus shaking it cools the drink faster the stirring it

[@jamiebisson2752]

In the Things They Left Out section, you forgot to mention that the whole book was structured around a quote that was never even mentioned in the film: "In Chicago we have a saying: once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, three times is enemy action."

[@PourlephoneProductions]

I love old books and I love it when the author describes in detail the surroundings or the way something is used... because the world has changed so much since then, and these books are really time capsules. Also, I like that back then, people took the time to appreciate fine details, and little moments. One other particular reason there is so much description in the Fleming books is that Bond is a spy, he is supposed to be focused on details, be really observant, making mental notes, deductions, etc... I love the original James Bond novels and read them all at least once a decade.

[@smithryansmith]

this is one reason the novels are brilliant and will long outlive this useless youtube host.

[@Jebbtube]

One of the weird examples of a film being better than the book.

[@tylermane77]

+Jebbtube Not really. Goldfinger is one of the most overrated films of all time.

[@Jebbtube]

Mr Maws Still better than the book.

[@tylermane77]

About as bad. Dom's recommendation to stay away from Fleming is rather irresponsible though, as Goldfinger is considered by many a fan to be one of the weaker books. You can't dismiss an entire bibliography based off one book. Moonraker (zero to do with the film), On Her Majesty's Secret Service, You Only Live Twice, From Russia With Love, and Dr. No are all much better.

[@biteme9486]

+MagnuMagnus Forrest Gump is another one

[@Jebbtube]

Bite Me Hear that Dom? Challenge issued!

[@vallraffs]

You should do a Hannibal Lecter story sometime in the future. Or Goodfellas/Wise Guys, that's also a good one.

[@Rutanachan]

Also, I'd love to hear your thoughts on "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" :D I really loved the movie, but I just couldn't make my way through the book and Laarsons weird writing style. My boyfriend read through all 3 books and liked them though, but I still feel, that the movie told the story better. (Talking about the US one obviously)

[@mmilller452]

please do From Russia with love and On Her Majestlys secret service. Trust me on this.

[@Valeriuciocan18]

3:17 Actually , if the drink is watered-down, it will dull the senses less. So it makes sense that bond , being on duty, will want to be less tipsy.

[@rorystockley5969]

I like book Bond. A miserable alcoholic who only really finds joy in fast cars and playing cards is more amusing to me than the over-suave cliché Bond we have now.

Bond that we have now is miserable alcoholic tho

[@Toneill029]

Yoo Hoo But is still kinda smooth.

@@Toneill029 not really, I mean literally last movie Bond blows up a building and almost falls to the death because he is sloppy dumbass with very good luck. And out of all actors that played him Craig really looks like how drinks a lot for real.

[@Toneill029]

Yoo Hoo I said kinda yeah from what I’ve seen his drinking and poor life style choices really but him in the ass.

[@8trackproductions]

I've only read Casino Royal (which I loved). You should do that one since there are two film adaptations and a CBS television special with Jimmy Bond!

[@Neo232100]

Hey Dom just to say this is one of my favorite reviews you've done in a while. Especially the skit regarding Bond beating Godfinger to death and trying to go back to being suave. ;3

[@Bitmap90]

3:22 I always rationalized that Bond orders martinis shaken when a lady is pouring them, for the obvious reason.

[@Smashguy96]

Could you do Lost in Adaption: Beowulf?

[@GriffinPilgrim]

Might run into a bit of a problem there; unless The Dom reads Old English he can't read the actual original.

[@jaojao1768]

@@GriffinPilgrim I'm pretty sure he didn't read the german original of the Neverending Story either

[@GriffinPilgrim]

+Sir Jaojao Fair point but it's a lot easier to accurately translate modern German into modern English than Old English into Modern English. The latter involves so many basic conceptual differences that what you get is an interpretation more than a translation. As such no definitive modern English version of Beowulf exists.

[@firereview3052]

I would love to see a Lost on Adaptation of Casino Royale.

[@DecoyBlackMage]

And Google has broken the reply box for youtube forcing us to now go to the video and manually locate any replies, just fucking great...............

[@cardmaster9]

Bond asks for his glass shaken, not stirred because he's always on the job. He can't afford to be drunk, but really wants to drink. So he asks for it shaken so the ice will melt and delude his drink, giving him exactly the effect he wanted.

[@juliagoodwin9510]

Does anyone else but me think it would have made more sense for the victim of the gold paint death to have been killed first THEN be painted gold as a warning for Bond?

[@michaelcarter9395]

I prefer the books... The movies were pretenders; they couldn't go as far as the books, so they didn't...

[@jmace2424]

Dom, Goldfinger came out in 1964 when the US was still on the Gold Standard.

[@KiramidHead]

That Heineken joke is so old I think it broke its hip when you delivered it.

[@hunnykun101]

"He just met a girl and crash into; ask her to make him a sandwich".....yea still hate James Bond.

[@Hewylewis]

Ooh, this is a new concept. Comparing the Bond movies to the original books. So, what's next? *crosses fingers* Last Unicorn, please! LOL

[@simonesalvatore9345]

Hewy Toonmore Little did he know he would eventually get his wish

[@neonz616]

Goldfinger in the book was Latvian, born in Riga, 1917, not Russian.

[@eoghanclark165]

You should watch Baccano! Ladd Russo pulls off that very same beat a man to death before returning suave excellently 😁

[@larrychilders6599]

also Goldfinger's plan would have only worked until the Nixon administration when he took the US off the gold standard and onto the Oil standard

[@kylejohnson423]

Has anyone else read the 007 comics? They simplify the over-detailed nature while still being true to the book. In fact, there are non-cannon graphic novels too if you need your James Bond fix before the next movie comes out.

[@trailmixgang]

I'm a feminist but I admit James Bond is a tricky character for me. I mean I know he's sexist but he's also clearly not supposed to be someone we like. He drinks, smokes, gambles, and even murders. Ian Fleming couldn't possibly expect us to truly like him. So, is he instead someone like Eric Cartman who we enjoy watching because we hate him? Is he a cautionary tale? Or is he just supposed to represent the way the world is whether we like it or not? I'm very conflicted can anyone help me make up my mind?

[@BlackburnBigdragon]

Bond books back in the day were written in a time when Rationing was just starting to end in England and the Cold War was chugging up to it's height. A lot of people were still feeling that sting of rationing and a lot of the over the top descriptions of the high priced, high ticket, items and lifestyle were appealing to people back then. The books were a product of their time. People could live vicariously through someone who could have those fancy cars, expensive golf clubs, neat expensive gadgets, and go to those exotic places and get all those hot, exotic women. That resonated with people back then. James Bond was (and still is) the ultimate Gary Stu.

[@OcarinaSapphr-]

As you've already done Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park, could you do Timeline: it's a goldmine of poor adaptation flaws (& apparently the reason he *wouldn't* allow any further adaptions); most criticisms are general, & technical- in relation to the scientific side of time travel, but one of my favourite posters (after OzzyMan), History Buffs took it on, in terms of historical accuracy - you, obviously, can compare the book to the film a bit more. I specifically found the Language-Barrier segment Nick did, to be exceptional- because it was the biggest flaw to me.

[@ulfhunden]

Bond is a composite character of several real world SOE spies and double agents with their vices turned up to 11. Fleming also made him Scottish because he liked Sean Connery so much. One of Bond's inspirations was Dusko Popov, a Yugoslavian nation who was a double agent for the Nazi Abwehr and British MI5. He was notorious for his love of women, drink and fast cars.

[@CornishCreamtea07]

I would recommend reading all the books, aside from The Spy Who Loved Me. There really great, and feel more like actual spy fiction.

[@celestialangel666]

As a veteran of the American Armed Forces - if you tried to do the fly-over, they would've been so dead it's not even funny. also America is actually bigger than you think. Trust me. OH, also, for fun, the old 1960's True Grit vs. the book. Because the Cohen movie is VERY close to the book. And yeah, never try to do Russian unless a friend who knows Russian is there with you. Trust me on that.

[@vaclav_fejt]

I, for one, like both the book and the film. Yes, the book is over-the-top racist and chauvinistic and ridden with plot holes and some boring sequences, while the film exchanged some of that racism and chauvinism for even more plot holes. But what I've learned from my attempts at writing, being entertaining is more important than avoiding plotholes. And both the book and the film are entertaining. I fing the 30-page description of the golf game quite interesting. It may be just me, but it is rather well-written. And about Bond being a dick? He's supposed to be an anti-hero. A government-sanctioned thug. Or at least I read into it that way (and I don't care about Fleming himself, who was also a racist, chauvinistic alcoholic). What else to say? Brace yourself for the worst and be entertained. "I thought you only liked women." "I've never met a *man* before."

[@chenoaholdstock3507]

Actually, James Bond switches between 'shaken, not stirred' and 'stirred, not shaken' depending on film. I don't know about the books though.

[@glynnisi]

I read the Fleming novels when I was a kid & they are all every bit as offensive as you say, lol. You're far too enlightened to enjoy them. I kind of compare Fleming's fascination w details to Tom Clancy's. It's supposed to convey their expertise and infuse the book w more gravitas, I think.

[@LynnHermione]

i dont know what book you read because Book Bond is SIGNIFICANTLY less sexist and trashy than movie Bond. You should go and read all books in order to understand him.

[@lightsideofsin8969]

I never understood Bond's image as a suave guy who all the women throw themselves at. If that was the case then why does he have to force himself on them? Shouldn't they enthusiastically want to sleep with him if he's so great? Same for most roles that Harrison Ford has played. Indiana Jones and Rick Deckard especially are so creepy and off putting but they somehow get the woman because.....???

[@elphaba4674]

I may be in the minority, but I was just never able to to get into any of the Bond films..New or old. 🤷‍♀️

[@PommeDeTerre8]

As a lesbian I was both heartbroken about the all-lesbian team being left out and annoyed at our sexual identity being presented as something the love of the right man can fix. Ugh.

[@duowest642]

Jesus christ that 60's sexism is cringy. At least Daniel Craig's bond didn't see women as sub human. Sure he slept around but that was about him filling an emotional void with carnal pleasure. Not him seeing women as lesser than men. Take skyfall for example. His interactions with that films version of Moneypenny suggested that he saw and respected her as a person and a fellow agent. Sure they had playful banter, but it was always an even back and forth and it was clear that they had a professional admiration for each other as well as a mutual respect.

[@curestarlight3023]

The "Pointless" stamp section is my favourite part of this review XD Edit: The way Fleming wrote really bugged me too. I only read For Your Eyes Only (which is a short story) & even that was a chore to get through. Damn it, Fleming, I know you were involved in espionage, but just get to the bloody point!

[@Awakeandalive1]

Ha ha, I love your work but i also think it's hilarious that you began by complaining about the racism of the book...then made a joke about latino janitors. XD It's amazing how ingrained these things become, no matter how much we try to overcome them! (All that said, acknowledgement of Latinos by internet reviewers is always welcome!)

[@terrortorn]

Young man shocked by the content of fictional Bond novels ( but curiously not by the violence) and pretending the easily offended should be pandered to but completely fine with growing a bum fluff beard and appearing in public with it.

[@shapesnatch1341]

I mean like it was written by a white man in the 50s so like idk what you expected. Its simply a product of its time and you can still enjoy it without approving of the uses of racism, sexism, homophobia or anti-semitism

[@LadyoftheDreamless14]

i am 1 min 14 seconds into the video and all I can say is, I'm not surprised at the horribleness of this book and how it treats everyone. James Bond is really a male power fantasy written expressly for the board, salary man of the 1960's. The books were intended to give the reader an escape from their humble dull daily life. So the fact that book James Bond is horrible, isnt all that shocking. I'm a bit happier that the newer movies are less horrible and he drinks his respect women juice - and the slight implication that James Bond may swing in... More then one direction, its really the only natural progression of the character. Especially if James Bond wants to remain relevant.

[@ricardocantoral7672]

These recent alterations have rendered Bond a bastardization of what he was; making him submissive to women and sexually confused isn't an improvement. Though the producers keep boasting that they are respecting Fleming's work, these recent films have consistently failed to capture the complex nature of Fleming's books. The dilemma that, more or less, permeated throughout the original 007 literary canon was the struggle of the self vs the needs of society as a whole. Fleming's Bond was often conflicted about his work and wondering if all the murders he comitted amounted to anything other than the infinite loss, losses, of somethings far more valuable than all the world's material wealth. His occupation was his own personal hell yet integral to his identity. Instead, Craig's Bond is constantly going rogue, continues to remain broken over the loss of first love, and is possibly even bisexual in order to appease an LGBTQ audience. I think discarding Bond's more unsavory traits was a wise move such as his "clubland" racism but why does he have be placed under the vindictive thumb of feminism ? Bond should only be portrayed as a masculine heterosexual who is secure about himself. If you want to make some of his friends gay, trans, whatever that's fine but stick to the concept of the character that could easily survive transition to the 21st century.

[@LadyoftheDreamless14]

@@ricardocantoral7672 Yaaaa, while I enjoy a good character debate I don't enjoy them with sexist biphobic randos in the youtube comments. You arnt getting the fight you want from me.

[@firetarrasque4667]

Hey Dom? You do know our money can't be traded for gold since a bit after WWII?

[@RabidNemo]

3:55 sounds like you're describing Archer LOL

[@jonathontrejo5427]

If Goldfinger novel was problematic, buckle up for Live And Let Die…

[@BackAlleyTANGO]

Excellent, as always, Dom. (do His Dark Materials? Pleeaaase?

[@Mondomeyer]

I'm with ya on how boring the books are. The writing is so dry I keep needing to apply eyedrops every time I turn the page.

[@jthomas76]

I always assumed Bond got a weak drink so he wouldn't draw attention while on stake out. Guess I just gave Bond to much credit. Felix has a hook because he lost his hand and leg in Live and Let Die.

[@thedarkestnightmare616]

Heh, classic episode.. hope he'll do the other James Bond movies and books. Maybe a lightning round sort of deal

[@bar-1studios]

While we're on the Men's Adventure genre, dare you attempt... Remo Williams?

[@samuellawrencesbookclub8250]

Imagine, The Hobbit with a Thomson toting granny. Or, the same in Harry Potter. Either would be hilarious.

[@brain_apostrophe_t]

As a 7 to 15 year old boy, the James Bond novels were my dads favorite books and Ive found looking back that that seems to be very much the demographic that Fleming was going for. That doesnt excuse anything nasty in his intentions but does at least explain the intellectual simplicity.

[@FragmentOffline]

Felix’s hook hand was because it was eaten by a shark. Which is very silly.

[@Juliett-A]

The books and older movies were worse, but Bond has always been a garbage character.

[@jb888888888]

The long thing that SMERSH is a contraction of is translated in the Bond novels as "Death to Spies." Presumably foreign spies not nice domestic Soviet spies.

[@WhiteJarrah]

The phrase referred to Nazi spies and Soviet defectors. Remember, SMERSH was founded during WWII.

[@coyoteartist]

The shaken martini, properly called a Bradford, which is a viable version if you do it right, was because Fleming though stirring compromised flavor. A martini contains more antioxidants then a stirred version. Fleming preferred gin to vodka but Bond did drink vodka martinis in the books and even explained in Casino Royale to the bartender that grain Vodka made the drink better. Prior to the 1960s, most vodka was made from potatoes and shaking would actually disperse the oil in the product, making it taste better. Shaking also would disperse the vermouth better.

[@jamescampbell39]

also adding black pepper caused the diesel fuel that leached into the Russian vodka to float to the surface and be skimmed off this was mentioned in the Bond books written in the 1970s. While in Hong Kong in the late 1970s I ordered a Vesper as 007 called it and did add the black pepper and sure enough, an oily substance did float up into the pepper this was Russian potatoes vodka and it did have the leached diesel fuel in it very small amount but it was in the mix.

[@KiramidHead]

Of the books, I've only read Casino Royale, and thought it was quite good, if a bit low key.

[@ryukanliminar]

Holy cow could this mean the tommy gun-wielding granny in the first ep of the 1987 TMNT cartoon was an homage to this movie!?

[@dracorex426]

Well maybe James Bond *likes* watered-down martinis.

[@evanhubler8431]

Can you do Scott Pilgrim? It'd be really interesting to see your opinion on it and its adaptation.

[@jamiebisson2752]

My understanding is SMERSH was a real, not fictional, agency.

[@ricardocantoral7672]

SMERSH was deactivated after WWII. Fleming used it as a stand in for the KGB.

[@TelenTerror]

Okay, the 'no one cares if the gold glows in the dark' thing made me howl

[@thomaskirkness-little5809]

There is a KZbin video listing all the alcoholic drinks Bond has in the books. I think whisky was the most common. Spies in the 60s were total alcoholics. The Avengers were knocking back booze with breakfast.

[@bodieofci5418]

Goldfinger the book is really poorly written in places. Bond tells Goldfinger who he is while spying him cheating at cards. Eh... Wtf.

[@ricardocantoral7672]

Bond often used his real name incognito because it's totally unremarkable hence there was no danger of his true identity being exposed. As a matter of fact, when Bond told Tiffany Case his real name in Diamonds Are Forever, she replied "Why not Joe Doe ?".