James Bond, Agent 007 and the Spy Fiction Genre
Saturday night, my husband Peter and I decided to watch a movie. The 2021 James Bond movie, No Time to Die, currently streaming on Amazon Prime caught my eye. The write-up mentions it had received several awards, including a Golden Globe. Why not? I thought, go for some escapism, an old-fashioned spy movie with lots of action. My husband agreed. Three years ago, during the pandemic, I wrote a blog post in response to the death of actor Sean Connery, partially reminiscing about his role as the quintessential James Bond. At that time,I recommended to those looking for movies to stream during the lock-down, old 007 movies might be fun.
I should have followed my own advice, because the 2021 version, was sadly predictable, reworking tired old tropes: the isolated island where the villain resides with his weapon of mass destruction and the beautiful temptress who is the victim of her past.
The Golden Globe award was for the best theme song. And I agree it is a likeable tune, but a song does not make a movie. Other film awards were garnered for cinematography, sound and action. Yes, the film is loaded with car chases, shoot-outs and underwater scenes, but it all seemed so predictable.
I read online, another James Bond film is planned for release in 2024 or 2025. The new James Bond hasn’t been chosen-yet.
We both found ourselves nostalgically remembering the Austin Powers films. Dr. Evil was a lot more fun.
Ian Fleming penned his original series of 14 novels featuring Agent 007 in the 1950' and early 1960s. So far, Hollywood has produced 26 James Bond movies. The very first one was Dr. No. ( 1963) It was released 60 years ago!!!
The writer in me, wants to challenge myself to figuring out a new approach to an old genre-the spy novel. Does there have to be one villain and does this individual have to be a twisted psychopath? Can our hero be an anti-hero? Do the characters need to be cisgender? And if 007 is still driving that same sports car, can’t someone come up with some new and unpredictable gadgets for the “getaway.”
Writing Prompt: Imagine a spy story and write a scene that shows the hero/heroine discovering something that might help them thwart their opponent. Surprise yourself and the reader.
Sometimes when restrict your creative options, the challenge can propel you to write something innovative. It’s always worth a try and every time you put sentences on a page, you learn something about the writing craft. Good luck.
Thank you for reading and don’t forget to sign-up to follow my blog on Word press or Medium. As always, I appreciate your feedback.
Published by Nadja Maril
Nadja Maril is a communications professional who has over 10 years experience as a magazine editor. A writer and journalist, Maril is the author of several books including: “American Lighting 1840–1940”, “Antique Lamp Buyer’s Guide”, “Me, Molly Midnight; the Artist’s Cat”, and “Runaway, Molly Midnight; the Artist’s Cat”. Her short stories and essays have been published in several small online journals including Lunch Ticket, Change Seven, Scarlet Leaf Review and Defunkt Magazine. She has an MFA in creative writing from Stonecoast at the University of Southern Maine. Former Editor-in-Chief of What’s Up ? Publishing, former Editor of Chesapeake Taste Magazine a regional lifestyle magazine based in Annapolis, and former Lighting Editor of Victorian Homes Magazine, Maril has written hundreds of newspaper and magazines articles on a variety of subjects.. View more posts
Originally published at http://nadjamaril.com on May 23, 2023.
