Favorite Bond Finale

13

Comments

  • Posts: 1,492
    TB - the underwater battle rages on. John Barrys 007 blares out while speargun bolts plunge into bellies, breatheing apparatus are sliced in clouds of bubbles and sharks shoot in for a mouthful of frogmen. Its brutal. Its bloody. Its exciting.

    TLD - From Bonds discovery aboard the Antonov all the way to "I know a good restaurant in Karachi - (chicken bhuna no doubt?) its a real fairground whiteknuckle ride with John Glen throwing things into the mix to keep the audience on the edge of their seat. Theres a ticking bomb amongst the opium bags, oh no we've run out of fuel - oh shit, we're going to hit the mountain peak.

    CR - original premise of a nasty fight in a palazzo while the foundations have been blasted away and it is sinking into the blue canal. There is a lovely shot where the customers at a nearby trattoria realise what is happening and stand up in shock. While Dan is battling like a beserker and Vesper heads for a watery grave. Plaudits go to him pulling a nail out of his back at the end of the fight.

    Nearly making the list are MRs spectacular laser fight in space which is a real spectacle and OPs final stunt with Rog and Maud jumping out of a moving plane as it goes over a cliff and going over themeselves. Underappreciated stunt done for real.
  • Posts: 172
    Casino Royale's and Quantum of Solace's.
  • Posts: 11,425
    I've always liked the end of Octopussy. I am not trying to be funny when I say that I think Roger actually really pulled off the clown suit in that sequence - it actually adds to the drama and tension. Rog close to his very best.
  • CraigMooreOHMSSCraigMooreOHMSS Dublin, Ireland
    Posts: 8,205
    Creasy47 wrote:
    @CraigMooreOHMSS, I quite enjoyed the TND finale, as well. The entire run-and-gun, escaping Stamper as explosions take place all over the stealth boat setting was really entertaining. Love the talk that Carver and Bond have while Bond has Gupta held hostage.

    Yeah the "Backup Plans" scene is really good. I like how there wasn't too many quips in it either, it was played more or less straight from there on in. And Stamper had some great lines too.

  • Posts: 1,548
    Casino Royale and OHMSS for their emotional impact. Live and Let Die was unique with the lingering shot of Baron Samedi on the front of the train. Least favourite, avtak with the far far too old Sir Roger in the shower with Tanya Roberts. Not a graceful way to exit the series
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,959
    Yeah, I love the CR finale. Very dramatic, and it's really interesting to see Bond go from crying to "The bitch is dead." in a matter of seconds.
  • Posts: 4,762
    Getafix wrote:
    I've always liked the end of Octopussy. I am not trying to be funny when I say that I think Roger actually really pulled off the clown suit in that sequence - it actually adds to the drama and tension. Rog close to his very best.

    I agree, the clown costume was necessary in my opinion and provided a plausible way of escape for 007, and you're right, it does somehow pull off tension. I love OP's finale, both parts in fact, the bomb at the circus and the assault on the Monsoon Palace. One of the most entertaining for sure!
  • Posts: 154
    Casino Royale
  • Posts: 1,497
    Thunderball has been mentioned for it's underwater battle. But what about the speedboat fisticuffs with the hyper rear projection? The effect looks dated now, but that scene still really keeps me on the edge of my seat! Really exciting.
  • echoecho 007 in New York
    Posts: 6,275
    Getafix wrote:
    I've always liked the end of Octopussy. I am not trying to be funny when I say that I think Roger actually really pulled off the clown suit in that sequence - it actually adds to the drama and tension. Rog close to his very best.

    Agreed, except that's not the end!
  • Posts: 4,762
    JBFan626 wrote:
    Thunderball has been mentioned for it's underwater battle. But what about the speedboat fisticuffs with the hyper rear projection? The effect looks dated now, but that scene still really keeps me on the edge of my seat! Really exciting.

    Yes indeed JBFan! I love that end fight, it's very gritty and intense, certainly one of Connery's best fisticuff displays in the series. I particularly love the part where Bond slaps the Disco Volante captain in the face with something that looks like a cord telephone and then throws it at his face for the knock-out! EPIC!
  • Posts: 5,634
    The final quarter of The Spy Who Loved Me always keeps the interest, Moore on the jet-ski, over to Atlantis, showdown with Stromberg, battle with Jaws, escape pod with Amasova, 'the mission is over commander etc', and his bosses turn up and see what's going on inside. It's at that point I usually swtich off as I can't stand the end music over the credits but it's one of my favorite Bond endings for sure
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    edited April 2012 Posts: 12,480
    I like several finales (meaning the end of the movie) - but mostly:

    TSWLM (I love Roger's British end)
    FYEO
    Goldeneye
    TND
    CR and QOS
    TLD
  • Posts: 5,634
    I saw Live and Let Die an hour or so ago and have to say it's a mixed bag with regards to the ending, certain things don't necessarily add up and the Kananga 'blow up' is ridiculous. Apart from that it's not too bad I thought, the ending with Moore, Solitaire, Whisper and Kotto by the shark pool is good to watch, only let down by the stupid aforementioned blow up scene. After that, Tee Hee on the train and the battle that ensues, and that guy, can't remember his name, Baron Samedi, on the front of the train last moment, it all makes for a fairly entertaining last 20 minutes or so
  • Posts: 4,762
    I saw Live and Let Die an hour or so ago and have to say it's a mixed bag with regards to the ending, certain things don't necessarily add up and the Kananga 'blow up' is ridiculous. Apart from that it's not too bad I thought, the ending with Moore, Solitaire, Whisper and Kotto by the shark pool is good to watch, only let down by the stupid aforementioned blow up scene. After that, Tee Hee on the train and the battle that ensues, and that guy, can't remember his name, Baron Samedi, on the front of the train last moment, it all makes for a fairly entertaining last 20 minutes or so

    The fight with Dr. Kananga has always been lackluster with me, because it is much too quick and of course, the death is insanely cheese-infested humor. The real finale for me is the magnificent, indescribable fight with Tee Hee on the train!
  • Posts: 5,634
    And Bond got to have sixteen hours with Jane Seymour as the winner too.. :-((
  • Posts: 6,432
    OHMSS hands down for me. Looking over the whole serious i think the final 3rd of bond movie's generally speaking is often the weakest part of the movie.
  • Posts: 4,762
    OHMSS hands down for me. Looking over the whole serious i think the final 3rd of bond movie's generally speaking is often the weakest part of the movie.

    Really? The last third is often my favorite, seen in pretty much all 22 except for DAF, MR, FYEO, DAD, CR, and QoS.
  • w2bondw2bond is indeed a very rare breed
    Posts: 2,252
    OHMSS - the best of the mega finales with lots of spectacular action and camera angles. In comparison, the Gilbert/Hamilton finales are stale and even have the same camera angles of henchmen being blown up.
    OP - brilliant stuntwork on the plane.
    LTK - The tanker chase is tense and thrilling
    GE - Excellent fight scenes

    Wild card - AVTAK - I think Barry's soundtrack makes this a lot better than it is
  • Posts: 6,432
    Agree with the movie's you mentioned other than QOS. DN, FRWL(post red grant fight) i think the first two thirds of the movie's are superior to the final thirds. Was not keen on the endings of TSWLM the film goes a bit flat for me after the lotus emerges from the ocean. All PB movie's except GE which in my opinion has one of the better finales.
  • edited April 2012 Posts: 501
    This is quite easy:
    TSWLM "keeping the british end up sir"
    OHMSS: I love it one of the best scenes in Bond history.
    FYEO: really funny.
    QOS: I feel this film is underrated, plus I love the "I never left" and the scene with Stana Katic.
    CR: Bond, James Bond (james bond theme sounds) simply great.
    So these are my top 5, I don't mind in which order, but it must be this 5.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    edited April 2012 Posts: 40,959
    I quite enjoyed the finale of QoS in the hotel. I like how the fight between Greene and Bond seems extremely unmatched, but Bond is surprisingly attacked first by Greene's weapons. I just wish Bond had let him fall into the fire.
  • Posts: 11
    LTK - The tanker chase
  • Posts: 4,762
    One that I feel is very under-rated but it is super-enjoyable and an absolute favorite of mine is the climax of AVTAK. This would include Zorin's betrayal of his workers, May Day and Bond working together to get the bomb out, and then the fight on the bridge. The whole thing is insanely intense, and you can't watch it without getting sweaty palms! Barry's music helps a lot, but even if there were no music, I'd still love this finale. It's got everything! Machine-guns slaughtering, heroic sacrifices, and a rescue mission to save the girl and defeat the villain. I hope the SkyFall takes a lesson from AVTAK and does their finale like this!
  • ChevronChevron Northern Ireland
    Posts: 370
    LTK: "Don't you want to know why?"
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,959
    @00Beast, I really enjoy the finale for AVTAK. I just wish that May Day had survived: I love seeing a bad guy (or girl) turn to the side of good, even if it is for a brief moment. But, as much as that sucked, the other part of me loves when that bad character, or just a character they want you to hate (ala the Dawn of the Dead remake) ends up sacrificing his or herself for the greater good.
  • Posts: 5,634
    I did a quick rundown of how I rated near ending Bond releases since '62

    All things considered and out of five marks

    Dr No 2
    FRWL 3
    GF 4
    TB 3
    YOLT 2
    OHMSS 3
    DAF 4
    LALD 3
    MWTGG 3
    SWLM 2
    MR 2
    FYEO 2
    OP 2
    AVTAK 1
    TLD 3
    LTK 3
    GE 3
    TND 1
    TWINE 2
    DAD 1
    CR 4
    QOS 2

    I'm content with that
  • Posts: 2,341
    I have to go with
    OHMSS--earlier posts have said it all
    LALD ---the train fight with Tee Hee was ferocious and violent. One of Moore's best and the final scene of Baron Samedi riding on the train, "the man who could never die"
    CR--Of course
  • Posts: 4,762
    Creasy47 wrote:
    @00Beast, I really enjoy the finale for AVTAK. I just wish that May Day had survived: I love seeing a bad guy (or girl) turn to the side of good, even if it is for a brief moment. But, as much as that sucked, the other part of me loves when that bad character, or just a character they want you to hate (ala the Dawn of the Dead remake) ends up sacrificing his or herself for the greater good.

    May Day, in my opinion, should have just stayed a Zorin henchman and duked it out with 007 in the mine, I would have liked to see Bond taking her down in some crafty way like Oddjob in Goldfinger, electrocution or something like that. I heavily enjoy her sacrifice scene, but a fight would have been better!
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,959
    @00Beast, I agree with you there. Either keep the bad role going throughout the entirety of the film, and give us a really good fight, or let her turn totally good and live to fight another day. The former would have been really enjoyable, now that I think about it.
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