Live and Let Die

LIVE AND LET DIE
1973 | Dir. Guy Hamilton | 121 Minutes

"Names is for tombstones, baby! Y'all take this honky out and waste him! Now!"

M sends James Bond to New York to investigate the mysterious deaths of three MI6 agents who were monitoring Caribbean dictator Dr. Kananga. Bond seduces Kanaga's beautiful fortuneteller Solitaire, and exposes and destroys his drug trafficking operation.

More tonally palatable than Diamonds Are Forever but still considerably campy, Live and Let Die attempts to capitalize on the popularity of blaxploitation films of the time, positioning Bond against a drug lord and surrounding him with a supporting cast predominantly made up of black actors. While the picture manages emulate the style of the genre, it completely misses the mark, sorely lacking in anything that resembles social commentary while perpetuating ugly stereotypes by openly mocking Voodoo religion. The stakes are set considerably lower than those of previous 007 adventures, and New York, New Orleans, and the Caribbean are some of the least exotic locations for a Bond film.

Live and Let Die's action sequences are competently executed with a hefty helping of hit-or-miss humor intended to liven things up. The set pieces and staging of the stunt sequences are relatively mundane but two chase sequences stand out in particular: an unconventional two-part chase scene involving a double-decker bus and a granny operating a small airplane, and an elaborate speedboat chase just before the picture's final act. Filling in for regular composer John Barry, Beatles producer George Martin supplies the film's mildly funky soundtrack while erstwhile Beatle Paul McCartney contributes the feature's rocking theme song.

Kicking off his long tenure in the role of James Bond, Roger Moore immediately defines his softer and notably cornier take on the secret agent. He's entertaining enough but not very convincing as a man of action. As the innocent Solitaire, Jane Seymour is lovely but kind of dull as the standard damsel in distress. Seymour at least gets a better deal than Gloria Hendry who plays the woefully inept double agent Rosie Carver. Yaphet Kotto brings gravitas to the role of Dr. Kananga though the affectations he takes on to become Mr. Big are just as ridiculous and pointless as the alter ego. Earl Jolly Brown doesn't look the least bit intimidating as Whisper while Julius Harris is a scene-stealer as the claw handed Tee Hee. Geoffrey Holder leaves quite an impression as the supernatural Baron Samedi though his presence in the story doesn't lead to anything at all. Clifton James brings J.W. Pepper to life, the racist southern sheriff with way too much screen time, the worst Bond movie character ever. David Hedison, the fifth actor to play Bond's CIA friend Felix Leiter, provides bits of exposition while allowing Bond to run amok in his backyard, exhibiting the usual Felix Leiter behavior without adding much personality to the formula. Bernard Lee and Lois Maxwell appear once again for a short scene as M and Miss Moneypenny, though the once playfully flirtatious Maxwell comes off more motherly this time around.

Featuring fun and often silly action, relatively low stakes, and a memorable soundtrack, Roger Moore's first James Bond film falls right in the middle in terms of the overall quality of his seven-picture run. Live and Let Die is an average action picture masquerading as a blaxploitation movie without anything interesting to say. All in all, it's not the best Bond movie but it's far from the worst.


THE COLD OPEN
The respective murders of the three MI6 agents which involve electrocution at a U.N. session in New York, a stabbing during a funeral procession in New Orleans, and a voodoo ritual in the Caribbean set the stage for a plot that is far less intriguing than the way the initial killings were carried out.


THE THEME SONG AND OPENING TITLES
The first James Bond theme song to be nominated for the Oscar for Best Original Song, Paul McCartney's "Live and Let Die" is one of the best theme songs of the series, and B. J. Arnau's in-movie rendition of the song is pretty damn great, too. It's a rocking tune that stands apart from the standard Bond title song in the very best way. The opening title sequence designed by Maurice Binder prominently featuring beautiful black models and ominous skull imagery is fantastic.


THE BOND GIRL
There isn't much to say about Solitaire besides the idea that her powers are tied to her virginity is total nonsense. Once she loses her powers, she also loses what little agency she had becomes just another woman for Bond to rescue. It's disappointing that the producers opted not to cast a black woman in the part as it was proposed by screenwriter Tom Mankiewicz at one point.


THE BOND VILLAIN
Dr. Kananga's scheme to bankrupt his competition by giving drugs away is simple but practical... aside from pointlessly disguising himself as Mr. Big prosthetic mask and all. His death by ingested compressed-gas pellet is one of the more spectacular ways for a Bond villain to go.


FEATURED HENCHMEN
Whisper is kind of lame but Tee Hee's incessant giggling and his claw hand make him one of the more iconic henchmen of the series. Baron Samedi is worth mentioning for his striking presence and apparent supernatural powers but he doesn't really do anything.


FEATURED GADGET
Bond gets a lot of mileage out of his magnetic watch, from unzipping ladies dresses to sawing ropes to pissing off M.


FLEMING FIDELITY
Based on Ian Fleming's second novel of the same name published in 1954, the film retains characters from the book but changes a great deal of the plot. In the novel, Mr. Big is an agent of SMERSH selling 17th-century gold coins to finance Soviet spies. Bond's adventure eventually takes him to Jamaica where he meets Quarrel and Strangways who appear again in the sixth novel in series Dr. No. The film omits several major scenes from the book that would turn up in later Bond films most notably Felix Leiter's dismemberment by shark after falling victim to a trap set by Mr. Big (a catalyzing event for Bond in Licence to Kill), and Bond and Solitaire being towed through a coral reef by a line from Mr. Big's yacht (eventually depicted in For Your Eyes Only).


FRAGMENTS
- At age 45, Roger Moore was the oldest actor to play James Bond when he made his debut

- Dr. Kananga was named after stunt coordinator Ross Kananga who owns the the alligator and crocodile farm featured in the film

- At the bottom of the end credits, the film advertises that "James Bond will return in The Man with the Golden Gun"

Diamonds Are Forever

DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER
1971 | Dir. Guy Hamilton | 120 Minutes

"My God... You've just killed James Bond!"

James Bond infiltrates a diamond smuggling operation and discovers it is run by his nemesis Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Constructing a laser-firing satellite with diamonds, Blofeld plans to sell the devastating orbital weapon to the highest bidder.

Instead of building on the thoroughly fun and surprisingly poignant On Her Majesty's Secret Service in any meaningful way, Eon Productions delivers painfully generic installment in a transparent surface-level attempt to replicate the success of Goldfinger, bringing Guy Hamilton back to direct and Shirley Bassey to perform the theme song. From its opening moments, it's clear that much of the production's budget went towards facilitating the return of its leading man, as the sets look shamefully cheap and there is generally a lack of significant spectacle throughout. The writing also leaves a lot to be desired, as Bond's one-liners are somehow worse than usual, the wealthy recluse held captive and impersonated by Blofeld is an awful character, and the humor is campy at best and grossly offensive at worst.

Most of the film's action takes place in Las Vegas though not much of it is all that exciting. Bond's escape from a research facility in the middle of the desert driving a shoddy looking moon buggy is more embarrassing than humorous, a physical altercation with a pair of alluring gymnasts is less thrilling than it sounds, and the climatic by-the-numbers battle on an oil rig ends with Bond operating a crane to fling around Blofeld's escape vehicle devoid of any drama. However, two bright spots come to mind: a claustrophobic one-on-one battle in an elevator early in the picture that is actually pretty good, and a fantastic car chase on the Vegas Strip - though aside from one iconic moment in which Bond escapes through an alleyway with two wheels up in the air, too much of the sequence takes place in a parking lot.

Out of shape and looking about ten years older than he did in You Only Live Twice - and yet it's only been four - Sean Connery returns as 007 for his final Eon Bond film and gives off the strong impression that he would rather be elsewhere. Jill St. John gives a stilted performance as the diamond smuggling love interest Tiffany Case, sharing zero chemistry with Connery, and the buxom Lana Wood is even worse as the unfortunate and unfortunately named Plenty O'Toole. Previously appearing as Dikko Henderson in You Only Live Twice, Charles Gray is unremarkable as Ernst Stavro Blofeld, perhaps the least interesting actor to take on the role. Bruce Glover and Putter Smith appear to be having the time of their lives as homosexual caricatures Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd, their scenes are enjoyable in a so bad they're good kind of way. Country star and sausage king Jimmy Dean is distractingly bad as Howard Hughes analog Willard Whyte. Norman Burton, the fourth actor to play Felix Leiter, fails to leave much of an impression. Bernard Lee, Lois Maxwell, and Desmond Llewelyn make their standard appearances as M,  Miss Moneypenny, and Q.

Diamonds Are Forever is objectively one of the very worst Bond films. Connery is clearly checked out as Bond, the plot and set pieces are astoundingly dull, and the camp humor is cringe-worthy. Perhaps the best thing about it is that it might be just bad enough to be enjoyed ironically.


THE COLD OPEN
Bond's hasty globe trekking to eventually find and kill Blofeld in a secret facility in a cave somewhere is so very dull, made worse later in the film when it is revealed that the real Blofeld is still alive.


THE THEME SONG AND OPENING TITLES
Though the film is a disappointment, Shirley Bassey's titular theme song is one of the best, a memorable tune that casually flaunts sexual innuendo with surprising force. Composer John Barry apparently instructed Bassey to imagine she was singing about a penis. Notably, the song was sampled for Kanye West's Grammy-winning "Diamonds from Sierra Leone". The signature Maurice Binder opening titles are moody, sensual, and very stylish, featuring the shapes of ladies in darkness illuminated by light refracted through diamonds.


THE BOND GIRL
For a professional diamond smuggler, Tiffany Case is an incompetent mess. She alternates between being an obstacle in Bond's way and a damsel in distress to be saved. Her signature moment is firing a machine gun at baddies until she falls off the oil rig in the climactic battle.


THE BOND VILLAIN
This is Blofeld at his least threatening, and it's a real shame since he won't return to the series proper for another 44 years. His use of decoys is tiresome, his impersonation of Willard Whyte using a voice changer is underwhelming, and his plan to create a doomsday weapon and auction it off is surprisingly unambitious for the premiere villainous mastermind.


FEATURED HENCHMEN
Mr. Kidd and Mr. Wint are a pair of gay coded weirdos that are incredibly entertaining if one is willing to look beyond or perhaps laugh at the misinformed homophobic leanings of the writers. They are fascinating to watch in that they seem to be performing in their own movie, divorced from the main action until they cross paths with Bond and Case at the end of the film. Their methods are brutal, and they are each afforded truly epic deaths which are much more memorable than Blofeld's apparent demise.


FEATURED GADGET
Q's slot machine manipulating ring is a fun bit of wish fulfillment, and sadly the most interesting bit of gadgetry in this waste of a movie.


FLEMING FIDELITY
Based loosely on Ian Fleming's fourth Bond novel of the same name published in 1956, the film borrows the premise of a diamond smuggling ring, the characters of Tiffany Case, mobster Shady Tree, and gay henchmen Wint and Kidd. In the novel, the ring is operated by a ruthless American gang known as the Spangled Mob and the diamond smuggling scheme is much more elaborate though without any ties to cold war politics or secret terrorist organizations. Unsurprisingly, Tiffany Case's incredibly problematic gang-rape backstory from the source material was cut from the film, culminating with Bond one again stepping in to show a troubled woman that "the right man" can fix her.


FRAGMENTS
- Roger Moore, who would play James Bond in seven films beginning with the next picture Live and Let Die, was offered to fill the role in Diamonds Are Forever but was unavailable due to his commitment to the television series The Persuaders!

- John Barry's "007" theme plays during the destruction of the oil rig

- At the bottom of the end credits, the film advertises that "James Bond will return in Live and Let Die"

On Her Majesty's Secret Service

ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE
1969 | Dir. Peter R. Hunt | 140 Minutes

"People who want to stay alive play it safe."

After James Bond saves the self-destructive Countess Tracy di Vicenzo on two separate occasions, Tracy's crime lord father offers Bond one million pounds to court and marry her. Bond refuses the money but instead requests the whereabouts of SPECTRE leader Ernst Stavro Blofeld. To infiltrate Blofeld's latest operation, secretly developing biological weapons in the Swiss Alps under the guise of a French count, Bond assumes the identity of the renowned genealogist invited to Blofeld's research facility to verify his claim to nobility.

Peter R. Hunt, who served as second unit director on Goldfinger, Thunderball, and You Only Live Twice, makes his directorial debut delivering a stylish and action-packed adventure that is objectively one of the best James Bond films despite the evidently inexperienced new actor occupying the lead role. A decent love story with a devastating conclusion bookends and elevates one of Bond's more inspired missions taking place in a secluded mountain-top clinic full of beautiful women of nearly every nationality. Frames are strategically cut out of fight sequences to literally give each blow an extra jolt, and the set pieces in Switzerland are fun and unique. A thrilling car chase leads to an all-out demolition derby, the climatic raid on Blofeld's compound ends in an intense bobsled chase, and extended skiing sequences - which go on to become an occasional Bond film staple - lead to some wildly entertaining fatalities for Blofeld's henchmen.

The worst moments of the film are the ones that distractingly remind the audience that the leading man has been replaced. Bond's goofy fourth-wall-breaking one-liner at the end of the cold open action sequence is simply groan-inducing. The scene of 007 emptying his desk of tokens collected from previous adventures, accompanied by soundtrack references to Dr. No, From Russia with Love, and Thunderball, goes out of the way to reassure viewers that they are watching the same Bond from those films. It's cute but completely unnecessary, and if anything a disservice to George Lazenby, as if openly and unfairly inviting comparisons between his take on Bond and Sean Connery's. Though he lacks a certain charisma, considering his youth and inexperience as an actor, Lazenby is a fun and snappy 007 on his one and only outing as the super spy. Lazenby particularly shines playing Bond disguised as the genealogist Sir Hilary Bray, complete with poncy accent. His performance is particularly affecting in the film's final heartbreaking scene.

Diana Rigg is magnetic as the headstrong Tracy and a large part of why the film works as well as it does. Not just an evil mastermind behind the curtain, Telly Savalas even participates in a fair share of action playing a decidedly smarmier and more directly threatening Blofeld. In her only English language role, German actress Ilse Steppat is formidable as Blofeld's cruel minion Irma Bunt. Prolific Italian actor Gabriele Ferzetti gives off an air of regal charm as Tracy's father and crime syndicate leader Marc-Ange Draco. Once again returning as Miss Moneypenny and M, Lois Maxwell and Bernard Lee both have fun interactions with Lazenby's Bond, though Desmond Llewelyn only appears as Q for a brief cameo.

Though no one would claim George Lazenby is their favorite James Bond, On Her Majesty's Secret Service is objectively one of the best Bond films. Offering all of the adventure and excitement one would expect from the series, phenomenal set pieces, and genuine drama, there's a great action movie to be enjoyed for those willing to look past the shortcomings attributed to the picture's one-and-done leading man.


THE COLD OPEN
One of the weaker cold opens featuring a dark and choppily edited uninspired brawl on a beach and one of the worst self-referential one-liners ever.


THE THEME SONG AND OPENING TITLES
The theme tune by John Barry for On Her Majesty's Secret Service is one of the most memorable pieces of music composed for a Bond movie, though the opening sequence designed by Maurice Binder relies too heavily on stills from the five preceding films, cheapening the entire experience. While it doesn't play over the opening titles, Louis Armstrong's "We Have All The Time In The World" is a fine love theme for Bond and Tracy, its tune recurring throughout the film seamlessly incorporated into John Barry's score.


THE BOND GIRL
Tracy is bright, capable, and deeply troubled in the nonsense way that only serves to appeal to men with a savior complex. Her father believes she needs a loving man more than a psychiatrist to relieve her of her self-destructive tendencies, and since she exists in an old-fashioned Bond film, her father's backwards assessment turns out to be right. She is written to be the only woman that could convince Bond to settle down, and she promptly meets a tragic end. At least she gets to show a decent amount of agency, managing to outsmart Bond on a few occasions and out-drive Blofeld's underlings in a demolition derby.


THE BOND VILLAIN
On Her Majesty's Secret Service features Blofeld at his best and most active. The SPECTRE head brainwashes, skis, bobsleds, and even nearly ends Bond in the final scene despite a broken neck. His evil scheme this time around to hold the world hostage under the threat of global famine and infertility with beautiful sleeper agents doing the dirty work is classic Blofeld, fantastically ambitious and logistically impractical as most of his designs.


FEATURED HENCHMAN
Irma Bunt is the archetypal Blofeld hench, a hyper competent and severely efficient taskmaster who does not mince her words, perhaps most remembered for firing the machine gun in the fateful climatic drive-by.


FEATURED GADGET
The clunky safe-cracking device is a true relic, and one of the least efficient devices appearing in a Bond film. However, it's amusing to watch Bond gawk at a Playboy centerfold while the machine does its thing.


FLEMING FIDELITY
Based on Ian Fleming's tenth James Bond novel of the same name published in 1963, the film is remarkably faithful to the source material. Only a few notable additions for the movie are worth mentioning. The car chase and demolition derby sequence after Bond's escape from Blofeld's clinic were invented for the film, and Blofeld does not capture Tracy in the novel. These changes were wisely made in order for Tracy to play a more active role in the story.


FRAGMENTS
- Though he would play James Bond nearly two decades later, twenty-two year old Timothy Dalton turned down the offer to play the part after Sean Connery's departure following You Only Live Twice, citing his youth and inexperience

- At twenty-nine years old, George Lazenby was the youngest actor to play James Bond

- Despite signing a seven-picture deal, Lazenby quit the role after filming On Her Majesty's Secret Service, believing that the Bond movie franchise wouldn't last, out-of-touch in the wake of more sophisticated and socially relevant films of the time

- At the bottom of the end credits, the film advertises that "James Bond 007 will return in Diamonds Are Forever"

You Only Live Twice

YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE
1967 | Dir. Lewis Gilbert | 117 Minutes

"For a European, you are exceptionally cultivated."

An unidentified spacecraft abducts a pair of NASA astronauts from Earth's orbit. As the Americans accuse Soviet Russia for the incursion, Bond travels to Japan where the mysterious vehicle reportedly landed. With aid and training from spymaster Tiger Tanaka, 007 unravels SPECTRE's latest plot to sow global discord.

Adapted for the screen by acclaimed novelist Roald Dahl and directed by Lewis Gilbert with genuine visual flair, You Only Live Twice veers away from the Bond series' relatively grounded espionage roots and into the world of implausible gadgetry and over-the-top secret bases. The set pieces are imaginative, most memorably the picture's space capsule sequences accompanied by an excellent foreboding musical theme by John Barry, and Blofeld's iconic volcano lair where the film's epic climax is set. The action sequences are fun if cartoonish, perfectly encapsulated in Bond's totally campy helicopter dog fight in Little Nellie halfway through the picture. However, the characters and plot are sorely lacking in depth and nuance.

To make matters worse, the film is entrenched in thoughtlessly insensitive depictions of Asian people and women. Tiger Tanaka's ninja training camp is laughably inauthentic, Bond's yellow face disguise to pass as Japanese is not only grotesque but serves no functional story purpose, and the treatment of women is atrocious even by Bond film standards. It's more than a little irksome that the film presents a remarkably competent female character who saves Bond's life on multiple occasions just to kill her off and replace her with a rather generic love interest just before the final section of the story as if they were interchangeable.

Aside from participating in action sequences, pretending to operate a ridiculous flying contraption, delivering a series of obvious cheeky one-liners, and being serviced by a slew of scantily clad Japanese women, Sean Connery isn't required to do much acting as Bond this time around, a disappointingly uninspiring performance. Akiko Wakabayashi is fantastic as Aki, a great supporting player with charisma to spare who could have easily been more than just a love interest for Bond. Mie Hama doesn't leave much of an impression as Kissy, with significantly less screen time than Wakabayashi's Aki. Tetsuro Tamba does a fine job as Tiger Tanaka but comes off more as a tour guide than a spy due to how the character was written. The first actor to give Ernst Stavro Blofeld a face, Donald Pleasence brings proper gravitas to the role, setting a high bar for the various actors who would eventually take on the part. Teru Shimada gives a convincing performance as the conniving Mr. Osato, and Karin Dor is a good fit for the role of the alluring but inevitably doomed SPECTRE assassin Helga Brandt. Bernard Lee and Lois Maxwell return as M and Moneypenny, this time appearing in naval uniforms in a silly submarine version of M's standard office and reception area while Desmond Llewelyn returns as Q to introduce Little Nellie and all of her weapons while amusingly keeping a straight face.

While entertaining as a campy throwback with plenty of action and imagination, You Only Live Twice is the first Bond film to truly go off the rails, abandoning plausibility in favor of whimsy. Unfortunately, much of the picture has aged rather poorly, rife with outdated Asian stereotypes and general misogyny.


THE COLD OPEN
The capsule abduction sequence is atmospheric and still looks stunning by today's special effects standards. Conversely, Bond's Hong Kong excursion in which MI6 stages his death is simply dull.


THE THEME SONG AND OPENING TITLES
The opening riff of Nancy Sinatra's "You Only Live Twice" is quite catchy (and sampled to the point of irritation in Robbie Williams' "Millennium"). The song remains one of the most memorable James Bond theme tunes while the title sequence designed by Marice Binder featuring geishas, molten lava, and a simple Japanese umbrella graphic is actually relatively tasteful all things considered.


THE BOND GIRL
Kissy is often cited as the primary love interest of You Only Live Twice, despite her limited screen time and her virtually nonexistent chemistry with Bond. This is due to the ill-conceived choice to have Aki succumb to a nonsensical demise roughly two thirds into film. Aki is a capable spy, a clever and reliable companion to Bond even in the face of danger, and a unique personality within the Bond Girl pantheon, far more memorable than Kissy who is most remembered for running around in a bikini and swimming for reinforcements. In different ways, both Kissy and Aki get the short end of the stick.


THE BOND VILLAIN
Blofeld finally shows his face and immediately establishes himself as Bond's ultimate villain - cold, calculated, and hyper-intelligent. His bald head and facial scar are striking features that are often spoofed to great effect, most famously by comedian Mike Myers' Dr. Evil character in his Austin Powers spy parody film series. Blofeld's volcano lair featured in this film and its incredible set design have inspired countless imitators as well including Syndrome's secret island base from Brad Bird's The Incredibles. His plan to instigate war between America and the Soviet Union by sabotaging their respective space programs while promoting suspicion is clever but needlessly convoluted considering Cold War tensions of the time.


FEATURED HENCHMEN
Though not the most memorable henchmen, Osato and Helga Brandt fill their roles well as the standard SPECTRE middle manager and killer underling. Both turn out to be pretty incompetent. Brandt makes the classic mistake of leaving Bond to die in a plane going down instead of just killing him at his most vulnerable.


FEATURED GADGET
Little Nellie is a fun and totally impractical, serving well its sole purpose to liven up the middle of the film with a memorably ridiculous action sequence.


FLEMING FIDELITY
Adapted Ian Fleming's 1963 novel of the same name, the eleventh book in the series, the film is the first of Eon's productions to retain the setting of the source material but eject almost everything else. Fleming's book is a grim affair as M re-numbers James Bond 7777 and sends the depressed and broken agent on a diplomatic mission to Japan in response to his steadily declining quality of work following On Her Majesty's Secret Service's tragic cliffhanger ending. At the behest of Tiger Tanaka, Bond assumes the identity of a Japanese coal miner and infiltrates a so-called "Garden of Death" to assassinate its proprietor Dr. Guntram Shatterhand, who turns out to be a thinly disguised Blofeld in samurai armor. After strangling Blofeld with his bare hands, Bond in struck with amnesia after suffering a blow to the head. For a short time, Bond lives a quiet life with Kissy in a fishing village before he abruptly leaves for Russia in hopes of recovering his true identity.


FRAGMENTS
- It was announced during filming that Sean Connery had no interest in returning to the role after this one for fear of being typecast though he would return for the seventh Eon Bond film Diamonds Are Forever in 1971, and Kevin McClory's Thunderball remake Never Say Never Again in 1983

- In 1962, the year Dr. No was released, Akiko Wakabayashi and Mie Hama appeared together in King Kong vs. Godzilla

- Akiko Wakabayashi was initially cast as Kissy and Mie Hama as Aki but their roles were switched when Wakabayashi proved to have a firmer grasp on speaking English than Hama as Aki's role is more dialogue heavy; ultimately, series regular voice over artist Nikki Van der Zyl dubbed the dialogue for Kissy anyway, the filmmakers should have just merged to two parts and kept Aki as the love interest for the entire film as Aki's death serves no real purpose and Kissy isn't left with much to do

- John Barry's "007" theme plays when "Little Nellie" takes flight

- At the top of the end credits, the film advertises that "James Bond will be back in On Her Majesty's Secret Service"


SUPPLEMENTAL STUFF
- Video: Space March (Auralnauts Remix)

Thunderball

THUNDERBALL
1965 | Dir. Terence Young | 130 Minutes

"Some men don’t like to be taken for a ride."

SPECTRE steals a pair of atomic bombs from NATO and holds the world hostage demanding a sizable ransom. Within seven days, Bond must recover the weapons of mass destruction and thwart SPECTRE's plot. Tracing the bombs to Nassau, Bond faces off against SPECTRE No. 2 Emil Largo and his deadly cohorts while he romances Largo's mistress.

Returning to helm Thunderball after passing on Goldfinger, director Terrance Young's third and final Bond film is another thrilling and relatively grounded espionage picture. However, the set pieces are significantly more ambitious than the ones featured in Dr. No and From Russia with Love. While he indulges in his usual sometimes problematic shenanigans, Bond unravels one of SPECTRE's most memorable schemes and encounters some of the best villains of the series. Conspicuously sporting an eye patch with panache, SPECTRE No. 2 Emil Largo is not only an iconic and unforgettable villain, he is also a frighteningly competent one, sadistic in his methods and as bloodthirsty as the sharks he keeps as pets. Additionally, SPECTRE operative Fiona Volpe is among the few evil Bond women who are truly both deadly and beautiful. Despite his despicable casually misogynistic attitude that was passed off as masculine charm at the time - demonstrated in full when he forces himself on a clinician early in the picture - watching Bond rise to the challenge and defeat the best SPECTRE has to offer is fantastic entertainment.

Beyond the rather ridiculous incidental action sequence at the top of the film, and some silly peril involving a spinal traction machine, the best parts of the feature are its beautifully staged and photographed extended underwater sequences that make up about a quarter of its runtime. While these centerpiece action sequences require a bit of patience to enjoy, they are (forgive the pun) truly breathtaking to behold. The climatic battle between NATO forces and Largo's men beneath the ocean surface is particularly excellent.

Though still admirably committed to the role, Sean Connery is noticeably less spry as the world's most famous secret agent, his fourth appearance as 007 in as many years. Jarringly, Connery is visibly older than his French co-star Claudine Auger who portrays troubled love interest Domino with a detachment that suggests more vacancy than depth. Luciana Paluzzi's Volpe is much more appealing by far, convincing and absolutely captivating as a confident SPECTRE operative. Paluzzi's presence even overshadows Philip Locke as Vargas, a henchmen written to be a ruthless disturbingly dedicated killer who, unfortunately for Locke, swiftly dies without doing anything interesting. Adolfo Celi strikes an imposing figure as the film's primary villain Largo, cool among his ilk and dasterdly in combat. Thunderball also features brief appearances from Bernard Lee, Lois Maxell, and Desmond Llewelyn reprising M, Moneypenny, and Q. The third actor to play the part, Rik Van Nutter's Felix Leiter is somewhat understated and somewhat forgettable.

A highly satisfying blend of intrigue and spectacle, Thunderball is peak Sean Connery Bond featuring some of 007's greatest cinematic adversaries and memorable underwater action sequences.


THE COLD OPEN
The ludicrous film opens with Bond battling a man in drag and an unwieldy jetpack. Entertaining but truly one of the silliest cold opens of the series.


THE THEME SONG AND OPENING TITLES
Tom Jones' "Thunderball" is truly magnificent, arguably on par with Shirley Bassey's "Goldfinger", with gloriously corny lyrics thoroughly summarizing what 007's swagger is all about. Shirley Bassey initially recorded a theme song entailed "Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" for film but the tune was ultimately rejected in favor of Tom Jones' title song. Musical references to "Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" remain in John Barry's score. The suggestive imagery of silhouetted female models swimming through the opening titles designed by Maurice Binder is highly provocative.


THE BOND GIRL
Domino isn't without agency but she is mostly underwritten like many Bond love interests, a mistress a much older man, apparently haunted with abandonment issues. Although it's nice that she gets to harpoon Largo.


THE BOND VILLAIN
Smarter and more competent than most Bond villains, Largo is a worthy SPECTRE Number 2, failed by his henchmen for hiring bad help if anything. His calm demeanor as Blofeld electrocutes a colleague across the table says it all, as does the sadism he demonstrates when torturing Domino for her betrayal.


FEATURED HENCHMAN
Fiona Volpe is one of my favorites, a cunning and often treacherous woman who is quick to take matters into her own hands, proving to be more than a match for Bond again and again.


FEATURED GADGET
More practical than the ridiculous jet pack from the cold open, the underwater breathing limited-use device is practical for Bond and on a metatextual level as well.


FLEMING FIDELITY
The film is incredibly faithful to Ian Fleming's 1961 novel of the same name, the eighth in the series, with the only notable difference being the location of the climax, an undersea cave in the original book moved to the Largo's Disco Volante in the film.


MCCLORY'S SPECTRE
Written to be the first Bond film, author Ian Fleming collaborated with Kevin McClory and Jack Whittingham on the initial screenplay for Thunderball. Losing faith in McClory's cinematic vision for Bond, Fleming repurposed the story and used it for his eighth Bond novel published in 1961. McClory and Whittingham sued Fleming, and the case was settled out of court resulting in McClory gaining the literary and film rights for the screenplay. McClory is credited as a producer for Thunderball and eventually produced the awful 1983 Taliafilm remake Never Say Never Again featuring a spiteful Sean Connery as Bond.


FRAGMENTS
- John Barry's "007" theme is briefly referenced during the climactic underwater battle

- Series regular voice over artist Nikki Van der Zyl dubbed the dialogue for Domino