[6] Sean Connery returns one more time (not counting his appearance in 1983’s unofficial entry, Never Say Never Again) in what is easily the silliest of his Bond films. Charles Gray picks up the part of archvillain Blofeld, who this time is hording the world’s diamond supplies so that he can build an orbiting laser gun to terrorize the world. I like the light, breezy …
[6] The stakes are lower than usual and the action in short supply, but Roger Moore’s second outing as James Bond almost makes up for it in character. The colorful supporting cast includes Christopher Lee as a three-nippled baddie and diminutive Hervé Villechaize (TV’s Fantasy Island) as his lethal handy-man. Britt Ekland and Maud Adams are the Bond girls this time around, and I’d rank both of …
[6] Civil War soldiers escape capture in a hot air balloon only to become stranded on an uncharted island inhabited by mutant creatures. Mysterious Island is more than just another showcase for effects pioneer Ray Harryhausen. I enjoyed the survival aspect of the storyline, which throws disparate personalities together and forces them to depend on each other for survival (a notion I always tend to …
[6] This may be Roger Moore’s quintessential outing as James Bond, but The Spy Who Loved Me suffers from a wretched co-starring performance from Barbara Bach (Mrs. Ringo Starr) and a boisterous, sloppily choreographed climax on the sea. This is also the Bond that begins to tilt the franchise’s tone from ‘tongue-in-cheek’ to slapstick, thanks primarily to the introduction of the goofy Jaws (Richard Kiel) …
[5] James Bond (Roger Moore) goes into outer space to stop a bad guy’s plot to… you know, destroy the world. While Moonraker packs more action than most other Bond films, it’s also sillier than most. Richard Kiel’s ridiculous Jaws character makes an unwelcome return and the final act aboard the space station is laughably inappropriate for the franchise. At one point, after Bond has …
[8] King Kong, the grandfather of all monster movies, is an ambitious visual effects extravaganza servicing a fast-paced adventure story. The film’s action set-pieces have inspired generations, whether its Kong’s clashes with prehistoric creatures on spooky Skull Island or his iconic last stand atop the Empire State Building. The film works fine as a good old-fashioned matinee movie, but its “Beauty and the Beast” overtones …
[8] After finishing The Lord of the Rings, Peter Jackson tackled a remake of his favorite film, King Kong. Jackson’s remake is largely faithful to the 1933 original, while generously expanding the storyline and embellishing some of the characters. Jackson protracts the opening act more than necessary, but his interpretation of Skull Island is amazing. It’s this middle portion of the movie that delivers the …
[8] Special effects maestro Ray Harryhausen brings Greek myths to life in Clash of the Titans. The story centers on heroic Perseus, favored son of Zeus, who must accomplish several deadly chores in order to save his beloved Andromeda from being sacrificed to the monstrous Kraken. The film features a wide array of stop-motion animated characters, including Pegasus the winged horse, Bubo the mechanical owl, …
[5] After the unbridled silliness of Moonraker, For Your Eyes Only makes an effort to dial down the franchise’s more comic-book qualities. After an unceremonious pre-title demise of long-time supervillain Blofeld, For Your Eyes Only achieves that goal, but it struggles to forge a unique identity in the series. With yet another villain seeking nuclear power and a rehash of skiing and underwater stunts from …
[6] There is at least a certain amount of fun to be had in watching Clint Eastwood pump lead into Nazis. Where Eagles Dare is about a group of Allied forces trying to raid a Nazi stronghold to rescue a captured General who knows the secret plans of D-Day. The film tries very hard to be The Guns of Navarone (they’re both written by Alistair MacLean). …
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