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My favorite Bond movies:
From Russia with Love: A well-balanced thriller that does not depend on gadgets. Great villains, beautiful Tatiana Romanov, and a great male/male relationship between Bond and Ali Kerim Bey. Satisfying in every respect.
Goldfinger: The movie that set forth and perfectly embodied the Bond movie formula that would quickly become tiresomely formulaic. Beautiful women, great villains, Bond at his suave and debonair best, ***** Galore, and of course, the signature Bond sports car, the Aston Martin DB5.
Casino Royale: I was shocked by how good this movie was. In many ways it represents a return to the first two Bond movies. Craig is not as handsome as either Connery or Brosnan, but he does have a masculine physicality, ruthlessness, and emotional honesty that I find compelling.
Dr No: Not a great movie, but it is the movie that introduced Bond to the world. Jack Lord is my favorite Felix Leiter. I wish they had brought him back to reprise the role in subsequent movies.
Quantum of Solace: The movie has taken a lot of criticism, because it breaks the formula in several ways. For the first time we do not see the witty, charming, debonair Bond. It picks up right where Casino Royale concludes, with a Bond whose heart has been broken and who now lives for vengeance. The action pieces are first rate. Quantum of Solace reminds me of the Jason Bourne movies. I wonder who would win in a fight to the death: Jason Bourne or James Bond? Bourne has the skills and training, but Bond is a tad more ruthless and cunning. Tough call.
Goldeneye: The best of the Pierce Brosnan flicks. At a couple of points it moves into slapstick and silliness (Bond's romp through Moscow in the tank is just too, too over-the-top), and Bond and Natalya Simonova generate no erotic sparks whatsoever; but so many elements in the movie do work.
Thunderball: Thunderball should have been better than it was, but it was undermined by a weak ending. I know that the underwater fight scene is famous, but I just find it boring. Domino is so beautiful, perhaps the most beautiful of the Bond women, and Fiona Volpe is deliciously wicked.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service: George Lazenby never had a chance. Who could have successfully followed Sean Connery? But on its own terms, the movie is really well-done. Unlike many Bond women, Tracy Di Vincenzo holds her own against Bond. She is a woman capable of melting and capturing Bond's heart. Lazenby's Bond, though, is just too nice. And casting Telly Savalas as Blofeld? What a blunder!
Least favorite Bond movies:
A View to a Kill: awful, awful, awful. Even if life on the planet depended upon it, James Bond would never bed May Day, never. Even Bond, especially Bond, has standards.
Moonraker: Absolute silliness. I know that the indestructible Jaws is a favorite villain for many viewers, but he's just too over-the-top for me.
All other Roger Moore flicks: I dislike some less than others (e.g., The Spy Who Loved Me, For Your Eyes Only); but I really do hate what happened to the franchise during the Roger Moore days. Instead of the real Bond, we got cheese.
Die Another Day: The movie begins promisingly. Bond is captured by the North Koreans and extensively tortured. But then the movie returns to formula and quickly goes down hill. Invisible car? Please. With this movie the Bond franchise reaches cinematic bankruptcy. The formula that worked so well in Goldfinger is no longer capable of producing an exciting, enjoyable movie. But I love the allusion to Honey Ryder, with the shot of Jinx emerging from the ocean. Halle Berry is beautiful, and she fills out a bikini perfectly.
Diamonds Are Forever: Does anything work in this movie? It's all tongue-in-cheek. Why did Sean Connery come back for this?
You Only Live Twice: Who ever came up with the idea of trying to make Bond look Japanese? And why all this nonsense about training Bond to be a ninja? And why cast Donald Pleasance as Blofeld? Why? why? why?
The World is Not Enough: Denise Richards. Need one say more? This is an enjoyable movie in many ways, but Richards' presence simply ruins it.
My secret pleasure:
Never Say Never Again: It was great seeing Connery, even an older Connery, back in the role. And I have long adored Kim Basinger. I know that true Bond aficionados hate this movie and consider it anti-canonical; but I have always enjoyed it, despite its weak ending (they ran out of money).
Cheers,
Kimel, Al Kimel
From Russia with Love: A well-balanced thriller that does not depend on gadgets. Great villains, beautiful Tatiana Romanov, and a great male/male relationship between Bond and Ali Kerim Bey. Satisfying in every respect.
Goldfinger: The movie that set forth and perfectly embodied the Bond movie formula that would quickly become tiresomely formulaic. Beautiful women, great villains, Bond at his suave and debonair best, ***** Galore, and of course, the signature Bond sports car, the Aston Martin DB5.
Casino Royale: I was shocked by how good this movie was. In many ways it represents a return to the first two Bond movies. Craig is not as handsome as either Connery or Brosnan, but he does have a masculine physicality, ruthlessness, and emotional honesty that I find compelling.
Dr No: Not a great movie, but it is the movie that introduced Bond to the world. Jack Lord is my favorite Felix Leiter. I wish they had brought him back to reprise the role in subsequent movies.
Quantum of Solace: The movie has taken a lot of criticism, because it breaks the formula in several ways. For the first time we do not see the witty, charming, debonair Bond. It picks up right where Casino Royale concludes, with a Bond whose heart has been broken and who now lives for vengeance. The action pieces are first rate. Quantum of Solace reminds me of the Jason Bourne movies. I wonder who would win in a fight to the death: Jason Bourne or James Bond? Bourne has the skills and training, but Bond is a tad more ruthless and cunning. Tough call.
Goldeneye: The best of the Pierce Brosnan flicks. At a couple of points it moves into slapstick and silliness (Bond's romp through Moscow in the tank is just too, too over-the-top), and Bond and Natalya Simonova generate no erotic sparks whatsoever; but so many elements in the movie do work.
Thunderball: Thunderball should have been better than it was, but it was undermined by a weak ending. I know that the underwater fight scene is famous, but I just find it boring. Domino is so beautiful, perhaps the most beautiful of the Bond women, and Fiona Volpe is deliciously wicked.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service: George Lazenby never had a chance. Who could have successfully followed Sean Connery? But on its own terms, the movie is really well-done. Unlike many Bond women, Tracy Di Vincenzo holds her own against Bond. She is a woman capable of melting and capturing Bond's heart. Lazenby's Bond, though, is just too nice. And casting Telly Savalas as Blofeld? What a blunder!
Least favorite Bond movies:
A View to a Kill: awful, awful, awful. Even if life on the planet depended upon it, James Bond would never bed May Day, never. Even Bond, especially Bond, has standards.
Moonraker: Absolute silliness. I know that the indestructible Jaws is a favorite villain for many viewers, but he's just too over-the-top for me.
All other Roger Moore flicks: I dislike some less than others (e.g., The Spy Who Loved Me, For Your Eyes Only); but I really do hate what happened to the franchise during the Roger Moore days. Instead of the real Bond, we got cheese.
Die Another Day: The movie begins promisingly. Bond is captured by the North Koreans and extensively tortured. But then the movie returns to formula and quickly goes down hill. Invisible car? Please. With this movie the Bond franchise reaches cinematic bankruptcy. The formula that worked so well in Goldfinger is no longer capable of producing an exciting, enjoyable movie. But I love the allusion to Honey Ryder, with the shot of Jinx emerging from the ocean. Halle Berry is beautiful, and she fills out a bikini perfectly.
Diamonds Are Forever: Does anything work in this movie? It's all tongue-in-cheek. Why did Sean Connery come back for this?
You Only Live Twice: Who ever came up with the idea of trying to make Bond look Japanese? And why all this nonsense about training Bond to be a ninja? And why cast Donald Pleasance as Blofeld? Why? why? why?
The World is Not Enough: Denise Richards. Need one say more? This is an enjoyable movie in many ways, but Richards' presence simply ruins it.
My secret pleasure:
Never Say Never Again: It was great seeing Connery, even an older Connery, back in the role. And I have long adored Kim Basinger. I know that true Bond aficionados hate this movie and consider it anti-canonical; but I have always enjoyed it, despite its weak ending (they ran out of money).
Cheers,
Kimel, Al Kimel
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