I don't want to formally rank Royale yet - I don't think it's right to compare it to movies I've seen many times - so here's my probable top 5 without it:
1. Goldfinger 2. Russia 3. Thunderball 4. Dr. No 5. Licence to Kill
The last pick is the iffiest and the one that is most likely to change. Not a big OHMSS fan - don't like Lazenby, and I think it's rather disjointed...
I agree w/ the post who said best Bond film after the 1st 3, but I could also see why some would say best film ever. I was very impressed and hope they can keep it up for the next film. Loved the fact that we didn't know at the end who the bad guys were, reminded me of the Connery days when Spectre and its leader were introduced slowly over the 1st 4 to 5 films. Craig, Green and cast were all excellent and Craig is easily my fav Bond since Connery.
16-year-old-son and I watched this for the first time last night and were both "wowed!" His remark was "that was great!" And we are both usually pretty reserved in our judgment (I'm trying to raise him with a critical eye. That is, get him to think about why he likes/dislikes a film).
There was an awful lot to like. Craig was terrific....an "edgy" Bond. The visuals of the locales were sensational...better than most travelogues strive to be. The action sequences were awesome!
One question: who is Chris Cornell who sings the song played over the opening/closing credits?
I am definitely looking forward to upcoming chapters of the Bond series.
I don't want to rank Casino Royale yet either for the same reason, it's just too soon. Your top five is close to mine; I'm not sure what the order would be, but Thunderball has always been a favorite, obviously Goldfinger....some great choices there. And as for OHMSS, we'll have to agree to disagree
I'm really worried about the BD version, which is the one I care about, will we have to wait for the Korean version as well? That one doesn't seem to be too near on the horizon.
Well, all this talk about the edited R1 dvd is a bit confusing as people on that other linked Bond forum keep talking about the "theatrical release" (without mentioning which country they are referring to) and comparing it to obvious bootleg copies of the film they had prior to its release.
I have no doubt there is a longer more violent version than the US release, but as far as I can gather from all this discussion, the US release was cut for a PG-13 and the US theatrical release and the US dvd release are the same 'cut' print. If so, that needs to be clarified - the Region 1 DVD is NOT an edited version of the US theatrical release - they are the same cut print. European versions and bootlegs apparently show that there is a longer version out there before the MPAA 'censored' it for the US PG-13 release.
Just watched it last night. My wife and I kept planning to see it in the theater but never made it. So this was our first viewing.
Man, it was good! The script managed to break with tradition yet hit all the points that are important to the character. It followed the book more closely than most Bond films (although that book is MOSTLY card playing) and kept surprising us. It also looks like no other Bond film (which considering the director made Goldeneye, is even more impressive).
The disc is great. I've only watched teh 'Becoming Bond' doc. Well made but they completely gloss over the year spent negotiating with Pierce Brosnan.
I would support him on this, and I'm a long-time fan of the series. My previous favorite was OHMSS, but I think I liked Casino Royale better. All around just a fantastic movie!