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I find this film pure Bondian pleasure. The relationship between Bond and Kara is natural and beautifully played. Kara's not the sharpest tool in the box but i think that makes her quite endearing.
Dalton really is Fleming's Bond in this and his confrontation with Pushkin is one of my favourite scenes of the series.
This is what i call a real Bond film. Everything is top notch. a compelling PTS and a gripping climax bookend the film. In between there's one of Barry's best scores, great locations, some very Flemingesque moments, the cool Aston Martin and a solid plot where Bond has to do some real detective work.
The only minus is the naff title sequence. You could really see Binder was on his way out.
You can probably go more into detail about AVTAKs weaker sides, but I really had a great time watching it yesterday. Roger (although too old for the part at this point) plays charming Bond like only he could, Christopher Walken makes an interesting adversary to the older Bond, and Grace Jones makes a great, untraditional henchwoman as May Day. And the supporting cast including Patrick Macnee and Walter Gotell only makes the film even better.
…and I don't really mind Tanya Roberts as Stacey Sutton. I actually think she's an alright Bond girl.
The plot is suitably Bondian, and there are some really nice scenes throughout the film – although not on the level of the best films, of course. As always, one of the highlights with AVTAK is the score. This is easily one of my favourite Barry scores, and I just love the way it's used in the film. Add to that the wonderful Bond theme by Duran Duran. It's possibly my favourite Bond theme of the series.
I have little to complain about with AVTAK, and after this viewing it currently sits at 12th in my Bondathon.
1. Thunderball
2. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
3. From Russia with Love
4. For Your Eyes Only
5. The Spy Who Loved Me
6. Goldfinger
7. Octopussy
8. Live and Let Die/Diamonds Are Forever
10. Dr. No
11. The Man with the Golden Gun
12. A View to a Kill
13. You Only Live Twice
14. Moonraker
15. Casino Royale (1967)
This, 100%. There are more appealing qualities in a Bond girl than their looks. Kara is really well written to be adorable and innocent instead of annoying. She's wonderful.
Bravo!
Glad you agree, @Mendes4Lyfe
Don't get me wrong, i love Roger as 007, but after the Moore era TLD was a breath of fresh air. You had someone playing Fleming's Bond. The silliness had (mostly) gone. This was a sophisticated no nonsense Bond with an intense cold war plot. From his first appearance on the rock of Gibralter, Dalton was my idea of James Bond.
When released it was the best Bond film since the 60's for me.
It's a standalone Bond film that does everything right. Performances, action and production all top notch. It's Bond being the lone spy he was supposed to be. Foiling the enemies plans against all odds. With no 'stepbrother' reveals clogging up the works.
Only GF, FRWL and DN are above it in my rankings.
Totally agree with you and I wrote something similar in the production thread. Continuing the SP storyline after almost five years might be asking too much from most people in the audience. We'll see how it plays out. I don't want to be too negative. I'm just surprised
Starting with TLD, I – as always, very much enjoy the first half. The PTS is fantastic (one of the best IMO), and the film manages to keep up pace and excitement with some great sequences and brilliant acting by Dalton. The last half however is the complete opposite, and is a bit "meh" really. Not the best viewing this, as the weaker elements of the film are very much on my mind throughout. Can't mention TLD without bringing up the fantastic score by Barry though. It's absolutely fantastic.
I continued with LTK – a film I didn't particularly enjoy when I was younger, as it felt too much like a generic late 80's Hollywood action flick. That opinion hasn't changed, but unlike LTK it doesn't suffer from a bad last half. Add a brilliant villain in Franz Sanchez, and you're left with a thrilling, but violent Bond adventure.
For some reason LTK still doesn't feel that Bondian to me, but as a viewing experience, it definitely made a better impression than TLD this time around. Dalton's films are unlikely to make the top ten in the 2019 ranking, but I still have a great time watching them.
1. Thunderball
2. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
3. From Russia with Love
4. For Your Eyes Only
5. The Spy Who Loved Me
6. Goldfinger
7. Octopussy
8. Live and Let Die/Diamonds Are Forever
10. Dr. No
11. The Man with the Golden Gun
12. Licence to Kill
13. The Living Daylights
14. A View to a Kill
15. You Only Live Twice
16. Moonraker
17. Casino Royale (1967)
Yes MR has its faults and those little instances of comedy (as well as Drax's "magical" piano playing), but I largely find it entertaining and has "scope"--it goes for big ideas. Roger Moore looked great, tanned...good performance. The tension of the centrifuge scene (and the editing of it) was thrilling. I also enjoyed seeing Holly Goodhead in her tight spacesuit. And Jaws' massive hand surrounding Bond's jaw on the cable car. Maurice Binder's signature title sequence.
I know the majority don't look upon YOLT as favorably as some of Connery's other classics, but it's one of my favorites to me - it's always a blast, Japan is utilized incredibly well, the action is killer and it has some fantastic characters all throughout, all wrapped up with an exciting finale.
+1, you are preaching to the believer
Dick Clement and Ian La frenais did a polish on the script at Connerys insistence.(probably to make the humour more British. The scene where the nurse asks Bond for a urine sample and the joke that follows is there's, as it's a steal from their TV series Porridge) I did see an interview with them where they said that opening scene was meant to be a pts. It was Kershner probably who put the titles over it (maybe because of the lengthy running time?)
Agree with you regarding Basinger, she was terrible in it.
And the scene with Mckeowns Q is a highlight!
I love the opening war-games bit, and since they couldn't legally use the gunbarrel, the 007 motifs zooming in wasn't bad. I'll take it over a cold open for Bond any day.
The title song gets thrashed on the forums often, and I can see why. However, to me it's no better or worse than "All Time High". Both early '80's easy listening ballads.
The climax has always been a bit flat, but that seems to be the trend today (SP), so it was ahead of it's time.
Thanks, @Thrasos! Should probably have gone a bit more into detail, but I think I covered my issues with, and what I liked about the Dalton films - watching them again after a long time. His portrayal never disappoints though. He managed to be very intense and dramatic while having the right amount of charm. It's a shame he didn't get his third film, as he was only getting warm in that suit!
He definitely could've make a great M! Him having played Bond rules out that possibility though.
Would love for him to play an older, retired spy in a film or TV series. Maybe something a bit John le Carré like, which wouldn't require him to go full-on Bond in fighting scenes etc.
Now an older, grizzled Dalton returning in some unofficial film as Bond? Or Brosnan? I'd be onboard with that!
Yeah, I guess that would be the danger of having a former Bond appear in a Bond film with the current actor – that, and the code name theory factor. Of all the former actors (both Bond and other characters) though, Dalton would be my pick for M, no doubt.
Re. former Bonds in spy films; I would also love to see Brosnan and Dalton together in a film. That would be fantastic!
Indeed. Can't see any Bond wanting to get on the wrong side with Dalton M!
I don't remember noticing anything new on this go-around with FYEO. All in all, the minimalism (particularly with the ATAC plot) is a nice touch and allows some scenes like the car chase and the warehouse raid to really pop. Roger gives one of his best performances, and, frankly, that's a huge help since the majority of the characters aren't too memorable. Nevertheless, since FYEO's big edge is its minimalism, the characters don't necessarily need to dazzle.
I think the only issue with which I truly had any new discovery was the soundtrack. I previously somewhat enjoyed it, but now I feel that it's a bit distracting and out of place (similar to parts of TSWLM soundtrack). It would be my only legitimate criticism of the movie other than its tendency to occasionally feel like a made-for-TV movie, and even that smaller criticism is still probably a product of its minimalism. Perhaps FYEO could have sparkled a little brighter if the series hadn't used it partially as a counterbalance to MR. Regardless, it still ranks high enough on my list!
I rate this highly. What stood out to me this time were the color schemes, very eye-catching, and the cinematography...probably the editing too. Sean did a great job, solid and bold, Domino is very sexy--and the tension in scenes between Sean and Largo. Enjoyed the casino scene, including the sound of the roulette ball rolling and falling into the slot.
I love that Bond leaves flowers at Tracy’s grave, she’s my favorite Bond girl and I appreciate the gesture. I’m surprised at how much I like the title song and having Sheena Easton in the titles was a great idea. A lot of cool action sequences here and I think the Bond girl is good though I kinda wished that Melina killed Kristatos instead. Some of the score is good but for the car chase, kinda lame. I love the absence of music during some action scenes, good call.
TSWLM is a close second but I appreciate FYEO’s more done to earth, more sober feel. Pretty damn good.
I'm glad you mentioned the action sequences! One of FYEO's strong suits is certainly its action sequences. Other than the hockey rink fight, they're all solid. In fact, I really don't like that hockey fight; it's too reminiscent of that old Moore silliness (like you mentioned) and seems to mess with the pacing of those last scenes in the mountains. It could have easily been removed with no repercussions.
I love FYEO a ton, but I agree, that's one of those sequences that would've immediately improved the film a bit by simply not being included. The entire hockey fight is way too cheesy and silly, then it's made even worse by Bond somehow using a slow-as-hell Zamboni to knock the last man out.