Ernest Rister
Senior HTF Member
- Joined
- Oct 26, 2001
- Messages
- 4,148
THE JAMES BOND OUVRE...
PICK THE WORST THREE AND THE BEST THREE
WORST BOND
3. License to Kill (Yes, I know, it is a leaner meaner Bond without too many silly gadgets, and Dalton never got his due and thank goodness, there is no Giant Villain's Lair that looks like a discarded idea for the Legion of Doom -- however, despite the film's reported budget, this is the cheapest-looking Bond film since #1 below, with tired direction and no creative spark at all. Bond had been eclipsed by modern action films, like Raiders and Die Hard and Lethal Weapon, and nobody bothered to tell the creaking Bond crew. This was pretty much the same ol', same ol', filmed with enormous lethargy. Even the props look tired. Quick! Can you sing the theme song by Aretha Franklin? Can you remember the tune?)
2. From Russia With Love (Naah, just kidding. Just put it here to watch Bond purists lose their minds. This was a hard choice, but I'm going name A View To a Kill my second runner up. Not quite as horrible as I remembered it being, Walken is great, and the flooded mine sequence was actually genuinely exciting. Sort of lacks imagination - I mean, how come everytime Bond goes to a large city, he winds up fighting on top of that city's largest and most famous landmark? Bond is in Paris, he fights on top of the Eiffel Tower. He is in San Fran, he fights on top of the Golden Gate Bridge. He comes to Hollywood, he fights on top of Oprah....I keed! I keed!)
1. Live and Let Die (Maybe the strangest Bond film of all time. Seriously, it's like watching one of those 7-up commercials from the 80's mixed together with The Serpent and the Rainbow and The French Connection..."Voodoo! Crisp and clean and no caffeine! HA HA HA HA!" -- Best thing about it is Yaphet Kotto's performance and the Paul McCartney title track.)
BEST BOND
3. Thunderball (Hey, look at this! A Bond film that actually has a pretty good story. There's also a confidence about this movie that I like. Like every Bond film, it has an oddball scene or two (like Bond's near-death at the hands of a spine-strecthing exercise machine), but overall, the film is aces.)
2. Goldfinger (Bond goofing around in America. How many classic moments does this film contain? From the giant laser to Odd Job's demise to a girl covered in gold, this movie is an icon. Loads of fun, too. "Man talk." *swat* Enough said.)
1. Die Another Day (Isn't the Madonna song just super! Okay, you got me. I'm just trying to annoy the Bond purists again. I'm gonna be boring and say From Russia With Love as #1. Villainous henchmen don't come any cooler than Robert Shaw, and like Thunderball, the best asset of the film is the story. The actual climax isn't the most suprising thing in the world, but the suspense scenes throughout (including the final showdown between Shaw and Connery) make up for the lack of, say, giant hovercraft with flame throwers going over cliffs, or expensive cars racing around inside a giant ice castle while a space heat beam tries to melt them...also the love interest is actually interesting for once in this film. Well done, 007)
CURRENT TALLY (excluding the votes of those who picked ties or more than three titles)
WORST:
Casino Royale (1)
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1)
Diamonds Are Forever (4)
Live and Let Die (2)
The Man with the Golden Gun (2)
Moonraker (6)
Never Say Never Again (2)
For Your Eyes Only (1)
Octopussy (2)
A View to a Kill (7)
The Living Daylights (1)
License to Kill (3)
The World is not Enough (1)
Die Another Day (3)
BEST:
Dr. No (1)
From Russia With Love (7)
Goldfinger (9)
Thunderball (2)
You Only Live Twice (1)
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (2)
The Spy Who Loved Me (5)
For Your Eyes Only (1)
Octopussy (1)
The Living Daylights (1)
GoldenEye (3)
Tomorrow Never Dies (1)
PICK THE WORST THREE AND THE BEST THREE
WORST BOND
3. License to Kill (Yes, I know, it is a leaner meaner Bond without too many silly gadgets, and Dalton never got his due and thank goodness, there is no Giant Villain's Lair that looks like a discarded idea for the Legion of Doom -- however, despite the film's reported budget, this is the cheapest-looking Bond film since #1 below, with tired direction and no creative spark at all. Bond had been eclipsed by modern action films, like Raiders and Die Hard and Lethal Weapon, and nobody bothered to tell the creaking Bond crew. This was pretty much the same ol', same ol', filmed with enormous lethargy. Even the props look tired. Quick! Can you sing the theme song by Aretha Franklin? Can you remember the tune?)
2. From Russia With Love (Naah, just kidding. Just put it here to watch Bond purists lose their minds. This was a hard choice, but I'm going name A View To a Kill my second runner up. Not quite as horrible as I remembered it being, Walken is great, and the flooded mine sequence was actually genuinely exciting. Sort of lacks imagination - I mean, how come everytime Bond goes to a large city, he winds up fighting on top of that city's largest and most famous landmark? Bond is in Paris, he fights on top of the Eiffel Tower. He is in San Fran, he fights on top of the Golden Gate Bridge. He comes to Hollywood, he fights on top of Oprah....I keed! I keed!)
1. Live and Let Die (Maybe the strangest Bond film of all time. Seriously, it's like watching one of those 7-up commercials from the 80's mixed together with The Serpent and the Rainbow and The French Connection..."Voodoo! Crisp and clean and no caffeine! HA HA HA HA!" -- Best thing about it is Yaphet Kotto's performance and the Paul McCartney title track.)
BEST BOND
3. Thunderball (Hey, look at this! A Bond film that actually has a pretty good story. There's also a confidence about this movie that I like. Like every Bond film, it has an oddball scene or two (like Bond's near-death at the hands of a spine-strecthing exercise machine), but overall, the film is aces.)
2. Goldfinger (Bond goofing around in America. How many classic moments does this film contain? From the giant laser to Odd Job's demise to a girl covered in gold, this movie is an icon. Loads of fun, too. "Man talk." *swat* Enough said.)
1. Die Another Day (Isn't the Madonna song just super! Okay, you got me. I'm just trying to annoy the Bond purists again. I'm gonna be boring and say From Russia With Love as #1. Villainous henchmen don't come any cooler than Robert Shaw, and like Thunderball, the best asset of the film is the story. The actual climax isn't the most suprising thing in the world, but the suspense scenes throughout (including the final showdown between Shaw and Connery) make up for the lack of, say, giant hovercraft with flame throwers going over cliffs, or expensive cars racing around inside a giant ice castle while a space heat beam tries to melt them...also the love interest is actually interesting for once in this film. Well done, 007)
CURRENT TALLY (excluding the votes of those who picked ties or more than three titles)
WORST:
Casino Royale (1)
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1)
Diamonds Are Forever (4)
Live and Let Die (2)
The Man with the Golden Gun (2)
Moonraker (6)
Never Say Never Again (2)
For Your Eyes Only (1)
Octopussy (2)
A View to a Kill (7)
The Living Daylights (1)
License to Kill (3)
The World is not Enough (1)
Die Another Day (3)
BEST:
Dr. No (1)
From Russia With Love (7)
Goldfinger (9)
Thunderball (2)
You Only Live Twice (1)
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (2)
The Spy Who Loved Me (5)
For Your Eyes Only (1)
Octopussy (1)
The Living Daylights (1)
GoldenEye (3)
Tomorrow Never Dies (1)