Current Events > I just watched a James Bond movie for the first time

(+) Yeah! (+)

I saw on FB that actor Shane Rimmer passed away today. He had parts in 4 Bond films.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shane_Rimmer
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I didn't know about Johnny Cash and Thunderball. That's wild.

Surrender really should have been TND's theme. It sounds like one of the great old school themes and the lyrics are more appropriate for the movie. Sheryl Crow's theme fits for Paris Carver, but she's a relatively small part of the movie.
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Tag

I watched I think through Goldfinger last year and didnt continue on past that. I always want to, but I can never keep the momentum and the desire to continue watching those style movies for too long at a time.
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AlCalavicci posted...

Tag

I watched I think through Goldfinger last year and didnt continue on past that. I always want to, but I can never keep the momentum and the desire to continue watching those style movies for too long at a time.

I just figure that if I don't watch them all now, I'm never gonna watch any more of them lol.
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While I love Cash his song just doesnt fit a Bond movie imo.
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Time for my first non-Connery Bond movie.
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WafflehouseJK posted...

First of all, I'd like to make a slight revision to my list so far: After further thought, I've realized that I like Goldfinger and Thunderball pretty much equally, and have decided to have the list reflect this by putting them both as tied for their positions.

As for You Only Live Twice... Ehhhhhhhhhhhh........

5. Doctor No.
4. You Only Live Twice
3. From Russia With Love
1. (Tied) Goldfinger
1. (Tied) Thunderball

It was ok. It did have some cool moments, but overall, it just didn't really hook me very much. Plus the racial stereotypes were through the roof in this one, even for a Bond film, and they were there from beginning to end, making it kinda hard to overlook.

Also; I get why he had Yellowface on; it makes sense plot wise, he's a spy, he needs to look like the people he's infiltrating, sure. I get it. It's no Breakfast At Tiffany's. But man, it still made me uncomfortable, lol.

I did like the general evil plot with the whole trying to start a war between Russia and the US by fucking with their spacecraft, that was a cool idea. It suffered though from not having a central, seen villain from beginning to end like we did with the past 2 films. Yes, we got the Blofeld reveal towards the end, and I did enjoy that, but the other like, 75% of the film we were left with just random henchmen essentially as the antagonists, and it made it kinda dull for me.

Really, what kept this from being my least favorite so far was the last 20-ish minutes. The whole ending once Bond's inside the crater was pretty damn cool and I enjoyed it a lot. The rest of the movie though was pretty lackluster to me.

Next up, looks like we're getting a break from Connery and getting some George Lazenby in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. It'll be my first non-Connery Bond film, so I'm intrigued.

Its a Volcano not a crater.
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Give us your theme rankings as well!
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Just so we're caught up on the music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-IDfoZuQLM" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ye8KvYKn9-0" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lRuXckWC_8" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scTDEj0yYUQ" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D1nK7q2i8I" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ia6-5gC5ArM" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hs8uYxTJ530" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfjL9uX2leg" data-time="
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spikethedevil posted...

WafflehouseJK posted...

First of all, I'd like to make a slight revision to my list so far: After further thought, I've realized that I like Goldfinger and Thunderball pretty much equally, and have decided to have the list reflect this by putting them both as tied for their positions.

As for You Only Live Twice... Ehhhhhhhhhhhh........

5. Doctor No.
4. You Only Live Twice
3. From Russia With Love
1. (Tied) Goldfinger
1. (Tied) Thunderball

It was ok. It did have some cool moments, but overall, it just didn't really hook me very much. Plus the racial stereotypes were through the roof in this one, even for a Bond film, and they were there from beginning to end, making it kinda hard to overlook.

Also; I get why he had Yellowface on; it makes sense plot wise, he's a spy, he needs to look like the people he's infiltrating, sure. I get it. It's no Breakfast At Tiffany's. But man, it still made me uncomfortable, lol.

I did like the general evil plot with the whole trying to start a war between Russia and the US by fucking with their spacecraft, that was a cool idea. It suffered though from not having a central, seen villain from beginning to end like we did with the past 2 films. Yes, we got the Blofeld reveal towards the end, and I did enjoy that, but the other like, 75% of the film we were left with just random henchmen essentially as the antagonists, and it made it kinda dull for me.

Really, what kept this from being my least favorite so far was the last 20-ish minutes. The whole ending once Bond's inside the crater was pretty damn cool and I enjoyed it a lot. The rest of the movie though was pretty lackluster to me.

Next up, looks like we're getting a break from Connery and getting some George Lazenby in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. It'll be my first non-Connery Bond film, so I'm intrigued.

Its a Volcano not a crater.

Maybe so, but they call it a crater within the film multiple times.
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Also:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volcanic_crater
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Gonna be totally real, and this may be an unpopular opinion, but I REALLY liked Lazenby Bond. He was just a chill bro living his best Bond life.

6. Doctor No.
5. You Only Live Twice
4. From Russia With Love
3. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
1. (Tied) Goldfinger
1. (Tied) Thunderball

I really enjoyed this one. I thought Lazenby was a solid Bond. He was much more chill and laid back, and I really liked that. Didn't feel as stiff as Connery. He was a little rough around the edges, some of his one liners could have used some work Although, "He's branched off!" might be one of my favorites yet., and there were a couple kinda awkward moments here and there, but he definitely could have grown into the role with time. Shame he only did the one, he was a nice breath of fresh air after 5 Connery's.

I really liked the plot of the film and everything with Tracy was great, the evil plan, and Blofeld being more directly involved the whole way through was cool, Telly Savalas was a much better Blofeld than Donald Pleasance IMO.

Also, good fucking god that ending was great. First time a Bond film's actually made me feel some emotion. I was expecting her to die, but I didn't expect to actually care about her dying. Also being the like, only time we've seen Bond break his persona and show true, genuine emotion and loss was powerful as fuck, and Lazenby did great with this.

There's a couple things that knock it down under Goldfinger and Thunderball though; as I said, Lazenby did have a couple awkward moments as it was clear he was still getting into the role. When he shined, he really shined, but he definitely had some fumbles too. The skiing scenes went on way too long IMO, and honestly, the film as a whole had some moments that really dragged. This was the longest Bond film yet.... and it really didn't need to be. Plus there was way too long without Tracy involved, would have loved to see more of her through the entire film, she really added a lot.

Also, I swear this whole movie was a giant ad for the winter Olympics. Seems like they managed to shoehorn every fucking winter sport ever into this movie some how.

Overall though, this was a very solid Bond film, and I genuinely enjoyed Lazenby in the role. I like chill, laid back Bond way more than up-tight snobby Bond. I'd have a beer with Lazenby Bond; IDK if I could say the same for Connery Bond.
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Lazenby Bond for me was a bottom 3 film. I'm honestly relieved that you really liked Thunderball, it's one of my favorites and that's a very unpopular opinion that i've battled with for years.
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I've always enjoyed OHMSS, and over time it's become my number 1 Bond film. It's so great, and Lazenby isn't anywhere near as bad as some would have you believe (especially when you consider this was his first time acting).

I've seen some people criticise the ending, saying it needed a proper actor to pull it off. I think that's actually the one scene where Lazenby absolutely nails it. It kills me every time.
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MabusIncarnate posted...

Lazenby Bond for me was a bottom 3 film. I'm honestly relieved that you really liked Thunderball, it's one of my favorites and that's a very unpopular opinion that i've battled with for years.

I don't get the hate for either film tbh, but the further I go the more it looks like I'm destined to have controversial Bond opinions, lol.

BigStevieCool posted...

I've always enjoyed OHMSS, and over time it's become my number 1 Bond film. It's so great, and Lazenby isn't anywhere near as bad as some would have you believe (especially when you consider this was his first time acting).

I've seen some people criticise the ending, saying it needed a proper actor to pull it off. I think that's actually the one scene where Lazenby absolutely nails it. It kills me every time.

Yeah, Lazenby really wasn't that bad tbh, and I really enjoyed his different take on the character. Was a lot more chill and I really liked that aspect.

And I agree, I thought he nailed the ending. The end scene was fucking great.
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I should have also mentioned the music, because it's probably John Barry's finest hour. When Bond suits up for the ski chase and then the theme kicks in, absolutely thrilling.
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As far as theme's go, I think Goldfinger is my favorite so far, followed by Thunderball. The rest honestly kind of blend together to me for the most part so far. You Only Live Twice was... fine, I guess.

I already know that You Know My Name is and will be my overall favorite though even though I haven't seen the film yet. I'm a big Chris Cornell fan, so I've already heard it just listening through his stuff.
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It is easy to hear the truth watching "Spectre", whereas it is a typical Bond movie it just has relevant topics.
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ehhwhatever posted...

It is easy to hear the truth watching "Spectre", whereas it is a typical Bond movie it just has relevant topics.

I'm.... not sure what you're talking about tbh.

Although I have a very long way to go before I get to Spectre.
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I believe Diamonds Are Forever is up next, and I believe that's back to Connery again?

Gonna be real; I like Connery, I do, but I'm also kinda ready to move on to the next semi-permanent Bond. Lazenby was a good break, but I'm not sure how hype I am to return to Connery. Liking Lazenby as much as I did despite his flaws make me realize that I'm very much ready for a different style of Bond than Connery's.
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WafflehouseJK posted...

I believe Diamonds Are Forever is up next, and I believe that's back to Connery again?

Gonna be real; I like Connery, I do, but I'm also kinda ready to move on to the next semi-permanent Bond. Lazenby was a good break, but I'm not sure how hype I am to return to Connery. Liking Lazenby as much as I did despite his flaws make me realize that I'm very much ready for a different style of Bond than Connery's.

I think I liked Roger Moore the most overall, and if I recall correctly, he was in most of them. The Dalton films were quality watches also. I think you are about to get into the core of it and that's the best part as far as i'm concerned.
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WafflehouseJK posted...

I believe Diamonds Are Forever is up next, and I believe that's back to Connery again?

The last of the Connery films as well. The next 7 after Diamonds will be Roger Moore.

Diamonds Are Forever is another favorite of mine, but it is another criticized film. I just happen to like the ones I watched most growing up more than others.
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I rank Diamonds pretty low, but it's an interesting mix up of a film. Connery back on board in an attempt to 'right the ship' and recapture the feel of Goldfinger, yet it ends up being a prototype Moore film.
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Diamonds is like, ugh.
Idk if it's what feels like a lack of budget. A lame ending. The in general yuk of 70s Vegas. What felt like Connery just cashing a check in his acting in it. The main Bond girl is just irritating too.
I just don't like it.

I do like the gay henchmen couple though. They're probably scandalous these days but I thought they were fun. Their end is soooo ridiculous it's fun.

You Only Live Twice is my favorite.
The asian surgery i.e. Connery in a toupe was never cringe to me, even now. It's just stupid. I mean it makes sense on paper but all that and it's just a toupe.
And has anyone thought about how the tech they're using in 1967 is now current again. We've gone back to capsules and we now have rockets that sprout legs and land back down on a landing platform thanks to that Tesla guy.
It's crazy. It went from a current/futuristic film in the 60s-70s to a dated movie in the 80s-00s and now to current in the 2010s.
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It does feel very cheap, even compared to the relatively low budget Dr No. Pretty sure a good chunk of the budget went on Connery's salary.
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DAF is a guilty pleasure. It was a childhood favorite and the appeal of it carried over to adulthood. It's so campy and silly, but I still like it.

I still wish we would have gotten a more serious Lazenby starring version that was actually connected to the previous film though.
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On the guilty pleasure front, I can't deny that there's some witty dialogue in DAF that cracks me up. Along with Wint and Kidd, it's about all its worth watching for.

Actually, the pre-titles is also quite good, and seems like they might actually follow up on the previous film (without overtly referencing it). "Welcome to hell, Blofield." And the elevator fight is a brief glimmer of brilliance, too.
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Lazenby was wooden as fuck and Was dubbed over for the Hillary Bray parts, Thankfully the supporting cast saved it.
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He was at times, but it was his first real acting gig and he was good for most of the movie. I can't see any other Bond actor doing the final scene of OHMSS justice like he did. I certainly don't see Connery doing that scene as good.
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Yea he was good in the final scene but was unfortunatelt too little too late for him.
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Don't think I'll get to a Bond movie tonight. Bump though.
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WafflehouseJK posted...

Don't think I'll get to a Bond movie tonight. Bump though.

Need a better effort out of ya bub, we are eagerly awaiting. This is about on par with that ongoing thread when that guy watched every MCU film from the beginning for the first time.
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MabusIncarnate posted...

I'm honestly relieved that you really liked Thunderball, it's one of my favorites and that's a very unpopular opinion that i've battled with for years.

What strange people don't like Thunderball? I've always thought it was one of the more popular classic Bond movies. I'd put it with Goldfinger & From Russia with Love as my top 3.

Also, @WafflehouseJK how did you not ever see a Bond movie on TV? It seems like there's always been one on some channel like every day for 30+ years.

I'll admit to not being a big Craig fan. I've only seen Casino Royale, and no matter how much I love Eva Green, making it so serious wasn't my cup of tea.

I might have to try to watch the few I haven't seen now-- I missed the Lazenby one, the last with Brosnan, & the others with Craig.

MabusIncarnate posted...

WafflehouseJK posted...

Don't think I'll get to a Bond movie tonight. Bump though.

Need a better effort out of ya bub, we are eagerly awaiting. This is about on par with that ongoing thread when that guy watched every MCU film from the beginning for the first time.

lol, I'll see if I can make time to watch Diamonds Are Forever tomorrow.

Looks like a bunch of them have moved back from Netflix to Hulu, but I think I still have some form of access to all of them, so we should be good.
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pfh1001 posted...

MabusIncarnate posted...

I'm honestly relieved that you really liked Thunderball, it's one of my favorites and that's a very unpopular opinion that i've battled with for years.

What strange people don't like Thunderball? I've always thought it was one of the more popular classic Bond movies. I'd put it with Goldfinger & From Russia with Love as my top 3.

Also, WafflehouseJK how did you not ever see a Bond movie on TV? It seems like there's always been one on some channel like every day for 30+ years.

I'll admit to not being a big Craig fan. I've only seen Casino Royale, and no matter how much I love Eva Green, making it so serious wasn't my cup of tea.

I might have to try to watch the few I haven't seen now-- I missed the Lazenby one, the last with Brosnan, & the others with Craig.

I genuinely don't think I've ever seen even ads for Bond films playing on TV. They just never really popped up for me growing up, and for a long time once I was older I just had no interest in going out of my way to watch them.

Them being all on streaming services I have now though, it's worth filling the gap in my film watching, plus I genuinely am enjoying them so far.
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That's odd. I've seen almost all of them on TV personally. I did go see a couple of the Brosnan movies in the theater years ago.

Turner used to marathon them a lot.

I'm curious to see how you like the Moore movies-- a lot of people aren't very big on him as Bond.

Moore is literally one of the most popular Bonds lol.
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spikethedevil posted...

Moore is literally one of the most popular Bonds lol.

Not as popular as Connery or Craig. And a lot of people think the Moore movies are cheesy and too over the top.

It seems like all the Bonds have their lovers and their haters.

I'll honestly probably like Moore from what I've heard of him, but we'll see.
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I like Roger Moore as Bond. The Man With the Golden Gun, and Moonraker (another disliked cheesy film) are my favorites of his. Some time in the future I'm going to binge watch all the movies again since I own them all. I need to rewatch the other Moore films. It's been a while.
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Time for Diamonds Are Forever, the last (main?) Connery film, and the first 70's Bond film.
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Nice, i'll check back tomorrow on this, i'll be in bed before you finish it tonight.
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Special shout-out to kid who got got ripped off at the water balloon game at the circus, and bro scientist man who gave Bond his spare radiation shield. Best supporting characters yet tbh. I want spin-off films for them each.

Well, that one was real fucking goofy.

7. Doctor No.
6. You Only Live Twice
5. Diamonds Are Forever
4. From Russia With Love
3. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
1. (Tied) Goldfinger
1. (Tied) Thunderball

This one was really hard for me to rank tbh. It had some parts I really, really liked, but other parts I really fucking hated. I ended up putting it over Doctor No. and YOLT mainly because those films honestly kinda bored me for decent chunks of them, but this one definitely had something constantly going on, for better or worse.

I honestly really did like a lot of the interactions with random supporting characters. Ripped-off kid, bro scientist, Bambi and Thumper, etc. They were goofy and kinda unnecessary, but added to the world. The gay assassin couple were cool too, even if they too were kinda pointless and cheesy as well.

Every fucking bad guy was an idiot in this movie though, and that really got on my nerves. Letting Bond just have free reign of the control room to fuck with the tape, locking him somewhere with a very clearly obvious escape route multiple different times, flipping over a fuck ton of cars needlessly and stupidly trying to chase him, etc.

Oh yeah, that reminds me, the chase sequences were real dumb in this one too. I kinda liked the moon buggy chase at first, but it went on too long, and then the police chase right after was real dumb and cheap looking.

This one was a real mixed bag. Sometimes the cheesiness worked, and sometimes it really, REALLY didn't. Even the opening was hit or miss. I liked him quickly going through and knocking out baddies to find Blofeld, but once he actually got there, the confrontation and "death scene" was really silly looking.

Going further off that, I think this film really suffered from inconsistent casting, and I don't just mean Bond. The whole Blofeld having duplicates to look and act like him was a really cool idea, but it didn't have as much impact because he's looked and sounded different every single fucking film so far. Even if it'd just been the same guy from the last movie that would have helped a lot. Plus, even within the context of the film, the other duplicate was killed off so quick anyways it didn't really fucking matter, it was solely used as the "plot twist" that Blofeld hadn't actually been killed at the beginning, but otherwise it felt like a real wasted cool idea.

IDK, this one was weird. It was a fun ride, but it also really pissed me off at times, lol.

That's the end of Connery though. Weird note to end on, but still. We're off to the Moore era now.
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Well, there is the one Connery reboot/remake from the 80s too. I'd recommend watching it, if for no other reason than young, smoking hot Kim Basinger.

And speaking of which, who's your favorite Bond girl so far?

Domino, for sure. She's one of the few that's been actually fucking useful.

Tracy's up there too.
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bump
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For me, the Sean Connery ones are definitive Bond. Don't care for the other Bonds.
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As much as I still like it being campy and stupid, DAF really should have been more serious and acknowledged OHMSS. I thought for the longest it should have been a mix between the book version and the book version of You Only Live Twice, which came after OHMSS.

Spoilers for everything I just mentioned.


Bond is depressed after Tracy's death and has almost completely broken down to the point M is almost going to fire him. He decides to give Bond one last chance with a relatively easier kind of mission involving diamond smuggling involving the American mafia. Bond does his stuff, meets smuggler Tiffany Case, who also has been through traumatic events in her past, and finds out the diamonds are being smuggled to Las Vegas and that recluse multi-millionaire Willard White is behind everything. (The Howard Hughes-esque character had a lot of potential really.) Bonds scales the hotel to get into WW penthouse and finds Blofeld and then the usual stuff happens. Eventually Bond kills Blofeld and he and Tiffany both learn to love again.

The only real major change is the tone. You could still have most of what's already in it. Idk, maybe I'm wrong.
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Yeah, I would have preferred that TBH. OHMSS was much more serious in comparison, and going from that ending to the sheer goofiness of Diamond Are Forever was... Jarring, to say the least.
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As others have said, the John Barry music in most of the movies is great. I love how they aren't afraid to use music as major part of the movies unlike most modern movies that simply use it as plain sounding background music.
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