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Great write-up, @FoxRox ... much of what you say mirrors my own feelings for the film (which recently leapt up my already high ranking for the film after I watched it with my 18 year old son-- who himself was blown away by Connery's performance).
*I've decided to change my score for LALD to a 5, instead of 4. Thinking about it last night, one overlong chase sequence, and some dubious comedic casting choices, does not make a Bond film. With its plethora of strengths, I was being a mite harsh on LALD.
Seen as this year celebrates my 20 year obsession with 007, I’d though it would be rather grand to view them in order in which I collected them on VHS.
Having a gander round Woolworths’ back in the day, I found the holy grail. Dr. No and its successor, From Russia With Love. Naturally I bought them.
Dr. No, 1962
What a magnificent film. Dr. No has this lean, muscular, Spartan quality to it, which I absolutely adore. It’s so spare, the other Bond films seem rather bloated in comparison. But what this movie doesn’t spare on, is the story, so often sacrificed in other Bondian epics. The way that M ignores Bond’s proffered lighter; Bond’s baulking of the Commissioner’s suggestion that the bridge four are bought in for questioning; Bond slumps down exhausted after a long day, drink in hand; the way that Bond rumbles Mr. Jones and the look of quiet malevolence on Bond’s face.
Dr. No has this romantic, seductive, mysterious and violent air to it. Mainly due to Sean Connery’s fantastic portrayal. He could either bed the women, or put a knife in her. This dynamic means you can not take your eyes off Connery. Superb.
2020 Bonadthon Rating -
1. Dr. No, 9
2. The World Is Not Enough, 7
3. A View to a Kill, 6
4. Diamonds Are Forever, 5
5. Live and Let Die, 4
*Disclaimer -
I’ve been having a gander at Joseph Darlington’s YouTube channel, in which he reviews the Bond movies. He’s got a good method of reviewing them, which I’m going to shamelessly steal. He rates his least favourite as 1 out of 10, his favourite as a ten, and the rest fits in between, kind of like grading on a curve. The Bond films are a genre unto themselves, and I shall be ranking them as their own little genre. Naturally, if I was rating them against other films, they would be high on the 1 – 10 scale. But, for this little game, I’m going to do something rather different.
James Bond will return in From Russia With Love
Thanks @FoxRox. Enjoy FRWL. I know I will at the weekend. ;)
Sean Connery again slays it as Bond. Though there was no room to go any higher than what he did in DN, Connery is still in top-form. He is an ice-cold professional, much like the strapping adversary he faces on the train (more on that later). His best chemistry with the newly introduced Q, played by Desmond Llewelyn, is yet to come, but the introduction is still nice. The scenes with M and Moneypenny in this one are great; Connery's interactions with the two characters are the most consistently enjoyable in the series I'd say. My favorite chemistry between Bond and anyone in this picture though has to be with Kerim Bey, who is perhaps the greatest of all allies in the Bond series. Bey gets in on plenty of the action and also has both a sincere friendship and partnership with Bond.
Tatiana Romanova has never been a personal favorite Bond girl of mine, but she's still an iconic, memorable Bond girl. She's grown on me just a bit over time. The lineup of villains is absolutely unmatched; I believe to date FRWL has the best on-screen depiction of the SPECTRE organization that we've ever seen. Rosa Klebb is creepy and lethal; she's equally dangerous behind the scenes or in the action. Donald "Red" Grant is one of the most physically challenging foes Bond ever faces; to this day, the train fight between the two has never been bettered in the series. He's also clever and deranged - a truly menacing psychopath. Kronsteen and Morzeny are also great, despite being much more minor villains; all of the characters show how uniquely dangerous SPECTRE is. I couldn't mention all of them without mentioning the first depiction of Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Anthony Dawson / Eric Pohlmann work perfectly, keeping the ominous mastermind in the shadows and playing up the hype for the audience to want to see more in the future. Blofeld's couple scenes are true gems in this film. Having read the novels, the SMERSH reference finally made more sense to me this time around; from the beginning of the film franchise they wanted to make SPECTRE the main villain organization, and so for those who read the novels first they cleared up that SMERSH was not going to be the threat in the movies. Other surrounding minor characters were all good as well.
FRWL's plot works perfectly as a classic spy thriller. Bond faces many challenges and twists and turns in his mission to gain the Lektor. The action is upped a bit from DN, but it's still light on action compared to later Bond films, which I see a positive for the film. Again, like DN, the story and characters are so interesting that I'm in no rush to get to the next big action sequence, but when they do come they're a treat. The gypsy camp gunfight, the escape with the Lektor, the train fight, and Bond's encounters with the SPECTRE-manned helicopter and boats are all terrific! Also, the first pre-title sequence is an underappreciated one; I love the small-scope, cat-and-mouse setup between Grant and the Bond decoy. What's also terrific is that FRWL marks John Barry's first full Bond score, and while he's just getting warmed up here compared to what he'd do later, it's a welcome step-up from DN's score. The 007 theme is the biggest highlight - a beauty of a song that would get some replays in later movies. The first sung title song by Matt Monro is very good - I love it both with and without the vocals. It brings the film to a particularly satisfying close as it ends with the song!
I was considering putting DN above FRWL in my ranking for just a little bit, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. It's possible I may prefer more individual elements about DN, but this time around I find FRWL to be collectively just a tad stronger (and I have for the last 3 or so watches). FRWL is perhaps the most grounded, straight-up spy thriller of the franchise, and it pulls no punches in delivering all the goods. The series definitely starts with some of its strongest films, and FRWL is an absolute masterpiece of a Bond film.
FoxRox's 2020 Bondathon Ranking
1. From Russia with Love
2. Dr. No
@Birdleson Thank you. It certainly is fascinating how tastes change as you get older! The Terence Young films are some of my absolute favorites now, whereas when I was a young kid only DN probably would have made my Top 10.
Looking forward to read about it, exciting to see if anything changes.
Countdown to No Time to Die
Seen as this year celebrates my 20 year obsession with 007, I’d though it would be rather grand to view them in order in which I collected them on VHS.
From Russia With Love, 1963
I had a smile throughout my latest viewing of the delectable From Russia With Love. I loved it when I first saw it over 20 years ago. And I still love it now.
The key elements combine superbly and succinctly with this one. The story, the cast, the crew, the music, the locations, the scant gadgetry, the romance and subterfuge….the whole tone and feel to it is just terrific.
The story beats, so essential in Dr. No, are still in force here – Kronsteen’s reluctance to light up in front of Blofeld, or Klebb’s cringing when Morzeny touches her and Kerim’s son and Bond’s look of envious approval when Kerim’s mistress takes her leave.
As James Bond, Sean Connery improves on his turn in Dr. No. Gone is the slight uncouthness, being replaced with a more measured and professional interpretation. This is the perfect marriage between the literary 007 and the cinematic 007.
Connery still has the quiet malevolence that so impressed me in Dr. No, such as when Kerim’s son presents himself as Bond’s chauffeur, before Bond realises that he is a friendly, or when Bond confronts Tatiana over Kerim’s death. But in this film, it is more cool and reserved.
Pedro Armendariz is wonderful as Kerim Bey. He and Connery seems to enjoy a genuine friendship. The interactions between them are golden, more so during the gypsy scene. The smiling look of Connery’s face is just priceless. I would have been happy if the film makers just showed us Bond and Kerim hanging out.
As Tatiana Romanova, the newcomer Daniela Bianchi, is both charming and enchanting. Her laugh when Bond gives her her choker on the Orient Express is utterly adorable. She genuinely does have feelings towards Bond, over the course of the film. After Bond slaps her, Tatiana falls back on her script. Or should I say Klebb’s script. Does she revel in her feelings or should she stay falsely loyalty to Klebb?
Tatiana a good Soviet girl. The state provided her with nourishment. So she feels obligated, nay grateful, to prostitute herself for Mother Russia. Great part, great actress.
The rogues gallery is especially good here, from Rosa Klebb, to Grant, Morenzy, Kronsteen and the unseen – and some, me included best – Blowers are expertly played by an international cast.
The bone crunching fight between Bond and Grant, is one of cinemas greatest scraps. Both the actors and the crew deserve maximum plaudits for this scene.
The action is a step up on Dr. No. The much maligned helicopter assault and the boat chase serve to open the film out, and is a great contrast to the more claustrophobic and tense scenes that proceeded it.
The music, provided by the inimitable John Barry, kicks of his first full score with aplomb. Though it baffles me when he uses a cue from Dr. No when Bond shoots the helicopter down and in the horrific boat inferno. (A most gratuitous scene that one. The screams of the SPECTRE agents is quite upsetting)
Better is Barry’s use of the James Bond Theme. The Bond Theme is an electrifying piece of music, so why not use it often? Little did the film makers know that the series would be continuing nearly 60 years later.
Istanbul is a perfect setting for a Bondian adventure. The violence, the mystery, the romance seeps out of every frame.
The tone of Dr. No and From Russia With Love should have been kept throughout the history of the Bond series. Sadly that didn’t happen. More to the pity I say. Goldfinger’s overt tone would be acceptable, too. Going forward have any people working on a Bond movie, view these three films, to capture the essence of both the literary and cinematic versions on Bond, please.
In my view, From Russia With Love is a perfect film. Not just a perfect Bond film, a true masterpiece, that I would comfortably associate with the my own personal classics, such as To Catch a Thief, North by Northwest, Chinatown and Pulp Fiction.
2020 Bonadthon Rating -
1. From Russia With Love, 10
2. Dr. No, 9
3. The World Is Not Enough, 7
4. A View to a Kill, 5
5. Diamonds Are Forever, 4
6. Live and Let Die, 3
*Disclaimer -
I’ve been having a gander at Joseph Darlington’s YouTube channel, in which he reviews the Bond movies. He’s got a good method of reviewing them, which I’m going to shamelessly steal. He rates his least favourite as 1 out of 10, his favourite as a ten, and the rest fits in between, kind of like grading on a curve. The Bond films are a genre unto themselves, and I shall be ranking them as their own little genre. Naturally, if I was rating them against other films, they would be high on the 1 – 10 scale. But, for this little game, I’m going to do something rather different.
James Bond will return in GoldenEye.
I agree that FRWL is a perfect film. Subjectively there are a few films I prefer but if I try to ignore my personal preferences I would say only OHMSS comes close to FRWL.
Goldfinger is the Bond film where everything came together. DN and FRWL started things off near-perfectly in establishing the franchise’s template, and GF refined what they started and added any classic remaining tropes the series would come to know. For the longest time, it was my favorite and go-to Connery film. How did it fare on my newest rewatch? Let’s dive in!
Connery once again is wonderful in the role of Bond - this time perhaps a little more laid back. He is not quite as menacing as he was in his first two outings, but I like the more breezy approach here as it suits the film. In any case, Connery adds yet another A+ performance, as comfortable and cool as ever playing Bond.
As for the other characters, there is a pretty solid lineup. Ced Linder’s Felix is fine, though noticeably older than one would expect for the character. Pussy Galore is a classic Bond girl; I admit not quite a personal favorite of my own, but still very good. Jill is of course memorable for being the golden girl, though I’m not a big fan of her sister Tilly. Auric Goldfinger is a solid villain whose obsession with gold truly defines him. One of my favorite subtle moments is when he looks at the gold in Fort Knox he is about to make radioactive; you can tell he wishes he could just have all of it instead, had it been feasible. I do find it interesting they chose to make GF a standalone film and Goldfinger himself a standalone villain, as he was the treasurer of SMERSH in the novel; it’s a little surprising they didn’t make him SPECTRE’s treasurer in the film, but I’m cool with the break from the SPECTRE plots. The real scene-stealer of the cast though is Oddjob, one of the all-time great henchmen in the series and films in general. He is incredibly unique and formidable - one of the few who Bond had no chance against physically. I love watching every scene with him.
I love the PTS; like the film itself, it’s a welcome little break from the SPECTRE threat and is purely standalone - like a 3-4 minute Bond film! The film boasts several incredible scenes beyond the PTS as well: the golden girl reveal, the golf match, the car chase, the laser table, the climax at Fort Knox, and the final moments in the plane - all excellent. GF is simply filled with classic moments and consistently hits all the right notes as a Bond film. I like the plot of Goldfinger trying to knock off Fort Knox and become the king of gold; it’s classic Bond villain material. John Barry really starts coming into his own with this score, and he gets even better later! The title song by Shirley Bassey is awesome of course and remains one of the series’ finest.
For a little while, GF was on a bit of a decline for me, I think mainly because of burnout or something. I was expecting DN to surpass it, and I did consider it in the ranking for a while. This newest watch of GF absolutely hit the spot though, and it feels more right for me to give GF the edge this time. It’s a totally complete and fun experience. To be perfectly honest, my enjoyment level of the first few Bond films feels even more or less, so ranking them has been incredibly difficult. They’re all fantastic! GF remains the quintessential Bond film, and the first one I’d recommend to anyone getting into the series for the first time.
FoxRox’s 2020 Bondathon Ranking
1. From Russia with Love
2. Goldfinger
3. Dr. No
Now...
Countdown to No Time to Die
Seen as this year celebrates my 20 year obsession with 007, I’d though it would be rather grand to view them in order in which I collected them on VHS.
You know, I never caught GoldenEye on its TV premiere in the late 90’s. Flicking through the TV Guide one day, I mistook the shot of Bond and Natalya running from Alec’s exploding train to be of Mudler and Scully. Go figure.
Despite watching GE numerous times, recorded off the TV, I decided to stump up the cash and invest in both GE and Tomorrow Never Dies, on the official VHS tapes. If you’re familiar with the late 90’s Bond VHS tapes, one will know that on the spines, you get an image – an image of Brosnan looking suitably bad ass, in this case. Plus, now I had all three of Mr. Bronsan’s films – my first era completed!
GoldenEye, 1995
I’ve always had a strained relationship with GE. Being a child of the 90’s one would expect GE to be amongst my favourites as it is with so many of my generation. I also find GE to be straddling the classic era of films (DN to LTK) with the modern era (TND – present). It doesn’t have the “slickness” of TND, yet it doesn’t have the charm prevalent in the classical era. Chronologically speaking, too, the look and feel to GE, is seemingly closer to LTK than TND, despite the two year gap, in regards to the latter.
A greatest hits Bond film that launched our venerable hero into the 90’s, and just what was needed after the long hiatus. All the classic hallmarks are there, but given a modern twist. I understand completely why the filmmakers went down that route. The Brosnan Era was all about cementing the franchise financially, so of course they were checking off the tick box. Makes fiscal sense. If the filmmakers had gone for a more experimental route, who knows what could have happened to our beloved series.
There really is a lot to enjoy with this one, namely a superb primary cast and a very strong script; indeed this script helps anchor GE’s more fantastical elements, allowing for some rare moments of introspection or, dare I say it, quality, say Bond and Alec in the graveyard/underground lair; Bond and Natalya on the beach; the lost art of interrogation; Bond and M’s first prickly meeting and wonderful scene between Bond and Valetin. The script also cleverly asks Bond to validate himself in the post cold war era, something he achieves with aplomb.
Despite his nerves, Brosnan came up with the ideal blend of humour and steel, with a little bit of dramatic stuff to keep things interesting. The script helps a lot with this; Brosnan would never get a script as strong as this in his subsequent adventures. Indeed I was quite impressed with Brosnan's performance in GE, being more composed and unassuming, than his later ones, full of the self confidence, the sense of purpose, that defined Fleming's Bond. I think it has something to do with Brosnan's nerves; it gave his performance a kind of "flinty" quality, which is somewhat lost, as Brosnan got more comfortable in the role. Think of the scene where Mishkin interrogates Bond and Natalya, where Bond is quiet and subtly menacing, as opposed to the scene in The World Is Not Enough, where Bond confronts Elektra, where he is too animated, for example.
There are a few quibbles, however; the music is distracting for a large part of the film; Boris gets far too much screentime, especially for such an annoying and superfluous character, and the film could do with a bit of slight editing – too much time is dedicated to the Severnya gang and the tank chase itself – a truly great moment to be sure – could do with some trimming.
The Brosnan era got shafted in their transfers to DVD/Blu Ray. They all look…. drab. Especially true of GE, alas. Even the comparably lifeless 80’s films look better than the Brosnan movies. I’m going to class GE’s vibe as “charmingly retro” as opposed to “rather dated”.
All in all, I was pretty chuffed with my latest viewing of GE. It was most gratifying to see Brosnan's Bond walk off into the sunset, with Natalya in his arms - Brosnan and Scorupco have great chemistry, and Natalya is such a resourceful woman, and such a survivor.
2020 Bonadthon Rating -
1. From Russia With Love, 10
2. Dr. No, 9
3. The World Is Not Enough, 7
4. GoldenEye, 6
5. A View to a Kill, 5
6. Diamonds Are Forever, 4
7. Live and Let Die, 3
*Disclaimer -
I’ve been having a gander at Joseph Darlington’s YouTube channel, in which he reviews the Bond movies. He’s got a good method of reviewing them, which I’m going to shamelessly steal. He rates his least favourite as 1 out of 10, his favourite as a ten, and the rest fits in between, kind of like grading on a curve. The Bond films are a genre unto themselves, and I shall be ranking them as their own little genre. Naturally, if I was rating them against other films, they would be high on the 1 – 10 scale. But, for this little game, I’m going to do something rather different.
James Bond will return in Tomorrow Never Dies
Yesterday was Goldfinger, always a pleasure, I'm still amazed by the quality of dialogues from this era.
One moment strikes me, the famous "laser scene". I may have realised (after seeing Goldfinger many times) that what makes this scene so tense, is the Auric moments where we don't ear him at all when he talk to the chineses leaders. That puts us in Bond's shoes in a very efficient way. Clearly one of the best director's choices.
Movie tempo is frenetic even by today's standard, and from 1964 viewer's eyes it must have been a huge experience
current ranking : 1. Goldfinger 2.From Russia with love 3 Dr.No
Sean Connery is delightful throughout TB. He adds a lot of welcome humor, which the film is stuffed with (I’d probably rate it the second-funniest Bond after LALD). He’s still got that cold edge though, even if it’s not as prevalent as it was back in DN and FRWL. GF and TB certainly offer a bit more levity in Connery’s Bond. He has so many awesome moments in TB, such as sneaking through the spa and Largo’s place, harpooning Vargas, his interactions with Fiona (all the characters, but her particularly), and terrific dance moments (with Fiona and Domino) to name just a few. The film is jam-packed with excellent dialogue, much of it coming from Connery of course. I wouldn’t necessarily crown it as Connery’s “best” performance (likely DN), but to me it’s arguably the most cool and fun one.
Largo is a solid villain that has grown on me more and more over time. My favorite bits from him are when he plays cards with Bond and feeding his henchman to the sharks (kissing the SPECTRE ring was an awesome touch). Vargas is a decent lackey. The SPECTRE meeting scene is excellent - more great buildup of Blofeld, especially with YOLT and the reveal coming up next. Fiona Volpe is the real star of the villains though, proving to be one of the best Bond girls and baddies ever at the same time. Domino is one of my all-time favorite Bond girls also - so likable and beautiful! I love that she gets to kill Largo too - very satisfying. Between Domino, Fiona, and Patricia, TB’s lineup of Bond girls is the collective strongest in the whole franchise for my money. M, Q, and Moneypenny are all great as usual; I’m particularly fond of the Q scene in this one. The banter between Q and Bond really fully blossoms here. Rik Van Nutter’s Felix Leiter is ok, but not my favorite incarnation of the character by any means.
I’m a big fan of the PTS. I fully admit it’s a bit silly with the jetpack and all, but I get a kick out of the whole thing. Tom Jones delivers a solid, memorable title song; the title credits with the silhouette girls and colors set a sort of template for the series. The plot certainly has reached a grand scale this time around with the nuclear threat of SPECTRE looming. I like it; the progression from DN to FRWL to TB with SPECTRE is very smooth and well-done. The action both on-land and underwater is superb. I know a lot of people don’t care for the underwater stuff, and I admit it took me a long time to enjoy all of it, but now I absolutely love it - especially the grand battle at the end. The frenetic fight aboard the Disco Volante is unintentionally hilarious, but still so satisfying. John Barry’s score is terrific, and among my favorites through the whole series; I find his stretch from here through YOLT and OHMSS to be his peak.
TB is a supremely enjoyable Bond film. I’ve said before to me it feels like the perfect hybrid between FRWL and GF, with some of the classic thriller elements blended with the more epic and lighter side of GF. I don’t know if it’s the best-made of the first four, but as of now for me it’s the most satisfying and enjoyable, even though I love them all. TB was the first Bond film I ever saw, and though that alone provides fond memories, it has since gone up and up in my estimation. A truly wonderful Bond adventure!
FoxRox’s 2020 Bondathon Ranking
1. Thunderball
2. From Russia with Love
3. Goldfinger
4. Dr. No
Countdown to No Time to Die
Seen as this year celebrates my 20 year obsession with 007, I’d though it would be rather grand to view them in order in which I collected them on VHS.
Tomorrow Never Dies, 1997
TND serves up the classic Bondian tropes in a more up to date fashion. This is the last proper Bond film – as in a mission focused Bond, plus he gets the girl at the end. TWINE had Bond falling in love with the villainess; DAD has Bond get captured, going rogue and the last 40 minutes of that film dilute the “Bond is back” angle, while in the Craig films one had Vesper and M dying to contend with, plus the more “classic” feeling of Spectre is slightly marred by the whole foster-brother travesty.
Granted one has the extra device that Bond has an ex flame in TND. But that, thankfully, doesn’t go anywhere, being background details, a certain flavour to flesh out Bond’s character. Perhaps having, let’s say, Natalya back to play Carver’s wife would add an extra layer of emotion to the proceedings, what with our invested attachment to her, would make her death heartbreaking. But, as it is, Teri Hatcher’s stunt casting, leaves the role of Paris with a certain soap opera tinge to the whole shebang.
Indeed Brosnan’s Bond only got one decent Bond girl, Natalya, what with Hatcher, Denise Richards and Halle Berry being all stunt casting, with varying degrees of success.
Though I like Michelle Yeoh’s Wai Lin an awful lot, hell, she is probably the finest of Bond’s comrade of arms. She and Brosnan have a nice camaraderie.
A quick word for Mr Brosnan, who, builds upon his good work in GoldenEye, with a more composed and confident performance as Bond. He has obviously benefited from some time in the gym. And doesn’t he look spiffy in his Royal Navy Uniform?
Which brings me on, neatly, to a bug bear of mine. Throughout the whole film, the characters refer to the Royal Navy as the British Navy. The only one to get it right is the signal from the Chinese navy, from their flagship to the Royal Navy’s flagship, towards the end of the film, “Good Hunting”.
On the villainous front, Elliot Carver is played just the right side of hammy by Jonathan Pryce, bringing an energetic mania to the role. Vincent Schiavelli is both creepy and funny as the deranged Dr. Kaufman. The rest of the goons range from inoffensive blandness (Ricky Jay) to the rather bad (Gotz Otto).
The plot of TND is a neat updating of You Only Live Twice, and with recent events, so topical. If I had to describe TND’s essence in one word, it would be sleek. The accent is on high tech sleek thrills, and the film delivers it in spades. Kudos must go to Spottiswoode, who betrays his background as a film editor delivering a taut and pacy film, not one wasted shot, yet conveying the geography of the scenes, quite succinctly.
The look and feel to the film, helmed with great panache by Robert Elswit, is a step up from GE. Apart from a few ladies dresses in Carver’s party, the fashion, the music, the cinematography, the technology etc all combine to make TND quite a timeless piece. (Although I was quite amused by Roebuck giving out the terms to GPS)
It would be amiss of me not to mention the score from David Arnold. If there was a caveat to Arnold's work, is that he over-scored them, but not on TND; Arnold was almost perfect, and I was left humming the score for a while afterwards, “White Knight” and “Backseat Driver”, especially. I like how Arnold's separates the score into three distinct sections – the classic sounding first third of the movie; the second “techno beat” act, reflecting Germany; final act with Asian influences.
“Surrender”, too, is a great piece, sung with gusto by k.d. Lang. You hear this great melody sprinkled throughout the score, then when it is unleashed for the closing song, it gives the film a wholeness, a completeness, in a similar vein to Barry. An element lacking in modern Bond films – the last time we had a song weaved throughout the score was Casino Royale. Hopefully NTTD remedies that. For the main title song, Sheryl Crow’s effort is somewhat lacking in comparison.
Apart from the mind numbing gun shoot out on board Carver’s stealth ship, the action in TND is accomplished. Though it is pretty relentless in the second half of the movie - from the car park chase right through to the climatic battle, there’s barely a chance to gather one’s breath.
2020 Bonadthon Rating -
1. From Russia With Love, 10
2. Dr. No, 9
3. The World Is Not Enough, 7
4. Tomorrow Never Dies, 6
5. GoldenEye, 6
6. A View to a Kill, 5
7. Diamonds Are Forever, 4
8. Live and Let Die, 3
This is the perfect film for the 90's; superficial, and proud of it - not a scrap of pretentiousness anywhere. If it wasn’t for the action fatigue that hit in the second half, TND would be higher up. Still an entertaining romp. Indeed, for this type of “formula Bond”, and for the time, reinforcing the formula after the successful GE wasn’t a bad thing, Brosnan does a great job, worthy of the legacies of Connery and Sir Rog.
*Disclaimer -
I’ve been having a gander at Joseph Darlington’s YouTube channel, in which he reviews the Bond movies. He’s got a good method of reviewing them, which I’m going to shamelessly steal. He rates his least favourite as 1 out of 10, his favourite as a ten, and the rest fits in between, kind of like grading on a curve. The Bond films are a genre unto themselves, and I shall be ranking them as their own little genre. Naturally, if I was rating them against other films, they would be high on the 1 – 10 scale. But, for this little game, I’m going to do something rather different.
James Bond will return in The Man With The Golden Gun
TLD, LTK (both excellent and I wish Mr D had done more, he was great in the role),
TWINE (probably my first watch of this in 4ish years, not as good as I remembered it was),
AVTAK (It's always one of my bottom 3 Bond films, watched it to see if it had improved, it hadn't)
While randomly picking them in no particular order from my 50th Blu Ray box set I had a thought, a question I'd like to pose the forum. If you'll indulge me, here goes.
The Blu Ray set is split into 2 'books'. One is 1962-1981. The second is 1983-2012.
You are on a desert island and can only take one of these books for your Bondathon, which would you take?
It's not as easy as you'd think.
I'd have to pick 1962-1981. DN, FRWL, GF, TB, OHMSS, and TSWLM are all in my Top 10, so just mathematically it wins that way. The 60s golden age basically is what seals that one for me. I enjoy the entire series, but many of the very best films came earlier than later (GE, CR, and SF round out my Top 9; after that things are a little more uncertain. As of now LTK holds #10, but that can change).
Let’s address one of the most unfortunate things first. We all know Sean Connery is a magnificent Bond, but it’s clear from the beginning in YOLT that he is getting tired of the role. Connery wanted this to be his last Bond, and one can see he isn’t putting 110% effort in the way he did with his first four outings. I wouldn’t call his performance outright terrible, but it is one of the weaker Bond performances in the franchise. He still has some cool moments here and there such as the action sequence at Osato Chemicals and meeting Blofeld.
The lineup of side characters is decent. I think Tiger Tanaka is one of the series’ finest allies, and I’m so glad he makes it out alive by the end. Henderson comes and goes too quickly to leave that much of an impression. M and Moneypenny and Q are all good as usual; I like M hyping things up by telling Bond this mission is “the big one.” Moneypenny’s “I love you” moment is good too. Aki is a great, useful Bond girl, and seeing her die every time is a drag. I much prefer her character over Kissy Suzuki, who isn’t terrible but comes off as rather bland - especially in comparison with Aki. Osato and Helga Brandt are decent SPECTRE lackeys, though nothing too special compared to many others (I find the lineups in FRWL and OHMSS for example to be far superior). Hans is kind of forgettable. Blofeld finally getting revealed is an awesome moment for the series, and he gets a nice iconic portrayal here by Donald Pleasence. Though I don’t consider Pleasence’s Blofeld to be one of the series’ greatest villains, I do like him and consider him the second-best “seen” Blofeld after Savalas (excluding the unseen one in FRWL and TB, who is awesome). This is more minor, but the white cat in YOLT is my favorite of Blofeld’s cats.
The story is as big as ever, with SPECTRE close to causing WWIII and Bond having to stop it just in time. The PTS is one of the series’ weaker ones IMO. What’s happening is interesting with the kidnapped spacecraft and Bond’s fake death, but the execution feels a little off to me. I am a big fan of the title song by Nancy Sinatra, which I wish got some more appreciation. John Barry is on top form, making each track amazing and memorable. The action in the film is fantastic; Bond’s encounters at Osato Chemicals, the dock fight, the helicopter battle, and the epic climax at the volcano lair are awesome scenes. One of YOLT’s strongest qualities is having a particularly strong third act, which often ends up as a weaker spot for Bond films. The first third is also pretty good, while a few bits here and there in the middle drag just a tad for me. I really enjoy the Japan setting; everything looks great - the city and countryside.
YOLT had been sagging in my ranking for a while, but I have a feeling it will end up with a better spot this time around after a very positive watch. I can’t rank it any higher than last amongst the golden age entries due to the shortcomings, but it does offer a lot of good stuff and a very classic, over-the-top Bond experience. If you’re looking for a Bond adventure with big spectacle and lots of action, this one will satisfy. As long as one tempers expectations after the first four, YOLT is a very fun time.
FoxRox’s 2020 Bondathon Ranking
1. Thunderball
2. From Russia with Love
3. Goldfinger
4. Dr. No
5. You Only Live Twice
I wouldn't have expected anything less of you dear @Birdleson.
And to answer @cwl007's question, definitely the first book. It's a shame to lose the Craig era, the silver era, if you will. Yarp, even SP, which makes me feel like a social leper, even more so than my love for TWINE. And of course, I will miss OP and the Dalton duo.
But nothing can compare to the 60's Golden Era. Plus one has the sumptuousness widescreen epics courtesy of Mr. Gilbert and co.
A shame to lose the Craig films, but I would have to go for the first set, just to keep all the 60s entries.
And yes YOLT is definitely less focused and well-done than the first four, but I did have quite a fair amount of enjoyment with it the latest time. More than anything else I think I appreciate it for being Connery’s “big one,” when he is tasked with preventing WWIII and finally gets to meet Blofeld after the buildup from the FRWL and TB.
Very cruel.
I would have to pick the second as it contains Daltons 2, plus Craig's first 2! (Unfortunately it's got DAD in there too!!)
It would mean though leaving behind my number 1 Bond movie OHMSS!
Cruel, very cruel choice!
I think, after much deliberation, I'd have to chose book 1. Golden age of Connery, OHMSS, LALD and TSWLM