Masculinity As A Commodity

10 Pages 2389 Words

Britain, breaking all existing box-office records.

When Guy Hamilton directed Goldfinger in 1964 he brought a new lease of life to the Bond series. Hamilton’s vision was a more tongue-in-cheek approach with the use of much more overt humour to the Bond character. Goldfinger also can be seen as the first film to play on the gadget element, the hi-tech aspect that began with a certain Aston Martin DB5, now “The Most Famous Car In The World”.
The vehicle proved so popular that the producers had to commission another two cars simply to tour the world on publicity junkets…Following the film’s release, Corgi toys of England produced its first carnation of the DB5-and it quickly became the best-selling toy of the year…it was to launch the longest, uninterrupted licensing agreement in the history of the industry, as Corgi continue to produce them to this day.

The James Bond films are still as popular as they ever had been. 2002 marked the fortieth anniversary of the James Bond films, and the release of the twentieth official Bond film Die Another Day (Lee Tamahori, 2002). However, it is left to explore the reasons for the success of the James Bond series. People of all ages, from children playing with their very own DB5, to grown adults, all the men want to be him, all the women want to be with him.
Lee Pfeiffer and Dave Worrall try to surmise the immediate and overnight success of the Bond films:
Never before had audiences met an anti-hero quite like James Bond. Agent 007 was a connoisseur of fine food and drink. He bedded legions of beautiful women to satisfy his own healthy sexual appetites. He travelled the world in luxury with the most generous expense account ever granted a British civil servant. He was witty, charming, fearless and incorruptible.

All of his features and characteristics as with every other aspect of the film or novel he appears in are commodities for that product. They are positive element...