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(I like that you include the yelps and screams for Tanya's dialog - ha!)
Octopussy - if you get rid of the Tarzan yelling, telling a tiger to "sit!" and some other stupid humor (rickshaw, etc.), it was mostly quite enjoyable. In my humble opinion, of course. Maud and Roger had great chemistry; I was glad they brought her back.
Moonraker was too much OTT, good Lord, I think many will agree. However, it was lush looking and some folks enjoy it a heck of a lot more than I do. I still, to this day, HATE Corrine's death. And that is one thing besides the humor I did not like.
So in several of Moore's films, it is like the filmmakers just ran amok ... too much, too ridiculous, overblown ... not Moore himself, but the world of Bond went too far in that direction. The filmmakers righted the Bond ship with the fine FYEO, but then veered again at times. All rather like a zigzagging sailboat.
You need to watch this scene again as well as the hot-tub scene:
The hot tub scene was actually fun, and you could sense a nice chemistry with the actors. ;)
I would not have minded spending some hot tub time with Roger Moore in the 70's or 80's.
Moore is soo sleazy in that hot tub scene. It actually makes me cringe more than the jinx intro in DAD.
"Umm...that feels wonderful"
"Feels even better from where I'm sitting...would you like it harder"
My fav Moore is probably TSWLM.
Anyway, I am glad you enjoy TSWLM, it is my very favorite.
(I do not know how to do that, youtube or anything; sorry!)
Hey, some other good videos on there related to TSWLM, too - thanks again!
Hopefully, when I wake up, I shall see more comments and discussion about the Roger Moore Era. You don't have to be lengthy, folks. But you can be if you'd like. There certainly is enough to talk about, with that many varied films during that time.
Cheers!
;))
Later, everybody ... I-)
So, it seems with Roger Moore there are some favorites and some well, least favorites, for quite a few people. He was Bond for 7 films, over the course of about 12 years, so naturally the films veered this way and that way over that length of time.
Here is my personal brief (for me) summary of Roger Moore's Bond films:
1) The Spy Who Loved Me - a grand adventure, fresh, fantastic PTS; a fun and romantic ride that hit a lovely balance with humor, glamour, exotic locations (the Egyptian pyramids!), a memorable and now iconic henchman, lovely Bond girl (I think they had nice chemistry!) ... a glorious mix that made Bond more fun, exciting, and a splendid cinematic experience; Roger really fully hit his stride in this film, and it is one that I enjoy again and again.
2) For Your Eyes Only - a very close 2nd favorite; this film gives us a continued nice balance of humor and action, with more seriousness and gritty moments thrown in; a wonderful Bond girl that was not the more usual kind, beautiful locations (Switzerland! Greece!), a very memorable ally in Colombo, and an exciting climb up St. Cyrils; this film pretty much has everything I want in a Bond film.
3) Live and Let Die - his debut was daring in that it had a different tone (bold titles, too), rock music (kudos to George Martin and Paul!) and the culture was not the usual fare for Bond ... New Orleans, NY, then off to a Caribbean island (well that is more like it, 007), with 1973 funky humor sprinkled throughout, tinged with voodoo (that's different) and given weight by a very good actor as the main villain and the fresh, young, and ever so lovely Jane Seymour. Whew! And Roger stepped into the role with elan and his own inimitable style.
4) Octopussy - it starts out quite well with a great PTS and for most of the story hums along with an exotic, Indian flavor and dash, finishing with a genuinely serious bomb ticking at a circus in Germany ... some bumps along the way in this adventure because there was some humor that was ill placed, OTT for my tastes; so a film trying to be too many things, but when settled into its main story - and with excellent chemistry between Roger and Maud - it is a very fun, colorful, and enjoyable Bond film.
When I have tried to save my draft it has been posting it in pieces. :(
5) The Man With a Golden Gun - I was so excited to see Roger's second film! And I left the theatre with mixed feelings. This film was just a mixed bag, with Moore's Bond in more serious mode, yet we get: flying cars, a fantasy island that went on too long complete with a fun house, a superb car chase with car flip then nearly ruined in that moment by the awful pennywhistle slide note (duly noted Barry regretted it); and of course JW Pepper!! (love him/can't stand him - I felt both at the same time!), and also the unsettling sight of Roger slapping Maud, the stupid and thoroughly annoying NicNac, Britt looking beautiful but such an utter useless agent it made me want to scream, and I also did not care for how Bond treated her, either - so a real mixture. Which is a shame because the very fine Christopher Lee is in it and raises the film another few notches with his performance. Oh, I don't like the theme song, either.
6) A View To A Kill - Roger's last film gave us a good deal of what we expect from him: the gentleman, the sly humor, he is smooth and unflappable. But I don't enjoy the main Bond girl, the annoying Tanya Roberts who goes down as the worst Bond girl of all time for me (edging out Jinx, yes), I thought Grace Jones was scary and freaky looking and did not care for her either, so that did color the entire film for me. Get rid of them both, put Fiona Fullerton as the lead Bond girl (instead of the charming Pola) and it would have improved the entire film. As I mentioned earlier on this thread, when I watch AVTAK I am pleasantly surprised by how much I do enjoy still - the music, Walken's performance, the locations, and Roger for much of the film. But the stupidity that pops up, including "California Girls", wears on me. I don't watch it often, no. I wish Roger had stepped down with Octopussy - but then, the series needed him for one more ... and just like Bond, he did his duty and reported for action. I wish he were better served for his final Bond film.
Moonraker coming up, let me just get these posted if I can!
Yet, when I find myself ranking the entries, I find that maybe only 2 or 3 of the movies are even in my top 10, let alone my top 5. I see obvious flaws in movies like Moonraker and TMWTGG, but I can't help help but REALLY enjoy watching them every single time I put one on. Call them cartoonish, call them cheesy, call them over the top, but I love each and every single Roger Moore bond movie to bits (except for you AVTAK, you can sit in the corner and think about what you've done). I'm not saying any of them are better than FRWL or GE or SF, I'm saying I'm JUST crazy enough in my head to enjoy them more.
I enjoyed him in LALD and I was excited when TMWTGG came out. I liked both films and I was pretty convinced that Moore was James Bond.
The Moore era ushered in a trend as far as Bond films were concerned: Instead of being trend setters, the Bond films were now following trends. It began with LALD, (Blaxploitation) continued thru TMWTGG (King fu) TSWLM (previous Bond films)
TSWLM is where he really hit his stride. It has a good blend of humor and suspense and Moore did very well with his sarcasm, wit and overall acting. The plot was somewhat overblown and Jaws, though menacing at times was cartoonish at others but it was a good film. I liked the scene when Anya tells him that he killed her lover. Moore is very good in this scene and one of my all time favorites during his 12 year run.
What good TSWLM did the producers threw it all way with 1979's MR. This is by far (IMO) the absolute WORST BOND FILM of the series. It is basically TSWLM on steroids (LSD and several other choice drugs). Aside from the great PTS, I really hated this film when I saw it. I was so disappointed that I got up and stormed out of the theater just as the final credits began to roll. (It had been my custom to watch the credits and see what the the next film was going to be but after MR, I just did not give a damn anymore.
I had liked Moore initially but I was swearing off Bond after MR. I was convinced that they had finally killed the golden goose. I had no dislike toward Moore, my anger was at the direction the films had taken and I was pretty well done with it by that time.
7) Moonraker - My least favorite, yet I know some love it outright for its glorious spectacle, beautiful locations, and fun. For me, Roger looked great, his acting was fine - but all around him became far too often too OTT for my tastes, with the godawful Bondola and double taking pigeon and above all Jaws as a buffoon. I didn't like Jaws flapping like a bird and slamming into the circus tent at the end of the PTS; but it foretold the entire movie, didn't it? Bond in space? Maybe, but this wasn't my cup of tea. Also, Drax's performance was a bit too flat for me. I liked Bond shooting the assassin out of the tree; yes, that was vintage Bond. But c'est la vie, after this one we had the truly great FYEO. I left the theatre mumbling after Moonraker; not a happy Bond fan at that moment, no. And Corrine's death (as I have said before) still bothers me.
Whew! #:-S Well, I got my 7 films listed in my personal order. But again, I apologize for my computer/posting problems. I am not double posting, but I cannot seem to even save a draft correctly. Constant errors popping up and posting when I did not push the post button (I think MayDay, NicNac, Drax, and Stacey are involved somehow with this evil glitching).
Moving on, please comment any way you'd like. Because I love Moore's films, for the most part, and truly enjoyed him as Bond, I tend to write a bit more. But you can just give a sentence or two, bullet points/checklist, or any details you want. What do you think about Roger Moore's Bond and his era?
Cheers! Off to a well deserved breakfast now ... :)>-
I get what you say about Moore's films in general being fun, watchable, and a good time. Yes, I see flaws in most of them, too. I find TSWLM and FYEO only the two most worthy for my top tier rankings. We do get a smorgasbord to view with Moore, since he was our longest serving Bond.
@OHMSS69, I am with you for the most part for sure (although I think I dearly love FYEO and you don't). I especially like what you wrote here:
TSWLM is where he really hit his stride. It has a good blend of humor and suspense and Moore did very well with his sarcasm, wit and overall acting. The plot was somewhat overblown and Jaws, though menacing at times was cartoonish at others but it was a good film. I liked the scene when Anya tells him that he killed her lover. Moore is very good in this scene and one of my all time favorites during his 12 year run.
I so agree! I also like when Anya mentions that he had been married and he stops her from going on; that was nicely and seriously played by Roger.