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NEW 2021 UPDATES ON 'Quick Big Mi6 Bond Ranking Game': JOIN IN, FOLKS!

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  • ProfJoeButcherProfJoeButcher Bless your heart
    Posts: 1,711
    Dwayne wrote: »
    As with many of you, I’m surprised to see YOLT ranked so low. I have it at 9th in my rankings and it has consistently been in my top ten over the years.

    Some of the “hate” on YOLT can – no doubt – be attributed to what IMO is Connery’s weakness performance as Bond. That said, I still think he is ok.

    One of my criticisms of YOLT (and one that still have BTW), is that I find the characters of Tiger, Aki and Kissy (yes, even her!) to be – in some ways – more interesting than Bond here. And author Steven Jay Rubin has made exactly this point over the years. In fact, when I first saw YOLT (and long before my Bond fandom had really developed), I wanted to see a movie centering on the adventures of Tiger and his ninja forces and agents! (*)

    That said, even at that time I found the volcano lair, Blofeld’s reveal, “Little Nllie”, and the kidnapping of U.S. and Soviet spacecraft to be captivating, and my appreciation of these elements has only increased over time. If I am completely truthful however, technically TB is a better film, yet I find YOLT to be better paced and often works as my “go-to” film for the Connery era. And when you add in one of John Barry’s best scores and Nancy Sinatra’s title song vocals…..you have a film that is a feast.

    YOLT’s only real competition for being an epic on this scale are TSWLM and MR, and in my personal rankings TSWLM gets the slight node only because of Moore’s performance. As for MR…..It’s been said that the plot of YOLT is far-fetched (and it is – believe me!!!), and that the film borders on becoming a self-parody. But while MR crosses that line (frequently), YOLT goes up to the line but doesn’t quite cross it. It knows when to pull back from the eye rolling outlandishness of some aspects of MR.

    ** OK. Maybe my 16-year-old self wanted to see more of Mie Hama in a bikini – a wish that was fulfilled a couple of years ago when I saw the Japanese spy spoof “Iron Finger.” But these days, I find Akiko Wakabayashi more fascinating.

    akiko-wakabayashi.jpg

    Despite my negative review above, Aki is one of my absolute favorite Bond girls.
  • DwayneDwayne New York City
    edited April 2021 Posts: 2,851
    Max_The_Parrot wrote: »

    I’ll just add this page to my bookmarks ....

    Can’t decide between Mie and Akiko @Max_the_Parrot? How about both. They starred together in at-least two other movies: “King Kong vs. Godzilla” (1962) and “International Secret Police: Key of Keys” (1965). The later was used as the basis for Woody Allen’s dubbed spoof “What's Up, Tiger Lily?” The third actress in the photo is Kumi Mizuno. Along with Yuriko Hoshi, they formed most of the "big" Toho genre actresses during the mid-1960s.

    8f4201ac51e7a177cfcf6ee683372fa4.jpg

    It’s too bad that I could make the YOLT “Watch A Long” with Norman Wanstall the other day. Just how extensive was the post production dubbing of Akiko – if any?

  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,985
    They're both fantastic and among my favorites. It's almost jarring having two Bond girls who are so iconic and strong in one film together, much like those of TB.
  • Junglist_1985Junglist_1985 Los Angeles
    Posts: 1,035
    Agree with this ranking. Connery looks bored and the whole turning Japanese thing is wasted and done with poor taste. I consider TSWLM and MR superior Gilbert films.
  • goldenswissroyalegoldenswissroyale Switzerland
    Posts: 4,487
    I'm also one of them stating that Bond looks bored. I like Aki but dislike Kissy. Mie Hama somehow looks too young for my taste and I can't see any chemistry between her and Bond san.
    The film doesn't make much sense, even for a Bond film standard. Nevertheless, I love the office fight, the moment with the magnet, the aerial shot at Kobe docks, M's office in the submarine, the moving lake in the vulcano... and Aki's death is dark in a good way. Oh, and the piranha set is perfect.
    A movie which definitely belongs in the lowest third of my list but I always preferred it to MR.
  • CraigMooreOHMSSCraigMooreOHMSS Dublin, Ireland
    Posts: 8,223
    Much like MR, the first half of YOLT is very strong. It's only in the second half, despite the technical artistry on display, that it caves in on itself due to the epic ambitions. I think Gilbert nailed it in TSWLM in this regard. It's remarkably consistent all the way through for such a grandiose film.
  • goldenswissroyalegoldenswissroyale Switzerland
    edited April 2021 Posts: 4,487
    CraigMooreOHMSS wrote: »
    Much like MR, the first half of YOLT is very strong. It's only in the second half, despite the technical artistry on display, that it caves in on itself due to the epic ambitions. I think Gilbert nailed it in TSWLM in this regard. It's remarkably consistent all the way through for such a grandiose film.

    The first 80 minutes of TSWLM are much more enjoyable than the rest, imo. Same goes for MR. But this is only my issue with space scenes.
    I'm not sure if I prefer the first half of YOLT more than the second one. There are good and weaker scenes all over the place. Compared to others, I'm not a fan of the YOLT PTS.
  • Max_The_ParrotMax_The_Parrot ATAC to St Cyril’s
    Posts: 2,426
    Dwayne wrote: »

    Can’t decide between Mie and Akiko @Max_the_Parrot?

    Akiko is amazing, Mie is amazing, but both? Oh my, that Sean was a lucky boy! It may be too much for me but I’ve just found King Kong vs Godzilla on YouTube so I’m definitely going to check it out, thanks for the recommendation! 👍
  • DwayneDwayne New York City
    edited April 2021 Posts: 2,851
    While you’re at it @Max_the_Parrot you should seek out “King Kong Escapes” (1967). In that film Mie Hama plays a fem-fatale called “Madame Piranha.”

    No? That is what her character is actually called!! :))

    Also: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/03/movies/going-from-bond-girl-to-a-normal-life.html
  • JTWJTW US
    Posts: 131
    You Only Live Twice, while spectacular in many areas, feels to me as if the buildup wave of Goldfinger/Thunderball - the first couple of what I'd call "big" Bond films - has crested. As many have mentioned, Connery's energy is largely off in this one. That being said, there's still a lot to love about YOLT. Little Nellie's good fun. The soundtrack is solid. And what a sweet, sweet villain lair!
  • DwayneDwayne New York City
    edited April 2021 Posts: 2,851
    Birdleson wrote: »
    Aki and Kissy have share a scene in DESTROY ALL MONSTERS.

    According to imdb the answer is no: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063172/. Kyôko Ai and Yukiko Kobayashi were the two female "leads" of that Toho classic.

    Remember that the film careers of both Mie Hama and Akiko Wakabayashi ended in the 1967/1968 time frame. Now part of that was due to the collapse of the Japanese film industry that took place in the late 1960's, but some of it was due to Mie's not wanting to do film roles like Kissy anymore. And as for Wakabayashi - who knows. According to her an on-set injury caused her to end her film career.

    I think both 007 magazine and G-Fan (a publication for Godzilla fans) have attempted to interview her over the years. IIRC, one of them was successful, but the interview was done via e-mail. But again, I don't have the magazine issues to confirm.

    It is an interesting topic. When retrospectives on "Bond Girls" are given, these two women are mostly left out.
  • Some_Kind_Of_HeroSome_Kind_Of_Hero
    Posts: 6,844
    Now this is a surprise. How many of you lot put Moonraker in your top threes for crying out loud? ;)

    Nevertheless, You Only Live Twice is among good company at the bottom here. I could carve a mighty fine desert island five from those listed so far.
  • Agent_99Agent_99 enjoys a spirited ride as much as the next girl
    Posts: 3,179
    For me, YOLT suffers because for some reason I haven't watched it as often as the other Connerys (tied to what I happened to catch on TV in my teens), so I just don't know it as well or have the same affection for it.

    There's still time for me to change that...
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 7,162
    Tomorrow we'll crack the top 15, but we've still got one entry left before we can:

    STARRING
    Roger Moore as James Bond 007

    WITH
    Lois Chiles, Michael Lonsdale, Richard Kiel & Corinne Cléry

    MOONRAKER

    MUSIC BY John Barry
    DIRECTED BY Lewis Gilbert

    Moonraker_Thailand_Kwow-4.jpg

    Not a bad ranking for the pre-DAD punching bag of the franchise. One very loyal fan even put it in first place, giving it the advantage over YOLT for the 16th spot.

    MR is also the lowest ranked entry that secured a first place finish. Other than that, it also ended up 8th twice and added another 4 top 15 finishes to its tally.

    Compare that to only 3 bottom 5 finishes, with a single 23rd spot being the lowest. Similar results as Gilbert's first Bond film, but taking home one gold medal makes a difference.

    MR's total score is 123 points.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,219
    I'm surprised to see MR climb so "high". Then again, I have this feeling that over the years, people have come to appreciate the technical marvel that this film is. Its plot is silly and most of the film is a redo of YOLT and TSWLM anyway, but Barry's score, Moore's confident acting, Adam's exceptional sets, all the beautiful locations, the visual and special effects, ... my god, this film is a tremendous achievement. MR is one of those Bond films whose lack of good plot I mind much less because there's just so much good stuff there. The exotic flavours of the film and the silly fantasy this film is truly committed to delivering, go well together. The best video game experience the Bond films gave us before video games were hot?

    I love MR. It's an imperfect film, but it has a mission and it commits fully to that.
  • zebrafishzebrafish <°)))< in Octopussy's garden in the shade
    Posts: 4,343
    I love every minute of it. I even have come around to appreciate the Bondola and the impossible love affair between Jaws and Dolly. Compared to YOLT, this film is more fun to watch - which was my compass after which I ranked it at #8 this time. I can forgive the silliness of the space fight, because Star Wars and Space Shuttles were all the rage back in 1978/79. And the music is great, by the way!
  • Slazenger7Slazenger7 Gothenburg, Sweden
    edited April 2021 Posts: 1,344
    #13th place over here. There’s a lot of good things about Moonraker. First hour or so, until Bond goes to Venice is great. Hugo Drax is among the best villains in the series. It has one of the best Barry-soundtracks. Production design is wonderful, especially Drax lair in the jungle. The photography is beautiful, the movie looks amazing.
    Unfortunately the bad things drags it down a bit, the horrendous gondola chase, Dolly, Bond riding to the ’Magnificent Seven’ theme are low points of the series.
    It still gets a lot of undeserved bashing imo.
  • ProfJoeButcherProfJoeButcher Bless your heart
    Posts: 1,711
    Nice work, Moonraker!

    Its set work, cinematography and score are right up there with YOLT and surpass TSWLM. And it's script and story, even while more clearly embracing their own silliness, are a lot less stupid than the other two Gilbert films. Yes, you have to accept that they're in space, and laser guns are a thing, but unlike in YOLT, the villain's actions make sense given his aims, and nobody has magic TVs that can watch spaceships and helicopters. Unlike TSWLM, we don't have any characters like Felicca, whose motives, actions, and death are all unclear. And nothing as embarrassing as a roomful of heroes requiring several minutes to figure out that the word "oratory" sticking out from underneath a paper is almost certainly the word "laboratory" when seen in full. :))

    Jaws is also handled better. He was an absurd character to begin with, and if you're bringing back a henchman for another round of failing to get Bond, it's best to take a comic angle. And despite this slightly different appproach (I say slightly because he dropped a rock on his foot in TSWLM), he gets his creepiest scene when he comes down the alley in Rio.

    It's a delightful romp, and I'm happy to see it slowly trudge up the list in the popular imagination.

  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,985
    MR used to be a weaker entry for me but is one that I've elevated in my rankings, appreciation and enjoyment over the last 3-5 years. The score is some of the best work of the series, the set design and globetrotting is very gorgeous and engaging, there's a huge scale not only to the action sequences but also the doomsday plot that really explodes (no pun intended) in the finale, and it's surprisingly dark for a film that can feel goofy or lighthearted at times, despite what's unfolding. It's damn good entertainment.
  • Mathis1Mathis1
    Posts: 7,520
    Just echoing all the praise being heaped on MOONRAKER , probably THE most guity pleasure of the series. Yes , terrible humour, but the most amazing production (love the Mondrian reference) and Drax has some of the best lines (coming after the deathly dull Stromberg!) And the end battle is great fun. The pts is one of my favourites and I love both versions of Basseys theme.
  • QBranchQBranch Always have an escape plan. Mine is watching James Bond films.
    Posts: 14,619
    A fair bit of detective work/spycraft in this one. Bond snooping around in Venice and the Rio carnival are probably my favourite scenes here, but overall it's such a fun, feel-good film and a technical achievement in regards to the scale, shuttles, miniature work.

    I have it ranked at #12 at the moment, the highest it has ever been on my list.
  • ProfJoeButcherProfJoeButcher Bless your heart
    Posts: 1,711
    QBranch wrote: »

    I have it ranked at #12 at the moment, the highest it has ever been on my list.

    It seems to be on the rise with people...

    When I was a kid I absolutely hated it, because, you know, James Bond is very serious indeed, and what is all this silliness? But as I get older, I realize it's fun to have fun, and also that the films always had a generous helping of silliness anyway.

  • Junglist_1985Junglist_1985 Los Angeles
    Posts: 1,035
    All of the elements that we love about YOLT are done slightly better in MR - the score, the sets, cinematography, scope, etc.

    MR excels however due to an engaged Moore, fun globetrotting, and less casual racism. It’s in a fantasy league of its own.
  • CraigMooreOHMSSCraigMooreOHMSS Dublin, Ireland
    Posts: 8,223
    MR tends to fare better when directly and solely compared to other fantastical Bond films rather than the other efforts. There's still some very jarring tonal inconsistencies but there's some nice stuff in there and the technical side is rightly revered.

    That said, none of the more fantastical Bond films rank highly for me, so that's faint praise. I have it at #20.
  • Max_The_ParrotMax_The_Parrot ATAC to St Cyril’s
    Posts: 2,426
    Somebody voted Moonraker number 1?

    8-D8-FF960-BD85-4-C80-ABD8-8-B027-BA02-A5-E.gif
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 7,162
    Junglist_1985 wrote: »
    All of the elements that we love about YOLT are done slightly better in MR - the score, the sets, cinematography, scope, etc.

    MR excels however due to an engaged Moore, fun globetrotting, and less casual racism. It’s in a fantasy league of its own.

    Agreed. YOLT's strengths are MR's strengths too, but MR improves on them and adds a better central performance.
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 7,162
    Max_The_Parrot wrote: »
    Somebody voted Moonraker number 1?

    8-D8-FF960-BD85-4-C80-ABD8-8-B027-BA02-A5-E.gif

    Someone sure did, care to have a guess who? ;)
  • goldenswissroyalegoldenswissroyale Switzerland
    Posts: 4,487
    I ranked MR at #22 and this is the highest I ever ranked it. The enthusiasm of a certain feathered MR fan helped to remove it from the lowest spot.
    Unfortunately, it will always be a weaker Bond entry for me. Mainly because I don't like films in space. A PEW-PEW battle is something I don't care for at all. The only thing worse than that is the scene where Jaws is falling in love with this over the top music piece. Just no!
    The movie has wonderful sets and beautiful sceneries and the first 80 minutes are full of entertaining scenes, despite some (too) silly moments. I don't mind the Bondola part and I absolutely love the pheasant-shoot: "Such good sport". The killing of Corinne is dramatic and dark in a very good way. Poor Corinne! I would have loved to see more of her.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,219
    goldenswissroyale wrote: »
    I ranked MR at #22 and this is the highest I ever ranked it. The enthusiasm of a certain feathered MR fan helped to remove it from the lowest spot.
    Unfortunately, it will always be a weaker Bond entry for me. Mainly because I don't like films in space. A PEW-PEW battle is something I don't care for at all. The only thing worse than that is the scene where Jaws is falling in love with this over the top music piece. Just no!
    The movie has wonderful sets and beautiful sceneries and the first 80 minutes are full of entertaining scenes, despite some (too) silly moments. I don't mind the Bondola part and I absolutely love the pheasant-shoot: "Such good sport". The killing of Corinne is dramatic and dark in a very good way. Poor Corinne! I would have loved to see more of her.

    There is always the Story Of O. 😉
  • goldenswissroyalegoldenswissroyale Switzerland
    Posts: 4,487
    Never heard of The Story of O before. There is obviously more of her in this film. I'm not completely sure that this was a prequel to MR...
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