Films/DVD Asylum

Posted by jbmcb (A) on August 09, 2005 at 13:40:34

In Reply to: Re: Watchin' Dr. No last night posted by jamesgarvin on August 9, 2005 at 11:50:31:

> The lack of toys in the old days may have been less because of the film maker's desire not to use toys, as opposed to the lack of technology, compared with today.

There were plenty of gadgets back then, in common use even, they just weren't that prevalent in the books. They were brought in to "punch up" the movies. Don't get me wrong, I think they're pretty cool, when they aren't totally rediculous

Cool:
Aston Martin DB7 with machine guns and ejector seat
Lame:
Aston Martin "Vanish" Semi-invisible car? What is this, wonder woman?

Cool:
Lotus Esprit. Almost as unrealistic as an inivsible car, but it's damn cool.
Lame:
BMW 750iL. Right, Bond driving around in a German four door sedan. Probably more realistic as far as spy-cover-identities go, but c'mon, Bond's sedan from Germany? NO.

Cool:
Buzzsaw Rolex (although the superstrong magnet thing was dumb)
Lame:
Laser Omega, if for no other reason the "laser beam" looks like a negative scratch

Cool:
Unreliable fountain pen rocket launcher
Lame:
Glass shattering ring. Oh come on! A fist and a rag work as just as well.

Cool:
Little Nelly, collapsable DIY kit plane that actually worked, loaded with feasable weaponry
Lame:
Super armored gondola. Your British pounds at work :)

Cool:
Ring camera. Wow, a gadget a real spy would actually use!
Lame:
Microfilm camera, with 007 written on it. Why not put his license plat e number on it as well? All secret agents tag their secret gadgets so they don't get confused at the airport, don't they?

Cool:
The ATAC, the targeting computer in From Your Eyes Only. A big, boxy calculator looking affair, that looked like it actually did something
Lame:
The Solar Agitator from Golden Gun. A gold cigarette case that will solve the world's energy problems. Um, OK.

Cool:
Underwater rebreather, seen in a bunch of movies. Something that might actually be useful in a variety of situations
Lame:
Camera Geiger counter. Um, wouldn't the radiation ruin your film? You could just use a regular camera for that, if your film gets runied there's some beta particles floating around somewhere.

Cool:
Voice changer from Diamonds. Lets you be someone else, and is, at least nowadays, feasable.
Lame:
Identograph. Several million pounds worth of computer equipment to do what a sketch artist and a halfway decent filing clerk could do, probably faster as well. I've seen better graphics in video games from the same time as Eyes Only, anyways.

Cool:
Glare eliminating sunglasses from View to a Kill. OK, not that cool, but at least they *could* work.
Lame:
Homing indicator Seiko, if for no other reason Bond doesn't wear Seikos. Rolex or Omega only, please.

Cool:
Briefcase in From Russia With Love. Not that fancy, but probably the most useful thing Bond has ever carried.
Lame:
Grappling Belt. Isn't a belt sort of a grappling hook to begin with? I think they got this idea from that smart kid from the Goonies (who wanted to be James Bond, ironically)

/*Music is subjective. Sound is not.*/