The Man with the Golden Gun was my least favorite Bond film until Tomorrow Never Dies, Die Another Day, and Quantum of Solace came along. Golden Gun is probably my favorite of the four as a film I can watch entirely and not just bits and pieces. I really like the end island part of TMWTGG. That's when it becomes an exotic Bond movie with the hot Miss Goodnight in the bikini. The score is of course great.
Ta. It occurred to me that the 'come come mister bond, admit it' scene over dinner with Scara and Bond should be steeped in Bond's moral outrage and bile and this smooth villain's insinuation, at least the way it's written, but it's not really there because we haven't seen him kill anyone we particularly care about, not even poor Maud. I suppose this does make for a jollier film but it lacks bite.
Actually the story does imply that Bond may well have wanted revenge for Scaramanga's killing of Bill Fairbanks AKA 002. However after Bond looks into the evidence that Scaramanga was the assassin at the beginning of the movie it is never alluded to again. So I can understand why some viewers might not pick up on it, unless they have watched it a few times and concentrated hard at analyzing the plot.
This was my second Bond film overall, so I still have fond childhood memories of it. Not sure why Barry hated his work so much, but I adore the score. The problem with the film is that Broccoli and Saltzman tried too hard to capitalize on the Martial Arts film boom of the early 70's not to mention facing a reduced budget and so the script suffered as a result. Christopher Lee is given little or nothing to do with one of the series best villains.
The one liners are some of the finest in the series. TMWTGG is also the last of the classic films produced by the Broccoli/Saltzman team. "I may be small but I never forget!"
I agree with everything you said. I will never understand why people seem to put down that film so much. It seems people often consider the first two Moore films to be mediocre and that TSWLM was his first great film. Well what LALD and TMWTGG have in common is that they both have relatively smaller budgets than the later Moore films do... at least it seems that way to me. Both films rely far less on special effects and there is a lack of the huge villain lairs.
IMO TMWTGG pulled off this smaller budget feel far better than LALD. There is plenty of excitement and great action sequences whereas I feel LALD is a bit stale.
Both are fine films though, I'll just never get why TMWTGG gets so much flack either I suppose. Perhaps it's the damned awful sound effect in the car barrel roll scene.
IMO TMWTGG pulled off this smaller budget feel far better than LALD. There is plenty of excitement and great action sequences whereas I feel LALD is a bit stale.
I reach, brother. I like my Bond either dark or bizarre. TMWTGG is nicely bizarre IMO. :v
TMWTGG is a bit like TND in that it is quite a good movie until the bit which is the meant to be the most exciting - the confrontation with the vilian at the end when it becomes overlong and boring.
Whats wrong with it:
Poor song.
Goodnight written as a blonde airhead rather than a compotent member of MI6.
The return of J W Pepper.
Hamilton insistance that Christopher Lee play Scaramanga as jocial rather than menacing.
Final duel between Bond and Scaramanga being boring rather than tense and exciting. When you compare this to some of the previous fights such as Bond Vs, Oddjob, Bond Vs. Grant.
Finale fight with Nic Nac. Cringeworthy or what. I wanted to crawl under my seat in the cinema.
Hip driving off and leaving Bond.
A fantastic stunt ruined by the whoop whistle music.
Goodnight hiding in the wardrobe while Bond shaggs Andrea. Bit pervy.
Having said all the above there is also a lot right with it:
The early scenes between M and Bond. I love the 'Who would pay a million dollars to have me killed' exchange.
The Seida scene and fight. Totally unnecessary as MI6 already have one of Scaramanga's bullitts but pure Bond.
The Lazar scene.
I actually like the flying car. Its nice to see the vilian having some cool gadgets as well as Bond.
The idea of Bond and Scaramanga being flipsides of the same coin. (Pity the script wasn't well written enough to properly explore this idea, and RM isn't a good enough actor to carry it in the echange with Scaramanga. With a better script and in the hands of Dalton or Craig this would have been great.)
Locations are excellent and exotic - at least for the 1970s.
The Q branch scene. Its nice to see the technicians in the background working on a gadet that might be of some use ( the camera) rather than one put in just for laughts - the flying tea tray etc.
Played less for laughts this could have been a great Bond.
BIG TAMWrexham, North Wales, UK.Posts: 773MI6 Agent
Yep Bodie, right again. TMWTGG is a pretty good Bond film for the first half or so. It all goes awry after the kung fu fight. If they'd ditched the childlike comedy & kept the story a simple manhunt between Bond & Scaramanga this would have been great. As it is it's a middling affair with very good bits & very bad bits.
Yep Bodie, right again. TMWTGG is a pretty good Bond film for the first half or so. It all goes awry after the kung fu fight. If they'd ditched the childlike comedy & kept the story a simple manhunt between Bond & Scaramanga this would have been great. As it is it's a middling affair with very good bits & very bad bits.
I've always thought that TMWTGG is one the few films where it had a good idea, and i wouldn't mind a reboot of it. I think if they stretched out the whole assassin for hirer, Bond-equal thing it could seriously work for another film as these ideas aren't expressed in any other Bond film. What do you guys think?
“The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. "
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
I think if they stretched out the whole assassin for hirer, Bond-equal thing it could seriously work for another film as these ideas aren't expressed in any other Bond film. What do you guys think?
Totally agree. I love that idea so much that I like TMWTGG even if much of it isn't that great. Doing it over WELL would be fantastic.
BIG TAMWrexham, North Wales, UK.Posts: 773MI6 Agent
When Javier Bardem was first mooted as the baddie in SKYFALL I'd hoped he might be cast as some prolific assassin for hire, but it now looks as though it's going in a different direction.
I agree that the idea of a pure Bond Vs. Assassin plot is a good one. And the simplicity is what would make it great. No need for the chief nemesis to have some grander scheme plot up his sleeve. Perhaps Quantum could hire a million dollar hitman in the next one. THE DAY OF THE JACKAL meets 007? Brilliant!
When Javier Bardem was first mooted as the baddie in SKYFALL I'd hoped he might be cast as some prolific assassin for hire, but it now looks as though it's going in a different direction.
I agree that the idea of a pure Bond Vs. Assassin plot is a good one. And the simplicity is what would make it great. No need for the chief nemesis to have some grander scheme plot up his sleeve. Perhaps Quantum could hire a million dollar hitman in the next one. THE DAY OF THE JACKAL meets 007? Brilliant!
Comments
Actually the story does imply that Bond may well have wanted revenge for Scaramanga's killing of Bill Fairbanks AKA 002. However after Bond looks into the evidence that Scaramanga was the assassin at the beginning of the movie it is never alluded to again. So I can understand why some viewers might not pick up on it, unless they have watched it a few times and concentrated hard at analyzing the plot.
The one liners are some of the finest in the series. TMWTGG is also the last of the classic films produced by the Broccoli/Saltzman team.
"I may be small but I never forget!"
You are right. I saw it again last night and they did seem angry. Moneypenny especially which seemed odd.
IMO TMWTGG pulled off this smaller budget feel far better than LALD. There is plenty of excitement and great action sequences whereas I feel LALD is a bit stale.
Both are fine films though, I'll just never get why TMWTGG gets so much flack either I suppose. Perhaps it's the damned awful sound effect in the car barrel roll scene.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Whats wrong with it:
Poor song.
Goodnight written as a blonde airhead rather than a compotent member of MI6.
The return of J W Pepper.
Hamilton insistance that Christopher Lee play Scaramanga as jocial rather than menacing.
Final duel between Bond and Scaramanga being boring rather than tense and exciting. When you compare this to some of the previous fights such as Bond Vs, Oddjob, Bond Vs. Grant.
Finale fight with Nic Nac. Cringeworthy or what. I wanted to crawl under my seat in the cinema.
Hip driving off and leaving Bond.
A fantastic stunt ruined by the whoop whistle music.
Goodnight hiding in the wardrobe while Bond shaggs Andrea. Bit pervy.
Having said all the above there is also a lot right with it:
The early scenes between M and Bond. I love the 'Who would pay a million dollars to have me killed' exchange.
The Seida scene and fight. Totally unnecessary as MI6 already have one of Scaramanga's bullitts but pure Bond.
The Lazar scene.
I actually like the flying car. Its nice to see the vilian having some cool gadgets as well as Bond.
The idea of Bond and Scaramanga being flipsides of the same coin. (Pity the script wasn't well written enough to properly explore this idea, and RM isn't a good enough actor to carry it in the echange with Scaramanga. With a better script and in the hands of Dalton or Craig this would have been great.)
Locations are excellent and exotic - at least for the 1970s.
The Q branch scene. Its nice to see the technicians in the background working on a gadet that might be of some use ( the camera) rather than one put in just for laughts - the flying tea tray etc.
Played less for laughts this could have been a great Bond.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
I've always thought that TMWTGG is one the few films where it had a good idea, and i wouldn't mind a reboot of it. I think if they stretched out the whole assassin for hirer, Bond-equal thing it could seriously work for another film as these ideas aren't expressed in any other Bond film. What do you guys think?
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
I agree that the idea of a pure Bond Vs. Assassin plot is a good one. And the simplicity is what would make it great. No need for the chief nemesis to have some grander scheme plot up his sleeve. Perhaps Quantum could hire a million dollar hitman in the next one. THE DAY OF THE JACKAL meets 007? Brilliant!