After the recent success of Skyfall, probably the surprise blockbuster of 2012, Neil Purvis and Robert Wade have announced that the movie would be their last as co-screenwriters respectively, ending a 13 year relationship with the Bond franchise that started with the 1999 film The World Is Not Enough. The question is, how much, if any, will the Bond franchise miss them? Inevitably after the success that Skyfall has received both commercially and critically, the film will be seen as the defining moment of the Purvis/Wade era and on reflection it is easily the best Bond film they have penned. I felt that Skyfall was incredibly successful in the way it blended its excellent action sequences with in-depth character development and emotion, aswell as providing the perfect send off for Judi Denchs M. In the end it all seemed to come together and with the excellent direction by Sam Mendes the film was arguably the best Bond film in years. However, problems for the film arose in pre-production and sheds light on how Skyfall developed as a film.
It seems to be definitive knowledge that the problems with MGM and the delays this caused for Skyfall has actually allowed for a more complete film, allowing time to refine and hone a script that was able to give the audience a fulfilling experience. The script while containing traditional action sequences expected from a Bond film, was very heavy on character development, something very uncommon when you think of Bond but an aspect I hope will be further expanded upon in future. Their motivations for leaving may very well just be that they feel they have pushed Bond as far as they can and are hoping for new challenges. Their logic may be that leaving on top is the perfect way to leave and may be seen as a sensible decision in future, allowing them both to leave behind their own legacy. However, their decision must be taken into perspective when considering their very chequered writing past. Such highs like Skyfall and Casino Royale have been blunted by one of the worst Bond films to date Die Another Day. It is intriguing to note that Die Another Day was the only Bond film where Purvis and Wade did not have an additional writer alongside them, providing them with a differing perspective and allowing to tidy up scenes. The film, while admittedly having a promising start, was a truly woeful installment in the series. The problems are evident later on in the film where every other conversation between characters contains multiple puns, the rather corny villain who doesnt instil any trace of fear and not to mention the only inclusion of CGI in the Bond franchise, which was frankly superfluous. Also worth mentioning is the horrible theme song by Madonna, but that is an inclusion not made by the writers. Some fans maintain Quantum of Solace is just as bad but personally I feel its decidedly average, almost forgettable and was just worse than Casino Royale in pretty much every department that meant it was an incredibly disappointing installment. Its possible that the success Casino Royale enjoyed, particularly with fans, meant that the expectations for Quantum were incredibly high and near impossible to reach, while with Skyfall the situation was reversed, allowing for a new creative approach to be welcomed.
The Purvis/Wade era is certainly one that doesnt hold a distinctive style throughout, rather allowing the director to move the script forward rather than the writers in the drivers seat. On reflection, the films that the pair have written do contrast greatly with, for example, The World Is Not Enough differing from Skyfall, but in the end their series of films, while certainly not all hits, all have their moments of enjoyment and it really is a credit to Purvis and Wade that they have stuck around for as long as they have. With their departure, the fate of future Bond films rests on the shoulders of John Logan, who incidentally co-wrote Skyfall and has been signed on to write the next two installments of the franchise. Deciding to run with John Logan as a single writer could prove beneficial and may allow for a new era of Bond films to materialize and with Daniel Craig signing on for the next two Bond installments it could prove a definitive moment in maintaining the momentum that Skyfall has managed to create. Logans previous body of work includes Gladiator, Hugo & The Aviator, so clearly he has the credentials and experience to be able to withstand the pressures of writing a Bond film, something that may have been overwhelming to a relative newcomer. It will be intriguing to see whether Logan decides to continue the development of Bond as a character following the death of Judi Denchs M and how that will affect his relationship with Ralph Fiennes, who was revealed to be the new M at the end of the film or decide to forge a new path.
I think we may find that Skyfall was the beginnings of a transitional period for the Bond franchise and that the story arc developed within Skyfall was a purposeful inclusion that would allow Logan to focus on this and continue throughout the next few Bond installments, potentially until Daniel Craigs final outing as 007. This use of a story arc has been done before with Bonds relationship with Vesper and her death in Casino Royale playing a significant role in the follow up Quantum of Solace, but with Skyfall having not being adapted from an existing Ian Fleming novel it seems to make sense to continue forwards from Skyfall rather than tracking backwards. Ultimately, in the end, I think a change of writers at this stage is a wise decision and one that will allow for a fresh creative approach to move the series forward. John Logan certainly has pressure to deliver.