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Comments
I also felt that we haven't been giving Helga Brandt her full due in these postings, so thank you, OBrady, for your examination of her here. She's pretty clearly intended to be the reincarnation of Fiona Volpe...and I think the movie and the actress would have been better served to have tried for a fresher direction. When @Birdleson and I watched this film together, he remarked that the obvious dye job on Helga's copper-colored hair didn't go well with her jet-black eyebrows, and that he'd never really cared for her because the character's face just didn't work for him visually. I can understand that viewpoint. Helga is more of a cartoon villainess than a true Fiona and with a better script (and a more natural hair color) she could have been a much better femme fatale. As it is, she's a healthy chest, a cool parachuting costume and a set of surgical knives...and a feast for the piranhas. She should have been more.
@Thunderfinger: We also have Marc-Ange Draco in the very next film. Too bad about his daughter, though...
Indeed, the cinematic and the literary Bonds are two different animals. Whilst I do prefer the more Fleming type of films, I do enjoy the filmic type, providing they are done well I.E. You Only Live Twice and The Spy Who Loved Me.
Having said that, I look for a thread of Fleming in each of the Bond films and the more "Fleming Thread" the higher it will be on my rankings.
Yet, despite my Fleming leanings, I thoroughly enjoyed You Only Live Twice. Seeing Twice chronologically on this Bondathon made a lot more sense, than if one was seeing it as a random viewing.
Both Bond and SPECTRE had all the backstory in previous Bonds. It is just Bond vs SPECTRE in Twice. And judging the film from this prescriptive, I find it holds up rather well.
The 60's films really are the gold standard of the series. And we shall be reaching for the peak inOn Her Majesty's Secret Service.
@Thunderfinger, that comment was in reference to just the Connery era, not to the franchise as a whole.
@BeatlesSansEarmuffs, yes, there was so much potential to many things in this film, and it's a shame to see it turn out as it did. The first hour shows such great promise, but the camp and general silliness sneaks in once we get to the Ama village and the film loses its way.
Fiona and Blofeld are a perfect example of what could have been, if more time was given for their characters. Fiona could have easily been made a better, more fleshed out character, but for Blofeld, it would be much tougher. Because he's the tinkerer behind the veil the filmmakers naturally thought they couldn't fully reveal him until the end, like in monster movie film culture, but that also shoots the movie in the foot. I'd have liked to see a moment or two in the film where Bond nearly catches Blofeld, but loses trace of him; any moments that would have him so close to the catch, but never quite there, just to show Bond out of his depth and scrambling to stop the rocket plot. As it stands in the film itself, they meet, share some lines and then Blofeld keeps pointing a gun at Bond, while the spy just stands there, waiting to be shot. It's not satisfying in any way, unfortunately.
It's a grand shame Maibaum wasn't on script duties when he was needed the most, for a movie that needed to be gotten right.
Therefore, my new ranking is as follows:
1. OHMSS
2. GF
3. FRWL
4. DN
5. TB
6. YOLT
Previous Ranking
1. The Spy Who Loved Me
2. On Her Majestys Secret Service
3. Casino Royale
4. From Russia With Love
5. Skyfall
6. Goldfinger
7. Octopussy
8. Spectre
9. Dr No
10. The Living Daylights
11. Goldeneye
12. Live And Let Die
13. Licence To Kill
14. A View To A Kill
15. For Your Eyes Only
16. Moonraker
17. Thunderball
18. Quantum Of Solace
19. Diamonds Are Forever
20. Tomorrow Never Dies
21. You Only Live Twice
22. The Man With The Golden Gun
23. Die Another Day
24. The World Is Not Enough
Bondian Elements
Gun Barrel Sequence-
A fine sequence. Barry’s music really kicks in as a black and white gun barrel design returns after Thunderball’s full color one just a film back. Sean takes his shot and the circle is caked in red, which remains red even as the circle moves to the left of the screen, then goes white as it moves to the center and rises, revealing to us the American shuttle floating in space. A nice lead-in to the space action about to unfold.
Pre-Title Sequence-
While the space special effects aren’t up to snuff in today’s cinematic milieu, this pre-title sequence does manage-for me- to be a menacing, creepy experience. Watching the SPECTRE shuttle open its “jaws” to swallow the American space craft as the astronaut’s line is cut and they are sent into space to decompose and join the space matter all make for a disconcerting series of images that feel bizarre and frightening at the same time, thanks in part to Barry’s score that gives it an added sense of nasty atmosphere as the scene carries out in the actual atmosphere.
The beautiful shots of the snow that lead in to the meeting with the British, American and Russian powers is wondrous, and the discussion the world powers have is tense and sets up the later threat of another SPECTRE manipulation as a high-risk danger, knowing it will send the Americans and Russians into a row with each other. The scene ends with a great set-up to where Bond is at during that moment in time.
I’ve said in my character analysis how much I like the scene with Bond and Ling because of what we learn about him, his tastes and how he’d want to go out on the job, and it remains jarring to see the image of a bleeding and “dead” Connery Bond in bed, considering he is by far the most resourceful, capable and skilled take on the character we’ve had, which makes it shocking to think he may have finally been bested. It also well sets up Bond’s “second life” as he faces SPECTRE’s latest threat.
Locations-
It’s easy to see why Freddie Young was such an acclaimed cinematographer in his career of choice. The magic he created in Lawrence of Arabia just five years prior is seen in You Only Live Twice as he brings Japan alive.
Everything about the locations in the films are beautiful, and they give us a great window into what Japan was like at that time. The bright, dazzling strings of lights in Tokyo flash advertisements on the populace, the green hills and deep blue oceans of the oriental coasts captivate, the wide and monolithic volcanoes feel imposing and the rustic fishing villages are a feast for the eyes.
We get to see so many facets of Japan here, from the bustling cities, the loud, crowded docks and the chaotic and exciting ninja schools to the wide-open countryside and the wondrous coasts. The film feels like a travelogue in the style of Terence Young’s Bond films that truly transports you to Japan and all it has to offer. The location shooting and the places the team chose to show off are without a doubt one of the film’s strongest aspects, if not the strongest of all. It’s a point of pride in You Only Live Twice’s favor that this film is the Japanese Bond film, full stop, and one of the greatest films shot by a crew in the location for all that it gives us in atmosphere and visuals. It brings everything to life.
A Bond film already has a massive head start on some of the other movies that emphasize globe-trotting (like the Craig films) when it strives to stage its action in one major location where the majority of the film will take place. In today’s modern movie climate it’s difficult to get a Bond film like that again because there’s always an ingrained obsession with going farther and putting more on the screen for audiences, which some producers take to mean more locations, more overblown action and more…everything. But sometimes the secret formula to a good film, and especially a good Bond film, is when its story dares to unfold in one location, sans the globe-trotting. One of the reasons why films like Dr. No, From Russia with Love and Thunderball are slam-dunks and truly classic is because they are films that pick one location to be the center of attention and these films are actually shot where the script tells us Bond is, with minimal shooting elsewhere. These films strive to make the location (singular) a character all its own, and shows off the culture of the place with great emphasis and beauty to create a unique atmosphere and visual travelogue of the location.
For all its faults You Only Live Twice has that essence that’s been abandoned for so long in this series, and nowadays we not only get minimal time in the locations Bond travels to, but worse yet sometimes what we think is Shanghai, or Bolivia or Prague is really just some random street in the United Kingdom that was quicker or easier to shoot at. With these early Bond films the emphasis wasn’t on lying to audiences or buttering them up with visual trickery to make them believe what they were seeing were real locations from the cities or nations we’re told Bond is traveling around. Instead we knew the location shooting was the real deal, and it was one of the defining aspects of the films that what you saw was what you got the vast majority of the time. Not everything could be done on location, but everything that could be done, the team would do it. Bond has lost that ideal, and I’d love to see it come back, delivered in the way films like You Only Live Twice did so exceptionally.
Gadgets-
Although You Only Live Twice can be over the top in many respects, it surprisingly has a rather miniscule amount of gadgets, and what we do have isn’t overblown or too wild to take. The mini-rocket cigarette Tanaka gives Bond is the most outlandish of the lot, but it never feels that way, and is used in a pivotal moment for Bond to escape Blofeld’s control room. In a funny parallel, Bond once again escapes certain death by asking for a cigarette just as he did when he fooled Grant with the request in From Russia with Love.
Beyond the rocket cigarette and the usual cache of weapons Bond uses, including his trusty PPK, we also get to see him handle some ninja weaponry, including a shuriken star. It’s thrilling to see Bond in Japan, utilizing the ancient weaponry that the ninjas would’ve employed while fighting as mercenary-like figures in civil wars against the elite samurai all over the oriental lands in a time centuries removed from his own. It’s also interesting to note that though ninjas saw their birth under the oppression they received from government forces, here the ninjas are used by Tanaka and the Japanese nation to stop SPECTRE on behalf of the world establishments, something their ancestors may have viewed as shameful.
The prime piece of gadgetry in the film, however, has to be the Little Nellie autogyro, which Bond uses to smoke some SPECTRE pursuers while taking a closer look at the island photographed near the Ning-Po.
When it comes to Bond, and especially 60s Bond, I always like to make the point that these production teams were just the best of their class, and in You Only Live Twice this is no different. The team must have wanted to freshen up their action sequences to give Bond some action in the air after several films of him on ground or in the sea, which drove them to hire ex-RAF pilot and autogyro genius Ken Wallis to provide them with the goods necessary for shooting such feats. Wallis was a highly skilled pilot and bomber commander during the second World War, and after that point in his career he stumbled onto autogyros and began tinkering with them during the period of the 50s. Soon after his love affair with the contraptions was sparked he took to designing and building his own crafts as a passion.
The Little Nellie used in the film was a WA-116 craft that was first developed in 1962. A true thing of genius, it weighted less than 250 yet was capable of daring aerodynamic feats like what we see in the film and had a max altitude of about 13,000 feet. Even if the craft experienced engine failure in flight, the design-with an emphasis on the rotors being powered by the motion of the propellers behind the pilot’s seat-made it so that the craft’s rotors would keep it spinning until it reached a safe landing back on the ground. It’s a genius piece of aircraft that is fully operational and as advertised. There was no need for movie magic here to trick audiences into suspending their disbelief-the autogyro was fully operational and what you see is what you get.
While the autogyro sequence has never really grabbed me-maybe it’s the shoddy and heavy use of rear projections that weren’t necessary inclusions-the genius and talent of Wallis and his crew, who filmed the entire battle sequence for real has to be respected. It’s these kinds of done for real stunts that put Bond into a class all his own. In a crazy production mishap, an updraft occurred during the shooting of the copters, causing the rotors of one craft to collide with the landing skids of another that had the cameraman Johnny Jordan on board. Jordan’s foot was caught in the accident, injuring him badly. The team were able to get Jordan to a surgeon, but later on he decided to have his leg amputated months after because of the immense pain the wound gave him. All is well that ends well, however, as the man continued his work as an aerial cameraman following the accident.
As for Wallis, the craft known as Little Nellie remained a fully operational part of his collection of self-built autogyro after filming wrapped, and by the time he passed away in 2013 he had set every record on the books for autogyro flights. The Bond team really knew how to pick them.
Action-
The action of You Only Live Twice deserves its honorary place in the Bond series, as much of it truly is exceptionally clever and for the time, highly ambitious.
We get hints of Young Bond in the rough and tumble fight Bond and Osato’s beefy henchman have in his offices. It’s messy with no finesse to it, which makes it feel all the more real, just like the Bond and Grant bout in From Russia with Love. Bond uses his environment to leverage the odds in his favor, including prized Japanese artifacts (shame on you, 007). It’s a fight that I actually wince while watching. Maybe it’s how the editors punched up the audio to make the hits feel right beside you, or the way the doubles really threw each other around at moments, but it is highly effective and makes it truly feel “real” and dangerous. Once Bond flattens out his foe I love the way he hides the body, then sips some vodka to celebrate and rebuild his constitution.
The car chases we get are equally exciting, with some great moments of Bond and Aki tearing through Japan and the more rural parts of the country to shake off SPECTRE pursuers. Some malign the magnetic helicopter, but I love it.
The dock fight is also thrilling, and one of my favorite pieces of action in Bond. It’s a devilishly clever sequence that is shot with a real cinematic eye. As SPECTRE agents surround Bond on all sides with various makeshift weapons and tools, he shoots his way past the ranks and secures Aki’s escape. Then he mounts a conveyor belt shedding the numbers of the pursuers as he goes, and battles a sea of more enemies in a fantastic far-off tracking shot along the rooftops beside the docks. The fighting choreography isn’t perfect here, as some hits feel as artificial as they are, but the momentum of the sequence and how cool it is to see Sean there fighting off the most enemies he ever faces mano a mano in his time as Bond is truly thrilling. His escape-or so he thinks-by jumping onto cushioning on two floors of the building to reach ground level is an amazing feat to watch, and perfectly choreographed. As soon as the stuntman leaps off the final cushion, Sean pops right into the frame, making you think it was him doing all of it. Exhilarating.
And of course the hallmark of the film and the sequence that started a tradition in Bond of elaborate battles staged on big sets between two massive opposing forces is none of than the volcano raid and battle with Bond and the ninjas facing off with Blofeld and his SPECTRE agents. The amazing technical nature of this sequence cannot be overstated. To be able to look at the massive space Ken Adam created to appreciate it as a consumer of cinema and production design genius is one thing, but to then be treated to an insanely ambitious battle that takes place inside it is just another entirely. I get a giddy feeling in my toes every time I watch Tanaka and his ninjas rope down from the ceiling of the set to the ground floor, taking out enemies as they go. It’s unbelievable that what we are seeing is real, and that it was all choreographed so meticulously with untold numbers of swarming extras and stuntpeople. Not everything about it is perfect, with instances of hilariously bad deaths and the use of repeat action footage abounding, but for its time and with just the tools the team had on hand to utilize it all, it’s a stunning sequence that deserves its place in Bond history. There’s so many moments in the sequence where I see stuntmen falling and it all looks so real and painful I can’t imagine the logistics needed to shoot such a battle. This sequence right here is the precursor to finales like those in The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker that carried on the tradition of Bond’s big battles well past the 60s era. We owe a lot to You Only Live Twice in this regard, as its approach to action has aided the series in living more lives than just its allotted two since 1967 thanks to its reverberating cinematic impact.
Humor-
When it comes to humor You Only Live Twice is a tough film to judge, partly because I laugh at things that I don’t think were meant to be laughed at in the first place. Even worse, these laughs are more out of my own personal embarrassment or shame at watching what’s in front of me and not at all derived from the entertainment or pleasure I’m receiving while viewing it. You can only watch Sean Connery “go Japanese” so many times before it really becomes too much, and because of the idiotic premise of it all, a good film is tarnished in big, big ways as too much silliness creeps into the plot to be able to ignore it or shove it to the side. It’s the ultimate weak link of the movie and one of the main failures of the series, which is a shame because it’s caught in a film that isn’t bad at all when compared to films outside Sean’s golden four.
In other areas, however, You Only Live Twice is witty and fun for the right reasons where I laugh or grin out of my own personal enjoyment of what I’m seeing. A great bit of recurring humor is the “I love you” code word that Bond must say to make introductions to his contacts. This dialogue seals the Moneypenny scene as one of the best in the series, and later, when Bond meets Aki for the first time Sean gives a great performance as you see 007 really trying to find the best moment in their awkward and strange surroundings to bring up the three words that are just bizarre to imagine saying to a stranger right off the bat. Even later when Bond meets Tanaka the latter says the words to Bond after being pressed, to which Bond awkwardly says, “Well, glad we got that out of the way.” One of my favorite things about the film, and ever so entertaining.
Other great moments abound. When Bond shows up late-from his own funeral-he remarks to Moneypenny, “Well, we corpses have absolutely no sense of timing.” When Bond and Tanaka are getting their baths, 007’s ally teases him about Moneypenny soaking him in soap back in England, and when the man picks on Bond’s chest hair the agent replies, “Japanese proverb say, ‘Bird never make nest in bare tree.’" When Helga Brandt celebrates her capture of Bond, he looks at her and says, “Well, enjoy yourself,” receiving a slap. When preparing to bed her, he then says, “Oh, the things I do for England” as he rips off her dress. I always crack up when Aki tells Tanaka that Bond would never touch such a horrible woman like Brandt, to which Bond answers, “Oh, heaven forbid” very unconvincingly. In one of the all-time funniest Bond moments, when Bond meets Q for the first time he greets him by saying, “Welcome to Japan, Dad. Is my little girl hot and ready?” in reference to Little Nellie. After using the autogyro to kill SPECTRE pursuers, Bond playfully proclaims, “Little Nellie got a hot reception. Four big shots made improper advances toward her, but she defended her honor with great success.” Later, when Tanaka is showing Bond some gadgets while at the ninja school he uses the bullet cigarette, saying “It can save your life, this cigarette,” to which Bond responds, “You sound like a commercial.” And, when Bond is preparing to “go Japanese,” he looks at the wax the women are preparing, eyes his chest and says, “Why don’t you just dye the parts that show?”
While it has groan-inducing moments, You Only Live Twice also contains moments and dialogues like the above that are smart or entertaining in how they are written and delivered by the cast.
Plot Plausibility-
While there are silly aspects to You Only Live Twice, I won’t allow those elements to undercut the very real resonances tied to the story.
Just as in Dr. No, You Only Live Twice presents the heated race to space and the conquer of the cosmos fought between the major world powers of the day. While the idea of a SPECTRE shuttle that can encapsulate and steal crafts, then land neatly into a small volcano after the thefts is ridiculous, the threat posed by a false flag attack and the duplicity the organization is using to fool both the Americans and Russians into a fight makes use of real tensions that already existed between those two major world powers at the time.
In addition the film also uses real world spy craft in its plot. After Bond steals SPECTRE files from the safe at Osato’s building Tanaka and his team find a microdot on the papers. Microdots were a time-tested spy tool that allowed important messages to be minimized to the size of periods in typed documents, giving intelligence services the ability to transmit sensitive information on the down-low while attaching them to trivial documents in the form of papers if agents were searched. The moment in the film is seeped in intrigue, and the message from SPECTRE in the microdot that confirms the death of the tourist who took the photograph of the Ning-Po is chilling, showing us as the audience just how far the organization is willing to go to make sure they stay in the shadows.
So, while there are elements of silliness that make this film more removed from reality than any other film in the series at this point, the film’s use of real world spy craft gadgetry and the presentation of the real world tensions in existence between the United States and Russia grounds the plot in relevancy and truth, a trick the Bond franchise-and the character’s creator-is an expert at.
Villain's Scheme-
As I stated above, while elements of Blofeld’s plot, including the technology of the SPECTRE craft are ridiculous and wouldn’t operate as they appear on film, the plan our villain has devised does play on the tense relations that existed between the Americans and Russians with a truth that can’t be denied. At a time like the mid to late 60s a sign of sabotage from either side could have seriously kicked off something nasty between the nations, especially since just years prior the two struggled over the future of Berlin and the situation of the Russian missiles in Cuba showed just how much the two were at serious odds.
In an interesting bit of history and context, just two months before You Only Live Twice ended shooting in March of 1967, The Outer Space Treaty, formally The Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies was signed by the United States, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union on the 27th of January 1967, which was entered into action on October 10th of that same year. The treaty was designed to lay out the laws of space as they were to be followed by the world powers who added signatures to it, prohibiting any nation from placing weapons of mass destruction in the orbit of Earth, on the moon, or around any other celestial body and preventing the testing of weapons in space, including performing military maneuvers, while also stating that the crafts operating in space are protected under the control of the nation that sends them out and that any damages accrued on these objects can be collected by the nation with ownership over them.
With this all in consideration, having a treaty of this kind signed and agreed upon by the three major world powers (the same three at odds in the film itself) before You Only Live Twice hit theaters in June of 1967 would have already set in in the minds of the public consciousness that a scheme of Blofeld’s planning would outright be defying exactly what the treaty stood for, disrupting and disrespecting its legal laws and protections. By making it seem like the Russians stole the NASA craft SPECTRE are manipulating the fears of the US and the Russians when it looks like one of the two parties is outright going back on the treaty they signed, which is brilliant. Another perfect touch is the fact that the SPECTRE shuttle the organization uses to pilfer spacecraft has a giant red star painted on it, the symbol of Communist Russia. Blofeld is actively planning for every eventuality, knowing that if an evacuation must be made from the volcano for any reason, or if the spacecraft fails and is later found once it lands by the United States or any other world power outside of Russia, the Russians would be immediately implicated in the thefts of the shuttles while SPECTRE would once again slip away into the shadows, their invisible hand remaining unseen.
One doesn’t appreciate the scheme of Blofeld in this film until one also studies the real world context and history of the 60s, which adds so many layers to our experience of the film.
Bond and actor performance
So, all change on this front and we are introduced to a whole new Bond in George Lazenby. This is the guy my non-Bond fans never remember. A shame as I think that, for a first role, and should a massive role, he equipped himself well. Yes, I know there were issues of his behaviour etc. but that is of no consequence when discussing how he did in the movie. As I said, I think he equipped himself well, nowhere near up to the standards that Connery set but he does come across as a confident 007. He certainly has the confident “strut”. He also has a completely different physique to Connery, which also suits him well. We are treated to 2 decent fight scenes within the first 15 minutes or so of the movie and he equips himself extremely well and, for me, more so that Connery did. These were really tough fight scenes and they look great on screen, the first one being a hell of an introduction for the new 007. And the scene at the end of the movie, I thought he was terrific and I’m unsure whether even Connery could have pulled that off as well as Lazenby did. But then, if Connery had stayed I guess we would have gotten a very different movie.
So, his acting abilities were not going to win any Oscars but I think he did a decent job of his first major role. I’ve always thought it a shame we didn’t see him do a further movie but, for me, he certainly left his mark on the series.
Something that I do think lessens his impact is the nods back to the Connery era; “This never happened to the other fella”, the scene in Bonds’ office looking back, the caretaker whistling Goldfinger and the dubbing of Connery with George Bakers’ voice. Just little things that always make me wonder why (not the dubbing, really, as that is part of the plot).
As I said earlier, it’s also a shame that non-Bond fans seem to forget his appearance as 007, and the movie as a whole.
Bond girl/s and performance
Before we get to the main Bond girl there are others, so I’ll start there. Obviously we have Blofelds’ Angels of Death. Nancy, played by Catherine Von Schell, who Bond said would need to an inspiration, has a small part which is adequately played.
We also have Ruby Bartlett, one of my favourite secondary Bond girls of the series. Angela Scoular is excellent and I love her character to bits. Could be because Ruby was from down the road from where I work (Morecambe Bay) or, more likely, is that I found her Carry On persona just brilliant. I am a fan of the Carry On movies and Ruby Bartlett would have fit nicely in to any of those movies she wished. Love her.
Then we have the main Bond girl, arguably the best of them all, Tracy, played by the wonderful (and still knocking them out), Diana Rigg. Like Pussy Galore before her, she was a part of The Avengers television series. Great character, starting the movie with suicidal thoughts, only for Bond to come to her rescue. During the first hour of the movie we find out of her troubled life, raised alone by her father after her mother died when she was 12. She, obviously, has issues and these are shown through to her falling for Bond (gambling, holding a gun to 007), it’s like she views life as unnecessary, she has no happiness etc. and she sees her father as doing nothing more that interfere as if he was conducting a business deal. Initially resisting 007, she soon turns and they fall in love and we see such a change in Tracy. From the troubled, and rather spoilt daughter, of a crime syndicate head, to a happy woman in love. I’ll say it again, but Rigg is quite excellent and it’s one of the best performances of any Bond girls in the series.
Without going in to it too much, I have been known to well up at that final scene. Despite their, reported, differences Lazenby and Rigg, knock it out of the park.
Bond henchman and performance
Or in this case henchwoman or, even more pc, henchperson. Here, we have Irma Bundt, friend to the Angels of Death but, the other side of her, the murderer of the wife of 007. Ilse Steppat is great here, the way she switches from the mother hen like way she looks after her girls to the, almost, Rosa Klebb like villain we see when up against Bond. The scene where Bond finds her in Rubys’ bed, the look on her face when she reveals herself to Bond would send chills down anyone’s spine. Quite excellent.
Bond villain/s and performance
The legend that is Telly Savalas takes on the role of Blofeld here. Wow, what a difference in performance from what we had with Donald Pleasance before. Savalas is definitely more of a threat in my opinion, even without the petrified cat. It’s great that we see so much more of the character too. I love what he brings to the character too. From the unseen Blofeld of the earlier movies, we then, finally, saw Blofeld in YOLT, Pleasance really hamming it up. Here though, we see Savalas play it straight, as it should be. Like Bundt, comes across very friendly at times but there’s the switch where we see his sinister side. I also like how he gets involved in the action, unlike the Blofeld we saw last time out.
One thing that always gets me though, is how Blofeld doesn’t recognise 007 as he met him face to face in YOLT. Not that it hinders the movie in any way.
Supporting cast performances (M, Moneypenny, Q, allies, minor characters, etc.)
Bernard Lee again as his wonderful M. An improvement on his scene from YOLT, here we see him being very firm with his orders taking 007 off the Blofeld case. His appreciation of Moneypenny is endearing, as his love of Lepidoptery (hope that’s correct). Great to see him in his home surrounding too.
Q – Not much of a scene here, just showing M a new gadget. We don’t get to see the “usual” Q/Bond scene which is a shame, although I do love their interaction at the end. 007 has the gadgets this time and Q calling him James. Lovely touch.
Moneypenny – Ah, the lovely Lois Maxwell. Never been matched to this day, a wonderful Moneypenny and more of the same here and a little flirtation that was missing from YOLT.
Campbell – Bernard Horsfall is good here, from helping 007 during the excellent safe cracking scene to his ultimate killing at the hands of Blofelds’ minions. Shame we didn’t get to see him in an action sequence.
Draco – Father of Tracey, boss of a crime syndicate, as well as having his own legitimate businesses. Gabriel Ferzetti plays the part perfectly. From crime syndicate boss, to concerned father, he plays it really well. Great to see him in the thick of the action as well.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service - Performance Notes
Here Bond seems to be an expert on perfumes, caviar and butterflies, he plays golf and appears to be an excellent mimic. Bond, as a connoisseur of everything has simply upped the ante.
George Lazenby enters the casino like a seasoned acting pro. He glides in, taking in the surroundings. No starched posture or swivelling eyes here. Just the cool demeanour of a man in control. A man oozing class.
The casino scenes are excellent, easily the best since Dr No, and nothing since has really come close. It’s romantic, soft focus film making, and the performances of the two leads are perfect, helped along by John Barry’s music and Peter Hunt’s assured direction (who would have thought he was a rookie director).
Elsewhere Lazenby does perfectly well. It was always difficult to follow Connery so he was up against it, but with Hunt’s help he comes through with great panache. Some line delivery slips a little, but we can say that of all the actors, apart from Connery.
The scene with M when he has handed in his ‘resignation’ and he hovers over M waiting for his boss to try and persuade him to stay.
‘Permission granted’ says M and again Lazenby delivers, with the most measured and understated facial response.
I raise the question I always like to raise. Does Bond really love Tracey? As Draco says about Blofeld ‘I might tell my future son-in-law’
And Bond really doesn’t need to shag every girl at Blofeld’s clinic, but he gives it his best shot.
Then at Gumbold’s office even Tracey admits Bond doesn’t love her, yet.
Finally concerning Lazenby, during the pursuit through the Swiss village he offers us more of the vulnerability he seemed capable of instilling in his Bond.
And then in the car with Tracey he delivers the line “You’ve got sharp eyes, and beautiful…earlobes” every bit as well as Connery could have, and I can’t offer higher praise than that.
Diana Rigg is excellent as Tracey, showing her vulnerability and fragility within her apparent tough persona.
Telly Savalas plays Telly Savalas playing Blofeld, far removed from Donald Pleasence’s offering.
But this is something of a stand alone Bond film when all is said and done (despite the constant ramming home of past memories). After all Blofeld doesn’t appear to recognise the man he tried to kill in a hollowed out volcano not so long ago. And Bond even helps him out by not wearing his glasses at their first meeting.
Elsewhere we have the Angels Of Death (especially the wonderful Ruby Bartlett, from Lancashire).
Irma Bunt is suitably odious.
And the team are all here, especially for the wedding scenes. Miss Moneypenny’s tears at Bond being married are achingly heart wrenching.
Interesting to see M and Draco – men from different sides of the law – having so much in common, finding so much to talk about.
All in all well cast, well performed. Well everything really.
All true. It's just not as good as the first 4.
Thank you Shark, you too.
I tend not to analyse to the extreme, just cherry pick bits that I notice as I watch. It means I can completely forget about certain characters. Then I read yours and thought 'oops, forgot Bunt!' . So I stuck one sentence in to cover her. Hardly elaborate
:D
We do, but that's healthy enough.
I never suggest I'm anything like a Bond scholar, being only really interested in the films. But I've been into them as far back as I remember, plaguing my mum for Bond related toys.
And YOLT was one of my first loves as a little one.
I tend to start from the position of 'All Bond films are brilliant' and then reduce my scoring down from there. As opposed to starting from zero and building the points up.
I try to find the good in them all, based squarely around how good or otherwise the Bond actor is.
I'm happy to live in this level of the multiverse where Sean is our first and best Bond. I have a friend who lives in a part of the multiverse where John Gavin was James Bond from 1971 to 1984 in seven films where he gave performances that could only best be described as "wooden as a plank," and that nearly killed the franchise entirely. In this alternate reality Dalton also got to make four Bond films, I'm told, so there's a lot we're missing out on too, sadly.
Film Elements
Direction-
While Lewis Gilbert has never been one of my favorite Bond directors, he did a good enough job handling what was a logistically challenging Bond film.
With as much location scouting as this film had, and the endless array of extras, special effects and sets needed to produce the film that were in some ways larger than any Bond outside of Thunderball, Gilbert had a lot to juggle his first time out. His early experience at shooting war documentaries and war films must have trained him to handle action with multiple actors or stunt crews well, because his team’s handling of the volcano raid is quite exemplary and thrilling for all that could have gone wrong if he wasn’t on the ball. An actor by training, he must have also understood the role of the performer well enough such that he and the cast were able to touch base more effectively than if the director had never worked in the performance industry. Roald Dahl, the film’s screenwriter, praised Gilbert, because he simply took the author’s script and shot it without adding his own flair in an egotistical manner, putting full trust in Dahl’s screenplay and writing to give him the film he said he wanted penned.
From all this it’s clear that Gilbert was a big team player during You Only Live Twice, which is a great quality to have when a director must be required to spin so many plates in the many areas of production that are essential to Bond films, including some of the wildest pieces of stuntwork in cinema.
It’s crazy to think we almost lost Gilbert, Cubby, Saltzman, Ken Adam and Freddie Young during this film in what could have been a disaster capable of killing Bond on the big screen. After weeks of doing location shooting in Japan for pre-production the group of four were going to fly back to the United Kingdom on a Boeing 707 flight set for takeoff on the 5th of March 1966, but at the last minute they cancelled their flight plans to watch a ninja demonstration that was going on that day. The flight they would have all been on crashed nearly half-an-hour after it left the airport, and all on board died in the accident. Many Bond films have crazy stories of production stressors, logistical terrors or big-time complications, but this one takes the cake because we nearly lost vital members of the Bond vision on the big screen in one fell swoop. Crazy to imagine, really, and thank Fleming for ninjas, as ever.
Opening Title Design-
This one is a little weird. The shifting and overlaid images of volcanoes, Japanese women and ornate fan designs dominate this title design from Maurice Binder.
There’s a sense of cataclysm to this design that fits well with the repercussions of SPECTRE’s plot, which could have been and all out war with the United States and Russia. The bursting, spraying shots of magma and lava ooze feel like the aftermath of a nuclear strike, almost like the silhouettes of the Japanese women are survivors overseeing all the destruction. My favorite frame of this design is one of the last shots we get, with four nude women who look like they’re bathing their bodies with the lava of the volcano ahead of them. The imagery is fascinating, to say the least, and just crazy bizarre.
As I said, a weird design with interesting design choices and elements. It’s nowhere near my favorite, partly because there’s not much to it really beyond volcanoes, volcanoes, and more volcanoes. The use of color is nice, with dominant blues and oranges in play, but it’s not up to par with some much greater efforts from Binder’s own catalogue and those outside his contributions.
Nancy Sinatra’s song is no help either, as it does little to liven up the sequence. I’m not a fan of her in general (sorry Frank), nor do the contents of the song inspire much relevance to the film or leave any impact in general. One of the weaker songs of the Bond bunch for me, which I rank in how much I would be able to listen to them on loop before I tired of them. For this tune in particular I give it about two repeats before it’s time to switch to another song.
Script-
As with many things about You Only Live Twice, there’s a lot to love and a lot not to love. When it comes to the film’s script, that is one of the most defining criticisms.
Some of the tragedy of You Only Live Twice is that there’s such great stuff in the film that is sometimes suffocated under just plain poor ideas and poorer executions of those ideas. I’ve said it before, but Bond “going Japanese” (I really can’t describe it as anything else) will never be okay, and it’s what ultimately takes the film from being near to par with Goldfinger in my rankings to below the whole lot of the early Connery selections, its impact it so shatteringly horrid. I know it’s the Bond series and we’ve entered into a pre-arranged agreement to suspend more than a little disbelief to properly enjoy these movies, but if you try to convince me that Sean Connery could blend in around a Japanese fishing village while disguised as an oriental man when his deep Scottish brogue makes his pronunciation of “domo arigato” sounds like a whooping cough, you’re out of luck, because that is just bananas.
Show me a spacecraft that defies physics and science, fine. Give me a sequence where a 250 pound plane can carry a cache of heavy weaponry, including rockets, missiles and mines, fine, I’ll take the journey with you and you won’t even need to duct tape my mouth to silence my negations. You can even show me a hollowed-out volcano made into a makeshift headquarters and I’ll ensure my child-like awe beats any criticisms I may have with the logic of it to a bloody pulp. But Bond “going Japanese” is a step too far and a line I cannot cross. There are times when a man must speak the word of truth, lest his complacency with the bizarre and wacky renders him catatonic to it when it becomes normalized. On this point, I shall not sway.
There is also some weird moments in the script that confused me when I last watched this film, one logic based and another structure based. In regards to the latter, the scene where Helga Brandt puts Bond in a death trap in the sky is just plain awkward and out of place (it comes literally right after Bond and Helga’s love scene with no lead-up), and it’s clearly only there to give 007 a reason to be on his own again and out of SPECTRE’s clutches, once again thought dead.
Secondly-a logic issue now-how don’t Brandt and Osato know Bond is Bond the very moment they see him, and why do they later still seem shocked when Blofeld breaks the news of Mr. Fisher’s identity to him? It’s a part of the film I’m super fuzzy on, and there’s moments where I think Bond is found out, but then a later reaction by Osato and Brandt makes me believe they don’t know that who they’re dealing with is SPECTRE enemy #1. I find this so bizarre because it directly defies canon logic and the film’s own logic. Even as early as From Russia with Love we know that SPECTRE are aware of what Bond looks like because they are able to manufacture a mask of him for Grant to use in his training. If I was Blofeld I’d be circulating headshots of Bond to all my agents stationed worldwide in the hopes that the man could be taken down if he ever appeared in a specific city or nation on MI6 business. This way no SPECTRE agent would ever see Bond as a stranger and the name of SPECTRE’s prime enemy could be given a recognizable face so that he could be killed all the faster, saving heaps of future heart ache and financial fatigue.
You Only Live Twice provides us with Osato, a big time SPECTRE associate and Helga Brandt, a high-ranking SPECTRE member of all things, who both are seemingly clueless when Bond walks straight into their offices. It’s as weird as Blofeld meeting Bond like he’s a stranger in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, all the more frustrating for it not being properly addressed. These people should know Bond immediately if Blofeld is anything resembling a competent leader, and Bond’s “murder” at the start of the film is plastered on the papers (along with his photograph), so Brandt and Osato really should have known who to watch out for. Most illogical.
With all the bad or iffy there is also a lot of good, however. The idea of Bond faking his death is interesting and jarring, the SPECTRE plot to play the Americans and Russians off each other is an interesting, amped-up sequel to From Russia with Love’s plot, and the dangers posed by Bond’s failure are grounded in the context of the times and the tensions that were in existence between those nations. As I stated in my previous analysis, the inclusion of the microdots into the plot added a raw and real world sense of spy craft and intrigue to the story to give it more of an espionage edge, and the many instances of culture clash that Bond experiences while in Japan as a western man in an eastern land is fascinating and well served by a script that allows the movie to explore oriental culture in its many facets, from recreation and hygiene to wedding ceremonies, training and more. There’s embellishments as there always must be for entertainment’s sake, but on the whole You Only Live Twice is an interesting exercise in taking a man who symbolizes the west and Britain specifically and placing him into a locale that runs counter to some of his expectations. It’s nice to see Bond out of his element in a way that isn’t harmful to him, but that serves to give him an eye-opening look into a place and culture he’s never experienced before this particular mission.
In addition, I think the script of this movie may contain an interesting reference or tie to the story of Thunderball that I picked up on in my latest watch. As we all know the goal of the NATO theft in that film was for SPECTRE to acquire through extortion a sum of $100 million cash in diamond value. With that operation a failure, they are out a lot of time, effort, manpower and money, and must have been hurting in the coffers because of it. When we get to You Only Live Twice SPECTRE are up to no good once again in an even dizzier scheme, and Blofeld is in bed with some Red Chinese officials who are hoping to benefit from a rise in tensions between the Americans and Russians. During a meeting with this group Blofeld extorts a princely sum of $100 million out of them in payment for his efforts to aid their interests-far more than originally decided, we see-which makes me wonder: is Blofeld asking for this specific value of money to make up for the loss of the $100 million the NATO plot was going to give his organization, but that they missed out on thanks to Bond’s interruptions in their plan? The Chinese are the perfect victims for this extortion because Blofeld has the power in his hands, along with all the rocket fuel from Osato he could need. If the Chinese relented and refused to pay him, he could go back on his offer to incite war with the Americans and Russians in payback as he’s in full control of everything and makes last-call. The safer deal was for the Chinese to meet Blofeld’s new payment request to guarantee that their own requests would also be met, with the loss of the $100 million being a necessary cost to pay. I’m curious if anyone else noticed this detail of the story and gave it some thought along these lines.
All in all, You Only Live Twice plays with a lot of admirable ideas, some that miss but a lot that hit, and it contains some of the greatest lines in the series when it comes to wit and comedic timing if you like Bond for the gags. It’s a mixed bag, but it’s a beautiful bag.
Cinematography-
For the first time in the Bond series Ted Moore sits out a Bond film while the esteemed Freddie Young of Lawrence of Arabia fame steps up to the plate to give a 007 picture a shot.
Right from the beginning, you know that an A-class cinematographer is handling this movie. One of my favorite moments that is blink-and-you-miss-it occurs right as the opening title design ends and the camera pauses on a beautiful mountain range with a sunset beating behind it. In a flash a new shot comes and we see that same mountain range, this time in mid-day as Bond’s funeral kicks off. It’s a simple but powerful and cool visual that gives us a great introduction to Japan and the coexistence of the cities and mountains that make the location special.
Like Ted Moore, Young captures the location of Japan with real richness, making the scenery pop in color and life. Watching the film nowadays in Blu-ray quality is unreal, the images are so tangible. Young was a vital part of the scouting crew for the film, and it’s clear that just as he did in Lawrence of Arabia and all his other award winning work, he can shoot wide expanses of the natural world and create a story with the images and the characters that are roaming inside it.
The travelogue nature of the films continue to exist as we get intimate looks into different pieces of Japanese culture and the varied locations in the country thanks to the extended amount of time we get to frequent its cities, coasts and villages as audiences. I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again: the location shooting may be the defining piece of why this film is worth watching, and this alone saves it from the bottom of Bond rankings, amongst other elements.
Music-
John Barry returns in You Only Live Twice for his fourth turn as the main Bond composer. While I haven’t listened to this particular score as much as Barry’s other scores, there are a lot of great goodies in here.
We still get the James Bond sound we expect to hear in these films, but Barry uses more ethnic scoring than I think we’d heard up to this point in his Bond career. Compositions like “The Wedding” are beautiful pieces of music that exclude the Bond sound of the big orchestra to deliver notes that accompany the visuals of Japan beautifully, giving the music space to paint a picture of the land. These compositions that use ethnic styled sounds are used when the film is showing us pieces of Japanese culture, including the ceremony Bond is treated to in the fishing village, and the sounds again accompany the scene of Aki’s death that adds a peacefulness and beauty to her death in a weird sort of way. Barry’s score avoids the pitfalls that other composers have fallen into in the past by creating music that feels almost racist in how stereotypically the sounds are collected. He pays great tribute to traditional Japanese roots and what you would expect their cultural music to sound like while meshing those notes with the elements of the Bond sound required for a film of this kind, creating a perfect, unexpected union.
Barry also uses the notes of the opening titles song from Nancy Sinatra with great cunning throughout the film in sprawling fashion, and also weighs moments down with great tension, as his “Capsule in Space” piece showcases, scoring the unsettling and bizarre moment when the SPECTRE craft opens its “jaws” and swallows the NASA flight whole. The music man gives the predatory images a predatory sound, like we’re watching a piece of nature unfold.
All in all it’s a great score from Barry that is as diverse as it is rich in so many ways, with tracks for everything from quiet and loud moments to those that enrich the visuals of the Japanese scenery with culturally inspired compositions to accompany them.
Editing-
When it comes to the editing of You Only Live Twice, things get tricky. The usual Bond editor Peter R. Hunt, who gave a defining style to Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger and Thunderball was on holiday while the production team were location scouting for You Only Live Twice in Japan. Hunt was taking a break from Bond after he made it clear he wanted to direct the next Bond feature, but was ultimately turned down. Eventually he took the job of directing the second-unit of the film after being offered it, and also apparently supervised the editing that was going on in post-production, though I haven’t been able to tell just how much of the final cut was derived from his ideas.
The original plan was for Thelma Connell, Lewis Gilbert’s go-to editor, to have editing duties on You Only Live Twice, but when she returned with a nearly three hour cut of the film that didn’t excite test audiences in the slightest, Hunt was sought out to once again work his magic. The work he and his possible team did (again, this is hard to research) ultimately produced a cut that was seen as superior to Connell’s effort, and Hunt’s work here is said to have finally paved the way for him to attain the directing job he sought for You Only Live Twice on the next film in the Bond production pipeline, which was to be On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
What is puzzling about the editing of this film is that it is hard for me to see Hunt’s mark on it, largely because it doesn’t present itself outwardly as a Hunt handled Bond movie, which may give credence to the idea that he supervised the editing (a job he’s listed as having on the film in some texts and sites) instead of taking full control of the cut we see in the final film. Hunt’s fast edits characterized the early Bond films as sometimes messy and exciting adventures, and those jumpy cuts feel absent from my memory of this film. There’s no moments that feel Hunt-esque to me, beyond a few moments where images flash in sequence at a quicker rate than you’d imagine they would in other films, like in how we get introduced to Japan for the first time with shots showcasing all its city lights and advertisements.
On the whole, the editing feels as it does for most modern day films in that it strives not to draw attention to itself. It does its job with no editing quirks, and allows the film to progress as you’d expect it to. This more “normal” editing style have been advised and supported by Lewis Gilbert, who seemed to prefer shooting a Bond movie in a way it hadn’t been before, sans the jump cuts, fast camera swings and all the rest. This is all conjecture on my part, however.
I don’t have an opinion on any of this either way, as I’ve never minded Hunt’s style enough to be bothered about it, while I know it bugs some who think Hunt’s edits made the films he handled feel amateurish when his ideas were brought out in the final cuts.
Costume Design-
While You Only Live Twice is a little short on Bond style-he only wears two major suits in the film-and Sean is beginning to show his weight gain, the actor still remains a style icon, and rightfully so.
Anthony Sinclair gives Sean two fine suits, one a grey herringbone suit that Bond wears when he first enters Japan and sneaks into Osato Chemicals and a dark blue summer suit he sports when he’s disguised as Mr. Fisher and fighting at Kobe docks. The first suit, the grey herringbone, is once again the default James Bond suit from clear back in Dr. No and From Russia with Love, which also gets a brief appearance in the Junkanoo chase of Thunderball. The suit is quintessential Connery Bond, an all gray outer ensemble with either a white or blue dress shirt (white here) that was always finished off with a navy grenadine tie and black shoes. It’s nice to see Sean return to one of the suits and style palettes that made him a fashion sensation and sex symbol in the first place, and though the fit isn’t as fine as the previous films due to the changing style of the day and Sean’s noticeable weight change since Thunderball, he wears it well.
The second suit of the film, the all blue summer suit is one of my favorite Bond suits with a hue that really brings out Sean’s features wonderfully. The suit is similar to the one Bond wears during his briefing with Q in Goldfinger, and Sean’s brown hair is a perfect match for the blue suit jacket and navy tie that makes him pop. The suit is my favorite of the film and one of my favorites in the era, especially for how Bond battles his way out of the docks in it.
Bond’s casual wear is serviceable but nothing fantastic, and the all gray get-up he wears during the finale is just hideous and badly fit to Sean’s frame, showing just how out of shape he’d gotten since Thunderball. All this considered, it’s a real treat to see Connery’s Bond in commander uniform as he rises from the sea and gets his orders from M.
Where the other cast members are concerned Tanaka gets a fine suit to adorn himself with, Aki looks beautiful in blue, Kissy is a feast for the eyes in her bikini and Blofeld is properly vilified to audiences while dressed in a Mao suit in a style move that couldn’t be any more deliberate.
Sets-
Much like in Thunderball, for You Only Live Twice production designer Ken Adam was wearing many hats. Not only was he scouting locations to use in the film with the producers, but he was also building up the production team by discovering and hiring pilot Ken Wallis for the film, and ultimately, he crafted the set that many would say is his Bond magnum opus (I personally can’t decide).
There’s an amazing series of strong sets in this movie that really make it special. The first major one we’re introduced to is the small stage on which the British, American and Russian powers meet following the SPECTRE theft of the NASA flight. Tensions are high, and the seating of the world powers is intimate with the representatives too close for comfort in their seats. The tables the representatives sit at seem raised by a large platform that looks like a cliff edge when the camera pulls out for a wide shot of the scene, and it’s hard not to get the feeling that the 3 nations are all in danger of figuratively and literally falling over the edge. In a nice bit of visual symbolism, the British representatives are stuck right in the middle of the Americans and Russians as the two nations accuse each other of foul play. This seating makes sense for the rest of the film as Bond has also placed himself in the middle of the chaos surrounding the space thefts in order to find out what is really going on and how he can stop further scheming.
Once we get to Japan there’s a series of amazing sets express from Adam and his team that feel right at home in the oriental surroundings. The set meant to be Dikko Henderson’s apartment is most interesting, for reasons that may be surprising. The space itself is in tune with the kind of design one would see in Japan, especially in regards to tea houses with an emphasis on sitting spaces with seat cushions and small, low-level tables for keeping company. In a nice twist, however, Dikko points out to Bond that he doesn’t have it in him to allow his house to go “full Japanese,” so he keeps trinkets around him that are English in nature to remind him of his native land. This makes the set a bit meta, considering that like Dikko, Ken Adam is an Englishman in Japan furnishing sets that attempt to balance both Japanese aesthetics and more western styles of design foreign to that land.
Osato’s office is another Ken Adam masterpiece, a wonderful space that harkens back to the Parisian SPECTRE briefing room of Thunderball with a repeat of a ceiling pattern that resembles a large paneled window. During the fight Bond has with an Osato henchman the items of the set are placed in the perfect positions to incite the greatest thrills for audiences. As Bond is tossed through a paper wall a leather sofa is there to catch him as he’s launched back onto the floor, by spatial design. Another chair is handily within reach, which Bond then uses to try and push off the behemoth of a man. As a final act, Bond takes to using statues of what appear to be Japanese warriors to dispatch his foe once and for all. When Bond shows up to the office later on as Mr. Fisher the power of the space Adam and his team created in its very blueprints is visible. The items of the set are placed such that Bond is almost surrounded by them, like the office is a furniture ambush. The interview chair Bond is meant to sit in is also given a large space to itself in the room, right in the line of sight of Osato at his desk, a set-up meant to make the visitor feel inferior and under command in a space that doesn’t welcome them. In a nice touch, the shiny material that makes up Osato’s desk reflects Bond on its surface as he’s faced with his own image. He sees double and the audience knows that he’s acting the role of a double in impersonating Fisher.
And of course the big daddy of all the sets, the gigantic desert serving, is Ken Adam’s wicked volcano set that completely defies any law of nature in existence. I have no idea how he and his team made it, and I kind of don’t want to know the tricks because the true majesty of Adam’s work, including this set, is gained by being ignorant to how it all came to be. Like a kid watching a magic show, the true glory is in being duped and taken for all you have as you marvel at the skills of the maestro doing miracles in front of you. Everything about the volcano set is shiny and massive and somehow in movement. Transport cars shoot around bends and workers busy around the launch silo in swarms all while the control room encases SPECTRE’s evil No. 1 under heavy guard. A giant, and I mean giant circle commands the ceiling like the big brother of Dr. No’s anteroom set. Everything about Adam’s work up to this point in the franchise-his study of geometrics, space, structure, materials and symmetry-all come together in the volcano set’s design, showing what results when practice, genius and a nice Hollywood budget all come together and make sweet, sweet cinematic love. The sets of Ken Adam would be nothing without a team that knew how to use his creations, however, and the crew of You Only Live Twice was able to stage the volcano raid that makes up the finale of the film in beautiful, cunning fashion.
An honorable mention set-wise must also be given to the bathing house Tanaka and Bond use early in the film and Blofeld’s lounge inside the volcano set. The bathing house is pure Japanese style with glorious geometry and finely crafted wooden materials serving as its foundations. The sparkling floor with a checkered pattern continues the heavy use of line and square patterning in the design, with a sloped ceiling that gives the space a great sense of movement and architectural interest. To finish the design off, stone pools and massive folds of foliage and fronds form the bathing area Bond and Tanaka frequent in the scene, items of decoration that make it feel like the nature of Japan has actively sprouted itself up through the floor of the space to take over. And of course we can’t forget the most important set design elements of all, the beautiful Japanese women that soap up our heroes.
Blofeld’s lounge inside the volcano is just too cool to handle, the kind of pad Hugh Hefner would’ve had in his prime if we was a creepy, physically scarred power hungry sadist with a love of piranhas. The set has a great elegance to it, like a playboy’s quarters, but the added menace of the snapping fish and twisted, hazardous looking walkway and stairs give it a bizarre and unsettled appeal perfect for the unsettled mind of the space’s resident. Adam and his team showed great genius is making the lounge look like it was cut right into the rock of the volcano, and that’s part of what makes the whole set feel like a more refined and lavish take on Dr. No’s lair where Adam used the same kind of earthy elements to create a set meant to be both man-made and nature nurtured.
Overall there’s such an immense load of great sets in this film that it instantly ranks up there amongst the best of the entire series, big time. It would already get there with just the volcano set, but the inclusion of Japanese inspired spaces add to what is already a visual powerhouse of a film.
Gun barrel sequence
The music sounds great and, obviously, we have a new actor taking on this part of the movie. George looks great here and it’s similar to Connerys’ gun barrel walk/turn/shot. I won’t say that one is better than the other as they both look great. Lazenby looks good and his turn, drop and shot are quick and one fluid movement. Very good.
PTS
A great intro for our new Bond here. Quiet drive, saves his future wife from suicide and then the fight on the beach. The fight is brilliant and Lazenby really excels in this fight scene, as he does in others. It’s a tough fight and Lazenby doesn’t come across as someone you’d mess with. Great to see the Bond girl from the beginning and this represents the start of quite a journey for Tracy.
Locations
Portugal looks very nice and the scene for Draco’s birthday get together looks great.
However, the jewel of the movie is, quite obviously, Switzerland. Wow, this place looks stunning and the Piz Gloria location is one of the most memorable of any Bond movie.
Gadgets
It would be quite easy to say, without the addition of the traditional Q scene, that gadgets are limited in this movie. Not really, during the course of the movie Bond uses gadgets that come in very useful during his investigation, as well as during his yearning for a “bit of how’s yer father?”
During the excellent scene in Gumbolds’ office we see him use a safe cracker to gain access to items relating to Bleuchamp, plus the photocopier to hide any traces of him being there. There’s also the miniature camera he uses during the final battle taking photos of where in the world the Angels of Death are (I assume). There’s also the telescopic lens he uses in the pts, which he uses to see what Tracy is up to, before heading off to save her from death. All very helpful.
Another helpful little gadget he uses, and this is the one where he’s after a bit of you know what, is of his own creating. The door opener he creates to get out of his room and make his way to see Ruby Bartlett.
We also see Q showing M his latest device, radioactive lint, to be used to locate certain people, however, M didn’t seem interested as he was only interested in locating 007.
Action
Well, this is one movie that is action packed, right from the start. Within the first 15 minutes, 007 has been involved in a couple of fights, both of which are very well done. There’s the brilliant escape from Piz Gloria, a scene that that goes from our first sight of a ski chase, the car chase, more skiing, before ending with the avalanche. It’s a great sequence of events and is quite breath-taking. And, of course we also have the battle at Piz Gloria which takes us all the way through to a wonderful bobsleigh chase and fight between 007 and Blofeld. More breath-taking action. I love it, some of the best action in the series.
Humour
A few bits in here, general one-liners as usual and things that make me laugh. The interaction between Bond and Moneypenny, Bond taking a peek at the Playboy magazine, then taking it with him from the office of Gumbold. “This time I’ve got the gadgets”, things like that peppered throughout. One of the funniest moments for me is when Ruby, who again I love to bits, is writing her room number, in lipstick, on the inside of Bonds’ leg. Then, when asked if he’s ok, his reply of a little stiffness coming on, does make me laugh.
Plot plausibility
Probably not the most plausible of plots within a Bond movie but, who cares, this movie is excellent.
Villain’s scheme
Blofeld develops a lethal virus that he threatens to unleash on the world if he doesn’t receive a pardon for past crimes. Ok so, this is something that could well happen in the world of today, a virus unleashed to hold the world at ransom. Personally, I find it completely bonkers and the fact that he is to do this using his Angels of Death, from all around the globe, shows how crazy a villain Blofeld is. The fact that he uses women is irrelevant, either way, it’s a sickening scheme to put together, using people as pawns.
While he obviously wants to be pardoned for past crimes, he also wants to be recognised with the title of Comte Balthazar de Bleuchamp. Why this has to be part of the deal I’ll never know but hey ho, crazed villain etc.
Who is paying you for doing this?
Direction
Peter Hunt does an excellent job in taking on the directorial duties and his direction helps the movie move along at a nice, even pace. He also lets the movie have a strong emphasis on character and plot, which is something that other directors could take a look at. We do miss the humorous gadgetry scene but, as the movie is strong in other departments, it’s hardly missed.
Opening title design
Again, Maurice Binder does a sterling job here and brings us a super opening title design. I could have done without the tributes to past Bond adventures (again, almost feels like a smack in the face to Lazenby), but they do look great. Very British, with the colours etc.
Script
This, for me, is one of the best in the series. Not only do we have a great spy story, but we have a love story added to the mix. The writing certainly helps the movie tick along nicely; great action set pieces and, of course the brilliant and tragic end scene. A wonderful effort from Maibaum.
Cinematography
One of the best looking movies of the series, if not the best. The location of Piz Gloria and surrounding mountains ensures one of the most beautiful looking movies in the 007 series. Beautifully shot and with some wonderful aerial filming.
Music
Ok, so this is getting repetitive now but, arguably, the best score in the entire series. John Barry really was on top form for this movie, bringing his usual big orchestra sounds and mixed it with synthesizers and alpine horns, the music is a perfect fit for this movie. I particularly love the music played during the ski chase and it’s been constantly playing in my head ever since I watched the movie. I can’t think of a better earworm than that.
The music played over the title sequence is great; we don’t get the usual Bond song played over it but another wonderful piece of music that fits the titles perfectly.
And we also get the wonderful Louis Armstrong song, not only at the end but during the movie too. A wonderful song and a perfect end song in what is the most emotional scene in all of Bond history.
Editing
The editing is nice and fast paced and, especially during the fight scenes, one of the best of the series. One or two minor issues but they do not hinder any part of the movie.
Costume design
A return to form here. Yes, Connery always looked great in his movies but, for me, towards the end of his first stint as 007 I didn’t find his suits tailored as well as in earlier movies. Anyway, for this, Lazenby always looked great and every inch an ample replacement for Connery. Nicely fitted suits, love the ruffle tuxedo shirt and he even pulled off the kilt ensemble. I guess his modelling days will have helped and he has a decent physique so anything he wore looked great on him.
Diana Rigg always looked the 60’s beauty she was, and her costumes never failed to deliver. Her outfit worn at her fathers’ birthday bash looked great but it’s after that I though she looked wonderful. Very much of the 60’s, a great look.
Only thing I wasn’t sure of was the outfit worn by Telly Savalas as Blofeld. Not the Nehru collared jacket as I thought that looked better in him than Pleasance before him but the all dark brown gear he war later in the movie when he has Tracy. Not keen myself.
As for the rest, all looking great.
Sets
We were spoilt in the previous 007 outing with the wonderful, Ken Adam design volcano set so there isn’t much that would top that. However, even without Mr Adam we are treated to a great set design in Piz Gloria, from Peter Lamont. Another plus point in a great movie.
At least give yourself a warning first.
Gun Barrel- First thing we see is the producers names. Early reminder that this is a proper Bond film. Lazenby drops to one knee – I like it.
PTS - This is so cool. The way Lazenby is revealed, the close ups of his hand and face. So so clever.
The fight scene is edited almost to suggest we are dropping in on isolated moments of the fight, rather than seeing it all from start to finish. Bond punches a man at the waters edge, he falls knee deep in water. Very effective.
Locations - The French Riviera, London, Portugal, Berne, the Alps. Great use of locations, adding a bit of local culture to the Portugal sequence (bull fighting) as they had done in You Only Live Twice showing the Sumo wrestling.
The locations are shown at their best, not always for dramatic impact but just to capture their natural beauty. Often soft focused, sometimes shot through a floral landscape. Always compelling. And the most varied locations of the series so far. Money being thrown at this one for sure.
Gadgets - Bond cleverly makes his own gadget to get out of his room when he feels a little stiffness coming on.
Action - We have some ground breaking stunt work on skis.
Fist fights a plenty, thanks in no small part to Lazenby’s natural fighting ability.
The car chase is spectacular, the climatic sequences thrilling to say the least.
Final word to the taught, dramatic pursuit through the small Swiss village in the midst of the Christmas festivities. The action is off-set by the song ‘Do You Know How Christmas Trees Are Grown’. I may be wrong but I don’t believe any film to that point had used music so gentle and charming of nature to highlight a scene that is so dramatic and tense. A sort of juxtaposition. I recall Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom opening with a big Busby Berkley number so deliberately out of step with the film itself - yet so effective. Here we have something very different, Christmas in full throttle, everyone in a great mood, except for Bond and his pursuers. The music isn’t the 007 theme, but a children’s song. And boy does it work.
Humour -
Ruby Bartlett is a hoot.
And Bond’s line ‘Just a little stiffness coming on”. Hang on folks Roger Moore is 4 years away.
Unintentionally funny line of the film “I have taught you to love chickens”. That one leaves me helpless every time.
Plot – Biological warfare, nothing wrong with that. Blofeld has overcome his obsession with space hardware. Now, he has moved on to chickens.
All in all this is Blofeld’s vanity project.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service - Production Notes
Peter Hunt did a superb job here. Ahead of his time in many ways, preferring to play out the down beat ending from the book, rather than the usual upbeat ending of previous films.
He also went to town on his erratic, fast paced editing, and it works. The fights flash before our eyes, the cutting is pacey and exciting. And people say Jason Bourne invented this kind of editing. PAH!
I could have done with less of the need to keep reminding us that this is the same series. The titles are a collection of clips from the previous films through an hour glass. These reminders come thick and fast in the film until I find myself screaming at the TV ‘YES OK, I GET IT. IT’S THE SAME BOND!’.
The script is intelligent and involving. We have a Bond film of great rarity. One that could be plucked from the series and stand alone as a great film.
The cinematography is outstanding, truly. Hunt and his team went to great lengths to get the most expansive and breath-taking shots of the Alps. Sublime.
Interesting to see Bond in such dandy clothes. An extravagant frill on his dress shirt (can’t imagine Connery wearing it somehow), a dodgy get up to play golf in, and his Hilary Brey kilt. Go James!
His more standard wear is very nice (Lazenby should look good in nice suits and blazers after all). During the Louis Armstrong song alone we get a positive array of formal and informal clothes to feast our eyes upon.
The overall clothes budget must have been quite something, with all of Blofeld’s lovelies to dress.
The sets are noticeably full of flowers and plants, deliberately so. The film also uses music, soft focus camera work and strong colours to create a romantic feel to the film. The usual starched, futuristic design of Blofeld’s working lab is in contrast to the other sets. All magnificent nonetheless
The music stands out. It’s used to drive the action along (unlike the Guy Hamilton films which follow where the action tends to be played out in silence). The ski-ing accompanied by the OHMSS theme is wondrous to behold.
Even the moment when Draco says ‘What she needs is a man to dominate her’ Barry brings in the Bond theme gently in the background. An amusing musical joke I suppose, but it works a treat.
And of course no one sings We Have All The time In The World quite like Louis Armstrong.
It truly is an awful story. A real shame.
I don't agree. On Page 17 alone we've had comments from NicNac, Shark_Of-Largo, Birdleson, Thunderfinger, Crazysoul95, 0BradyM0Bondfanatic7, and suavejmf. I was at least quoted on this page, sorry I haven't had the time to post a more complete review.
Much of OHMSS is absolutely first rate: M and Moneypenny get a real chance to shine, with the whole resignation/fortnight's leave bit. Diana Rigg is just perfect as Tracy and Draco is a total scene stealer. Telly Savalas is probably my favorite Blofeld... he's calm and commanding, subtly mocking when he is holding Bond prisoner and revealing his master plan. He is even suitably without earlobes! Savalas lacks only one point to my mind: he doesn't get a real scenery-chewing, "KILL BOND!! NOW!!!!" moment. But Irma Bunt certainly makes up for that small lack in the menace department. She's creepy enough to give Rosa Klebb nightmares. The Angels of Death provide this film with an excess of beauty, far more gorgeous women on the screen at one time than has been the case for any other film so far in the series (although I have to admit I'm not as big a fan of Ruby as some others around here seem to be.) The sets are just gorgeous, the skiing scenes are masterfully shot, and Louis Armstrong's rendition of "We Have All The Time In The World" stays with this viewer long after the film has faded from the screen. This movie has only one weakness and it feels to me like we've been nearly ignoring the elephant in the room:
George Lazenby just isn't a good enough actor to carry the role. He's great in the fight scenes -- his fighting style is very different from Connery's but that's okay. Connery's punches and throws were very compact, minimum effort for maximum effect. Lazenby is substantially more of a brawler, he starts a punch with his fist at shoulder level and ends that same punch with his fist near his knees. But in delivering dialogue, Lazenby is positively wooden. His weakness as an actor is especially notable to me whenever he's onscreen alongside Gabriele Ferzetti's Draco. Ferzetti effortlessly delivers a performance that makes him the equal of Kerim Bey or Quarrel as this film's chief male ally; Lazenby's responses ("But I don't need a million pounds!") are hopelessly inadequate. When Ferzetti and Rigg are arguing about his presence at Draco's birthday party, Lazenby is very nearly a non-entity alongside them. Personally, I think it's for the best that his appearanaces as Bond number only this one effort: although the rest of the cast and crew (and script and director) carry the film in splendid fashion, Lazenby is not really equal to the role of James Bond. Roger Moore is waiting in the wings...
MY CURRENT STANDINGS:
1) Goldfinger
2) From Russia With Love
3) On Her Majesty's Secret Service
4) Thunderball
5) Dr. No
6) You Only Live Twice
We need a thread!!