Cubby Broccoli coined a wonderful phrase, years and years ago. The British actor, who lives in Switzerland, was in Hollywood for the opening of The Quest in which he plays a loveable rogue involved in piracy, gun-running and the slave trade in 1920's Asia. It's a fun movie. It's a change to see, on the odd occasions when the guns go off in the beginning, there are not brains and blood in slow-motion being spewed all over the screen. There were thousands of sword fights and people were chopped up, but they always got up and walked away.
Audiences do like romance, they do like to see nice things.
When we made The Saint television series, we set out to make it look nice. Maybe Bond started it, I don't know, but the imitators of the Bonds that came along just got bigger and more violent. It just puts me off. I remember when people kissed you didn't have to see yards of their tongues going down one another's throats. Now they don't kiss anyone without opening their mouth and showing everyone what they had for breakfast.