Film Review
Five films in and the Bond franchise already looks as if it might be in
trouble, descending to the level of self-parody whilst its lead actor
does a good impression of a man desperate to be let out of Pentonville
Prison. By this stage, Sean Connery was reluctant to go on
playing the part that had made him an international star and his
disenchantment with the role shows in just about every shot. Add
to that the most ridiculous plot imaginable (conceived by Roald Dahl, a
writer of children's stories and macabre fantasies), with a villain
that looks like he stepped out of a cheap pantomime, and the result can
only be described as a let down after the generally impressive four
Bond films that preceded it.
With neither Guy Hamilton nor Terence Young available to direct the
film, producers Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman turned to veteran
director Lewis Gilbert, who had helmed such classics as
Reach for the Sky (1956),
Carve Her Name with Pride (1958)
and
Alfie (1966).
Gilbert was a bizarre choice to direct a Bond film, since his previous
films had consisted mainly of comedies and character-driven dramas, not
big budget adventure thrillers of this kind. Yet, in spite of
this, he rose to the challenge admirably and directs this, and his two
subsequent Bond films -
The Spy Who
Loved Me (1977) and
Moonraker
(1979) - with great flair. Like the Bond films before it, this
was another major box office hit, even if the critical reaction was
very mixed.
Despite its many shortcomings,
You
Only Live Twice still manages to be one of the more enjoyable
entries in the series (its silliness perhaps adding to its
appeal). Don't even think of trying to rationalise the plot - it
will only give you a headache (although you do wonder just why the
film's producers decided to discard most of Ian Fleming's original
novel and commission someone with no experience as a screenwriter to do
a complete rewrite).
This is the first of the Bond films where you just have to sit back,
switch off your reason, and relish the mad implausible spectacle that
takes place in front of your eyes. The plot may be ludicrous,
Connery may have had enough, Blofeld could have done with a few more
hours in the make-up chair, but the production values are still
awesome and the action sequences are, as ever, superbly
realised. The question is, with Connery about to hand in his
Walther PPK and collect his P45, could the
series survive a change of lead actor?
© James Travers 2009
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next Lewis Gilbert film:
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
Film Synopsis
When one of their spacecraft mysteriously disappears shortly after take
off, the Americans naturally assume that it has been destroyed by the
Russians. And when the same thing happens to a Russian space
vessel, the Soviets are equally confident that the Americans are to
blame. Neither side realises that the disappearances have been
orchestrated by SPECTRE in an attempt to provoke the Superpowers
into starting a Third World War. Believing that the missing spacecraft
came down in the Far East, the British security services send their
best agent, James Bond, to Japan to investigate. Once again, Bond
proves to up against a powerful adversary, so powerful in fact that,
before he can start work, he must first die...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.