Mixed emotions about OHMSS !
Firemass
AlaskaPosts: 1,910MI6 Agent
This week I have been trying to gain an appreciation for the 1969 Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. In a recent poll by 007 magazine, the once-underrated film was voted #1 ahead of Goldfinger and From Russia With Love. Since I’ve never been a huge fan of the film I decided I should give it another try. Several years ago I did read the Ian Fleming novel, but for now I just listened to an abridged version on audiotape to bring myself up to speed. Next I watched all the special features on the Ultimate Edition DVD and finally rewatched the film with director Peter Hunt’s commentary. Sadly, I ended up liking the film even less than I remembered.
OHMSS is a puzzlement, because I appreciate what it tried to accomplish by following the novel and adding a sensitive side to James Bond. I salute the hardcore Bond fans in the 70’s who wrote to Cubby expressing their admiration for the film and begged for the series to revert to a more realistic tone and follow the original Fleming novels. Sounds good right? Read on.
OHMSS joins the prestigious company of Dr. No and From Russia With Love as being the most faithful to Fleming’s Bond. Although, where FRWL is a tense and realistic cold war thriller, OHMSS has ridiculous over-the-top plot that would be better suited for a lavish Roger Moore escapade. Blofeld’s plan of brainwashing girls to wreck havoc on England’s livestock is total crap.
Even Peter Hunt admitted in the DVD commentary that the plot was “nonsense” and the hypnosis scenes were “corny.” Although, Hunt seems pleased that he managed to pull them off “convincingly.” Unfortunately, the interior sets in the film look terrible and far from convincing. Bright purple or bright green colors dominate the design and end up resembling a cheesy episode of Star Trek. The Piz Gloria filled with beautiful women reminds me of Octopussy’s exotic island or Drax’s studfarm in Moonraker. Yet neither of these films ever draws much comparison to Fleming.
The OHMSS pre-title sequence is one of the worst in the series. It begins looking like a cigarette commercial with excessive closeups of Bond smoking. Tracy wanders into the ocean, but her head never actually dips underwater. So why is she unconscious when Bond carries her back? Who are the henchmen that attack Bond? This is never explained. In the novel, this scene makes more sense because it took place after the gambling scene and the henchmen were the same ones who escorted Bond to meet Tracy’s father. Fortunately, the PTS is not a total loss because it was reworked and improved for better scenes such as the dune buggy attack in For Your Eyes Only and the recreational car chase in Goldeneye.
OHMSS has several very strong points. The soundtrack is topnotch and the instrumental title song blows me away every time. Very suspenseful safecracking scene without a word of dialog. Remote mountain fortress in the Swiss Alps is cool as hell. Wedding scene was very well done and the Aston Martin DB8 looks terrific in flowers. Ending breaks my heart every time. (Nevermind the bullet hole in the front windshield would be impossible for that drive-by shooting.)
However, the real centerpiece is the skiing and bobsledding chases. Bond films have a long lineage of great winter action scenes and it all started with OHMSS. Willy Bogner’s brilliant and exciting handheld work combined with the helicopter mounted harness resulted in the most stunning ski chase scenes ever. Fortunately for 007 fans, Bogner would contribute other exceptional winter action scenes in TSWLM, FYEO, and AVTAK.
Peter Hunt said, “Sean Connery is NOT James Bond. James Bond is James Bond.” Despite this confident claim, there are many direct references to past Connery films. I’m willing to overlook this because I can appreciate the uncertainty about a new actor in the role.
Lazenby’s tall slender frame looked quite dapper in a suit. He dressed very sharply in some scenes, but overall donned the most unfortunate clothing ever seen in a Bond film: The tan jumpsuit with an orange turtleneck is flat out ugly. The white frilly shirts are laughable. Blue spandex tights were okay. The kilt was ridiculous enough, but seeing it drop to the floor really went too far! How many of his outfits were parodied in Austin Powers?
Phrases that describe George Lazenby’s Bond in OHMSS film are along the lines of “more human” “more serious” and “more emotional” However, aside from the tragic ending I find him to exhibit all the usual 007 traits in a rather disappointing fashion.
Snobbery: “Royal Beluga...North of the Caspian!”
Sexism: “Please stay alive...at least for tonight”
Know-it-all: “Unusually small for a Nymphalis pholychloris.” (note- No offense M, but butterfly collecting is about the stupidest hobby ever. Beautiful specimen, let’s kill it.)
One Liners: “He had lots of guts” (note- In the novel the red snow made Bond’s stomach turn)
The most human characterization of Bond we have ever seen is Roger Moore in A View to a Kill when he cooks an omelet, fixes the electricity, and then sleeps in a chair with a shotgun to guard the girl. Lazenby’s Bond did nothing that made me identify with him as a real human being or even root for his character.
Bond is supposed to be in love right? That was established by the romantic montage showing the two starry eyed lovers spending quality time together. Yet, as soon as Bond arrives at Piz Gloria he is eager to sleep with other girls. We are now entering a bizarre bachelor party fantasy for Bond. No sooner has he left Ruby’s bedroom then he is already bedding another beauty in his own room. Several other affairs are implied after the curling match as if he had them all scheduled for sex appointments. This shameless unfaithful behavior undermines the entire love story with Tracy. Imagine if Bond managed to resist sleeping with any of the beauties? That would have really impressed the hell out of me and made his relationship with Tracy much stronger. Like “Damn, 007 really is in love!”
While the first three Bond films remain firmly on my short list of favorites, I flat out don't understand how OHMSS can even be considered the best of the entire series.
OHMSS is a puzzlement, because I appreciate what it tried to accomplish by following the novel and adding a sensitive side to James Bond. I salute the hardcore Bond fans in the 70’s who wrote to Cubby expressing their admiration for the film and begged for the series to revert to a more realistic tone and follow the original Fleming novels. Sounds good right? Read on.
OHMSS joins the prestigious company of Dr. No and From Russia With Love as being the most faithful to Fleming’s Bond. Although, where FRWL is a tense and realistic cold war thriller, OHMSS has ridiculous over-the-top plot that would be better suited for a lavish Roger Moore escapade. Blofeld’s plan of brainwashing girls to wreck havoc on England’s livestock is total crap.
Even Peter Hunt admitted in the DVD commentary that the plot was “nonsense” and the hypnosis scenes were “corny.” Although, Hunt seems pleased that he managed to pull them off “convincingly.” Unfortunately, the interior sets in the film look terrible and far from convincing. Bright purple or bright green colors dominate the design and end up resembling a cheesy episode of Star Trek. The Piz Gloria filled with beautiful women reminds me of Octopussy’s exotic island or Drax’s studfarm in Moonraker. Yet neither of these films ever draws much comparison to Fleming.
The OHMSS pre-title sequence is one of the worst in the series. It begins looking like a cigarette commercial with excessive closeups of Bond smoking. Tracy wanders into the ocean, but her head never actually dips underwater. So why is she unconscious when Bond carries her back? Who are the henchmen that attack Bond? This is never explained. In the novel, this scene makes more sense because it took place after the gambling scene and the henchmen were the same ones who escorted Bond to meet Tracy’s father. Fortunately, the PTS is not a total loss because it was reworked and improved for better scenes such as the dune buggy attack in For Your Eyes Only and the recreational car chase in Goldeneye.
OHMSS has several very strong points. The soundtrack is topnotch and the instrumental title song blows me away every time. Very suspenseful safecracking scene without a word of dialog. Remote mountain fortress in the Swiss Alps is cool as hell. Wedding scene was very well done and the Aston Martin DB8 looks terrific in flowers. Ending breaks my heart every time. (Nevermind the bullet hole in the front windshield would be impossible for that drive-by shooting.)
However, the real centerpiece is the skiing and bobsledding chases. Bond films have a long lineage of great winter action scenes and it all started with OHMSS. Willy Bogner’s brilliant and exciting handheld work combined with the helicopter mounted harness resulted in the most stunning ski chase scenes ever. Fortunately for 007 fans, Bogner would contribute other exceptional winter action scenes in TSWLM, FYEO, and AVTAK.
Peter Hunt said, “Sean Connery is NOT James Bond. James Bond is James Bond.” Despite this confident claim, there are many direct references to past Connery films. I’m willing to overlook this because I can appreciate the uncertainty about a new actor in the role.
Lazenby’s tall slender frame looked quite dapper in a suit. He dressed very sharply in some scenes, but overall donned the most unfortunate clothing ever seen in a Bond film: The tan jumpsuit with an orange turtleneck is flat out ugly. The white frilly shirts are laughable. Blue spandex tights were okay. The kilt was ridiculous enough, but seeing it drop to the floor really went too far! How many of his outfits were parodied in Austin Powers?
Phrases that describe George Lazenby’s Bond in OHMSS film are along the lines of “more human” “more serious” and “more emotional” However, aside from the tragic ending I find him to exhibit all the usual 007 traits in a rather disappointing fashion.
Snobbery: “Royal Beluga...North of the Caspian!”
Sexism: “Please stay alive...at least for tonight”
Know-it-all: “Unusually small for a Nymphalis pholychloris.” (note- No offense M, but butterfly collecting is about the stupidest hobby ever. Beautiful specimen, let’s kill it.)
One Liners: “He had lots of guts” (note- In the novel the red snow made Bond’s stomach turn)
The most human characterization of Bond we have ever seen is Roger Moore in A View to a Kill when he cooks an omelet, fixes the electricity, and then sleeps in a chair with a shotgun to guard the girl. Lazenby’s Bond did nothing that made me identify with him as a real human being or even root for his character.
Bond is supposed to be in love right? That was established by the romantic montage showing the two starry eyed lovers spending quality time together. Yet, as soon as Bond arrives at Piz Gloria he is eager to sleep with other girls. We are now entering a bizarre bachelor party fantasy for Bond. No sooner has he left Ruby’s bedroom then he is already bedding another beauty in his own room. Several other affairs are implied after the curling match as if he had them all scheduled for sex appointments. This shameless unfaithful behavior undermines the entire love story with Tracy. Imagine if Bond managed to resist sleeping with any of the beauties? That would have really impressed the hell out of me and made his relationship with Tracy much stronger. Like “Damn, 007 really is in love!”
While the first three Bond films remain firmly on my short list of favorites, I flat out don't understand how OHMSS can even be considered the best of the entire series.
My current 10 favorite:
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
Comments
Yep - the soundtrack is awesome. It's always been a stand out score for me and the opening titles song is a classic. The ending too is classic - a real memorable Bond moment which displays a real change in emotion for a Bond flick and some of Lazenbys best acting. I've actually never questioned Lazenby's acting and don't really understand why it gets dissed so much!
As for your views on the ski scenes, you're absolutely right. The entire ski chase scene from Bond escaping Piz Gloria to meeting Tracy at the Ice rink to driving to the barn and proposing to getting caught in the avalanche is really amazing and probably one of my favourite Bond sections of all time. Yes it's not quite like the book in ways but it's perfect for the film and I really can't fault it!
As for your Quotes I can imagine Fleming's bond suggesting snobbery in mostly the same ways that Lazenby does in the film, perhaps not with the Butterfly thing but still. The "Please stay alive.. at least for the night" line is a direct quote from the book if i remember correctly. There is a slight issue with the one liners as I dont think Lazenby has enough charm to pull most of them off but it doesn't bother me much.
Overall OHMSS is rightfully respected by most. It's not my favourite Bond film but it sure is close.
I think that the film is one of the best for non-stop action and features a huge cast of attractive women
Lazenby seems to be in on the joke with the far-fetched hypnosis plot
BTW ,as Sir Hilary he breaks with tradition and drinks a malt whisky and branch water
Agree that the romance thing never really worked, though they could have made it work, by making it all about Bond's last shallow flings in Piz Gloria. As it is, they do seem rather seedy but not in a good way.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Always bothered me as well.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Roger Moore 1927-2017
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
Roger Moore 1927-2017
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
I believe these references were added in just to assure the audience that this was the same character from the previous films. Not to make reference to Connery himself.
OHMSS is easily one of my favorite Bonds, but yes its not with out its flaws. However when its good its great. From the ski escape form Piz Gloria to the end, its perfect IMO. Also I love the safe cracking scene. But I always find myself skipping over the Bond Tracy falling in love sequence.
I've always put Bond's seduction of the different girls as just his cold blooded attempt at finding out what Blofeld was really up to. In a strange way he figured he was giving them a pleasurable one night stand (that they obviously were not reluctant to have) in exchange for getting more intel. There's obviously a lot of moral juggling going on here considering his relationship with Tracy, but one has to keep in mind that in those situations his instinct is to get his job done as well as to stay alive long enough to finish it. We can be offended by his choice, but remember he was getting info through seducing at the risk of getting caught and killed and in fact he was caught and was almost killed.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
Let's leave Savile out of this discussion. Someone should've shot that sicko's testicles off decades ago.
“It reads better than it lives.” T. Case
http://toddmthatcher.wordpress.com/2013/01/01/the-007-files-on-her-majestys-secret-service/
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
I'm glad you mentioned the dinner sequence. "Bizarre" is a good word for it. Especially the African women eating the banana. yikes!
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
OHMSS On her Majesty's secret service deleted missing scene Rooftop chase
http://youtu.be/-Tr8pWfXi3s
It ends with a mention of the Tube train filled with Dead People, Q had
set up s a cover for The death of Blofelds henchman.
( Which also gets a mention on the "Sherlock" DVD comentaries, as an Idea
they took and did in an Aircraft )
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
Try that link Mr. Toys
I think the stills for the flick have been taken from 007 Magazine...not sure though .
TIS - "The moment you think you got it figured - you're wrong"
Formerly known as Teppo
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
And just for the record: My region is not a hollowed-out volcano - just if someone asks
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
Which I'm sure the likes of Bondtoys would of already seen. So
you needn't get too disappointed,
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!