I liked his first three quite a lot but then came "Moonraker" which is the worst Bond movie ever and I got pretty sick of him after that. Had quite a hard time watching his last ones. They're not bad but Moore still left a bad taste in my mouth.
Never been a fan of Moore but I hold a respect for his work on Bond. I must agree that his movies worked on the 70's and 80's... He helped the franchise survive for a long time and without him maybe Bond would've just faded away. I found TSWLM quite entertaining -{
"Being dead doesn't mean one still can't be helpful…"
I didn't grow up in the 70's or 80's, but Roger Moore was James Bond for me. Something about his look, and his debonair charm. Even if it wasn't a whole lot like the character from the books, it still worked. And if The Spy Who Loved Me and For Your Eyes Only proved anything, it was that Roger Moore was truly a jack-of-all-trades as James Bond. He was funny for sure, but he could also be serious, cold, and ruthless when he had to be.
I'm of the opinion that Timothy Dalton didn't work for this reason. He played up the serious angle, which was refreshing for a lot of fans, but never had many opportunities to give the audience a good chuckle (maybe this was the fault of the writers?). Do feel free to correct me if I'm wrong though. Even Daniel Craig has the ability to make the audience smile or laugh, and some would argue that he's just as serious as Dalton was. So overall, while I think its important to stick to the roots of the Fleming character, I think that giving James Bond a certain sense of humour is still very important. This is why I like Roger Moore as James Bond.
"The secret agent. The man who was only a silhouette..." -- Ian Fleming, Moonraker
1) The Spy Who Loved Me 2) On Her Majesty's Secret Service 3) GoldenEye 4) Casino Royale 5) Goldfinger
I didn't grow up in the 70's or 80's, but Roger Moore was James Bond for me. Something about his look, and his debonair charm. Even if it wasn't a whole lot like the character from the books, it still worked. And if The Spy Who Loved Me and For Your Eyes Only proved anything, it was that Roger Moore was truly a jack-of-all-trades as James Bond. He was funny for sure, but he could also be serious, cold, and ruthless when he had to be.
You are so right. It's great to read a post that acknowledges that Moore was truly a jack-of-all-trades. {[] (The scene in TSWLM in which Bond killed Sandor was IMO the greatest example of ruthlessness in the entire Bond series.)
I think that giving James Bond a certain sense of humour is still very important. This is why I like Roger Moore as James Bond.
I'm with you there. {[]
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
Moore certainly had personality and was his own Bond rather than impersonating his predecessors, but he was never convincing in the more serious moments and some of his films may as well have been Austin Powers as they were so silly.
I think his first film Live And Let Die is a fantastic film and his best work. I also think TSWLM is a classic Bond film and AVTAK is somewhat underrated. In this film, although Moore looks far too old for the part, he does have good chemistry with both Patrick McNee(have I spelt that right?) and the great Christopher Walken. Moore also came across one of the series most iconic henchmen in Jaws. But by and large, his films are not among the best in the series by any stretch of the imagination.
“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to a better understanding of ourselves.” - Carl Jung
... some of his films may as well have been Austin Powers as they were so silly.
I'd say more along the lines of In Like Flint rather than Austin Powers. But yet, I get what you mean. And they were quite silly.
And it's true, Moore still pulls off the role surprisingly well in A View To A Kill with consideration to his age at the time (57 I believe?). Even with the aid of stunt doubles, it's still a physically demanding role.
"The secret agent. The man who was only a silhouette..." -- Ian Fleming, Moonraker
1) The Spy Who Loved Me 2) On Her Majesty's Secret Service 3) GoldenEye 4) Casino Royale 5) Goldfinger
Moore certainly had personality and was his own Bond rather than impersonating his predecessors, but he was never convincing in the more serious moments and some of his films may as well have been Austin Powers as they were so silly.
I think his first film Live And Let Die is a fantastic film and his best work. I also think TSWLM is a classic Bond film and AVTAK is somewhat underrated. In this film, although Moore looks far too old for the part, he does have good chemistry with both Patrick McNee(have I spelt that right?) and the great Christopher Walken. Moore also came across one of the series most iconic henchmen in Jaws. But by and large, his films are not among the best in the series by any stretch of the imagination.
Well put.
Although "Moonraker" ruined Jaws and whatever iconic value he ever had.
The Roger Moore films were my favourite on a whole (with a couple of exceptions). Connery was my favourite bond actor, but Moore did my favourite films (and is my 2nd favourite bond actor). Also very underrated. And there's no doubt that he saved the bond franchise. Now onto the films:
LALD - Amazing film, love it, great villains, great bond girl, and all in all just great entertainment! A lot of it is nostalgia for me as it was my first bond, but I still love the film to this day and think it's great fun. Locations were cool. Baron Samedi is my favourite henchman, and Solitaire is my 2nd favourite bond girl (after Honey Rider). Great performance by Moore also. Cool, unique PTS.
TMWTGG - My 2nd least favourite Moore film, but there's still fun to be had. Villains were great, especially Christopher Lee, and there were some great moments and Scaramanga's island was cool. However the story let it down for me, didn't seem to go anywhere. Also, a perfectly good car stunt was ruined by the addition of a slide whistle. Why, just why did they add that in?!
TSWLM - A very good bond film. To be controversial though, I don't like the bond girl. Found her bland, and not greatly acted either IMO. Villain was average I thought. However, atlantis was great, and I also loved the egypt scenes. Jaws was also great in this one. Oh, and the PTS is probably the best of the series.
MR - Least favourite Moore film. I have no problems with it before they get into space - some great moments such as the centrifugal scene, the cable car scene, the fight with chang, and also the villain was great. Amazon location was also cool. However, the story is ridiculous, and the whole film goes tits up as soon as they reach space. James Bond in space simply doesn't work. PTS was good, but Jaws falling into the circus ruined it for me. Yeah that's another thing, Jaws is dreadful in this movie. Just cringeworthy comedy, and why did he have to fall in love?! Worst Moore film for me.
FYEO - Excellent film. The story is decent enough, and the locations were fantastic. I absolutely love the scene where bond is scaling the cliff to St. Cyrill's Monastery. Just a greatly done scene IMO. Bond girl was fantastic, villain was ok. Emile Locque made a great henchman. All in all a solid film.
OP - Another excellent film. I thought Kamal Khan made a fine villain. Didn't really care for Orlov though, found him too over the top. This film has excellent henchmen - who could not love the knife throwing twins? Story was good, and complicated for a bond. India was a great location, as was the circus in germany. Was cheesey, camp humour, but was really fun. Bond trying to dismantle a bomb wearing a clown suit? Gotta love it!
AVTAK - The most underrated bond movie of all time. AVTAK is my favourite bond film, and I suppose that after reading that, people will now disregard my entire opinions on all bond films what with AVTAK being at the top. Surely people think I'm just mad, but I just really, really enjoy watching AVTAK, and IMO, is that not the main thing that matters? Enjoying a film even though it has evident flaws? For me, the flaws such as Moore's age, and Stacey Sutton, are completely made up for with the best ever bond villain, the amazing golden gate bridge fight, the eiffel tower stunt, the city hall fire, the mine scene, and yes I liked the fire engine chase! On a whole a VERY fun and enjoyable film, with probably the best locations, and certainly the best villain, the twisted Max Zorin! Call me unfashionable if you must. AVTAK rules!!!
AVTAK - The most underrated bond movie of all time. AVTAK is my favourite bond film, and I suppose that after
reading that, people will now disregard my entire opinions on all bond films what with AVTAK being at the top. Surely people think I'm just mad, but I just really, really enjoy watching AVTAK, and IMO, is that not the main thing that matters? Enjoying a film even though it has evident flaws? For me, the flaws such as Moore's age, and Stacey Sutton, are completely made up for with the best ever bond villain, the amazing golden gate bridge fight, the eiffel tower stunt, the city hall fire, the mine scene, and yes I liked the fire engine chase! On a whole a VERY fun and enjoyable film, with probably the best locations, and certainly the best villain, the twisted Max Zorin! Call me unfashionable if you must. AVTAK rules!!!
I, as well, shared your view of A View To A Kill at one point. It was my favourite Bond film at a young age, and I can see why; great title song, great villain in Chris Walken, a thrilling conclusion (in addition to some other great scenes), and -- last but not certainly least -- Roger Moore as James Bond. Having re-visited it not too terribly long ago, my inner child was somewhat lost. I found it rushed; perhaps the most fast-paced movie of the entire series. And before, I never found Stacey Sutton particularily annoying. I also found myself sypathizing with Sir Roger Moore himself when he said that the scene of Max Zorin gunning down slews of people was "too violent" for a Bond movie.
But is it bad? Not really. A View To A Kill, much like The Man With The Golden Gun, is one of the most underrated Bond movies. Most people who spit venom all over it don't really know what they're talking about; take, for example, Siskel and Ebert. Essentially they were saying that Walken should be type-cast in "sensitive" roles (i.e. The Deer Hunter). I, on the other hand, found Max Zorin to be pure evil.
I would personally give A View To A Kill 3 out of 5 stars. It serves to entertain, and it succeeds. But it isn't without a hefty number of flaws.
"The secret agent. The man who was only a silhouette..." -- Ian Fleming, Moonraker
1) The Spy Who Loved Me 2) On Her Majesty's Secret Service 3) GoldenEye 4) Casino Royale 5) Goldfinger
The Roger Moore films were my favourite on a whole (with a couple of exceptions). Connery was my favourite bond actor, but Moore did my favourite films (and is my 2nd favourite bond actor). Also very underrated. And there's no doubt that he saved the bond franchise. Now onto the films:
LALD - Amazing film, love it, great villains, great bond girl, and all in all just great entertainment! A lot of it is nostalgia for me as it was my first bond, but I still love the film to this day and think it's great fun. Locations were cool. Baron Samedi is my favourite henchman, and Solitaire is my 2nd favourite bond girl (after Honey Rider). Great performance by Moore also. Cool, unique PTS.
TMWTGG - My 2nd least favourite Moore film, but there's still fun to be had. Villains were great, especially Christopher Lee, and there were some great moments and Scaramanga's island was cool. However the story let it down for me, didn't seem to go anywhere. Also, a perfectly good car stunt was ruined by the addition of a slide whistle. Why, just why did they add that in?!
TSWLM - A very good bond film. To be controversial though, I don't like the bond girl. Found her bland, and not greatly acted either IMO. Villain was average I thought. However, atlantis was great, and I also loved the egypt scenes. Jaws was also great in this one. Oh, and the PTS is probably the best of the series.
MR - Least favourite Moore film. I have no problems with it before they get into space - some great moments such as the centrifugal scene, the cable car scene, the fight with chang, and also the villain was great. Amazon location was also cool. However, the story is ridiculous, and the whole film goes tits up as soon as they reach space. James Bond in space simply doesn't work. PTS was good, but Jaws falling into the circus ruined it for me. Yeah that's another thing, Jaws is dreadful in this movie. Just cringeworthy comedy, and why did he have to fall in love?! Worst Moore film for me.
FYEO - Excellent film. The story is decent enough, and the locations were fantastic. I absolutely love the scene where bond is scaling the cliff to St. Cyrill's Monastery. Just a greatly done scene IMO. Bond girl was fantastic, villain was ok. Emile Locque made a great henchman. All in all a solid film.
OP - Another excellent film. I thought Kamal Khan made a fine villain. Didn't really care for Orlov though, found him too over the top. This film has excellent henchmen - who could not love the knife throwing twins? Story was good, and complicated for a bond. India was a great location, as was the circus in germany. Was cheesey, camp humour, but was really fun. Bond trying to dismantle a bomb wearing a clown suit? Gotta love it!
AVTAK - The most underrated bond movie of all time. AVTAK is my favourite bond film, and I suppose that after reading that, people will now disregard my entire opinions on all bond films what with AVTAK being at the top. Surely people think I'm just mad, but I just really, really enjoy watching AVTAK, and IMO, is that not the main thing that matters? Enjoying a film even though it has evident flaws? For me, the flaws such as Moore's age, and Stacey Sutton, are completely made up for with the best ever bond villain, the amazing golden gate bridge fight, the eiffel tower stunt, the city hall fire, the mine scene, and yes I liked the fire engine chase! On a whole a VERY fun and enjoyable film, with probably the best locations, and certainly the best villain, the twisted Max Zorin! Call me unfashionable if you must. AVTAK rules!!!
The Roger Moore films were my favourite on a whole (with a couple of exceptions). Connery was my favourite bond actor, but Moore did my favourite films (and is my 2nd favourite bond actor). Also very underrated. And there's no doubt that he saved the bond franchise. Now onto the films:
LALD - Amazing film, love it, great villains, great bond girl, and all in all just great entertainment! A lot of it is nostalgia for me as it was my first bond, but I still love the film to this day and think it's great fun. Locations were cool. Baron Samedi is my favourite henchman, and Solitaire is my 2nd favourite bond girl (after Honey Rider). Great performance by Moore also. Cool, unique PTS.
TMWTGG - My 2nd least favourite Moore film, but there's still fun to be had. Villains were great, especially Christopher Lee, and there were some great moments and Scaramanga's island was cool. However the story let it down for me, didn't seem to go anywhere. Also, a perfectly good car stunt was ruined by the addition of a slide whistle. Why, just why did they add that in?!
TSWLM - A very good bond film. To be controversial though, I don't like the bond girl. Found her bland, and not greatly acted either IMO. Villain was average I thought. However, atlantis was great, and I also loved the egypt scenes. Jaws was also great in this one. Oh, and the PTS is probably the best of the series.
MR - Least favourite Moore film. I have no problems with it before they get into space - some great moments such as the centrifugal scene, the cable car scene, the fight with chang, and also the villain was great. Amazon location was also cool. However, the story is ridiculous, and the whole film goes tits up as soon as they reach space. James Bond in space simply doesn't work. PTS was good, but Jaws falling into the circus ruined it for me. Yeah that's another thing, Jaws is dreadful in this movie. Just cringeworthy comedy, and why did he have to fall in love?! Worst Moore film for me.
FYEO - Excellent film. The story is decent enough, and the locations were fantastic. I absolutely love the scene where bond is scaling the cliff to St. Cyrill's Monastery. Just a greatly done scene IMO. Bond girl was fantastic, villain was ok. Emile Locque made a great henchman. All in all a solid film.
OP - Another excellent film. I thought Kamal Khan made a fine villain. Didn't really care for Orlov though, found him too over the top. This film has excellent henchmen - who could not love the knife throwing twins? Story was good, and complicated for a bond. India was a great location, as was the circus in germany. Was cheesey, camp humour, but was really fun. Bond trying to dismantle a bomb wearing a clown suit? Gotta love it!
AVTAK - The most underrated bond movie of all time. AVTAK is my favourite bond film, and I suppose that after reading that, people will now disregard my entire opinions on all bond films what with AVTAK being at the top. Surely people think I'm just mad, but I just really, really enjoy watching AVTAK, and IMO, is that not the main thing that matters? Enjoying a film even though it has evident flaws? For me, the flaws such as Moore's age, and Stacey Sutton, are completely made up for with the best ever bond villain, the amazing golden gate bridge fight, the eiffel tower stunt, the city hall fire, the mine scene, and yes I liked the fire engine chase! On a whole a VERY fun and enjoyable film, with probably the best locations, and certainly the best villain, the twisted Max Zorin! Call me unfashionable if you must. AVTAK rules!!!
I always thought "The Man with the Golden Gun" was a solid film. I didn't realize it had so many haters until I joined ajb.
I can't quite agree on "A View to a Kill". I didn't think it was too bad, Chris Walken is one of my favorite actors and I took comfort in the fact that I'm watching Moore's last movie. But it couldn't push itself into my TOP15 even if it tried.
LALD... I though that this film is Moore best and is definatley in my top 5 of the best Bond films.
TMWTGG... I liked this movie, and though it was light-hearted and fun, with a tone of action and seriousness.
TSWLM... Great film. Jaws is one of the best and unique Bond henchmen in the franchise.
MR... The beginning was terrific. I did think that the lasers were a bit far-fetched...
FYEO... I liked the darker Bond but I didn't quite wrap my head around the plot...
OP... I liked the humor in it but I needed someone to explain the plot to me a bit more...
AVTAK... I liked the plot very much. The villian was awsome and the blimp. The lack of gadgets was bad beacause I like to see the films with them in it, mainly Moores because he has always had gadgets with him. His age didn't really bother me.
"Oh look! Parachutes for the both of us! Whoops, not anymore!"
"You see Mr Bond. You can't kill my dreams. But my dreams can kill you!"
"Time to face destiny."
-Gaustav Graves in Die Another Day-
Moore was wonderful in The Saint series, but I cannot stand him as Bond. IMHO, he trivialized the part with his cartoonish "acting." I've never been able to sit through an entire Bond movie with Moore in it. I hate him. X-(
IMHO, he trivialized the part with his cartoonish "acting."
I don't think that "trivializing the role" had as much to do with Moore's acting skill as it had to do with the scripts provided. Keep in mind that Diamonds Are Forever was written as a "lighter" Bond adventure, and even with Sean Connery in the title role, it completely stank. Moore's Bond was definitely unlike Fleming's Bond in a lot of ways -- particularily with regard to humour -- but he made it work (being himself a very witty person) and continued the success of the franchise.
"The secret agent. The man who was only a silhouette..." -- Ian Fleming, Moonraker
1) The Spy Who Loved Me 2) On Her Majesty's Secret Service 3) GoldenEye 4) Casino Royale 5) Goldfinger
... Diamonds Are Forever was written as a "lighter" Bond adventure, and even with Sean Connery in the title role, it completely stank. ...
Amen to that! I keep hoping that title gets remade, especially now that Canada has a gigantic diamond mind. Bond, diamonds, hot Canadian babes, skiing :007)
Moore was wonderful in The Saint series, but I cannot stand him as Bond. IMHO, he trivialized the part with his cartoonish "acting." I've never been able to sit through an entire Bond movie with Moore in it. I hate him. X-(
Moore was always a bit hit and miss with me, and definitely got a bit long in the tooth before it was over. On the whole, I think he did a decent job as Bond and lent his own unique style to it. Probably my least favorite Bond, but that's not saying I didn't like it.
- LALD - A decent, but flawed start. To his credit, he immediately made the role his own and didn't rely on imitation. The story was a bit weak, but he was fine in it.
- TMWTGG - Good fun. An enjoyable picture overall. The campy-ness of the Moore era definitely settles in the forefront here, but it works well within the story. Without Christopher Lee, however, this one might have gone off the rails.
- TSWLM - Moore's best, in my opinion. Just the right mixture of elements that played to Moore's strengths as Bond
- MR - For all of its more obvious flaws, the first 3/4 of the film still manage to put together a decent film. Everything runs astray in the latter portion, and Moore's campy approach is in full swing, which doesn't necessarily help matters. Still, not his worst Bond picture, from my perspective.
- FYEO - I liked the attempt to root Bond back in the real world, but Moore never quite seemed comfortable with the more gritty approach. I liked the movie, but it was here that I began to see Moore's run coming to an end.
- OP - Things were definitely running thin with this one. It manages to be a watchable film still, but only just barely. Moore seems to just be acting-by-numbers here and the producer/writer teams don't really seem to know what they want to do with the series during this era. Really, Moore's stretch should have ended here, if not before.
- AVTAK - Really a complete mess. The worst of the Moore era. I can find redeemable qualities in almost any Bond film, but this movie, along with Die Another Day and Diamonds Are Forever, is just one that's hard to justify.
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Moore was always a bit hit and miss with me, and definitely got a bit long in the tooth before it was over. On the whole, I think he did a decent job as Bond and lent his own unique style to it. Probably my least favorite Bond, but that's not saying I didn't like it.
- LALD - A decent, but flawed start. To his credit, he immediately made the role his own and didn't rely on imitation. The story was a bit weak, but he was fine in it.
- TMWTGG - Good fun. An enjoyable picture overall. The campy-ness of the Moore era definitely settles in the forefront here, but it works well within the story. Without Christopher Lee, however, this one might have gone off the rails.
- TSWLM - Moore's best, in my opinion. Just the right mixture of elements that played to Moore's strengths as Bond
- MR - For all of its more obvious flaws, the first 3/4 of the film still manage to put together a decent film. Everything runs astray in the latter portion, and Moore's campy approach is in full swing, which doesn't necessarily help matters. Still, not his worst Bond picture, from my perspective.
- FYEO - I liked the attempt to root Bond back in the real world, but Moore never quite seemed comfortable with the more gritty approach. I liked the movie, but it was here that I began to see Moore's run coming to an end.
- OP - Things were definitely running thin with this one. It manages to be a watchable film still, but only just barely. Moore seems to just be acting-by-numbers here and the producer/writer teams don't really seem to know what they want to do with the series during this era. Really, Moore's stretch should have ended here, if not before.
- AVTAK - Really a complete mess. The worst of the Moore era. I can find redeemable qualities in almost any Bond film, but this movie, along with Die Another Day and Diamonds Are Forever, is just one that's hard to justify.
Welcome to AJB, Mortimer {[]
I'm pretty much with you all the way, though it looks like I enjoyed LALD more than you did...Moore was my least favourite Bond, but I still rewatch his stuff endlessly. Last weekend, my two sons (ages 12 and 14) had a friend sleep over, and we watched TMWTGG. Still a blast as far as I'm concerned B-)
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
I'm pretty much with you all the way, though it looks like I enjoyed LALD more than you did...Moore was my least favourite Bond, but I still rewatch his stuff endlessly. Last weekend, my two sons (ages 12 and 14) had a friend sleep over, and we watched TMWTGG. Still a blast as far as I'm concerned B-)
Thanks.
I actually liked LALD, just not as much as some of his other Bond movies. Moore made the transition between Bonds very easy to digest by eliminating comparisons between him and Connery. For me, at least. I liked LALD more when I first saw it. I think I've just become more critical of it as time goes on. Still enjoy it, though.
TMWTGG is just pure fun. It was one of my favorite ones growing up. I've come to like others more now, but I still really like that film.
I am not a huge fan but my favourite is For Your Eyes Only. It wouldn't make my top three list of Bond films but my favourite Moore film.
On the other hand The Man With the Golden Gun rates worst. Not just worst, but worst of all Bond films for some reason.
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Welcome to AJB, punman {[] That's the great thing about Bond---there's something for everyone. One man's trash is another man's treasure...
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
roger moore is the best he was better in fyeo and mn then tmwtgg and lald octopussy was good and he showed his age in avtak. but in all he is the best of all the bonds
“The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. "
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
Comments
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Roger Moore 1927-2017
I'm of the opinion that Timothy Dalton didn't work for this reason. He played up the serious angle, which was refreshing for a lot of fans, but never had many opportunities to give the audience a good chuckle (maybe this was the fault of the writers?). Do feel free to correct me if I'm wrong though. Even Daniel Craig has the ability to make the audience smile or laugh, and some would argue that he's just as serious as Dalton was. So overall, while I think its important to stick to the roots of the Fleming character, I think that giving James Bond a certain sense of humour is still very important. This is why I like Roger Moore as James Bond.
1) The Spy Who Loved Me 2) On Her Majesty's Secret Service 3) GoldenEye 4) Casino Royale 5) Goldfinger
I'm with you there. {[]
I think his first film Live And Let Die is a fantastic film and his best work. I also think TSWLM is a classic Bond film and AVTAK is somewhat underrated. In this film, although Moore looks far too old for the part, he does have good chemistry with both Patrick McNee(have I spelt that right?) and the great Christopher Walken. Moore also came across one of the series most iconic henchmen in Jaws. But by and large, his films are not among the best in the series by any stretch of the imagination.
I'd say more along the lines of In Like Flint rather than Austin Powers. But yet, I get what you mean. And they were quite silly.
And it's true, Moore still pulls off the role surprisingly well in A View To A Kill with consideration to his age at the time (57 I believe?). Even with the aid of stunt doubles, it's still a physically demanding role.
1) The Spy Who Loved Me 2) On Her Majesty's Secret Service 3) GoldenEye 4) Casino Royale 5) Goldfinger
Well put.
Although "Moonraker" ruined Jaws and whatever iconic value he ever had.
LALD - Amazing film, love it, great villains, great bond girl, and all in all just great entertainment! A lot of it is nostalgia for me as it was my first bond, but I still love the film to this day and think it's great fun. Locations were cool. Baron Samedi is my favourite henchman, and Solitaire is my 2nd favourite bond girl (after Honey Rider). Great performance by Moore also. Cool, unique PTS.
TMWTGG - My 2nd least favourite Moore film, but there's still fun to be had. Villains were great, especially Christopher Lee, and there were some great moments and Scaramanga's island was cool. However the story let it down for me, didn't seem to go anywhere. Also, a perfectly good car stunt was ruined by the addition of a slide whistle. Why, just why did they add that in?!
TSWLM - A very good bond film. To be controversial though, I don't like the bond girl. Found her bland, and not greatly acted either IMO. Villain was average I thought. However, atlantis was great, and I also loved the egypt scenes. Jaws was also great in this one. Oh, and the PTS is probably the best of the series.
MR - Least favourite Moore film. I have no problems with it before they get into space - some great moments such as the centrifugal scene, the cable car scene, the fight with chang, and also the villain was great. Amazon location was also cool. However, the story is ridiculous, and the whole film goes tits up as soon as they reach space. James Bond in space simply doesn't work. PTS was good, but Jaws falling into the circus ruined it for me. Yeah that's another thing, Jaws is dreadful in this movie. Just cringeworthy comedy, and why did he have to fall in love?! Worst Moore film for me.
FYEO - Excellent film. The story is decent enough, and the locations were fantastic. I absolutely love the scene where bond is scaling the cliff to St. Cyrill's Monastery. Just a greatly done scene IMO. Bond girl was fantastic, villain was ok. Emile Locque made a great henchman. All in all a solid film.
OP - Another excellent film. I thought Kamal Khan made a fine villain. Didn't really care for Orlov though, found him too over the top. This film has excellent henchmen - who could not love the knife throwing twins? Story was good, and complicated for a bond. India was a great location, as was the circus in germany. Was cheesey, camp humour, but was really fun. Bond trying to dismantle a bomb wearing a clown suit? Gotta love it!
AVTAK - The most underrated bond movie of all time. AVTAK is my favourite bond film, and I suppose that after reading that, people will now disregard my entire opinions on all bond films what with AVTAK being at the top. Surely people think I'm just mad, but I just really, really enjoy watching AVTAK, and IMO, is that not the main thing that matters? Enjoying a film even though it has evident flaws? For me, the flaws such as Moore's age, and Stacey Sutton, are completely made up for with the best ever bond villain, the amazing golden gate bridge fight, the eiffel tower stunt, the city hall fire, the mine scene, and yes I liked the fire engine chase! On a whole a VERY fun and enjoyable film, with probably the best locations, and certainly the best villain, the twisted Max Zorin! Call me unfashionable if you must. AVTAK rules!!!
1 - Moore, 2 - Dalton, 3 - Craig, 4 - Connery, 5 - Brosnan, 6 - Lazenby
I, as well, shared your view of A View To A Kill at one point. It was my favourite Bond film at a young age, and I can see why; great title song, great villain in Chris Walken, a thrilling conclusion (in addition to some other great scenes), and -- last but not certainly least -- Roger Moore as James Bond. Having re-visited it not too terribly long ago, my inner child was somewhat lost. I found it rushed; perhaps the most fast-paced movie of the entire series. And before, I never found Stacey Sutton particularily annoying. I also found myself sypathizing with Sir Roger Moore himself when he said that the scene of Max Zorin gunning down slews of people was "too violent" for a Bond movie.
But is it bad? Not really. A View To A Kill, much like The Man With The Golden Gun, is one of the most underrated Bond movies. Most people who spit venom all over it don't really know what they're talking about; take, for example, Siskel and Ebert. Essentially they were saying that Walken should be type-cast in "sensitive" roles (i.e. The Deer Hunter). I, on the other hand, found Max Zorin to be pure evil.
I would personally give A View To A Kill 3 out of 5 stars. It serves to entertain, and it succeeds. But it isn't without a hefty number of flaws.
1) The Spy Who Loved Me 2) On Her Majesty's Secret Service 3) GoldenEye 4) Casino Royale 5) Goldfinger
As I thought!
1 - Moore, 2 - Dalton, 3 - Craig, 4 - Connery, 5 - Brosnan, 6 - Lazenby
I can't quite agree on "A View to a Kill". I didn't think it was too bad, Chris Walken is one of my favorite actors and I took comfort in the fact that I'm watching Moore's last movie. But it couldn't push itself into my TOP15 even if it tried.
LALD... I though that this film is Moore best and is definatley in my top 5 of the best Bond films.
TMWTGG... I liked this movie, and though it was light-hearted and fun, with a tone of action and seriousness.
TSWLM... Great film. Jaws is one of the best and unique Bond henchmen in the franchise.
MR... The beginning was terrific. I did think that the lasers were a bit far-fetched...
FYEO... I liked the darker Bond but I didn't quite wrap my head around the plot...
OP... I liked the humor in it but I needed someone to explain the plot to me a bit more...
AVTAK... I liked the plot very much. The villian was awsome and the blimp. The lack of gadgets was bad beacause I like to see the films with them in it, mainly Moores because he has always had gadgets with him. His age didn't really bother me.
"You see Mr Bond. You can't kill my dreams. But my dreams can kill you!"
"Time to face destiny."
-Gaustav Graves in Die Another Day-
I agree, perhaps LALD too
I don't think that "trivializing the role" had as much to do with Moore's acting skill as it had to do with the scripts provided. Keep in mind that Diamonds Are Forever was written as a "lighter" Bond adventure, and even with Sean Connery in the title role, it completely stank. Moore's Bond was definitely unlike Fleming's Bond in a lot of ways -- particularily with regard to humour -- but he made it work (being himself a very witty person) and continued the success of the franchise.
1) The Spy Who Loved Me 2) On Her Majesty's Secret Service 3) GoldenEye 4) Casino Royale 5) Goldfinger
Amen to that! I keep hoping that title gets remade, especially now that Canada has a gigantic diamond mind. Bond, diamonds, hot Canadian babes, skiing :007)
- LALD - A decent, but flawed start. To his credit, he immediately made the role his own and didn't rely on imitation. The story was a bit weak, but he was fine in it.
- TMWTGG - Good fun. An enjoyable picture overall. The campy-ness of the Moore era definitely settles in the forefront here, but it works well within the story. Without Christopher Lee, however, this one might have gone off the rails.
- TSWLM - Moore's best, in my opinion. Just the right mixture of elements that played to Moore's strengths as Bond
- MR - For all of its more obvious flaws, the first 3/4 of the film still manage to put together a decent film. Everything runs astray in the latter portion, and Moore's campy approach is in full swing, which doesn't necessarily help matters. Still, not his worst Bond picture, from my perspective.
- FYEO - I liked the attempt to root Bond back in the real world, but Moore never quite seemed comfortable with the more gritty approach. I liked the movie, but it was here that I began to see Moore's run coming to an end.
- OP - Things were definitely running thin with this one. It manages to be a watchable film still, but only just barely. Moore seems to just be acting-by-numbers here and the producer/writer teams don't really seem to know what they want to do with the series during this era. Really, Moore's stretch should have ended here, if not before.
- AVTAK - Really a complete mess. The worst of the Moore era. I can find redeemable qualities in almost any Bond film, but this movie, along with Die Another Day and Diamonds Are Forever, is just one that's hard to justify.
Welcome to AJB, Mortimer {[]
I'm pretty much with you all the way, though it looks like I enjoyed LALD more than you did...Moore was my least favourite Bond, but I still rewatch his stuff endlessly. Last weekend, my two sons (ages 12 and 14) had a friend sleep over, and we watched TMWTGG. Still a blast as far as I'm concerned B-)
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Thanks.
I actually liked LALD, just not as much as some of his other Bond movies. Moore made the transition between Bonds very easy to digest by eliminating comparisons between him and Connery. For me, at least. I liked LALD more when I first saw it. I think I've just become more critical of it as time goes on. Still enjoy it, though.
TMWTGG is just pure fun. It was one of my favorite ones growing up. I've come to like others more now, but I still really like that film.
On the other hand The Man With the Golden Gun rates worst. Not just worst, but worst of all Bond films for some reason.
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming