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I think it will be the same here. Many Bond films are of nostalgic value for me. For the old films I close my eyes for many of their flaws, I’m much more severe for the new films. CR might be close to the top 10 though.
Absolutely. Otherwise it isn t a Bondathon.
For Your Eyes Only
The Spy Who Loved Me
Live and Let Die
Octopussy
Moonraker
The Man With the Golden Gun
A View to a Kill
There was one part however where I did lose some interest, which was when they first go to San Monique with Rosie, even the bus chase in that section doesn’t quite cut it for me. But from the crocodile farm onwards it’s all good fun again.
LIVE AND LET DIE
James Bond: 4
I think Rog is good in his first outing, but not quite as good as he would become later on. “I suspect the highlight of the tour.”, always cracks me up.
Bond girls: 3
Beautiful but quite helpless.
Villain: 3
Rather unconvincing as Mr Big. Works pretty good as Kananga though.
Henchmen/women: 4
Tee Hee and especially Baron Samedi are brilliant, Rosie however is not. Unsurprisingly she’s an integral part of the movie’s weakest moment.
Allies: 4
David Hedison is a fine Felix and Strutter is quite an amusing fellow even though he’s somewhat underused.
MI6: 3
“Is that all it does?”: one of my favourite M scenes. Inevitably Desmond’s absence hurts this category however.
Plot: 3
Not terrible but not quite impressive either.
Gunbarrel & title sequence: 4
Great title sequence with excellent skeleton and fire motifs accentuating the voodoo theme of the film. The gunbarrel is ok.
Sets & locations: 4
When we first visit San Monique, it is rather unimpressive, but when we return for the climax it’s masterfully used as a voodoo haven. NY and Louisiana get the job done, with the crocodile farm and the bayous as highlights.
Cinematography: 4
Ted Moore returns to form after an uninspired effort for DAF.
Pre-title sequence: 3
There has never been a bad PTS, this rather pedestrian one is probably the weakest though.
Climax: 4
Loses one point for Kananga’s cringeworthy demise.
Vehicles & gadgets: 3
Action: 4
Great boat chase and crocodile stunt! Also like the short Baron Samedi fight and Tee Hee’s post-climax appearance.
Dialogue & humour: 4
Tom Mankiewicz knows how to write witty stuff, that’s for sure.
Music score: 4
Original song(s): 4
Costumes & attire: 4
Snobbery: 3
Somewhat lacking here but I love Bond’s coffee machine.
Ian Fleming: 4
Surprisingly loyal to the Fleming spirit of the novels even though some things from the original story have been omitted.
Total: 73%
Current rankings
1. On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
2. Thunderball
3. Dr. No
4. From Russia with Love
5. Goldfinger
6. You Only Live Twice
7. Live and Let Die
8. Diamonds Are Forever
Currently:
1. TB
2. Dr. No
3. GF
4. FRWL
Can't argue there too much! I like OHMSS, yet it's usually middle of my rankings. But I'll see how it shakes out this time out, haven't watched in a few years.
Nevertheless, TMWTGG boasts one of the very best, if not the best villain of the series. It also features some of the most atmospherical locations and sets. Furthermore I always liked Goodnight and Miss Anders despite the former being quite helpless at times.
After this rewatch I found it to be as enjoyable as it always has been for me.
THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN
James Bond: 5
Arguably Roger’s most Flemingesque performance. He’s in fact quite ruthless in this film, though he never seems to lose his typical charm either.
Bond girls: 4
As already pointed out, I always loved both Goodnight and Miss Anders, although the former’s ineptness and Saïda prevent this category to take maximum points.
Villain: 5
Note to the villains yet to come: it will be hard to beat Sir Christopher Lee’s absolutely magnificent turn as Scaramanga.
Henchmen/women: 4
Nick Nack is great, but Kra is creepy and uninteresting however.
Allies: 3
Always liked Hip and JW never bothered me all that much even though he’s not a great addition by any means.
MI6: 4
M and Q can be quite funny in this film: jealous husbands, outraged chefs, humiliated tailors and the chap who made the bullet.
Plot: 3
I like the premise of Bond v Scaramanga and solar power seems relevant even today but some illogical writing brings this category down.
Gunbarrel & title sequence: 4
Never understood why some Binder work get so many complaints. It’s not as good as the previous entries but oriental motifs and the golden gun get the job done. I like this gunbarrel a tad better than the one from LALD.
Sets & locations: 5
A small Arab contribution in Lebanon before going 100% Far East. Macau, Hong Kong and that spectacular island group. Furthermore, there is the Peninsula Hotel, Hai Fat’s residence and one of my favourite sets of the series: Scaramanga’s fun palace! House of Wax meets Dr Caligari meets Mario Bava! Thank you, Mr Peter Murton!
Cinematography: 5
Ted Moore and Oswald Morris combine efforts to do the great locations justice while also provide some nice atmospherical colour patterns. In the fun palace that colour pattern seems inspired by Italian giallo films, which I am also a big fan of.
Pre-title sequence: 5
Given how much I like the fun palace, this is one of my favourites too.
Climax: 4
Same as for the PTS, though a little bit tainted by the obvious twist.
Vehicles & gadgets: 5
Not much for 007, but Colibri’s work on the golden gun is nothing short of brilliant!
Action: 3
In all honesty not the film’s strongest suit. The boat chase is a serious letdown in comparison with the one from LALD. The car stunt on the other hand is a masterpiece.
Dialogue & humour: 4
Excellent dialogue with witty lines performed by excellent actors, slightly ruined by childish humour like an elephant pushing someone in a canal for comic relief.
Music score: 4
An underrated but excellent score by John Barry with only one moment of madness: the slide whistle.
Original song(s): 3
Neither the best nor the worst.
Costumes & attire: 5
Roger sports some fine suits and the Swedish duo have some stunning swimming outfits.
Snobbery: 5
The only question that puzzles me: does Phuyuck beat a bag of peanuts?
Ian Fleming: 4
Minus a few instances of childish humour and poor writing, this one feels quite true to the spirit of the books.
Total: 84%
Current rankings
1. On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
2. Thunderball
3. The Man with the Golden Gun
4. Dr. No
5. From Russia with Love
6. Goldfinger
7. You Only Live Twice
8. Live and Let Die
9. Diamonds Are Forever
- Marne Maitland as Lazar. The man is utterly enjoyable. “Squeeze it.”
- Scaramanga’s modes of transport. A traditional Chinese junk, with a fine looking bar I must add, and the car plane. This film the villain really does have the gadgets and he knows how to use them.
- Quite like the sword fight in the kung fu school, such ruthless display. An almost random fight to the death. Rather well-choreographed too, unlike some other fight scenes in the film.
- the Queen Elizabeth boat set with its tilted rooms that look like they are inspired by the camera work of The Third Man. Wasn’t Guy Hamilton the assistant director of that film?
- The gratuitous but very much appreciated appearance of Chew-Me.
Yes he was, along with a host of Bondian alumni - John Glen, Orson Welles, Bernard Lee, Robert Brown, Geoffrey Keen and Eric Pohlmann.
When this came out, it was a huge deal that Connery was back as Bond. I had only seen him in GF, and I think this was just the fifth Bond film I saw at all. It looked great in the cinema, less so on dvd.
The first half hour is terrific, after that it is a bit up and down. The Shrublands fight is fantastic, both exciting and fun. It got some laughs in the theatre. Makes more sense for Bond to be sent there at 53 than at 35, too. The shark scene is very well done.
When Fatima tells Bond to write, how does she know he has a pen in his pocket? I only knew Barbara Carrera as the meek and sympathetic indian woman Clay Basket in Centennial before, so seeing her as this Cruella de Vil wannabe was quite the turnaround. Gavan O Herlihy I recognized from Superman III. Has he ever played anything other than pathetic characters? Max Von Sydow is great as Blofeld.
Best line:
"It certainly does."
The score always annoyed me, but it is really just some of the slow, jazzy stuff that is bad.
In 83 I thought it was fun to see Atkinson in a Bond. Now I just found it cringy.
Sad to see Bond, CIA and SPECTRE blasting away with guns and explosives among those ancient monuments. Cultural vandalism of the worst kind. Reminds me of the IS. And speaking of which: Allah isn t the name of the prophet.
All in all, this was a pretty good watch. Not great. Of the 12 films I have seen so far in this Bondathon, I think I rank it as no 9.
Next up: Probably TWINE.
Yes, absolutely. NSNA has less childish cringe, but OP flows better from start to finish.
It happens at the perfect time.
I watched both in theaters when they came out, Octopussy is a much better film production. And Bond film. They're both great fun , of course.
Minus Never Say Never Again, would Octopussy have been a little more along the lines of For Your Eyes Only I wonder.
Interesting question. I believe that the competition made them give it their all.
Going into a three weeks summer vacation where I am staying at home for the most of the time, and with my Bond collection soon to be completed, I have decided to speed up my Bondathon to get more up to date, so popped in
THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH
This is a film I did not watch in the cinema, but caught on video the following year. There were some rumours in the press beforehand that Bond would have to attend Qs funeral in this, and needed psychological help thereafter. Glad that didn t happen .Strangely prophetic, though.
Always loved the opening in Bilbao. Brosnan was great here. The rest of the pts is a bit tedious and too long, only saved by the lovely and alluring Maria Crazya Coconutta.
Always loved the main titles and theme song, too.
Too bad the rest of the film is such a bad and boring experience, despite some great locations and good performances from Robert Carlyle and Denise Richards.
I enjoyed DAD this time, and thought Brosnan was great in it. This one however, reaffirmed my opinion of him as the weakest Bond. Not sure if it was that Tamahori gelled with him more, if the script for DAD was more suited to him or if he had finally grown into the role by then. Probably a combination of it all.
The score is a mixed bag. The action score is horrible, and seems just randomly inserted, but the slower parts are excellent.
The only scene that made me laugh was the torture chair, but only because it is so hideously ridiculous and bad.
I did like the end scene, minus the bad puns. They are all over this film. Cannot think of a single good one. Of the thirteen films I saw so far in this Bondathon, this is at the bottom.
Next up: TND.
First saw this with a friend in the cinema when it came out. Thought it was all right, but rather forgettable and unimpressive. It has been a bottom three for as long as I remember.
This viewing went much better. The pts is good, does the job well. The main titles are very fine, but the theme song is not among my favourites. Not bad, but bland and uninteresting. I suddenly find myself on board with those who would have liked Surrender as the main theme instead.
Brosnan is a good Bond here. Why was he so horrible in TWINE? Must be the direction and the script. Most things are better here, the score, the story, the action, the villains. Dr Kaufman is hilarious and Carver is also deliciously evil.
Wai Lin is one who actually lives up to the cliched phrase Bond s equal.
The one thing that pulls this down a few notches is the last fifteen minutes. The so called climax is exceedingly boring, just plain bad.
Of the fourteen films I have seen so far in this Bondathon, this comes in at the no 9 spot.
Now I am really curious to see where GE lands and how Brosnan fares there.
But I am saving that for later. Next up-the Lewis Gilbert films.
@calvindyson used to be on here. Must have been scared off.
First saw this in the cinema in 1987, when there was a 25th anniversary Bondathon going on, at least in Bergen which was the closest town to my naval base. This was the last I got to see there before we went out on a mission again. I have always liked it, but this was the best viewing I ever had.
The pts is so-so, but the main titles are good, and the theme song maybe the most beautiful in the whole series.
The score is outstanding, as is the cinematography. The sets are also superb, and I really enjoy the time colorite of that period.
The girls are both among the sweetest, but Pleasence is a rather poor Blofeld.
Connery has a commanding presence more so than any other Bond actors. It falls really natural for him to order people around when required.
The only boring bits are the ninja stuff, but those scenes don t last long enough to bring the film down as a whole.
I first saw this on video in the 80s with a pal. We used to rent videos together, and watch them in his room. He had a colour tv, while I only had a b/w one. I was well aware of this in 1977, as just about everyone went to see it, and I followed a production documentary series on tv. Not until SF have I seen such a Bond craze in my lifetime.
This viewing is the least impressive so far for me.
Pts is kind of boring, but the climax is deserevedly iconic. Main titles are ok, nothing great, but I do like the deep colours and contrasts. Theme song doesn t do it for me, but I like the interplay towards the end between violin and trumpet.
Moore doesn t have his best performance here. He is very good in the more serious scenes, but for most of the film he is very smug and almost unlikable, with some exaggerated expressions and mannerisms.
Bach is good casting, and Stromberg is a terrific villain. Icy cold and with great taste in decor thanks to Ken Adam. His lair is the most tasteful of all bar Dr No.
Sandor is a great henchman.(Frank Miller based Kingpin on him.) The rooftop fight is one of the highlights. Jaws is just a buffoon, except for in the Mujaba Club scene, another highlight. That sequence is masterful with its photo, editing and score. The whole score is rather good, or at least very suited to this particular film. I think it could only work as well in a 70s Moore film.
Another film I first saw on video in the 80s with the same pal. I have always ranked this towards the bottom, but I appreciated it a lot more this time. The stupid gags aren t as many as I remembered, no more than in any other film from that era.
Pts has some fantastic stuntwork. Outstanding, even if you see it isn t Moore and Kiel and the parachutes are visible.
Main title sequence-nothing special, but the song is beautiful, maybe only matched by YOLT as far as title songs go.
Moore is very good here. I only find him somewhat lacking and unsympathetic in LALD and TSWLM. Dr Goodhead, what a name. Great stuff. Drax is a terrific villain, quite similar to Stromberg.
Best lines:
"Only my tailor s heart."
and
"Even in death my munificence is boundless."
Most of this film is quite fantastic, but the last half hour is unfortunately horrible enough to bring the whole film down several notches.
New Lewis Gilbert ranking:
1 YOLT (+1)
2 MR (+1)
3 TSWLM (-2)
Next-the Martin Campbell films.
Looking forward to see what you think. I put TMWTGG above them both.