Some Kind of Hero: The Remarkable Story of the James Bond Films Paperback – November 1, 2018

If you are a diehard Bond fan like I am, and have seen all of the dvd making-of featurettes over the years, and have read just about anything there is on the Bond films, I guarantee that you will still have moments while reading this book when you will say to yourself "Hey.... I didn't know that."Not only is this book jammed with interesting data, but it's structured so that each film gets a chapter. The cool part about that is that if you want to read about "The Spy Who Loved Me" and you're only at "Thunderball," it's easy to go right to the specific film. Also, the book is written in a very smooth, easy style (this isn't Nathaniel Hawthorne, after all). The combination of interesting subject and inviting prose make for a book that you'll dislike putting down.This book is also HEAVILY notated, with tons of sources listed at the end, so you can then possibly head down THAT rabbit hole. Great job, I'm glad I bought this (and I own The James Bond Bedside Companion and the James Bond Film Encyclopedia).

It took me months to read this book. Mind you, not because it was a tough read and hard to slog through. Quite the contrary. It took me months because it's a massive tome jam-packed with behind-the-scenes information on all the James Bond films through Skyfall, and with a nod to SPECTRE (which I presume had not yet been released when the book went to print). Having co-authored a 007 book myself, I know that putting the entire history of one of cinema's longest-running series into a single volume can be a daunting task, but Ajay Chowdhury and Matthew Field have risen to the challenge and turned out a book that comprehensively details not only the usual behind-the-scenes anecdotes but also the complications of the Broccoli family (and, for the first nine films, Harry Saltzman) in dealing with both changing studio regimes, a musical chairs of studio production chiefs, and changing political and cultural climates. Keeping James Bond not only relevant but a dominant icon in international film for over 50 years is no mean feat, and Chowdhury and Field do an admirable job of chronicling the ups and downs. At over 600 pages, this book is not exactly a quick read but more like a martini, shaken, not stirred, meant to be savored.

This book covers the making of all the [serious] James Bond movies so far, Including "Never Say Never". While obviously not being able to take a seriously deep dive into all of them, otherwise the book would be 3,000 pages long, it provides a Lot of information about each one beyond just the plot. The technologies involved, locations, casting (the Timothy Dalton section is illuminating), politics, etc. You'll learn a lot about how (and why) each movie was made.It also covers the machinations going on at the various studios, how the financing kept changing, and especially the intricate licensing conflicts and deals. It goes into detail about the struggles over who "owned" Thunderball and Casino Royale, Ian Fleming's relationship with the movie world and a wealth of other information usually not addressed in mere fanbooks. And yes, it does discuss who wrote the James Bond Theme.There are interviews galore with folks in front of and behind the camera, and I'm amazed how many and who they got and what they were willing to say. This isn't just an interview book,though, the (necessarily excerpted) interviews are tightly focused on the matter at hand.Yes, as in most cases, the Kindle version's display of photos is disappointing, but since most of them are of the movie posters, it's not something catastrophic you lose if you value (I do) the Kindle's portability.All in all a highly recommended book.

I only received the book 4 days ago. Have read 127 pages. So far have learned quiet a bit that I didn’t know. Like how UA completely misread DR NO in the US after it had already opened in the UK and Europe. I lived in Pasadena, CA at the time and I remember the picture played one week at the United Artists Theater on a saturation booking. In other words, UA took to many theaters everywhere as they had no faith in the picture. They wanted to get their money out of the picture fast as they saw no repeat business. In 1963 there was no national television buy. All advertising was done on a local basis and UA didn’t spend that much money on the picture. As I remember they released the film the first week in a May. Back then, the first of May was not considered the best playtime. According to this book, UA in the US was not thrilled after screening the picture. They must have thought it was to European and not commercial in the States. However, it certainly wasn’t the first time that has happened.

In some ways, this is a great casual read for a Bond fan. It goes film-by-film and provides plenty of production information, including background on what was happening with the studio, the producers and the Bond-of-the-moment at the time of filming. You also get the scoop on the music, the special effects and stunts, the casting, etc. It's very close to comprehensive and the author has done his legwork, obtaining new interviews with many of the folks involved with the movies. The problem comes when he begins quoting extensively from interviews that were part of the publicity materials for the movie during its actual launch; these remarks are, of course, very vanilla, focusing solely on a positive presentation of the film in order to sell it to the public. There were times that excerpts from these interviews resulted in a misrepresentation of what was really going on at the time. Still, it's definitely worth your time if you're a solid Bond fan. I enjoyed the read, especially the chapters on the later Bond films, which I hadn't really seen much "inside information" on before this.

I read the Kindle version and I have had to deduct two stars because of the amount of appalling typographical errors in the text. There is also a page wherein the punchline of an anecdote is delivered but the lead up to it is missing. Fortunately, I am very familiar with that particular anecdote and knew what the authors were talking about. Did no one proof read this book?!! I certainly hope the printed version is better. My other criticism is that the authors have placed pages and pages of references at the end of each chapter, which is just annoying because you have to flip through them to get to the next chapter. The references should be at the end of the book in one section. Personally, I'm not particularly interested in the references and I suspect that to be the case for most readers.All of the above is a great pity, given that there is a wealth of interesting behind the scenes information about the development and filming of the James Bond series, which I very much enjoyed reading.

There have been a number of book that details the Bond saga, some of them are pictorials containing behind the scenes footage, whilst others are producer sanctioned stories that deal with the tip of the iceberg. I am happy to say that Some Kind of Hero is a different beast altogether, since it tries to delve into as much detail as possible without going the tedious route.The book is interviews galore with insights from some of the Bond actors, villians, amores and the technical crew (even Christopher Walken was interviewed and I do not recall ever hearing about his Bond experience) The book is a marvel to read, it goes into the trials and tribulations the producers had to face in the 50 odd years of this series, not to mention the story ideas were going round that were nearly used. From making The Man With The Golden Gun a trip into the Cambodian jungle, to the potential ideas of Dalton's third Bond film which were abadonned when Dalton left the role.Along with Charles Heflenstein's two brilliant and detailed Bond books on the making of On Her Majesty's Secret Service and The Living Daylights, this is the making of book that Bond fans should own.

This is a welcome out and out biography of the behind the scenes making-of of the James Bond films from Dr No to Skyfall with a taster thrown in of things to come in the latest, and fantastic, film that is Spectre, which was in production at the time of writing.Where alot is already well known about the background of how the franchise came to be and how it has endured to this day through a few notable perils & pitfalls, where sheer cunning, determination and talent of all who have been involved have made it the successful franchise that it is today, this book does not repeat but adds further depth and understanding to the legacy and history, being a fresh approach to what has gone before, with new insight also on show!Indeed, for the first time, thanks to how well this book has been put together, I have really come to understand the whole saga over the rights issue with Thunderball and the implications this caused for many years!It is well written and looking at the many footnotes and bibliography, it has been meticulously and exhaustively researched and just lacks a key ingredient, I feel, which is an up to date interview with the much favoured Bond, Sir Thomas Sean Connery, something that is hinted at for a possible future revised edition.Overall, it is a great companion piece, particularly with the making of documentaries found on the DVD & Blu-Ray releases and a must read for any Bond and film fan!

Excellent read, full of Bond trivia. Essentially a making of book with a dedicated chapter for each film averaging 20 or so pages each. Although SPECTRE is included there isn't much background, which I'm sure will be addressed in future editions. Highly recommended

I received the book two days ago and was delighted with the look and size of it. I have just began to read it and if it is as good as it seems I will be well pleased. there is great photographs both in colour and black and white. so a great addition to my bond collection.