That would be great. Sadly, I don't see it happening.

OK, forgetting that it isn't Casino Royale, how about the terrible action directing, the forgettable plot and uninteresting villain?

LOTR was first in books that have been for decades so when the movies came along it was more wet fart, SW OT was truly a cinematic phenomenon.

Hey don't look at me i hate QOS and Royale!

Boondock Saints -- I loved this movie until my movie tastes matured a bit

Not a movie... but Christian Bale. I love Bale but ever since Batman he seems to be taking it too easy.

Bullshiat. LOTR doesn't hold up the way the Star Wars movies do, that's why I picked them. Six years later I still find M&C a heart-stopping experience, while ROTK is just a good but long movie. I wouldn't have said this in 2005 but I say it now.

.... and now you're 0 for 2.

Every time I read any of Fleming's novels, I always picture Peter O'Toole in the Bond role. Craig is a great Bond, but he's not how I envisioned Fleming's character. He's more cocky, blunt, impulsive, and violent, which I suppose is the point given that he represents the neophyte Bond.

I too have read most of the Fleming Bond books, and QoS feels nothing like them. Casino Royale is a much better representation, although I still think From Russia With Love hit the nail right on the head in transplanting the Bond of the books to the screen.

As for Bond done "correctly," I still don't see how QoS fits that description. It's a jumbled mess that, when watched carefully, still doesn't make much sense. I'm still down for several more Craig-led Bond films, but I'd rather watch any of the Brosnan or Dalton Bond films over QoS.

"I'd rather watch any of the Brosnan or Dalton Bond films over QoS."

Yep. Also the Craig era is overly focused on the grit and brutality which is an overload, the older movies did it more matter-of-factly which made them more brutal. Also From Russia and OHMSS still never forgot to have the great adventure aspect.

"Terrible" is, of course, subjective. The pseudo-guerrilla style may not be my preference, but a lot of audiences enjoy it. The plot, I'll readily concede, lacks the sex appeal of robbing Fort Knox or invading a hollowed-out volcano rocket base. But I do see it as something Fleming easily would have concocted: An international consortium comprised of seemingly benevolent world activists secretly plots to profit off turmoil they create.

I will admit I was similarly underwhelmed by Tomorrow Never Dies in 1997; despite Jonathan Pryce's charisma, Eliot Carver just didn't do much for me. Flash forward a few years and all of a sudden I'm rewatching that movie thinking about Rupert Murdoch and the legions of Fox News viewers. It's not much of a step from the real world to Bond's world, and Quantum of Solace represents one of the most precarious such steps yet.

Fleming's novels were written to be read in a singular setting; they're fast-paced and (much as I love them), sometimes little more than a fictionalized travelogue. Quantum of Solace runs at a pace comparable to that of what Fleming intended his readers to have with his written Bond thrillers. In that regard, I feel that it very much feels like one of his novels. And, as I've already said, I believe that Dominic Greene and the Quantum organization are both elements that would easily have arisen from Fleming.

For what it's worth, I think From Russia with Love is still the single best Bond movie of all, and in large part that's because of the faithfulness to Fleming's novel (could've done without the convoluted S.P.E.C.T.R.E. tack-on, but whatever). Had Quantum been one of his actual novels (the short story, while a personal favorite of mine, has nothing to do with the film), I would imagine it easily outranking Moonraker, Diamonds Are Forever, The Spy Who Loved Me and The Man with the Golden Gun for me as a reader.

One last thought on the literary/cinematic Bond perspective: It's been ages since I've seen a Bond movie that I felt evoked much of any of the same feelings as Fleming's novels. The Brosnan era (of which I'm mostly a fan) reminded me of video games.

Of course, it's always a matter of taste. Looking at Flickchart, I see that I have my top ten Bond movies ranked thusly:

An excellent way of thinking.

Don't bother. He doesn't care if you approve or not.

The Craig era is a phase since what's in fashion now is dark gritty realism, i'd honestly prefer Austin Powers style Bond movies if i had to choose one of the two extremes.

Thought it was a lot of fun when I first saw it in theaters. When I rewatched it again for the DVDTalk October Horror Challenge, I thought completely different. The last 15-20 minutes where it's just Freddy/Jason is good, but everything before is awful.

Good point.

For me:

Superman Returns...I still love it but I totally get what people hated about it
Transformer films....I love the 1st one and I like the 2nd. But again, I get why folks hate them.
The Fifth Element...Another film I LOVE but it's pointless defending it from others anymore.
Van Helsing...I like it a lot less than I did originally, but I still find it entertaining. But the bad parts stick out more now so I don't bother defending it.
Lost Planet Games...Wait, sorry. Wrong Forum.

I hate to even say this, but there was a time in my life where I actually enjoyed the remake of Bedazzled with Fraser and Hurley. I used to say that Hurley's hotness could forgive any other shortcomings (read: everything else) in the film. I've since recanted that statement and sold it back to Second Spin.

Same here

Sea of Love - I used to rave about this movie when I first saw it, even though it wasn't that well received. For years I called it the last great Al Pacino performance and thought he should've at least been Oscar nominated for it. Today I see it as an average thriller and my opinion of Pacino in it has gone down.

I recently re-watched that a few months ago and was underwhelmed by the entire film. It just felt like live action fan fiction to me.


Something I will no longer defend, while not a movie, is the anime series Dragonball Z. When I was in high school I loved that series and would watch it every day on Cartoon Network. My uncle always made fun of it, saying all the characters did was stand around and look at each other. I would defend it by saying he shouldn't base his judgment on a few random clips he's seen. Then, I didn't watch it for a few years. Cartoon Network did one of their season restarts and I forgot to start watching it when the new season started. In late '06/early '07 the season sets started coming out. At that point I hadn't watched Dragonball Z for probably 3 years, but still had fond memories of it. So, I bought the first four seasons when they were released and by the end of season 3, my opinion of the show plummeted. At that point, I realized everything my uncle had said about that show was true. I watched season 4 thinking it might lift my spirits a bit, but it did nothing.

I find it funny that a thread about "Movies You No Longer Defend" has elicited such a debate over different movies.

I could list tons I have given up on defending. But I still like them. So I haven't actually given up on these films. Feels odd listing them. I am just gonna list a few. Some of these are very dated. Don't know why only these sprang to mind ...

The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen - I remember loving this in theaters and defending it many times. On my last viewing I thought it was pretty bad actually.

Daredevil: Director's Cut - Man I went out of my way to tell people to avoid the theater version and to give this one a try. It's still not a great movie.

The Hunted - I acted like this was the greatest ninja / samurai movie ever made. I defended this one a lot. Now I don't know what I was thinking back then.

Friday The 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan - Everyone hates this film! But I have always liked it. Heck, I confess, I cried when Jason died at the end when I first saw this movie. There. I said it. I loved the cast! Jensen Daggett's character's link to Jason was very interesting. Scott Reeves was Ryan on The Young & The Restless. Kelly Hu was in the movie!!! Kane Hodder is the best Jason! I haven't seen it in years but I gave up defending it. People just hate it. I always had some special connection with this film. Looking forward to the commentary on the deluxe edition! (When I buy it!)

Jason X - Everyone hated this one too. I loved it! I've watched it dozens of times. I rated it very highly on my last viewing of it. Proud to own it! But I give up defending it if no one can see / understand what I liked about it.

Puppetmasters - I remember this one fondly. I still remember the scene where the main guy is in the shower screaming to get the creatures off of him and the girl fully clothed goes in to hold him. Powerful scene. Still need to buy this one. Not defending it anymore. If people think it's a cheap made for cable type movie then I give up trying to change their minds.

The Relic - I love Penelope Ann Miller! No one wants to watch this. I try to tell them to watch it and wait until the end for some really cool stuff. But I gave up trying.

Codename: The Cleaner - I love Lucy Liu! This movie is a lot of fun. But everyone says it was mediocre.

Ballistic: Ecks Vs. Sever - Considered by most as the worst movie ever made! I love Lucy Liu! She kicks ass in this film. The guy who plats Darth Maul in Star Wars is in this film. I've always enjoyed this film. I liked the extras on this film. One of the main girls was Katana on Mortal Kombat. The device that causes heart attacks was even interesting. Antonio Banderas for crying out loud! I don't get the hate for this film. But I give up.

Frequency - Loved it. But for some reason people I know have a hard time sitting through the whole movie. Go figure.

No Escape - I tried to get so many people to watch this. My uncle fell asleep during it. I gave up.

Predator 2 - Always a favorite of mine. But everyone just complains about it.

Okay ... this is really dated but it fits this topic!

The CG Barbie movies - My family really liked these so I bought several of them on DVD years ago. Everyone who heard or saw them on my shelf were surprised so over and over I had to defend these films. I tried to explain they were really good, were not just for girls or children, ect,. But I gave up trying to explain / defend these a while ago. No one can get past the title "Barbie". We even gave a bunch of these to family and years later and they still never even touched them. I still have the original 3D Pegasus DVD with the 3D glasses and the Pauper one that came with a music CD.

Lastly ...

Mary-kate and Ashley films - Years ago my family went through a phase where we rented all of those films. No one understood that either. I defended those as well. Even New York Minute. I assumed MK & A would take acting lessons and move into mainstream film. Never happened. Whatever appeal of their earlier work is pretty much gone now. I defend none except that I still enjoyed New York Minute the last time I saw it. Andy Richter is a blast in the movie.

Please do not judge my taste in films from this! I know this must be a list of total duds on your list. But something struck me on these films and I even defended them / promoted them for years. I am sure there are plenty more as well.

Oh god! Jaws 3 & 4 ... I will never defend those again.

Jesus...you liked some really bad films.

Or for a moment turned into a "What makes a good Bond movie" forum.


Giantrobo: I pretty much agree with you 100% on that list you made. I still find those movies fun for the most part, but I totally understand why people would not like them.

I have several movies I don't defend simply because I don't feel like justifying myself and it's simply a matter of taste. Examples:

-Just about any David Lynch movie
-A fair share of Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez movies
-Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers- again, a matter of taste. Retrospectively, this movie wound up being a pretty frightening predictor of the future of mass media style.