Pros and Cons: The Man with the Golden Gun

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  • CoolHandBondCoolHandBond Mactan IslandPosts: 7,372MI6 Agent
    So onto TMWTGG the latest in my viewings of the Bond movies most of which I have not seen for quite some time this was seen last night for the first time in at least 15 years it was never one of my favourites.

    Pros:
    Titles
    "Outraged tailors etc"
    Fight in belly dancer's room
    Far East locations
    Dojo sequence
    Boat chase
    Car chase
    Scaramanga - M

    Cons:
    PTS - no Bond
    Music
    Hip's nieces fight
    Slide whistle ruining the climax of the car chase which was good up to then
    Funhouse ending - a repeat of the already boring PTS
    Nick Nack fight
    Mary Goodnight - Nick Nack
    Set designs

    Observations:
    JW Pepper returns in an improbable situation. Apart from the fight in the belly dancer's room Bond looks languid - he doesn't run very well (see escaping the dojo).

    Conclusion:
    I was quite pleasantly surprised in seeing this again in that it wasn't the total disaster I remembered it to be. There is still a lot wrong with it - Nick Nack is an absurd henchman looking like a Beano character and Mary Goodnight is exasperating in her stupidity.
    The music is diabolical - John Barry's nadir of his career - I sometimes wonder if he actually ever saw the movie. The sets are cheap especially the funhouse that looks terrible - it could have been very spooky and terrifying. On the plus side the locations are beautiful - Scaramanga is well played by Sir Christopher - there are some good funny lines and the first half plays out very well before becoming as flat as a mattress. I can take the silliness of the car-plane but not the fact that two schoolgirls can take out a whole dojo of kung fu experts (which they are plainly not). It's a far lesser film than LALD and looks rushed in production and it's very close call in whether it ranks higher than DAF.

    CHB will be return reviewing TSWLM soon :D
    Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
  • Silhouette ManSilhouette Man The last refuge of a scoundrelPosts: 8,865MI6 Agent
    Higgins wrote:
    IcePak wrote:

    Hitting Andrea
    - ..... hitting women is not okay.

    Got to think what they are writing in "The Modern Handbook for Spies in the age of PC'ness":

    "23: Hitting Women is not ok"

    ?:) ?:) ?:)

    What rankles with me is the false impression of Bond (and by extension the original literary Bond) that this scene gives off. Bond did not hit women in the Fleming Bond novels; it was the Connery Bond films that introduced this (unwelcome) aspect to the character of James Bond.
    "The tough man of the world. The Secret Agent. The man who was only a silhouette." - Ian Fleming, Moonraker (1955).
  • welshboy78welshboy78 Posts: 10,326MI6 Agent
    Good point there! Flemings Bond was more of a spanker in bed :D. In fact I think he just fantasied about that from memory???
    Instagram - bondclothes007
  • HatThrowingHenchmanHatThrowingHenchman Russia With LovePosts: 1,834MI6 Agent
    somehow reminded me of this:
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oo0d1zTAFKA
    "You see Mr.Bond, you can't kill my dreams...but my dreams can kill you.Time to face destiny" - "Time to face gravity"
  • HardyboyHardyboy Posts: 5,912Chief of Staff
    Pros: The closing credits. Cons: Everything that came before the closing credits.

    OK, I exaggerate. But this is still my least favorite among the official films.
    Vox clamantis in deserto
  • Silhouette ManSilhouette Man The last refuge of a scoundrelPosts: 8,865MI6 Agent
    somehow reminded me of this:
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oo0d1zTAFKA

    Yes, that one never gets old! :)) -{
    "The tough man of the world. The Secret Agent. The man who was only a silhouette." - Ian Fleming, Moonraker (1955).
  • Virgil37Virgil37 Posts: 1,212MI6 Agent
    Pros:
    - Great, innovative premise. World's most famous assassin sends a bullet to Bond.
    - The PTS is so different from everything before or after.
    -Christopher Lee.
    -Bond and Scaramanga's duel (the actual one and the verbal one at the dinner table. Moore is magnificent, so is Lee).
    -Maud Adams.
    -Roger Moore when he does not try to be Sean Connery.
    - Herve Villechaize, memorable henchman.

    Cons:
    - It aged badly. While many of the 60s gadgets are still cool, 70s gadgets (the flying car) are plain silly.
    - The karate scenes. Oportunistic and out of place.
    - Sheriff JW Pepper. I hate that guy.
    - Car jump across the river. Gratuitous, a circus stunt.
    - Britt Ekland. She could have had a more prominent, serious role. She's actually the comic relief.

    It's an enjoyable film with some weak and some ridiculous moments, but hey, it's the 70s. However, they were wise to go in a different direction for TSWLM. They couldn't go on following trends (Blaxploitation genre, Bruce Lee movies). They had to go beyond, and in the PTS of TSWLM it was clear that Bond was not a follower anymore.
  • GrindelwaldGrindelwald Posts: 1,342MI6 Agent
    ...until MR when they jumped on the sci fi band wagon , then the Miami Vice wagon for LTK :)) :v
  • Silhouette ManSilhouette Man The last refuge of a scoundrelPosts: 8,865MI6 Agent
    ...until MR when they jumped on the sci fi band wagon , then the Miami Vice wagon for LTK :)) :v

    Not forgetting a dash of Indiana Jones in Octopussy. :D
    "The tough man of the world. The Secret Agent. The man who was only a silhouette." - Ian Fleming, Moonraker (1955).
  • Virgil37Virgil37 Posts: 1,212MI6 Agent
    ...until MR when they jumped on the sci fi band wagon , then the Miami Vice wagon for LTK :)) :v

    You are right, for those two they jumped into those bangwagons. But my point was , just after TMWTGG, they reinvented Bond not jumping into any bandwagon. Wise, because all was left in 77 was Bond in Studio 54 or Bond forming a punk band...Once established again, of course MR is Star Wars Bond, and LTK is Miami Vice Bond.
  • Virgil37Virgil37 Posts: 1,212MI6 Agent
    ...until MR when they jumped on the sci fi band wagon , then the Miami Vice wagon for LTK :)) :v

    Not forgetting a dash of Indiana Jones in Octopussy. :D

    In that case, I'd say Indiana Jones has a dash of Bond in Temple of Doom. Bond went to India in 83, Jones in 84 ;) And of course in the Last Crusade we realise that Jones is the son of Bond.
  • Matt SMatt S Oh Cult Voodoo ShopPosts: 6,616MI6 Agent
    Virgil37 wrote:
    ...until MR when they jumped on the sci fi band wagon , then the Miami Vice wagon for LTK :)) :v

    You are right, for those two they jumped into those bangwagons. But my point was , just after TMWTGG, they reinvented Bond not jumping into any bandwagon. Wise, because all was left in 77 was Bond in Studio 54 or Bond forming a punk band...Once established again, of course MR is Star Wars Bond, and LTK is Miami Vice Bond.

    TSWLM did play off the popularity of the film Jaws just a bit with the character Jaws, especially when they have him wrestle with a shark!
    Visit my blog, Bond Suits
  • Virgil37Virgil37 Posts: 1,212MI6 Agent
    Matt S wrote:
    Virgil37 wrote:
    ...until MR when they jumped on the sci fi band wagon , then the Miami Vice wagon for LTK :)) :v

    You are right, for those two they jumped into those bangwagons. But my point was , just after TMWTGG, they reinvented Bond not jumping into any bandwagon. Wise, because all was left in 77 was Bond in Studio 54 or Bond forming a punk band...Once established again, of course MR is Star Wars Bond, and LTK is Miami Vice Bond.

    TSWLM did play off the popularity of the film Jaws just a bit with the character Jaws, especially when they have him wrestle with a shark!

    TB was released ten years before Jaws, so Jaws might have played off the popularity of TB.
  • Matt SMatt S Oh Cult Voodoo ShopPosts: 6,616MI6 Agent
    Virgil37 wrote:
    Matt S wrote:
    Virgil37 wrote:

    You are right, for those two they jumped into those bangwagons. But my point was , just after TMWTGG, they reinvented Bond not jumping into any bandwagon. Wise, because all was left in 77 was Bond in Studio 54 or Bond forming a punk band...Once established again, of course MR is Star Wars Bond, and LTK is Miami Vice Bond.

    TSWLM did play off the popularity of the film Jaws just a bit with the character Jaws, especially when they have him wrestle with a shark!

    TB was released ten years before Jaws, so Jaws might have played off the popularity of TB.

    Would you care to explain? I don't see how my response deserved a sarcastic response in return.
    Visit my blog, Bond Suits
  • Virgil37Virgil37 Posts: 1,212MI6 Agent
    Matt S wrote:
    Virgil37 wrote:
    Matt S wrote:

    TSWLM did play off the popularity of the film Jaws just a bit with the character Jaws, especially when they have him wrestle with a shark!

    TB was released ten years before Jaws, so Jaws might have played off the popularity of TB.

    Would you care to explain? I don't see how my response deserved a sarcastic response in return.

    I wasn't being sarcastic. My point is, if we are going to be thorough, let's be thorough. Sharks were there in Bond movies 10 years before Jaws, so no, TSWLM was not jumping in the Jaws bandwagon other than using the henchman name.
  • Matt SMatt S Oh Cult Voodoo ShopPosts: 6,616MI6 Agent
    Virgil37 wrote:
    Matt S wrote:
    Virgil37 wrote:

    TB was released ten years before Jaws, so Jaws might have played off the popularity of TB.

    Would you care to explain? I don't see how my response deserved a sarcastic response in return.

    I wasn't being sarcastic. My point is, if we are going to be thorough, let's be thorough. Sharks were there in Bond movies 10 years before Jaws, so no, TSWLM was not jumping in the Jaws bandwagon other than using the henchman name.

    Now you are being sarcastic. Naming a significant character after a popular film made only two years earlier is more than just a nod. It's not jumping on the bandwagon, but it's certainly using the popularity of the film Jaws to its benefit.
    Visit my blog, Bond Suits
  • chrisisallchrisisall Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
    Matt S wrote:
    Naming a significant character after a popular film made only two years earlier is more than just a nod. It's not jumping on the bandwagon, but it's certainly using the popularity of the film Jaws to its benefit.
    Agreed.
    Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
    #1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
  • broadshoulderbroadshoulder Acton, London, UKPosts: 1,363MI6 Agent
    Virgil37 wrote:
    ...until MR when they jumped on the sci fi band wagon , then the Miami Vice wagon for LTK :)) :v

    Not forgetting a dash of Indiana Jones in Octopussy. :D

    In that case, I'd say Indiana Jones has a dash of Bond in Temple of Doom. Bond went to India in 83, Jones in 84 ;) And of course in the Last Crusade we realise that Jones is the son of Bond.

    I'd say Octopussy owes more to George McDonald Fraser then Indiana Jones
    1. For Your Eyes Only 2. The Living Daylights 3 From Russia with Love 4. Casino Royale 5. OHMSS 6. Skyfall
  • Virgil37Virgil37 Posts: 1,212MI6 Agent
    Matt S wrote:
    Virgil37 wrote:
    Matt S wrote:

    Would you care to explain? I don't see how my response deserved a sarcastic response in return.

    I wasn't being sarcastic. My point is, if we are going to be thorough, let's be thorough. Sharks were there in Bond movies 10 years before Jaws, so no, TSWLM was not jumping in the Jaws bandwagon other than using the henchman name.

    Now you are being sarcastic. Naming a significant character after a popular film made only two years earlier is more than just a nod. It's not jumping on the bandwagon, but it's certainly using the popularity of the film Jaws to its benefit.

    Stop saying I'm being sarcastic, when I'm just giving my opinion. I repeat, TB has sharks. Was Jaws using the popularity of TB? No, because it's a completely different film. Someone who goes to see Jaws is not expecting anything remotely similar to a Bond movie, and viceversa. TSWLM benefited from the spectacular locations, amazing PTS, etc. Yes, Jaws was a great henchman, but I bet not a single dollar of profit came from a viewer expecting to see a shark as in Jaws. It was a tongue in cheek nod to the movie.
  • heartbroken_mr_draxheartbroken_mr_drax New Zealand Posts: 2,073MI6 Agent
    Pros:

    - Humour
    - Christopher Lee and the way he plays the corrupt Bond, who arrogantly teases him for being still for Queen and Country
    - The lunch scene between Lee/Moore
    - Locations
    - The Golden Gun itself
    - The soundtrack during the fun-house scenes
    - Not overly long

    Cons:

    - Treatment of women
    - No Ken Adam
    - Title song
    - Whistle during car-flip
    1. TWINE 2. FYEO 3. MR 4. TLD 5. TSWLM 6. OHMSS 7. DN 8. OP 9. AVTAK 10. TMWTGG 11. QoS 12. GE 13. CR 14. TB 15. FRWL 16. TND 17. LTK 18. GF 19. SF 20. LaLD 21. YOLT 22. NTTD 23. DAD 24. DAF. 25. SP

    "Better make that two."
  • FiremassFiremass AlaskaPosts: 1,910MI6 Agent
    Cons:
    - Treatment of women

    I like seeing Roger Moore's Bond slap women around. If it was Connery, I might be offended. :))
    My current 10 favorite:

    1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
  • heartbroken_mr_draxheartbroken_mr_drax New Zealand Posts: 2,073MI6 Agent
    I guess my comment sounded over sensitive lol, I can take it in the context of an old-school film - but the fact that Brit Ekland is an idiot detracts more than being funny (even though it is worth a chuckle every now and then).
    1. TWINE 2. FYEO 3. MR 4. TLD 5. TSWLM 6. OHMSS 7. DN 8. OP 9. AVTAK 10. TMWTGG 11. QoS 12. GE 13. CR 14. TB 15. FRWL 16. TND 17. LTK 18. GF 19. SF 20. LaLD 21. YOLT 22. NTTD 23. DAD 24. DAF. 25. SP

    "Better make that two."
  • chrisisallchrisisall Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
    I guess my comment sounded over sensitive lol, I can take it in the context of an old-school film - but the fact that Brit Ekland is an idiot detracts more than being funny (even though it is worth a chuckle every now and then).
    That's cool. It's probably a generational thing.
    ie: you had to be there...
    :))
    Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
    #1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
  • ThunderpussyThunderpussy Behind you !Posts: 63,792MI6 Agent
    She comes across as an average female to me ! :p :))
    "I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
  • HigginsHiggins GermanyPosts: 16,619MI6 Agent
    Virgil37 wrote:
    - Sheriff JW Pepper. I hate that guy.

    Hey, no reason to be sarcastic :D
    President of the 'Misty Eyes Club'.

    Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
  • Agent PurpleAgent Purple Posts: 857MI6 Agent
    edited October 2015
    Pros:

    -Solid directing by Hamilton.
    -Lee rocks as Scaramanga, easily one of my fave Bond villains atm.
    -Eckland has good chemistry with Moore.
    -Although she's not one of the toughest Bond girls, Goodnight is an interesting Bond girl and, since she also works with MI6, seems to understand well what Bond's life is like.
    -Nick Nack probably wouldn't make my Top 10 Bond henchmen, but he's good enough.
    -The story is easy to follow, and feels solid overall.
    -Moore gives a solid performance.
    -I like the car stunt's slide whistle.
    -Maud Adams does a good job.

    Cons:

    -J.W. Pepper feels unnecessary in this film. I like humor in Bond movies, but Moore brings enough by himself, so he really doesn't need a backup comedian.
    -The scene in the martial arts school (while it doesn't bother me all that much) frels silly. Why, instead of just torturing and/or interrogating Bond, do they take him to a martial arts school? It makes no sense to me, but I can live with that.

    Overall, I love TMWTGG, and give it a 9/10.
    "Hostile takeovers. Shall we?"
    New 2020 ranking (for now DAF and FYEO keep their previous placements)
    1. TLD 2. TND 3. GF 4. TSWLM 5. TWINE 6. OHMSS 7. LtK 8. TMWTGG 9. L&LD 10. YOLT 11. DAD 12. QoS 13. DN 14. GE 15. SF 16. OP 17. MR 18. AVTAK 19. TB 20. FRWL 21. CR 22. FYEO 23. DAF (SP to be included later)
    Bond actors to be re-ranked later
  • broadshoulderbroadshoulder Acton, London, UKPosts: 1,363MI6 Agent
    Pros:

    -Solid directing by Hamilton.
    -Lee rocks as Scaramanga, easily one of my fave Bond villains atm.
    -Eckland has good chemistry with Moore.
    -Although she's not one of the toughest Bond girls, Goodnight is an interesting Bond girl and, since she also works with MI6, seems to understand well what Bond's life is like.
    -Nick Nack probably wouldn't make my Top 10 Bond henchmen, but he's good enough.
    -The story is easy to follow, and feels solid overall.
    -Moore gives a solid performance.
    -I like the car stunt's slide whistle.
    -Maud Adamas does a good job.

    Cons:

    -J.W. Pepper feels unnecessary in this film. I like humor in Bond movies, but Moore brings enough by himself, so he really doesn't need a backup comedian.
    -The scene in the martial arts school (while it doesn't bother me all that much) frels silly. Why, instead of just torturing and/or interrogating Bond, do they take him to a martial arts school? It makes no sense to me, but I can live with that.

    Overall, I love TMWTGG, and give it a 9/10.

    Is this the first time you've seen this one?
    1. For Your Eyes Only 2. The Living Daylights 3 From Russia with Love 4. Casino Royale 5. OHMSS 6. Skyfall
  • Agent PurpleAgent Purple Posts: 857MI6 Agent
    2nd time, broadshoulder.
    "Hostile takeovers. Shall we?"
    New 2020 ranking (for now DAF and FYEO keep their previous placements)
    1. TLD 2. TND 3. GF 4. TSWLM 5. TWINE 6. OHMSS 7. LtK 8. TMWTGG 9. L&LD 10. YOLT 11. DAD 12. QoS 13. DN 14. GE 15. SF 16. OP 17. MR 18. AVTAK 19. TB 20. FRWL 21. CR 22. FYEO 23. DAF (SP to be included later)
    Bond actors to be re-ranked later
  • heartbroken_mr_draxheartbroken_mr_drax New Zealand Posts: 2,073MI6 Agent
    ^ most seem to agree about Scaramanga, really helps the films' cause. He's my favourite villain overall too.
    1. TWINE 2. FYEO 3. MR 4. TLD 5. TSWLM 6. OHMSS 7. DN 8. OP 9. AVTAK 10. TMWTGG 11. QoS 12. GE 13. CR 14. TB 15. FRWL 16. TND 17. LTK 18. GF 19. SF 20. LaLD 21. YOLT 22. NTTD 23. DAD 24. DAF. 25. SP

    "Better make that two."
  • Bondage007Bondage007 AustraliaPosts: 371MI6 Agent
    ^ Yep definitely an unconventional opinion on TMWTGG
    2019 Bondathon...in progress (6) FRWL (7) GE (8) FYEO (9) TND (10) MR (11) GF (12) LALD (13) DAF (14) LTK (15) TMWTGG (16) TB (17) TSWLM (18) DAD (19) AVTAK (20) YOLT (21) QOS (22) SF (23) TWINE (24) SP
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