Category Archives: Spies

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit review

February 6, 2014 flawintheiris

Directed by Kenneth BranaghWritten by Adam Cozad and David Koepp, based on characters created by Tom ClancyIt's a very rotten spy thriller that I'll pan. I just love the genre. I enjoy the twisty plots, the suspense and the international locations. But I can't say too much about Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit impressed me.This is…Read More

More thoughts on James Bond 007 and Skyfall

November 20, 2012 flawintheiris

As you may have read, I really liked Skyfall. While recognizing how many problems the film has, it really worked as an action movie, and furthered the franchise, I think, by offering a more human, more vulnerable Agent 007. A man with a past. And given the box office, it seems audiences agree. But, wow,…Read More

Skyfall review

November 13, 2012 flawintheiris

Directed by Sam Mendes Written by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and John Logan based on characters by Ian Fleming James Bond returns for the 23rd time (in an EON Productions film), the third time for Daniel Craig. Since he took the mantle of the most famous secret agent in the world (something of an obstacle…Read More

James Bond 007: The Pierce Brosnan Era

November 8, 2012 flawintheiris

For years, even before he was Bond, Pierce Brosnan seemed a natural choice to have a licence to kill. The story is that he visited the set of For Your Eyes Only to see his wife Cassandra Harris, who was playing the Countess who is romanced by Roger Moore's James Bond. Producer "Cubby" Broccoli immediately…Read More

James Bond 007: The Timothy Dalton Era

November 4, 2012 flawintheiris

There are those who think Dalton's tenure as 007 was a high point for the series — I'm not one of them. I get what the producers at Eon Productions were trying to do: a course-correction. The last couple of Moore Bonds had gone too camp, too silly. In Timothy Dalton they had someone who…Read More

James Bond 007: The Roger Moore Era

November 3, 2012 flawintheiris

Roger Moore got no respect. Well, maybe as a debonair Englishman, a knight of the realm and for his charity work, he did. But in a stadium full of Bond fans, there'd be crickets when asking for a hurrah from those who think Moore was the best Bond. While I don't know that I'd be…Read More

James Bond 007: On Her Majesty’s Secret Service

October 30, 2012 flawintheiris

I couldn't dub this the George Lazenby era. He was only in one film, after all. But he does have the honour of playing Bond in one of the best in the canon — all quite separate from the issue of casting. And what of that casting? In a franchise where EON producers Albert R.…Read More

James Bond 007: The Sean Connery Era

October 27, 2012 flawintheiris

"Bond. James Bond." And so goes the classic line. Sean Connery was the first actor to play Bond in the long-running film series, and, for many, he's never been bettered. I feel I should offer a caveat: I've been watching James Bond 007 since I was a kid. It's probably my favourite movie franchise. For…Read More

50 Years of James Bond 007

October 6, 2012 flawintheiris

Fifty years ago (yesterday) Dr. No opened in cinemas, and movies were never quite the same. That was years before I born: James Bond has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. My parents enjoyed the movies and they let me watch anything they were watching. It's kind of funny…Read More

A Cult of One: The Russia House

September 8, 2012 flawintheiris

Welcome back to this irregular feature on Flaw In The Iris, where I revisit an unheralded or underloved movie in my vault. I'm hoping to explain why the film works and why it deserves a fanbase. I'm also willing to accept I may be the only person to really appreciate the film in question... feel…Read More