aclasschris Reviews

The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)

Golden Gun is Golden Surprise!

[7/10 · 6 January 2006]

Roger Moore's second outing as Agent 007 puts him against the evil trick shot artist/assassin, Scaramanga (Christopher Lee). Hailed by many Connery fans as the film that marked the downfall of the 007 franchise, 'The Man With The Golden Gun' turns out to be one of the most pleasant surprises of the entire series and one of the 'better' Roger Moore films. 'Gun' does take some getting used to, in fact, more times than not, you need to see it a few times to really begin to enjoy the film.

The cast is great, one of the better ones of the entire series. There are two leading ladies in this film, the wonderful Maud Adams, who would later star in Octopussy (1983), and the terrible Britt Ekland who just acts so dumb and hopeless that it almost angers viewers. The villain Scaramanga is top notch as well as his comical, yet silently evil assistant, Nick Nack, played by French painter Herve Villechaize. The plot of the film is very interesting, the locals are exotic (which is always an extremely important part of a bond film), and Roger Moore continues to develop his character from a Connery-clone to putting his own, charming spin on 007.

All-in-all, 'Gun' is another good 007 adventure and is quite possibly the 4th best Roger Moore Bond film. Any fan of the series should give it a second look before they hail it as 'bad'.

A View to a Kill (1985)

Roger Moore is back in one final, disappointing adventure...

[4/10 · 5 January 2006]

Many fans of 007 consider Roger Moore to be the better Bond over Sean Connery. By the end of his run as 007, Connery was clearly in it for the money, with so/so films like 'You Only Live Twice', 'Diamonds Are Forever', and then the unspeakably bad 'Never Say Never Again' later in his career. What set Roger Moore apart was the fact that he seemed to continuously play 007 for the love of the character and of the series, he was in many ways the 'True Bond'. But that somewhat changed in 1985 when 'A View To A Kill' was released.

In many ways, 'AVTAK' was not Moore's fault, in fact the movie had a few things going for it, the villain, Max Zorin (Christopher Walken) was smart and intriguing, the plot was in a few ways realistic, and the locations, even though there were just 2, were good. The reason this film did not work was mainly because of Moore's age. Most of us thought he was too old to be playing Bond in 'Octopussy' but by the time 'AVTAK' rolled around he seemed to have been spent. Moore was leathery, old, tired, and didn't move with the finesse we were all used to, basically he should have retired years ago. The unfortunate thing is that no matter how good Moore did in the film he was old and no one could see past that. That is one of the main reasons why this film will never work.

It was an unfortunate farewell to quite possibly the greatest Bond of all time, Roger Moore.

Octopussy (1983)

Roger Moore's BEST BOND, quite possibly the BEST BOND EVER?

[10/10 · 5 January 2006]

In 1983, two different 007 adventures were released into theaters. One was the official 007, the other was a cheesy impostor. 'Never Say Never Again' was released as "bond's greatest adventure" but what many have come to realize is that 'Never Say Never Again' is simply a re- make of 'Thunderball'. Even the return of a much grayer, more tired Sean Connery could not keep this Bond adventure alive, besides the fact that MGM/UA had no part in the production of this film. But another 007 adventure was released that year and to many it is considered the greatest Bond film of all time, 'Octopussy'.

'Octopussy' starred Roger Moore in his sixth outing as Agent 007 and was directed by John Glen, the man who also directed Moore's second best Bond film, 'For Your Eyes Only'. Unlike 'FYEO' we return to some of the humor and charm that Moore has always been known for. We also see the return of veteran 'Bond Girl', Maud Adams as Octopussy. The plot in this film is a bit more far fetched then 'FYEO' but it works on all levels. The film is exotic, with Bond traveling to India for the first time in the series, it's also well put together and has enough action and humor to interest new and old fans alike. Many say that Roger Moore was too old for the role but one of the main reasons this film works is because Roger Moore isn't trying to be a young agile Bond like Timmothy Dalton or Pierce Brosnan. Moore plays a more mature character, sort-of a veteran secret agent. Everything works in this film and is by far the greatest Roger Moore Bond film and arguably the best film in the entire series. Moore should have played it smart and ended on a high note with 'Octopussy', sort-of a grand finale, rather then extend his career through the abysmal 'A View To A Kill'.

For Your Eyes Only (1981)

After the abysmal Moonraker, Moore is back and better than EVER!

[9/10 · 5 January 2006]

In 1981, ' For Your Eyes Only' was released and to many Bond fans, this is one of THE BEST films of the entire series. 'FYEO' is considered the serious Moore film but in many ways it still contains all of the wit and charm of a Roger Moore film. The plot is one of the best and most intriguing of the series and the villains take on a certain realism that isn't present in most of the previous Bond films. The film visits many Eurpean locations including, the Wine Country of Spain, the Swiss Alps, and the Greek Isles. 'FYEO' is the PERFECT appetizer to Moore's BEST 007 adventure and the last LEGENDARY film of the series, 'Octopussy'...

The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)

one of the TOP 3 roger moore bond films

[8/10 · 5 January 2006]

this is considered by most bond fans to be the film where roger moore comes into his own; gives the character his own personal style. 'spy' is the quintessential bond film, the leading lady is smart and sexy, the villain is an evil mastermind, and jaws is by far the best evil henchman of the entire series. bond also visits some of the most exotic locals of the series, spanning from the deserts of Egypt to the shores of the mediterranean, there is enough globe trotting in this film to keep any fan happy. along with 'for your eyes only' and 'octopussy', 'the spy who loved me' is one of roger moore's best outings as agent 007.