Best Looking Bond Film?

DieAnotherDayDieAnotherDay Glasgow, ScotlandPosts: 460MI6 Agent
Let's get a good old discussion going. What is the greatest looking Bond film of them all?

I agree with most that Skyfall has some of the greatest cinematography of the lot, especially the scenes up in the Highlands as some of those shots are seriously breathtaking. TSWLM may also be in with a shout though as that's definitely one of the most glamorous looking films, especially on Blu-ray where the colours pop right off the screen.
....and the best he ever managed was a sermon on the mount.

Comments

  • SpectreOfDefeatSpectreOfDefeat Posts: 404MI6 Agent
    I'll nominate You Only Live Twice. Fantastic cinematography here, from the bright lights of Tokyo to the sun setting over the mountains and the technical consistency of the aerial battles. Great cinematography on display all round in this Bond film.

    "The spectre of defeat..."

  • BarbelBarbel ScotlandPosts: 36,053Chief of Staff
    Seconded, YOLT for me too.
  • HigginsHiggins GermanyPosts: 16,618MI6 Agent
    Yolt, hands down, close second OHMSS
    President of the 'Misty Eyes Club'.

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  • ichaiceichaice LondonPosts: 593MI6 Agent
    Casino Royale for me. Bahamas, Italy etc beautifully filmed to my eye.
    Yes. Considerably!
  • Number24Number24 NorwayPosts: 21,702MI6 Agent
    OHMSS, Skyfall, TLD, TSWLM
  • ManxmanManxman Posts: 122MI6 Agent
    OHMSS, followed by Skyfall. Stunning cinematography in both.
  • emtiememtiem SurreyPosts: 5,686MI6 Agent
    Yeah I'd have to go for Skyfall too in terms of cinematography. Spectre isn't bad either but not as good. I think Moonraker is rather pretty too.
  • CoolHandBondCoolHandBond Mactan IslandPosts: 6,030MI6 Agent
    OHMSS, YOLT, TB all on a par.
    Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
  • Charmed & DangerousCharmed & Dangerous Posts: 7,358MI6 Agent
    Thunderball for me. Those beautiful shots of Nassau, the beaches, the sea when Bond and Leiter are searching for the Vulcan... not to mention all of the scenes with Domino... OHMSS and YOLT come in close too.

    I'm not so struck on the more recent films, which don't have quite the same lingering shots of beautiful locations as they used to have (with the exception of the scene in Skyfall when Bond and M pull off the road near Glen Etive). Perhaps the last great-looking Bond film was Moonraker.
    "How was your lamb?" "Skewered. One sympathises."
  • ThunderpussyThunderpussy Behind you !Posts: 63,792MI6 Agent
    Moonraker would get my vote -{
    "I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
  • The Red KindThe Red Kind EnglandPosts: 3,119MI6 Agent
    I would go with OHMSS, MR, YOLT, TSWLM
    "Any of the opposition around..?"
  • ChriscoopChriscoop Belize Posts: 10,449MI6 Agent
    TB, yolt but I do love CR too it manages the capture a sense of the location, except Miami, which really could have been any airport anywhere in the world .
    It was either that.....or the priesthood
  • Matt SMatt S Oh Cult Voodoo ShopPosts: 6,596MI6 Agent
    It’s Moonraker for me.
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  • DieAnotherDayDieAnotherDay Glasgow, ScotlandPosts: 460MI6 Agent
    Looks like YOLT & MR are leading the pack -{
    ....and the best he ever managed was a sermon on the mount.
  • Lady RoseLady Rose London,UKPosts: 2,667MI6 Agent
    For me it will be 'Octopussy' but for personal reasons.

    I spent a bit of time in India and went to some of the locations. The 'Taj Lake Palace' in Udaipur was absolutely stunning and so romantic.

    I get nostalgic every time I watch the film. Udaipur was a beautiful place.
  • walther p99walther p99 NJPosts: 3,416MI6 Agent
  • HowardBHowardB USAPosts: 2,737MI6 Agent
    Bond films attract outstanding DP's and they all tend to look very good, especially on a large cinema screen where they were meant to be seen. First let's talk about aspect ratios/film format. Let's look at the "non-scope" Bond films first. DR, FRWL, and GF were all shot 1.66 to 1 (but formatted to be projected up to 1.85 to 1). There was a brief return to non-scope with LALD and TMWTGG (which were both shot 1.85 to 1). IMO, the narrower aspect ratio suites DR and FRWL stories very well and the dye transfer Technicolor looks and "feels" great giving both films a heightened sense of reality. GF, being the template for the "epic" Bond films to follow I always wondered why it wasn't the first Bond shot in 2.35 to 1 Cinemascope/Panavision. That being said, the action in GF is beautifully framed and shot (especially the scenes in Switzerland w/ the DB5) and as usual, the use of Technicolor is beautiful. The only one of the non-scope Bonds I believe would have benefited from wider scope ratio was LALD. While LALD, IMO was well framed and photographed, the wider aspect ratio would have afforded the film a grander and more epic feel more befitting of the story. All the 'scope Bond films except one were beautifully shot IMO. The standouts for me are TB, YOLT, OHMSS (except for the over cranked PTS fight on the beach but it does have a certain charm) CS and Skyfall. The exception is LTK. With LTK it has much to do with the "Miami Vice" style (especially in the PTS/Florida scenes) which give it an old TV movie feel. I actually like LTK, but think if they used TB or even the early non-scope Bonds (especially DN or FRWL) as a style template, it would have been a better film.
  • lueth2048lueth2048 Posts: 120MI6 Agent
    OHMSS and SF. They both looked like art house films.
  • Jimmy BondJimmy Bond Posts: 324MI6 Agent
    Top ten:

    Skyfall
    Spectre
    OHMSS
    YOLT
    MR
    NSNA
    FRWL
    GE
    CR
    FYEO
  • RemingtonRemington CAPosts: 239MI6 Agent
    In no particular order

    Dr. No, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker, The Living Daylights, GoldenEye, Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, Skyfall, and No Time to Die
    1. Connery 2. Moore 3. Dalton 4. Brosnan 5. Craig 6. Lazenby
  • chrisno1chrisno1 LondonPosts: 3,177MI6 Agent
    Great points by HowardB.
    Having managed to watch all the Bond films in a cinema environment, I have to agree that the trio of Panavision movies, YOLT & OHMSS featured fantastic photography from Ted Moore (underwater Lamar Boren), Freddie Young & Michael Reed. They still hold up well today, even in comparison to Roger Deakins' & Hoyte van Hoytema's modern, swish & exotic takes of SF and SP.
  • Shady TreeShady Tree London, UKPosts: 2,965MI6 Agent
    YOLT for me.
    Critics and material I don't need. I haven't changed my act in 53 years.
  • Napoleon PluralNapoleon Plural LondonPosts: 10,239MI6 Agent
    Here is HowardB's post again:

    "Bond films attract outstanding DP's and they all tend to look very good, especially on a large cinema screen where they were meant to be seen.

    First let's talk about aspect ratios/film format. Let's look at the "non-scope" Bond films first. DR, FRWL, and GF were all shot 1.66 to 1 (but formatted to be projected up to 1.85 to 1). There was a brief return to non-scope with LALD and TMWTGG (which were both shot 1.85 to 1). IMO, the narrower aspect ratio suites DR and FRWL stories very well and the dye transfer Technicolor looks and "feels" great giving both films a heightened sense of reality.
    GF, being the template for the "epic" Bond films to follow I always wondered why it wasn't the first Bond shot in 2.35 to 1 Cinemascope/Panavision. That being said, the action in GF is beautifully framed and shot (especially the scenes in Switzerland w/ the DB5) and as usual, the use of Technicolor is beautiful.
    The only one of the non-scope Bonds I believe would have benefited from wider scope ratio was LALD. While LALD, IMO was well framed and photographed, the wider aspect ratio would have afforded the film a grander and more epic feel more befitting of the story.


    All the 'scope Bond films except one were beautifully shot IMO. The standouts for me are TB, YOLT, OHMSS (except for the over cranked PTS fight on the beach but it does have a certain charm) CS and Skyfall.
    The exception is LTK. With LTK it has much to do with the "Miami Vice" style (especially in the PTS/Florida scenes) which give it an old TV movie feel. I actually like LTK, but think if they used TB or even the early non-scope Bonds (especially DN or FRWL) as a style template, it would have been a better film."


    Better with paragraph breaks, esp after a bottle of red!

    IMO best looking films? Moonraker, with its Day of the Jackal cinematographer. Spectre.
    Goldfinger. A bit chintzy in the Miami hotel scenes but Switzerland makes it a classic. Dr No for same kind of reasons.
    FYEO has its own charm. I don't like it, but it's got something.

    Off topic, but The Bourne Identity is a great looking film with Bond cinematography, as has Face/Off. These to me are great Bond films while not actually of course being Bond films. Pulp Fiction in with a shot too. Just something about them warms the soul. Superb.
    "This is where we leave you Mr Bond."

    Roger Moore 1927-2017
  • BarbelBarbel ScotlandPosts: 36,053Chief of Staff
    chrisno1 wrote:
    Great points by HowardB.
    Having managed to watch all the Bond films in a cinema environment, I have to agree that the trio of Panavision movies, YOLT & OHMSS featured fantastic photography from Ted Moore (underwater Lamar Boren), Freddie Young & Michael Reed. They still hold up well today, even in comparison to Roger Deakins' & Hoyte van Hoytema's modern, swish & exotic takes of SF and SP.

    I also have seen all the Bond films in a cinema environment. YOLT was my pick earlier in this thread, and I stand by that. After all these years, I still remember sitting in a crowded cinema (yes, in the 60s- I'm old) when the SPECTRE rocket descends into the volcano and the full set is revealed. Jaws dropped and the intake of air was unbelievable.
    The rest of the film is spectacularly beautiful and, again, has to be seen on the big screen for full effect.
  • JTullock23JTullock23 ArizonaPosts: 552MI6 Agent
    Skyfall, QoS (I know, shoot me) OHMSS, and Casino. NTTD so far looks tremendous!
    "History isn't kind to men who play God." - DC "I gave him the limp." - PB "Better make that two." - TD

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  • tsholdtshold TorontoPosts: 212MI6 Agent
    Skyfall would top the list for me - that film was beautiful start to finish!
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  • Trigger_MortisTrigger_Mortis Posts: 100MI6 Agent
    I was thinking about this the other night as I was revisiting The Spy Who Loved Me and was impressed how brilliantly the film shows in HD. The Cairo scenes look terrific, particularly around the ruins. Meanwhile, and this probably has more to do with my TV, the contrast between "black" and "colour" is bold. Moore's tuxedo looks jet black, and I mean black without any colour fading in the upscale.
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