Last Bond Movie You Watched? 1.0

Live and Let Die

Something big is lacking in this film, and it's not Connery or Barry. Maybe it's a plot. That's the problem with the 1970s Guy Hamilton trilogy... Bond is a good detective and all, the slapstick action is effective, but the plots are given so little focus (which is a shame, considering the strong source material). In any case, I still get a kick out of the colourful black characters, the stunt work, the crocodile farm scene, and the score.

By the way, QOS gets criticized a lot for taking place in such destitute and poor locations. "San Monique" and Harlem didn't look that much better. Still, I have little problem with the settings of both films. They have their own charm.

1. FRWL
2. CR
3. TB
4. Dr. No
5. FYEO
6. QOS
7. LALD

The plot is LALD's greatest weakness.

Somehow LALD's impoverished locales don't produce the same negative impact as QOS'. Perhaps because the surrounding context is so much more lighthearted.

Ed Tom Kowalsky wrote:

The plot is LALD's greatest weakness.

Somehow LALD's impoverished locales don't produce the same negative impact as QOS'. Perhaps because the surrounding context is so much more lighthearted.

The score helps too, even if some of it sounds like it's from an early 70s cop/detective show.

tiffanywint wrote:

Best thing about QoS was Olga. She looked great in that orange top and skirt outfit. She's the smokiest of all the Bond girls

Even smokier than Jill St. John? :shock: :?: :scratch:

Anyway, last night I showed a friend of mine sections of my DAF SE DVD and he showed a huge amount of OHMSS UE DVD. After seeing OHMSS's UE remastering job, I don't know if I could ever watch the SE version again. It looked so clean and clear. I bet it didn't even look that good back in 1970 when it was new.

Prince Kamal Khan wrote:

tiffanywint wrote:

Best thing about QoS was Olga. She looked great in that orange top and skirt outfit. She's the smokiest of all the Bond girls

Even smokier than Jill St. John? :shock: :?: :scratch:

Anyway, last night I showed a friend of mine sections of my DAF SE DVD and he showed a huge amount of OHMSS UE DVD. After seeing OHMSS's UE remastering job, I don't know if I could ever watch the SE version again. It looked so clean and clear. I bet it didn't even look that good back in 1970 when it was new.

I think you are right about OHMSS. The UE editions really cleaned up all of the SE editions, at least of the older films, from 1989 back. Blu-ray merely introduces the hi-def element on top of the digitally restored UE editions, but I think the major work was done with the UE editions.

I saw a hi-def digital print of DN in cinema last year on full size mega screen and big sound. It was probably the blu-ray edition. It was like watching a brand new 2010 release. It was that good. There is no way it looked that good on cinema screens in 1962.

===About Olga vs Tiff. There is a difference. Olga is smokey while Tiff is sass. They are different breeds. Olga smoulders while Tiff is showgirl. Both are Grade A Bond-girl.

Ed Tom Kowalsky wrote:

Somehow LALD's impoverished locales don't produce the same negative impact as QOS'. Perhaps because the surrounding context is so much more lighthearted.

But the QoS dreariness is by design. This is Haggis' touch. QoS is a message movie. We are meant to empathize with the plight of the poor oppressed Bolivian indigenes, and rail against their supposed Western capitalist exploiters.
The machinations of Greene Planet and the CIA are meant to represent Western oppression in the region.
I'm surprised you didn't immediately boycott bottled water and call your local congressman

tiffanywint wrote:

Olga smoulders while Tiff is showgirl. Both are Grade A Bond-girl.

I still don't see what you find in her. She reminds me of the female lead from 'Mork and Mindy'.

MR and FYEO double bill on weekend.

I have new respect for the Rog. He does play the role with a very relaxed confidence. I've got over his inability to fight like Sean. Based on his performance in these two films I am elevating Rog to 3rd from 6th on my Best Bond list. He still ranks inclusion with the other deficient Bonds as he lacks the physicality of Sean and George but he does a damn good job as 007.
Revised list.
1. Sean
2. Lazer
Deficient Bonds
3. Rog
4. mini hulk
5. goofy grin
6. pain face

MR is epic 007. Maybe the last great Bond film. We are due for another MR scale epic Bond adventure. Since MR they tend to come around every three movies. MR followed by AVTAK followed by GE followed by DAD followed by B23. You listening Babs and Mendes? We are due for exotic lairs,massive sets, girls girls girls, jumpsuits, a proper world domination/disaster plot.
MR rivals YOLT for best villain jumpsuits. The Drax operative yellow suits are stylish,colourful ( with matching helmets and hats) functional and distinctive. You know who to aim your laser shooter at.
The Amazon boat chase to Drax's secret jungle base to the launch into space - MR is vintage 007 and what makes these films great.
All Bond films should have villain lairs with mono-rails. Mono-rails btw, guarantee proper villian-lair scale. They should be mandatory, or at least for every third film.

FYEO. Another solid Rog entry. Boy can Rog ever ski. Underwater scenes are breathtaking. Nice touches of Fleming. Rog makes out with Brozzer's wife and out snobs Kristatos on wine selection.
Maybe the best pool-girl scene in the series. The cheesy 80's disco music creats the right atmosphere. Much better than Whitaker and Georgy's set-up in Tangier.
Poor Bunky. Never mind Lisl abandoning him. Check out the death stare from the smokey dark-haired sharkgirl sitting beside him. Scary.
This is the Risico film by the way. Consider that title done and used.
Glen has several good pigeon shots, most notably the rock face disturbance. Nicely done.
Q's lab is populated by MIT fashion model graduates if you check out the background during Rog's visit.
Very nice job by the lovely Sharon bringing Bond and Q their coffee.
As Rog thanked Sharon for the coffee, I thought he was about to ask,"oh btw have we shagged?" He was thinking about it.
The Identi-graph. What a wonderful piece of low-tech machinery. Positive ID's made from cartoon drawings.

Great double bill MR and FYEO 10/10 stars for both films.

Louis Armstrong wrote:

I still don't see what you find in her. She reminds me of the female lead from 'Mork and Mindy'.

"I still don't see what you find in her"

Huhn?:bounce:

How about?




or



Tough crowd! Can you see better now?

Or how about Batman Jill?

He's talking about Olga, I think.

tiffanywint wrote:

I saw a hi-def digital print of DN in cinema last year on full size mega screen and big sound. It was probably the blu-ray edition. It was like watching a brand new 2010 release. It was that good. There is no way it looked that good on cinema screens in 1962.

That's my main concern (well, only concern) about high definition/Blu Ray. Older films lose some of their charm.

tiffanywint wrote:

Louis Armstrong wrote:

I still don't see what you find in her. She reminds me of the female lead from 'Mork and Mindy'.

"I still don't see what you find in her"

Huhn?:bounce:

How about?

Tough crowd! Can you see better now?

no, I'm with Louis, something about the hair I think
:scratch:

tiffanywint wrote:

[Or how about Batman Jill?

:)
now that's more like it!

Sharky wrote:

Ed Tom Kowalsky wrote:

The plot is LALD's greatest weakness.

Somehow LALD's impoverished locales don't produce the same negative impact as QOS'. Perhaps because the surrounding context is so much more lighthearted.

The score helps too, even if some of it sounds like it's from an early 70s cop/detective show.

I think Martin's score for LALD is underappreciated. It's my favourite non-Barry Bond score.

tiffanywint wrote:

MR and FYEO double bill on weekend.

I have new respect for the Rog. He does play the role with a very relaxed confidence. I've got over his inability to fight like Sean. Based on his performance in these two films I am elevating Rog to 3rd from 6th on my Best Bond list. He still ranks inclusion with the other deficient Bonds as he lacks the physicality of Sean and George but he does a damn good job as 007.
Revised list.
1. Sean
2. Lazer
Deficient Bonds
3. Rog
4. mini hulk
5. goofy grin
6. pain face

MR is epic 007. Maybe the last great Bond film. We are due for another MR scale epic Bond adventure. Since MR they tend to come around every three movies. MR followed by AVTAK followed by GE followed by DAD followed by B23. You listening Babs and Mendes? We are due for exotic lairs,massive sets, girls girls girls, jumpsuits, a proper world domination/disaster plot.
MR rivals YOLT for best villain jumpsuits. The Drax operative yellow suits are stylish,colourful ( with matching helmets and hats) functional and distinctive. You know who to aim your laser shooter at.
The Amazon boat chase to Drax's secret jungle base to the launch into space - MR is vintage 007 and what makes these films great.
All Bond films should have villain lairs with mono-rails. Mono-rails btw, guarantee proper villian-lair scale. They should be mandatory, or at least for every third film.

Great review of my favorite Moore Bond film, timmer! :D

tiffanywint wrote:

Louis Armstrong wrote:

I still don't see what you find in her. She reminds me of the female lead from 'Mork and Mindy'.

"I still don't see what you find in her"

Huhn?:bounce:

How about?




or



Tough crowd! Can you see better now?

Or how about Batman Jill?

Probably what Kissinger and Brezhnev did:





Some more:

Sharky wrote:

He's talking about Olga, I think.

:cheers:

I was just reading about Helga's next gig today:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/8643933/Girls-urged-to-strip-to-support-Vladimir-Putin-as-president.html

I was actually referring to Tiffany Case with the Mindy reference... it's more the damned annoying voice and demeanour they share in common than anything...

Louis Armstrong wrote:

I was actually referring to Tiffany Case with the Mindy reference... it's more the damned annoying voice and demeanour they share in common than anything...

I knew that. ;) Hope you enjoyed the picture show. I' ve never watched an episode of Mork and Mindy in my life, so I'll take your word for it.

That's a great shot of Breshnev checking out Jill's form PKK. Apparently the Gogol horndog character in the movies wasn't too far off Soviet reality. (also see CJB's Helga link above. What a bunch of horny old bastards. Maybe the the whole Gogol/Rubelvitch schtick really hit home with them)
Jill certaintly movied in power circles. See, being a Bond girl does advance one's career - if dating a schlump like Kissinger is an enjoyable career move. Oh well, I guess you get to see the world and get ogled by global leaders, even if they are pervert commies.
I think Robert Wagner ultimately was a better fit. Jill knows what she's doing.

Major factual error in my MR review btw. I'm surprised no-one caught such an important detail. There is no monorail at Drax's Amazon base. Rather his preferred method of transport about the complex, is golf-cart style conveyances.
MR thus does not qualify as a villain-lair monorail movie.

Octopussy review:

This is one of the all-time high great Bond movies and one of the Rog's best which is saying a lot, as all of the Rog films are classics.
ROGER MOORE is JAMES BOND. Sean who? Watch enough Rog films in a row and you will know this to be true.
The car chases are great especially the one through Germany as Bond races to expose the bomb :bom: . Nice job by Bond stealing the car from the obnoxious woman that wasn't even curious as to why Bond might need the phone right away. If not a nuclear bomb emergency, maybe he had a medical emergency, or had to tell the babysitter he'd be late. Babysitters need to know what's going on. Most have very active social lives.
Good for Bond stealing her car.
Prior to that scene, I enjoyed Bond's ride with the German couple who were plying him with what looked like really delicious food. I know Bond was in a hurry and had things on his mind, but how does he turn down that big juicy German weiner schnitzel ( no Wint/Kidd inunendo intended btw). It looked delicious and I don't think Bond had eaten anything for a while.
Nice touch during the Delhi street chase that the wad of cash landed in the beggar's pan. Hope he got out of there before someone grabbed the money.
The look on Vijay's face is still priceless as Bond casually divvies up his backgammon winnings.
Glen does more of his excellent bird work in this film. In fact OP is the most animal-centric of all the Bond films.
Practically all of Noah's Ark is reprsesented at various points in the film. From Bond's jungle adventures, to the circus animals, OP's croc moat, stray dogs, Glen's pigeon bursts.
We also learn a new Bond seduction technique, which you young guys might want to file for future reference.
Night one, OP sends Bond to his room. Next day, undiscouraged, Bond works his magic. He uses the get- woman-righeously-worked-up-over-something-near-and-dear-to-her-heart technique, (in this case OP's less than legal profession). With woman in emotionally charged state, move in for full lip-lock smooch. Pull her head around if necessary- firmly but gently. Then explain you are "two of a kind," whatever that means. Woman sighs and becomes putty. In like Bond.
Moving on, I hope Kamal Khan choked on his sheep's eye main course. Disgusting. Remind never to accept dinner invite from slimey Afghan Prince.
Just wondering about the pts. I realize the acro-star was Plan B, if bomb was discovered and Bond was caputured. But if the acro-star hadn't attracted enemy rockets, what was Bond's plan of attack on the hangar base, I wonder. Anyway, doesn't matter. He turned the enemy's weapons against them.
Very un-Bond like , I thought for Bond to dismiss his Indian hotel hostesses' very cordial "anything at all" overture, wtih a maybe-later brush-off response.
What happened to the Bond-in-Rio we knew, who was pulling on Manuela's instant dis-robe string, within 30 seconds of settling into that hotel room.
Maybe the girl has to make Bond a drink or he loses interest - "until later", that is.
For that matter, Rog did turn down Valerie Leon's hotel receptionist stalking of him in TSWLM too. (Sean though, more than made up the Rog snub to Val, a few films later in NSNA)
Even the Rog has to pace himself. (the pit-stop with Sheik Hossein's desert harem would have exhausted most mere mortal men for weeks)
Now that I've seen his film about 50 times (or whatever-lost count years ago) I think I am finally beginning to be able to follow all the comings and goings of the train and the train cars, and which car the bomb is in, and whose on what train, at any given time. Its starting to fall into place.
All in all an excellent Bond film. 10 out of 10 stars of course.
One final note: I notice Babs gets her first on-screen credit here. No not as one of the Octopussy girls, but as "Executive Assistant" (coffee fetcher). But twelve years and 4 films later, she and Mikey take charge of everything :shock:

A View To A Kill

Another brilliant Rog effort.
Still can't pick out Maud Adams who is supposedly the woman in the Fisherman's Wharf crowd. I've looked and looked and I can't see her.
I did very much see both Mary Stavin and Carole Ashby who have been promoted from their largely decorative roles in OP as OP girls, to much meatier challenges in AVTAK.
Stavin is Kimberley Jones, the ice-flow pilot whom Rog must spend 5 lesiurely days traveling to Alaska with . He was understandably pretty tuckered when he arrived back at HQ for his customary tete a tete with MP.
Carole Ashby is gorgeous as the Effeil Tower restaurant, Whistling girl. Uber gorgeus even.
I really enjoyed the antics of Stacey's cat. ( we don't know it's name but the name on its bowl is Pussy, named after Galore no doubt. Blofeld's pussies didn't have names either. There is a pattern here in the Bond films with nameless pussy)
Stacey had to lug the cat about a couple of times. Nice work by Tanya Roberts there, but she comes with experience having worked with much bigger cats in her previous film, Sheena Queen of the Jungle.
The experience no doubt helped qualify her for the cat handling in AVTAK.
Has anyone else noticed that when Bond is captured by Zorin as he tries to hitch a ride with what he thinks is Tibbet driving by in the Rolls, that Mayday in the front seat seems to think its necessary to be training a gun on the very dead Tibbett in the back seat? Unless its just an odd camera angle and she's actually training the gun on Bond, but it sure looks like she's pointing it at Tibbett.
Jenny Flex and Pan Ho do a lot of marching and waving about with their guns but never actually fire them or even point them at anyone. They are not the fiercest pair of henchwomen.
They do help Zorin and Mayday stage the fire at the San Fran City Hall though.
Some nice direction by Glen with lead actress Roberts. As Bond and Stacey hide with the explosives during the mine approach, Stacey worries about what she might be sitting on. Glen deftly zooms in on her perfectly formed posterior, squeezed up against the explosives, and holds the shot for just the right number of beats, so that we are indeed quite clear as to what her cheeks are indeed resting on. Nice work.
Later Glen very smoothly catches a full fleshy left thigh shot as Mayday, straining to reach, tears off Stacey's coveralls. Glen holds the shot just long enough so that we know Stacey no longer has full coverall protection.
What do FRWL, DAF and AVTAK all have in common? Answer at end of review.
Zorin must have two airships as there is no way he could have staged that big board meeting on the ship that Zorin and company use to escape the mine.
Nice job by Dolph Lundgren as one of Gogol's KGB agents at the horsetrack.
Roberts as Sutton is one of the all-time great "James, James" screamer girls and one of the shapeliest of all the Bond girls. No wonder Glen took such care filming her.
Stacey ranks with Jill and Britt in my top 3 all-time Bond girls.
Roberts flouncing about in her naughty nighty, rivals St John's lingerie work in DAF and Virginia Hey's brief but impressive underwear work in TLD.
Not a good film for Bond allies though as both Tibbet and Chuck Lee (this name has got to be a Chuck Norris/ Bruce Lee hybrid) are offed by Mayday. Moral here is always check the backseat before getting into your car. It might save your life.
Rog outdoes himself in his final fling as Bond. He's got 4 confirmed female conquests. Stavin, Grace Jones, Fiona Fullerton and Roberts. That ties Sean's YOLT and NSNA record. The two most famous Bonds maintain the record to this day.
The other fellers just can't keep the British End Up with the same enthusiasm. In fact Craig's barely threatening the action Q got in some films.
Rog is also as smooth as ever. Check out St John Smythe at the horse talk party. He brazenly propositions both Stacey and Mayday and all in the same exchange and gets away with it. Neither can hide their interest. There's no playing coy with Rog Bond. The man is a giant.
Babs doesn't get an actual film credit this time but Imdb says she was an assistant director, so she's learning the ropes. According to imdb her first involvement with a Bond film was actually MR as an assistant of some sort.
To wrap up, fantastic performances by Rog, Stacey's cat and Tanya Roberts herself.
Goodbye to Lois Maxwell. Fittingly in her last scene we see her sobbing because she thinks Bond is dead.
She's right in a way as this was the end of the line for both Rog Bond and for herself.
AVTAK is one of the all-time great Bond films and Rog-Bond films. 10 stars out of 10 of course.
Trivia question answer: Bond encounter rats in all three films but he only talks to a rat in DAF.

CJB wrote:

I was just reading about Helga's next gig today:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/8643933/Girls-urged-to-strip-to-support-Vladimir-Putin-as-president.html

Helga's such a patriot.

If you can defrost an icy, bloodless Soviet dictator such as Brezhnev you must have something going on.

Ed Tom Kowalsky wrote:

If you can defrost an icy, bloodless Soviet dictator such as Brezhnev you must have something going on.

"such lovely cheeks... if only they were brains"

Or indeed some discernable acting talent. ;)

On the topic of Soviet leaders and Hollywood, no-one was a bigger boss than Khrushchev...



He had Shirley MacLaine on his arm and he got to hi-five Sinatra. What a chief. ;)

Yes, I'm sure Nikki had many admirers in Hollywood much as Fidel and Hugo do today.

tiffanywint wrote:

See, being a Bond girl does advance one's career - if dating a schlump like Kissinger is an enjoyable career move.

tiffanywint wrote:

Octopussy review:

This is one of the all-time high great Bond movies and one of the Rog's best which is saying a lot, as all of the Rog films are classics.
ROGER MOORE is JAMES BOND. Sean who? Watch enough Rog films in a row and you will know this to be true.

I enjoy reading your newfound appreciation for Sir Rog, timmer.

tiffanywint wrote:

We also learn a new Bond seduction technique, which you young guys might want to file for future reference.
Night one, OP sends Bond to his room. Next day, undiscouraged, Bond works his magic. He uses the get- woman-righeously-worked-up-over-something-near-and-dear-to-her-heart technique, (in this case OP's less than legal profession). With woman in emotionally charged state, move in for full lip-lock smooch. Pull her head around if necessary- firmly but gently. Then explain you are "two of a kind," whatever that means. Woman sighs and becomes putty. In like Bond.

If only that was all it took in reality.

tiffanywint wrote:

Moving on, I hope Kamal Khan choked on his sheep's eye main course. Disgusting. Remind never to accept dinner invite from slimey Afghan Prince.

I resent that! :x ;)

tiffanywint wrote:

[Now that I've seen his film about 50 times (or whatever-lost count years ago) I think I am finally beginning to be able to follow all the comings and goings of the train and the train cars, and which car the bomb is in, and whose on what train, at any given time. Its starting to fall into place.
All in all an excellent Bond film. 10 out of 10 stars of course.

Great review of my 2nd favorite Moore Bond film. IMHO, OP has the best villainous plot of the series, i.e., Orlov's plan to lead the U.S.S.R. in an attack on Western Europe.

tiffanywint wrote:

One final note: I notice Babs gets her first on-screen credit here. No not as one of the Octopussy girls, but as "Executive Assistant" (coffee fetcher). But twelve years and 4 films later, she and Mikey take charge of everything :shock:

Oh for the good old pre-Babs days of Cubby and of Cubby and Harry.

tiffanywint wrote:

What do FRWL, DAF and AVTAK all have in common? Trivia question answer: Bond encounter rats in all three films but he only talks to a rat in DAF.

Good eye, timmer. Never noticed that before.

tiffanywint wrote:

I notice Babs gets her first on-screen credit here. No not as one of the Octopussy girls, but as "Executive Assistant" (coffee fetcher).

She was good at it as well. Notice just how awake to the point of bug-eyedness Rog was in AVTAK following all the coffee Babs made him during OP. I knew it was too early to promote her.

PKK. I think I might now be a Rog-aholic. I've just watched all 7 of his films. I am almost finished his book.
A Life sized cut-out in the living room is next I guess.

Quote :

Oh for the good old pre-Babs days of Cubby and of Cubby and Harry.

Amen to that!

Re rats in FRWL, DAF and AVTAK

Quote :

Good eye, timmer. Never noticed that before.

As Bond fanatics PKK, no minutiae is too trivial. The identification and discussion of such patterns not only deepens our appreciation of this most excellent film series but enriches our broader lives as well.:)

Lazenby. wrote:

tiffanywint wrote:

I notice Babs gets her first on-screen credit here. No not as one of the Octopussy girls, but as "Executive Assistant" (coffee fetcher).

She was good at it as well. Notice just how awake to the point of bug-eyedness Rog was in AVTAK following all the coffee Babs made him during OP. I knew it was too early to promote her.

Now she'd probably be serving only Haggis approved fair-trade Bolivian coffee made by unionized local indiginees not corrupted by imperialist bean exploiters. "Drink it you plebes! I don't care if it tastes like swill!"
"We want a Starbucks Babs!!!!"

Lazenby. wrote:

tiffanywint wrote:

I notice Babs gets her first on-screen credit here. No not as one of the Octopussy girls, but as "Executive Assistant" (coffee fetcher).

She was good at it as well. Notice just how awake to the point of bug-eyedness Rog was in AVTAK following all the coffee Babs made him during OP. I knew it was too early to promote her.

Truth. To never have promoted her would've been even better.

tiffanywint wrote:

PKK. I think I might now be a Rog-aholic. I've just watched all 7 of his films. I am almost finished his book.
A Life sized cut-out in the living room is next I guess.

Are you moving on to the Dalton films next?

tiffanywint wrote:

Re rats in FRWL, DAF and AVTAK

Quote :

Good eye, timmer. Never noticed that before.

As Bond fanatics PKK, no minutiae is too trivial. The identification and discussion of such patterns not only deepens our appreciation of this most excellent film series but enriches our broader lives as well.:)

Indeed. Don't forget about MR. Remember the rats who survived the nerve gas in Drax's lab in Venice?