BY BENNETT CAMPBELL FERGUSON @bcfonfilm
Each month, BCF selects a repertory screening in Portland worth seeking out.
What’s with the secrecy surrounding the Hollywood Theatre’s mystery James Bond double feature on May 26? Is it all in the name of cinematic mischief? Or is the theater afraid to admit that they’re bringing back Pierce Brosnan’s glacier-surfing antics in “Die Another Day”? (Kidding! Although I’m now regretting putting the possibility out into the universe.)
Personally, I think the mystery is a stroke of marketing genius. Bond fans love a turf war–Craig versus Brosnan, Connery versus Moore–and the crew at the Hollywood is savvy enough to know that announcing which films they’re showing would immediately alienate multiple factions of the fandom.
Put it this way: If the theater is showing, say, “License to Kill” (please do!), discretion avoids turning off fans who, unlike Christopher Nolan, don’t dig Timothy Dalton’s vengeful, flamethrower-wielding 007. It doesn’t matter which brand of Bond purist or partisan you are; if you’re a diehard, you’ll buy a ticket hoping your favorite 007 will be in the mix.
Theoretically, it could be any of the 25 Bond films. Or could it? Since two of the most iconic installments in the series are celebrating notable anniversaries this year, the screening might not be much of a mystery after all (though if my hunch is wrong, I promise to issue the obligatory disingenuous Twitter apology).
Let’s get this out of the way: “Goldfinger” is turning 60. Boring, misogynistic “Goldfinger.” It’s always a tossup whether the early Connery films will offend you or put you to sleep first, but plenty of fans consider them unimpeachable, so I wouldn’t be shocked to see “Goldfinger” back on the big screen.
Happily, a better Bond film is turning 55: “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.” Yes, George Lazenby’s rather wooden as 007, but be honest: Has any Bond action scene topped the film’s surreal nighttime ski chase? Has any Bond girl smoldered as soulfully as Diana Rigg? “Majesty’s” may not star the best Bond, but it’s the best Bond movie–and I’m willing to sit through “Goldfinger” to get to it. Tickets ($10-$12) available at hollywoodtheatre.org.
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