10 Reasons Why Chris Nolan Should Stay Away From James Bond

By Hamish Crawford /

1. Aren€™t The Bond Films Nolan-ish Enough Already?

The €˜Dark Knight Trilogy€™ casts a long shadow over Daniel Craig€™s €˜Bondage€™€”indeed Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson cheerfully referred to Casino Royale as €˜Bond Begins€™, just in case anyone thought they might have made a decision for artistic reasons rather than following the money. And it€™s more than just Bond€”this whole craze for €˜reboots€™, frequently accompanied by fanboy superlatives €˜dark€™, €˜realistic€™ (or €˜gritty€™, according to peanut butter preference), and in North America, €˜badass€™. Enough already. I admit it€™s made for some thoughtful and inventive takes on familiar ideas€”but it€™s also made for derivative, sloppy ones (in fairness, at least The Bourne Legacy was just pointless, not laughably stupid like Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters). I know the box office will prove me wrong, but there€™s a fundamental idiocy in making a €˜realistic€™ or €˜dark€™ Superman. Tim Burton realized it in 1998, but sadly Christopher Nolan didn€™t. And note how Man of Steel is actually directed by Watchmen€™s Zack Snyder, but Nolan is all everyone€™s talking about. Young directors from Snyder to The Amazing Spider-Man€™s Marc Webb are evaluated solely by their Nolan impersonations and not their own visions. Fundamentally, that€™s the biggest reason Christopher Nolan should stay away from James Bond€”because it would end up looking like virtually every big-budget movie that€™s come down the pipeline this decade.