Discussed in these episodes
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610 No, Mr. Blond, I Expect You to Die
Cue the electric bass and the full brass section, we’re talking Bond, James Bond this week. We make time for “No Time to Die,” of course, and the rest of the Daniel Craig era. How does it hold up, where does it go from here, what would we like to see? How does the latest movie reset the table? Were we shaken, stirred, or something in between?
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4.7 Skyfall
Season 4 of Not Playing draws to a close with a dealer’s choice: 2012’s Skyfall, starring Daniel Craig, and released on the 50th anniversary of the franchise. A fitting end.
Hot topics include salt and pepper beards, Bond age, throwbacks to the beginning of the franchise, and what might be in store for season 5.
Programming Note: In addition to this capsule episode, which contains our discussion before and after the film, members can watch along with Lex and Dan in a full-length commentary track, available in the members-only First Class feed. If you’re not already a member, why not sign up? And if you are, now’s a great time to update your membership allocations and maybe throw a little support in the direction of Not Playing. Thanks!
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4.6 Casino Royale
James Bond is a hard man to catch up to, but Dan and Lex have done just that as they sit down to watch the role’s current (as of this recording) portrayer, Daniel Craig, in his debut outing: 2006’s Casino Royale.
Hot topics include why blondes have more fun, Lex’s infuriation about onscreen poker protocol, and the secret origins of 007.
Programming Note: In addition to this capsule episode, which contains our discussion before and after the film, members can watch along with Lex and Dan in a full-length commentary track, available in the members-only First Class feed. If you’re not already a member, why not sign up? And if you are, now’s a great time to update your membership allocations and maybe throw a little support in the direction of Not Playing. Thanks!
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4.5 GoldenEye
We’ve hit the ’90s and with it the tenure of the effortlessly cool Pierce Brosnan as James Bond. Lex and Dan settle in for his debut in the role in 1995’s GoldenEye.
Hot topics include having your grim cake and eating it too, why the popular video game may be better than the movie, and how not to handle sexual harassment.
Programming Note: In addition to this capsule episode, which contains our discussion before and after the film, members can watch along with Lex and Dan in a full-length commentary track, available in the members-only First Class feed. If you’re not already a member, why not sign up? And if you are, now’s a great time to update your membership allocations and maybe throw a little support in the direction of Not Playing. Thanks!
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4.4 The Living Daylights
It’s the first of Timothy Dalton’s two outings as 007: 1987’s The Living Daylights, and Dan and Lex are buckled in for a new, more serious Bond.
Hot topics include the regression of female characters, a decided lack of Bond-ish one liners, and oh my god is there skiing in this movie too?
Programming Note: In addition to this capsule episode, which contains our discussion before and after the film, members can watch along with Lex and Dan in a full-length commentary track, available in the members-only First Class feed. If you’re not already a member, why not sign up? And if you are, now’s a great time to update your membership allocations and maybe throw a little support in the direction of Not Playing. Thanks!
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4.3 For Your Eyes Only
It’s on to one of the longest-tenured Bonds—and the first English actor to play him—Sir Roger Moore. Dan and Lex take on 1981’s For Your Eyes Only, the fifth of Moore’s seven outings.
Hot topics include Blofeld’s side gig on a particular Disney ride, a strange point of continuity, why you should always pick a car that rolls, and yet another winter chase sequence.
Programming Note: In addition to this capsule episode, which contains our discussion before and after the film, members can watch along with Lex and Dan in a full-length commentary track, available in the members-only First Class feed. If you’re not already a member, why not sign up? And if you are, now’s a great time to update your membership allocations and maybe throw a little support in the direction of Not Playing. Thanks!
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4.2 On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Filling Sean Connery’s shoes is no easy task, perhaps even more so when you’re an Australian model.
Dan and Lex return to consider the second actor to fill the title role in the storied franchise, and the only one with a single credit to his name: George Lazenby in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
Hot topics include questionable parenting decisions, lengthy winter wonderchases, under- and overcranking, and exactly why this never happened to the other guy.
Programming Note: In addition to this capsule episode, which contains our discussion before and after the film, members can watch along with Lex and Dan in a full-length commentary track, available in the members-only First Class feed. If you’re not already a member, why not sign up? And if you are, now’s a great time to update your membership allocations and maybe throw a little support in the direction of Not Playing. Thanks!
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4.1 Goldfinger
Four. Season four.
Not Playing is back, and this time around we’re delving into a fifty-plus year franchise with its fair share of fans and detractors: James Bond. We’ll be picking the best entry from the tenure of each actor to play the legendary secret agent.
To kick it off, we’ll be starting with perhaps the most iconic movie in the franchise: 1964’s Goldfinger, starring future Russian submarine captain Sean Connery.
Hot topics include something familiar about the personage of our villain, just how long it takes to paint someone to death, and, the relative wokeness of the James Bond franchise. (Spoiler: Not very.)
Programming Note: In addition to this capsule episode, which contains our discussion before and after the film, members can watch along with Lex and Dan in a full-length commentary track, available in the members-only First Class feed. If you’re not already a member, why not sign up? And if you are, now’s a great time to update your membership allocations and maybe throw a little support in the direction of Not Playing. Thanks!