It’s been awhile since I checked in with James Bond, and his early days as chronicled by Charlie Higson. Set in the 1930s, the young Bond finds himself on an adventure that takes him on a dangerous journey through the Mexican jungles, and a dangerous rat-run on a hidden Caribbean island. That island is a…
Tag: james bond
Forever and a Death (2017) – Donald E. Westlake
Back in the late 90s, acclaimed author Donald E. Westlake was asked to make an attempt at the story for the next James Bond film, landing solidly in the Pierce Brosnan era. Complications ensued, and it never happened. The story, Forever and a Death was finally unveiled in 2017, posthumously becoming the last book Westlake…
Get Smart (1967) – One of Our Olives is Missing, When Good Fellows Get Together, and Dr. Yes
Siegfried (Bernie Kopell) is back in One of Our Olives is Missing. And also along for the ride this time? Carol Burnett! She plays country singer Ozark Annie in this episode written by Jess Oppenheimer (the creator of I Love Lucy), who also served as the director. First premiering on 4 November, 1967, the story…
Get Smart (1966) – The Greatest Spy on Earth, Island of the Darned, and Bronzefinger
Let’s all go to the circus! Agent 86, Maxwell Smart (Don Adams) and 99 (Barbara Feldon) go undercover at the big top in The Greatest Spy on Earth. Written by Dee Caruso and Gerald Gardner, this episode was first broadcast on 19 November 1966. They are assigned to break a KAOS diamond smuggling ring that…
Magpie Murders (2016) – Anthony Horowitz
I’ve always enjoyed Anthony Horowitz’s writing. I dug his young spy novels, the Alex Rider series, and his foray into James Bond territory. But he is not a writer to be confined by genre, and when I came across Magpie Murders in one of the little libraries in a neighbor’s yard, I had to at…
The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) – John McTiernan
At the height of his James Bond run, Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo teamed up with director John McTiernan to deliver a vastly entertaining remake of the Steve McQueen classic, The Thomas Crown Affair. What the film delivers is a bold, sexy tale. I hadn’t watched this one in years, and I forgot how solid,…
Double or Die (2007) – Charlie Higson
Charlie Higson delivers another exciting Young James Bond story. But I have to say, his youth seemed pretty adventure-filled. So much so that you have to wonder if he was bored being 007. This one is a bit different, with more clues and intellect involved. The past two adventures saw young Bond going after baddies,…
TIFF 25: Fuze dir. David Mackenzie
The one thing that I came out of Fuze knowing for sure is that this is the first time I’ve seen Aaron Taylor-Johnson in a role where I thought, yes, I can see this fella playing 007. Now, it hasn’t been announced he is, or anything of the sort, but I’m saying what I saw…
Casino Royale (1967) – Val Guest, Ken Hughes, Robert Parrish, Joe McGrath, and John Huston
It’s been a long time since I watched Casino Royale, a spoof of 007 films, which had originally been developed as a serious adaptation of the Ian Fleming novel. When the Bond filmmakers, and Sean Connery didn’t want to be involved, the producers held onto the rights and went with a comedy instead. With five…
Blood Fever (2006) – Charlie Higson
The end of James Bond’s first year at Eton is almost here, and the young boy, still thirteen, is working to figure out what to do with his summer holidays. His Aunt Charmain endorses his choice to go on a school trip to Sardinia, with the caveat that if it gets too dull, he can…
The Mind Reels 