I have returned after watching the next four films and I can safely say that the first four Bond films are the highlights. You Only Live Twice is an okay movie. The only notable aspects of this film are that Blofeld's identity is revealed and an army of ninjas storm a volcano that is actually a secret hide out which launches rockets into space to kidnap astronauts to ignite the Cold War. It's the classic run of the mill James Bond film.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service is the first Bond film without Mr. Connery. Instead, George Lazenby does his one and only performance as James Bond. At first, I was not very interested in the film and the beginning of the film does nothing to remedy my disinterest. The film becomes bearable when Bond and Blofeld meet at some allergy research facility in the mountains. Telly Savalas, star of Kojak, does a great job making Blofeld a believable and threatening to Bond. This film has a lot of fun action scenes that have the patented over the top charm. What makes this film good is that it adds a new angle to Bond when his wife is killed in front of him. Lazenby's performance during this scene is what really sold me on the whole film and it made me wonder what else Lazenby could have done as Bond.
Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd
Diamonds Are Forever is the perfect Saturday afternoon local television movie. It is a goofy campy movie but isn't fun to watch; it is just stupid and boring. It is Connery's last performance as an Eon produced James Bond and it is a terrible way to go out. I believe the biggest tragedy of this film is the under utilization of the homosexual assassin duo, Mr. Wint and Mr.Kidd. They are some of the best Bond villains I have seen. They are bizarre, eccentric, and deadly. In the beginning of the film, they kill a majority of the characters but then disappear for the majority of the film as a newly haired Blofeld takes center stage. The Blofeld in this film is bland compared to these two weirdos and it's a shame they weren't given a more central role in the plot.
Live and Let Die is Roger Moore's first Bond movie. I was interested to watch this film because there is a lot of debate about Moore's depiction of James Bond and I had never seen his movies. Moore does an alright job. I wouldn't say his performance is memorable at all but it certainly isn't as offensive as some people believe. The biggest issue with this film is that it does not feel like a Bond film. The hideous aesthetic of the 70's is all over this film. The beautiful Aston Martin is replaced by god awful Cadillacs and Olds Mobiles that plagued that decade. The awesome European style suits are replaced by ugly 70's "gangster" attire and shitty looking pants. Paul McCartney wrote the famous "Live and Let Die" song for this film and it is played through out the film. In fact, that song is played instead of the James Bond theme through out the film which really disconnects the Bond connection. The beautiful locals of previous Bond films are replaced by shitty 70's Harlem, a street in New Orleans, a field in the Caribbean (ugly), and an underground layer that, again, stank of 70's style.
Back row: Tee Hee, Baron Samedi, Whisper. Front row: Solitaire, Bond, Kananga.
Instead of one main henchman in this film, there are 3 wimpy ones. There is Baron Samedi, a man dressed as a voodoo spirit of death who never actually kills anyone. I see his picture all over the place for this film which is odd considering he is only in the film for 2 scenes and is only a minor henchman. Then there is Whisper who is a just a fat guy who only whispers. The last henchman is named Tee Hee and he has a robot arm similar to Dr. No's but his somehow looks more ridiculous and fake. You can see his in suit arm where the prop is connected to his hand. On top of that, like all the other henchman, he isn't threatening. The arm is awkward, slow, and inaccurate. These 3 heavy hitters work for Dr. Kananga, a corrupt island official looking to peddle opium in the US. As a villain, he is alright but his voodoo gimmick his under played.
I would like to now address Kananga's death. To set the scene, Bond has wrestled Kananga into the shark tank that has Bond's blood in it so the Sharks are hungry. Rather than drown Kananga (it stands to reason that, as a trained spy, Bond would be able to out wrestle Kananga) or injure him enough that he cannot swim out of the shark tank in time, Bond forces Kananga to swallow (how he forces him to swallow it, I am unsure) a compressed air bullet causing Kananga to literally inflate like a balloon and burst on the ceiling. This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever seen in a Bond film and I feel it is too unbelievable even for a Bond film. The inflated body clearly looks like a balloon and the logistics of the whole thing and lack of viscera is silly.
I would like to now address Kananga's death. To set the scene, Bond has wrestled Kananga into the shark tank that has Bond's blood in it so the Sharks are hungry. Rather than drown Kananga (it stands to reason that, as a trained spy, Bond would be able to out wrestle Kananga) or injure him enough that he cannot swim out of the shark tank in time, Bond forces Kananga to swallow (how he forces him to swallow it, I am unsure) a compressed air bullet causing Kananga to literally inflate like a balloon and burst on the ceiling. This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever seen in a Bond film and I feel it is too unbelievable even for a Bond film. The inflated body clearly looks like a balloon and the logistics of the whole thing and lack of viscera is silly.
This dummy is the scariest part of the film.
I was not a big fan of Live and Let Die as you can tell.
Updated list of favorites:
1. Dr. No and Goldfinger
2. Thunderball
3. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
4. From Russia with Love
5. You Only Live Twice
6. Live and Let Die
7. Diamonds Are Forever
Photo credits:
http://kelly.hogaboom.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/on-her-majestys-secret-service.jpg
http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20121229025043/villains/images/8/8d/Tumblr_lj0t77hiIO1qzoulco1_500.jpg
http://www.counter-currents.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/live-and-let-die-3.jpg
http://www.dvdverdict.com/images/reviewpics/liveandletdie05.jpg
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