Last Bond Movie You Watched? 1.0

LIVE AND LET DIE

A fun, witty little movie. A more well rounded adventure than DAF and a good example on how to do a small scale Bond picture well. The only disadvantage is Rosie Carver's bimbo ass and even then, the film is self aware enough to pull jokes at her expense.

THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN

What a missed opportunity. You have the potential for Bond's most dangerous nemesis to date, cast Christopher Lee to play him, and yet fail to structure a competent film around it. Probably the only time we'll see Roger uncomfortable in the role of Bond. I still managed to be entertained, although most of the time I was laughing at the film.

1. ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE
2. FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE
3. GOLDFINGER
4. DR. NO
5. LIVE AND LET DIE
6. DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER
7. YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE
8. THUNDERBALL
9. THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN

And the Saltzman era ends and Bond will probably get blander as a result. While the quality of the films rocked back and forth, each one was colorful in it's own way.

This is cool. A few of us are watching the Bond films in order leading up to Skyfall. Great to read thoughts of the films after watching them almost at the same time!

I am gearing up for my official 50th anniversary viewing of DN. It was the last of the classic films that I saw and I never properly saw it on the big screen until last year. I've always enjoyed this film, as I had read the book at least a couple of times before I finally saw it, so it was quite the memorable experience seeing the book come to life on screen.

With the handful of other fairly Fleming-faithful novels, I'd seen the film before reading the book.

Last Bond movies viewed: LALD and TMWTGG double-bill. An obvious pairing and one that was very popular in cinema. And I do mean a proper double-bill. No more than a 15 minute intermission and no interruptions. Just as if one was in the cinema.

I actually thought about seeing it the night it was released, but I got too impatient and watched it anyway. So begins my Bond countdown with the blus.

Dr. No (1962)

I always called this the quintessential Bond film, but maybe not so much now after this viewing. The building blocks are all there, but the series is gonna take a slightly different direction even with FRWL. Anyway, it's a solid film. I say it makes a better introduction to Connery's Bond than as a film itself. While I enjoyed it for the most part I couldn't stop thinking about how it was too bad that many of the best parts of the book weren't realized, particularly Bond crawling through the ducts. The film makes Bond escape look too easy and that really hurts the integrity of Dr. No. When Terence Young was asked what made this specific film so successful he had three answers: Sean Connery, Sean Connery, and Sean Connery. Yeah, I'd say it's him that really carries the film. He's such a powerhouse, it's hard not enjoy this film with his presence.

4/5

Quote :

particularly Bond crawling through the ducts. The film makes Bond escape look too easy and that really hurts the integrity of Dr. No

I noticed this too. In the book, the ordeal was truly grueling and seems to go on forever, until a battered Bond finally emerges. The movie just breezed through it though, but I guess, it would have been hard to drag it out on screen, without bogging down the film.

I am still in awe of No's lair though. DN was the first film, yet it boasts one of the all-time best, not to mention iconic, Bond-villain lairs. The No set-up IMO wasn't topped until YOLT.

I think it's the first time I was truly marveled watching the set. That's blu for you.

I suppose they didn't have the budget to really make use of that air duct sequence which is a shame. And when they tried bringing in creepy crawlers with Honey tied up the crabs were barely moving and came off very nonthreatening, so they were done away with.

I think had EON secured the rights to CR back in the 60s maybe that would have turned out as the first entry since it is the most low-key of all the books. Besides the torture sequence, they could have easily adapted that novel with the budget they had at the time. After that becomes a success they're able to expand with more action packed adventures like FRWL which made great use of the increased budget they got.

Oh well, what's done is done.

From Russia with Love (1963)

Besides the boat sequence, I'd call this near perfection.

Continued my Bondathon with a pair of '80s entries, Octopussy and Licence to Kill. The former was not as tense and fast-paced as I last remembered it. While parts of the story and Moore's acting still have the grounded feel carried over from FYEO, Octopussy no longer has the same edge. I think Louis Jourdan does fine as the charismatic prince, but he's no grand villain. Stephen Berkoff is also a good actor, but I just don't buy General Orlov anymore. It's still a good enough Bond adventure to have been a worthwhile swansong for Roger Moore as Bond. The final scene, injured Bond on a boat full of women, wouldn't been the perfect cap to an era. AVTAK had to ruin things a little.

Licence to Kill improves on each of my subsequent viewings of it. It's not a great Bond film, but it's a damn fine action thriller. After the more traditional Living Daylights, Dalton cements his own mark on the character here - what a shame he didn't get a third go like Craig did. I don't have a doubt that Dalton could've carried the 1990s Bond films better than any actor. On this viewing, I also paid more attention to the supporting characters, particularly the relations between Sanchez, Hiller, the American yuppie, Krest, Lupe, Dario, etc. The only reason LTK doesn't make my top 10 is the lack of any extraordinary locations. This could've been compensated by a Barry score, but Kamen was no match.

1. From Russia with Love
2. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
3. Casino Royale
4. Thunderball
5. Dr. No
6. Goldfinger
7. GoldenEye
8. The Living Daylights
9. For Your Eyes Only
10. You Only Live Twice
11. Licence to Kill
12. Quantum of Solace
13. Tomorrow Never Dies
14. Live and Let Die
15. Octopussy
16. The World is Not Enough
17. The Man with the Golden Gun
18. Diamonds Are Forever
19. A View to a Kill

THE SPY WHO LOVED ME

A near perfect mix for a escapist Bond film. You have a well written script, humor in the right places, spectacular action, good photography, and sex. Not even the world's worst Russian accent can sink it.

MOONRAKER

Some Bond movies are serious. Some have realistic elements. MOONRAKER says "Fuck that, I'm gonna be as ridiculous as possible". That's where it's entertainment value comes from. It's as cliche as a Bond film gets and while it's script is noticeably weaker than SPY, it still a fun watch.

1. ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE 5/5
2. FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE 5/5
3. GOLDFINGER 4/5
4. THE SPY WHO LOVED ME 4/5
5. DR. NO 3/5
6. LIVE AND LET DIE 3/5
7. DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER 3/5
8. MOONRAKER 3/5
9. YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE 3/5
10. THUNDERBALL 2/5
11. THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN 1/5

MOONRAKER and TWICE are more or less a dead heat, but Roger is more entertaining to watch than zombie Connery.

"Roger is more entertaining to watch than zombie Connery."

You can say that again.

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

God and Cubby apparently saw it fit to grace us with two pitch perfect Cold War thrillers that happen to be based around cypher machines. Or, as I said in a review in 2008, "FOR YOUR EYES ONLY beats up all the other Moore films and sleeps with their women" Easily Moore's standout Bond, well written and filled with both intrigue and action.

1. ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE 5/5
2. FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE 5/5
3. FOR YOUR EYES ONLY 5/5
4. GOLDFINGER 4/5
5. THE SPY WHO LOVED ME 4/5
6. DR. NO 3/5
7. LIVE AND LET DIE 3/5
8. DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER 3/5
9. MOONRAKER 3/5
10. YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE 3/5
11. THUNDERBALL 2/5
12. THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN 1/5

Did a double-feature with Goldfinger and Thunderball.

Goldfinger (1964)

The gold standard. It's easy to see why it's so popular as it's probably the most accessible with a great mixture of espionage, humor, color, flamboyancy, ect. I'd say this is pretty much all the other Connery films when combined.

Thunderball (1965)

It's too bad Young left before the editing process. I think there could have been a couple of snippets here and there. After the first three films, this somewhat feels like the least iconic. But hey, Fiona Volpe is probably the best femme fatale.

Also, Fiona following P. Galore but not falling into place like her is a nice bit of continuity, building in a different way on the Bond legend. I always thought her speech was Maibaum, but the DVD may ascribe it to the other guy.

For Your Eyes Only

A Bond classic, as far as I'm concerned. Beautiful women, intriguing, interlacing stories, Moore's best performance, an exhilarating score, thrilling action sequences, stunts, culture, beautiful photography - it's mixes all the ingredients for a classic Bond film.

2012 Ranking:

From Russia With Love
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Thunderball
Dr.No
For Your Eyes Only
Goldfinger
You Only Live Twice
Live and Let Die
The Man With The Golden Gun
Diamonds Are Forever
The Spy Who Loved Me
Moonraker

Watched the first 20 minutes of YOLT before I fell asleep. To be fair, I was really tired after being up very early in the morning.

You Only Live Twice (1967)

Ah, the first time the film series practically threw the books in the waste bin. As a pure spectacle, I enjoy it plenty. But the story is daft, Connery is bored, and the characters are cardboard cut outs. Having read the novel only about a week ago, it's so weird to see the film version cut the novel's story and shuffle around a bunch of elements out of context. Why did EON go with this particular title so soon? They couldn't get OHMSS as originally planned because of weather, so couldn't they have just gone with any of the other unused titles?

Oh well. I'll take it over a great many other so called spectacles that come out these days. Can't beat Ken Adam, Freddie Young, John Barry, Lewis Gilbert, ect.

Adam, Young, and Barry really carry the load. Of the cast, I enjoy Tamba and Pleasance.

Pretty sad when James Bond is the third coolest dude in the film behind Tiger and Dikko.

It sucks that Dikko dies like three minutes after he's introduced. . Tiger in the film only seemed to be a shadow of the guy Fleming wrote, which was a shame because he's one of my favorite characters in the books. Imagine the bathing house scene being extended in the film with Tiger and Bond playing rock paper scissors drunk.

So many things popped in my head watching the flick, mostly about the book. Like how they call him Bond-san, when they should call him Bondo-san because the former actually translates into an unflattering term in Japanese. Oops!

I'm always amused by the beginning with the stereotypical stock characters in that big dome. The paranoid old balding square American with the horn rimmed spectacles, the big fat Russian with the beard saying "the world knows we are a peace loving people" while smirking and the British gentleman in between casually blowing off the Americans for hopping on the "them Commies did it" bandwagon so fast. And how the Americans at the Pentagon basically risk attacking Russia with no proof. Why? "Somewhere in Russia, it HAS to be! Forget the British suggestion about Japan, let's nuke those Ruskies!"

William Sylvester can find a four-meter monolith fifteen meters under the Moon's surface, but he can't find a giant volcano base in Japan?

And they send two astronauts in space ahead of schedule, just so they can see if they will be captured by Ruskies, even though the last time it happened somebody got killed. Mid-20th century English viewpoint of America can be comical at times.

Python wrote:

I'm always amused by the beginning with the stereotypical stock characters in that big dome. The paranoid old balding square American with the horn rimmed spectacles, the big fat Russian with the beard saying "the world knows we are a peace loving people" while smirking and the British gentleman in between casually blowing off the Americans for hopping on the "them Commies did it" bandwagon so fast. And how the Americans at the Pentagon basically risk attacking Russia with no proof. Why? "Somewhere in Russia, it HAS to be! Forget the British suggestion about Japan, let's nuke those Ruskies!"

Certainly an amusing sequence. By the by, "the paranoid old balding square American" is played by David Bauer, who also played Morton Slumber in DAF. The latter is one of my favorite Bond characters, incidentally.

Perilagu Khan wrote:

Python wrote:

I'm always amused by the beginning with the stereotypical stock characters in that big dome. The paranoid old balding square American with the horn rimmed spectacles, the big fat Russian with the beard saying "the world knows we are a peace loving people" while smirking and the British gentleman in between casually blowing off the Americans for hopping on the "them Commies did it" bandwagon so fast. And how the Americans at the Pentagon basically risk attacking Russia with no proof. Why? "Somewhere in Russia, it HAS to be! Forget the British suggestion about Japan, let's nuke those Ruskies!"

Certainly an amusing sequence. By the by, "the paranoid old balding square American" is played by David Bauer, who also played Morton Slumber in DAF. The latter is one of my favorite Bond characters, incidentally.

Also the "big fat Russian with the beard" was played by actor George Murcell, who was a good friend of my dad (went back to their days on the stage) and once got me to do "a kingdom for my horse" from Shakespeare's Richard III in his theatre in North West London when I was a wee lad.

A composer and a Shakespearean actor? Largo's Shark, you must be good!

FRWL
Considering how much of this and GF was done in the studio rather than location, these may both be models for SKYFALL's production, given that on SF the actors only went outside the UK for the PTS. FRWL's abbreviated location work is I guess primarily due to Pedro's condition, but as an economy measure, the studio stuff works just fine.

Not much I can say about FRWL that hasn't already been said. Even the goofy stuff, like the PTS, looks so nice I roll with it. Connery has his game face on all the way through, and I think the quality of the cast is just amazing.

The duration of the gypsy camp sequence struck me this time through; things play out rather leisurely until the attack begins, but you get a feel that these are actual people living, getting to breathe a bit.

Watched about half of DAF afterward, and was entertained in a half-conscious way, though Connery's game face is definitely almost entirely gone (last time we see it is in the opening scene of NSNA - the focus and fierceness give way to a bemused detachment that seems Moore-like.) Will finish it today.