James Bond Will Return

Critical Perspectives on the 007 Film Franchise

Claire Hines, Terence McSweeney, Stuart Joy

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English

Columbia University Press
09 January 2024

Film, TV & Radio; Film theory & criticism; Film & movie: styles & genres

"For over six decades, James Bond has been a fixture of global culture, universally recognizable by the films' combination of action set pieces, sex, political intrigue, and outrageous gadgetry. But as the British Empire entered the final stages of collapse, as the Cold War wound down and the ""War on Terror"" began, and as the visions of masculinity and femininity the series presented began to strike many viewers as outdated, the Bond formula has adapted to the changing times. Spanning the franchise's entire history, from Sean Connery's iconic swagger to Daniel Craig's rougher, more visceral interpretation of the superspy, James Bond Will Return offers both academic readers and fans a comprehensive view of the series's transformations against the backdrop of real-world geopolitical intrigue and sweeping social changes.

Leading scholars consider each of the twenty-five films in the series, showing how and why Bond has changed and what elements of the formula have stood the test of time. Each chapter examines a single film from a distinct position, giving readers a full picture of the variety and breadth of the longest-running series in cinema history. Close formal readings; production histories; tracings of the political, social, and historical influences; analyses of the series' use of then-new filmmaking technologies; reflections on the star personas that have been built around the character-these and many more approaches combine to produce a wide-ranging view of the James Bond film franchise. Essential reading for Bond scholars and aficionados alike, James Bond Will Return brings out the many surprising complexities of an iconic character."

Edited by: Claire Hines, Terence McSweeney, Stuart Joy
Imprint: Columbia University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 235mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9780231207416
ISBN 10: 0231207417
Pages: 344
Publication Date: 09 January 2024
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Claire Hines is lecturer in film studies at the University of East Anglia. She is the author of The Playboy and James Bond: 007, Ian Fleming and Playboy Magazine (2018). Terence McSweeney is senior lecturer in film and television at Solent University. He is the author of Black Panther: Interrogating a Cultural Phenomenon (2021). Stuart Joy is the course leader for film and television at Solent University. He is the author of The Traumatic Screen: The Films of Christopher Nolan (2020).

Reviews for James Bond Will Return: Critical Perspectives on the 007 Film Franchise

With a stellar lineup of authors offering sharp, original analysis of every James Bond film to date, this book delivers a fascinating retrospective of the 007 franchise at a critical moment in the extended life of the series. -- Christoph Lindner, editor of The James Bond Phenomenon, Revisioning 007, and Resisting James Bond Featuring established Bond scholars and new voices, this collection offers new and exciting perspectives on the film franchise. While each of the Bond films are a product of the time they were made, these essays tell us that the series has relevance to the world we live in today. Well written and fun to read, James Bond Will Return will excite even the most seasoned Bond scholar and fan. -- Robert G. Weiner, coeditor of James Bond in World and Popular Culture James Bond Will Return takes a chronological, anthological approach to the study of the cinematic Bond, enabling a totalizing view of the so-called ‘Bond experience.’ This is the most expansive and well-organized coverage of the Bond cinematic universe to date, representing film and cultural history par excellence. -- Ian Kinane, author of Ian Fleming and the Politics of Ambivalence and general editor of the International Journal of James Bond Studies