Here’s the thing with movies and shows that have a huge fandom behind them - they’re often not viewed objectively as one-off pieces of art or entertainment. It has a lot to do with people somehow tying their identities to what they love. So whether you’re a sci-fi nerd, a Trekkie, a fan of superhero films, or are crazy about an auteur, you somehow take any criticism against what you enjoy very personally. But amidst all of this, there’s now an exception - the Bond film fandom.
Ian Fleming’s iconic character, MI6 agent James Bond, code named 007, has been adapted on film since 1962, ever since Sean Connery picked up the role in Dr. No. And as is the case with almost anything, it was a product of its time. The UK and the rest of the world badly needed something upbeat and glamorous about a character fighting on the right side of the law, especially after the Second World War, and at a time when the Space Race was on, adapting James Bond into movies was the perfect solution. Since then however, the movie and the ones that followed it, have had their fair share of criticism. From showing Bond as a womanizer to arguing whether ‘Bond girls’ actually have any agency, countless words have been written about how some of the things in those films wouldn’t pass off today.