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I want to know what they were smoking. I probably don't need to go into all of the film's peculiarities, but...diamonds stored in a dead man's body? Homosexual assassins (from the book)? An ape running through Circus Circus? An elephant playing slots? Bond in a pink tie??? An escape in a moon buggy? Yeah, there was some trippin'.
The advertising campaigns for YOLT touted "Sean Connery IS James Bond'. Then Connery left. Ever since TB Connery had been trying to get more of the massive amount of profits that had been coming in from the Bond movies since GF and was starting to think he'd been given a raw deal by the producers. There were other reasons for Connery leaving as well but this is the only one pertinent to my conclusions. Referring back to that quote now:
"Sir Donald: You've been on a holiday I understand--relaxing, I hope." "James Bond: Oh hardly relaxing, but most satisfying. Cheers!" I have always thought this exchange was a topical reference to Connery leaving the Bond series partly because of not being able to get the amount of money he wanted and then returning to be paid a record breaking amount for a lead actor at the time. YOLT touted "Sean Connery IS James Bond" & the promotional material for OHMSS largely downplayed the lead actor. One poster just shows a blank shadowed face. OHMSS didn't make as much in profits worldwide as GF, TB, or YOLT so I think this quote is a little in-joke for the audience that the movie OHMSS wasn't really a Bond movie. I get the sense that it's like the writers & producers are saying "forget Lazenby. We all know 'Sean Connery IS James Bond!'". Connery was "on a holiday" which means James Bond was on a holiday because you can't have Bond without Connery. I think it's sort of an in-joke/appealing to what the producers percieved to be the majority of the public's opinions on Bond at the time of release. That's my take on it anyway. As you mentioned, there's no mention of Tracy in OHMSS. That's a bit odd. Moneypenny even asks Bond to bring her back "a diamond....in a ring?" Either Moneypenny is just an incredibly thoughtless & inconsiderate person or....OHMSS hasn't happened yet. For me, the three things that most make me think DAF is a direct sequel to YOLT is the fact that DAF opens in Japan (where we last saw Connery), the very campy tone of DAF which feels to me like a very natural next step to what was done in YOLT, & Blofeld having a neckbrace in the opening of FYEO (despite not having one in DAF). You bring up an excellent point about the PTS of DAF, however. We can definitely tell from Connery's intensity & tenacity in that sequence that Connery is ticked off and I can almost accept the opening as revenge for Tracy until the moment when Connery says "Welcome to Hell, Blofeld" with a smirk. In OHMSS
Agreed. I have yet to find a Bond movie that feels like a satisfying follow up to OHMSS.
Apart from Sean's pink tie that ends half way down his shirt I love it.
Aww damn it, I love the tie as well!
I think all the idea of putting all that wild humor comes from the application of the Marx principle: "History repeats ... first as tragedy, then as farce". They wanted to go from tragedy to comedy: it was deliberate.
I have a tradition of watching OHMSS and DAF back-to-back as a domestic double feature: first we get serious, then we laugh our ass off.
IMHO it's the funniest Bond film ever.
A bit of trivia: many people have discussed here about lines that foreign subs add to the dialogs. In the Catalan dubbing of DAF, Arseni Corsellas (Connery's voice actor in both Castilian Spanish and Catalan drom the early 70s - he dubbed Lazenby on OHMSS, too: both versions) adlibs a line when Connery appears in the background while Wint and Kidd go to kill Shady Tree. As you can remember for sure, Connery stops by two showgirls and briefly chats with them. While in English and Spanish nothing is heard, in Catalan he asks "A quina hora actuen, senyoretes?", which means "What time are you doing your act, missies?".
I guess it does help seeing DAF before OHMSS, but I think I'd have enjoyed DAF anyway. Some great one-liners in this.
"I'm afraid you've caught me with more than my hands up."
It has always been a dirty pleasure for me so I thought I'd bring up some of the neglected positives of Connery's swansong.
Firstly, the plot. I enjoy following the diamonds as they change hands. It reminds me a bit of the opening bank heist of 'The Dark Knight', a group of criminal come together to do a job, only once they are no longer needed each one is killed. It's simple and effective, and told in a very economical fashion.
Secondly, I think the characters are quite underrated. Tiffany Case isn't just strong but developed, adapting to survive in her deadly profession. She can be flirtatious when she needs to be to get what she wants, but she also holds her own.
Won't and Kidd are both underrated henchmen. They are a genuinely memorable duo that I think gets forgotten about.
Even small characters like Mrs Whistler, Morton Slumber and Willard Whyte bring a certain personality to the film.
I also love the setting and how it is used. Las Vegas is the perfect, backdrop to the smuggling operation and we really get to see it! We go through car chases in the streets, scale buildings at nightfall, hit the casinos. I Love it! It's one of the few Bond film's where I actually get a sense of being there and hanging out with Bond.
The humour- I know many see it as over cheesy, but I think the humour really fits the Vegas setting. There are some absolute crackers in DAF, my favourites being 'I didn't know there was a pool down there', 'provided the collars and cuffs match', 'named after you father perhaps'. I think people quite often remember laughing AT the film, so they forget that there is genuinely funny material in the mix. I you want a laugh, DAF is a safe bet.
Finally, I love when Bond finds Whyte and the true intention of the diamonds is revealed in the satellite. It's corny, maybe, but it works. Whyte rings his guys just as the satellite becomes operational, all hell breaks loose, Barry excellent score kicks in, amazing!
If it weren't for the random oil rig finale that comes out of nowhere, it'd be a top 10 Bond film in my eyes. Sadly as it is it will forever be a dirty pleasure.
This is the greatest one-liner of all time, no question.
=D>
Agreed. Bond to Holland is superb and almost mirrors the sound of the Hovercraft. Breezy. I miss Barry.
Overall, this movie is way to campy for me, and way to cheap looking (fake explosions etc).
But I appreciate it anyway, because it is a Bond film and still miles better than most of the crap that gets made today.
I don't think Connery is that overweight, and besides, didn't Bond like his food; so he's probably about right. Having said that, he looks older than his years and his shabby appearance mirrors the film, which feels sloppy and lower budget compared to previous entries.
Tonight is the start of my new Bondathon.
It'll be a double feature!
1. Spectre (my No 1)
2. Diamonds Are Forever (my No 24)
this will be interesting!
\m/
Bond: "Right idea Mr. Bond."
Bond: "But wrong pussy."
I'm also a huge fan of the finale on the ship.
Bond: "That's pretty potent. Not the cork. Your after-shave. Strong enough to bury anything. But the wine is quite excellent. Although for such a grand meal, I would have expected a claret."
Wint: "Of course. But unfortunately, our cellars have run out of clarets."
Bond: "Mouton Rothschild is a claret. And I've smelt that after-shave before, and both times I smelled a rat."
---
What this film demonstrated to me more than anything else was that an overweight, out of shape Connery with a bad toupee is still the original and the best.