Right, well I finally got my James Bond Collection box set today so this means I have no excuses so I have to do some reviews of a few Bond films over the forthcoming days and weeks.
So the first one I have chosen to review is Sean Connery's fourth film, Thunderball, but over 50 years on how does it fair??? Well let's suit up and take a dive and find out.....
And as usual the warning I usually put will apply as follows:
SPOILERS WILL BE AHEAD!!!
STORY
So the story begins with Bond (Connery) killing off a SPECTRE agent, Colonel Jacques Bouver who is disguised as a woman and Bond later escapes using a jetpack. After this, Bond is ordered by his superior, M (Bernard Lee) to attend a health clinic to improve his general fitness where he meets a physiotherapist, Patricia Fearing (Molly Peters). However during his stay, Bond is nearly killed by Count Lippe (Guy Doleman) while Bond is strapped into a spinal traction machine and Lippe presses it into full speed but Bond is saved by Patricia and he seduces her after.
Also during Bond's time at the clinic he finds the dead body of a man named Francois Derval (Paul Stassino) who is wrapped in bandages. Derval was a French pilot for NATO who was killed at the hands of a SPECTRE henchman, Angelo Palazzi who has undergone surgery to appear as Derval's double. Palazzi then uses his disguise in order to sabotage a Vulcan bomber to which Derval was assigned to fly that contains two atomic bombs. Palazzi sinks the bomber, killing the other pilots onboard however he is soon killed himself by the SPECTRE Number 2 agent, Emilio Largo (Adolfo Celli) for trying to extort further money for his jobs. Largo then with the aid of his henchmen, retrieve the bombs from the plane.
Meanwhile just after Bond has left the clinic he is chased by Lippe (who Bond got his own back on by trapping him in an enclosed sauna steambox) but Lippe and his car are destroyed by Fiona Volpe (Lucianna Paluzzi) another SPECTRE agent for failing to kill Bond. Bond afterward attends a conference at MI6 where it is revealed in a taped message that SPECTRE want to extort 100 million pounds in diamonds from NATO in exchange for the bombs. And if SPECTRE are not paid then they will launch the bombs and destroy a major city in America or in the United Kingdom. Bond during his briefing recognises a photo of Derval who in the photo is with his sister, Domino (Claudine Auger) and he suggests that he be sent to Nassau, in the Bahamas, where Domino is based to follow up the lead.
And its from here that Bond along with the help of his CIA buddy, Felix Leiter (Rik Van Nutter) must try and find a way to stop Largo from carrying out SPECTRE's wicked plan to destroy a major city......
THOUGHTS
After the critical and commercial success of Goldfinger, Thunderball had a tough job in filling its predecessor's shoes but the film does manage to make a decent job at doing it even if the film isn't up to the high standards of Goldfinger. And despite any of the film's faults (and I will get to those in more detail in the flaws section of this review) it is still an entertaining Bond movie which features plenty of action on land and even underwater. It also features strong villains in the form of Emilio Largo and his subordinate, the sexy and dangerous Fiona Volpe who are both quite memorable in their parts.
The film however was also notable as being the first one to have been shot using widescreen Panavision and was even the first one to feature Connery in the opening gun barrel sequence, although why it took four films to finally feature Sean in that sequence is beyond me!
Thunderball was also noted for the legal disputes between by Bond's creator and novelist, Ian Fleming and one of his collaborator's, Kevin McClory sued Fleming for basing Thunderball on a screenplay Fleming had originally written with McClory. The legal wranglings however for McClory continued with MGM/UA (United Artists) throughout the remainder of his life as he tried unsuccessfully to make some Bond films himself although he did produce a remake of Thunderball, starring Connery in 1983 called Never Say Never Again.
PERFORMANCES AND NOTABLE SCENES (Warning: this section will contain spoilers!)
As for the performances in Thunderball, well the cast are all pretty good in their respective roles so I will mention the key members of the cast given it is a pretty big one.
And to kick off I will start with Sean Connery who once again is great as James Bond, aka 007 and by this time Connery had grown effortlessly into the part as he plays Bond with the usual mix of sly charm, charisma and tough readiness.
Connery has quite a few highlights in the film and the ones I will mention include the scene where Bond at the start of the pre-credits scene escapes the scene of the crime when he kills a SPECTRE agent, disguised as his own widow. And in the scene Bond makes his escape by using a jetpack as he flies off back to his car and he lands and undoes the jetpack with his female assistant saying "No well-dressed man should be without one!" and Bond says "Yes, very handy, get in!".
Then there is the scene when Bond attends the health clinic under orders of M and at the clinic he takes a fancy toward the physiotherapist, Patricia Fearing. And the scene in question is when Fearing puts Bond on the spinal traction machine and she leaves him only for the SPECTRE agent, Lippe to come in and try and kill Bond by putting the machine on at maximum speed. However Fearing saves Bond by switching it off later and she says apologises to him saying "I don't how that could have happened! You won't saying anything to anyone, I mean could lose my jobs". And Bond looks at her and says "Well....my silence could have a price!" and Fearing looks at him and says "You don't mean.....oh no....!" and Bond grins saying "Oh yes!" and the two of them go into the sauna and well, you know the rest!
Then comes the scene where Bond comes back ashore after narrowly avoiding Largo's men and he get's a lift (rather conviently!) from Fiona Volpe on the road. And Volpe during the scene aggressively drives her car approaching 100 mph and Bond looks uneasy leaving Volpe to say to him "Do I make you nervous?". And Bond replies "No, its just that I have no desire to be capsized twice in one night!". And Volpe eventually arrives at their hotel and she says to him "Some men just don't like to be driven" and Bond quips "No, some men don't like to be taken for a ride!".
Another good scene is when Bond meets with Largo and they go for a game of clay pigeon shooting and Largo gives Bond a shotgun. And during the scene Bond feigns naivety about how to use the gun and he watches Largo shoot the clay pigeon with his and Bond says to him "It looks very difficult" and another clay pigeon is fired and Bond shoots from the hip without looking and shatters it perfectly and he grins and says to Largo "Why, no it isn't, is it?!".
Then comes the scene where Bond sneaks into his hotel bathroom where Volpe is in the bath and he says to her "Oh, hello!". And Volpe says to Bond "Oh, Mr Bond, aren't you in the wrong room?" and Bond teasingly says "Not from where I'm standing!" and he goes and sits down next to her. And Volpe says to Bond "Since you're here, would you mind giving me something to put on?" so Bond looks down and casually picks up her shoes and hands them to her, leaving Volpe somewhat bemused.
And then after Bond and Volpe have a shagging session and get dressed, SPECTRE henchman turn up at the door and Volpe holds Bond at gunpoint. And as Volpe goes on about vanity and how "Vanity, Mr Bond is something you know so much about" Bond angrily says to her "My dear girl, don't flatter yourself. What I did this evening was for Queen and country. You don't think it gave me any pleasure, do you?!".
And second to last there is the scene when Bond tries to evade Lope and her henchmen on the streets of Nassua, he ends up going into an outdoor dance where Lope finally catches up with him and they dance awkawrdly with Bond looking around for her henchmen. And in the scene Bond spots a gun pointing out of a curtain at him so he manages to spin around in time just as the shot is fired, using Volpe as a shield, she takes the bullet in her back and she dies. And Bond delivers one of his best lines in the film as he leaves Volpe's dead body on a chair next to a couple and says to them "Do you mind if my friend sits this one out? She's just dead!".
And last of all is the scene when Bond finally tells Domino about the death of her brother, Francois Derval and he gives her his watch and dog tag that he salvaged from Derval's corpse underwater. And as Domino cries silently, Bond for the first time in the film, shows a bit of rare emotion as he shakily gives her the watch and dog tag. And Domino asks what happened and Bond puts on his sunglasses to hide his emotions "Its a long story and it involves your friend Largo". And Domino soon spots one of Largo's henchman, Vargos try to sneak up on them and Bond shoots him with a harpoon gun and he quips afterward "I think he got the point!".
Adolfo Celi next is pretty good as the main villain, Emilio Largo, who wears an eyepatch over his right eye and is the SPECTRE Number 2 main although I would have to say he is not as strong a villain as Fiona Volpe is and at times his character seems to play second fiddle to her. Celi however had his voice dubbed over by British/Italian actor, Robert Rietti, like quite a few of the foreign actors voices were in the early films.
Celi does have some good some scenes also that include the scene where Largo teases one of his henchmen, Vargas (Philip Locke) about he how abstains from sex, alcohol and smoking. And Largo says to him "Of course. Vargas does not drink... does not smoke... does not make love. What do you do, Vargas?!" who doesn't respond.
Then there is the scene where Largo meets with Bond and he asks him "Every man has his passion - mine is fishing. What is yours, Mr. Bond?" and Bond replies "Well... I'm not what you'd call a passionate man".
And lastly there is the scene when Largo discovers that Domino is helping Bond as he finds her with the geiger counter that Bond gave her. And Largo angrily asks her "Where did you get that?!" and Domino says "I bought it this morning" and Largo says "Mr Bond gave you this little toy, I imagine!". And Largo grabs her by her hair and pushs her into a cabin room and says to her "No, my dear there is no escape for you! Like your friend, you've been a bit too clever. And now you are caught!".
Claudine Auger also does well in her role as the beautiful Bond girl, Domino Derval who ends up helping out Bond after she learns that her brother died at the hands of Largo.
Auger's good moments include the scene where Bond tries to arrange to meet up with her and she turns him down and Bond says to her "My dear, uncooperative, Domino". And Domino (who has not told Bond her name at this point) reacts surprised "How do you know that? How do you know my friends call me Domino?!" and Bond says to her "Its on the bracelet on your ankle". And Domino looks at him in and says "So....what sharp little eyes you have got!" and she walks off, leaving Bond to quip "Wait till you get to my teeth!".
Then there is the scene where Domino and Bond meet up underwater and get down (literally) and dirty and when they resurface Domino has been bitten by a sea egg spine and in the scene Bond bites out her wound and spits it out. And Domino reminisces over her brother and Bond then breaks to her the bad news that he is dead and he gives her his watch and dog tags without saying any words and she susses it out and sheds a tear saying "Francois....he's.....he's dead".
And after Bond shoots Vargas in the scene, Domino agrees to help Bond in defeating Largo and she says to him "James, understand I am doing this for my brother. For what he did to my brother. Promise you will kill Largo for me, whatever happens" and Bond gives her a kiss to acknowledge that he will.
And last of all there is the scene (SPOILER!!!) where Bond has the climactic fight scene onboard Largo's ship as he battles with Largo and his henchmen. And as Largo has Bond at gunpoint and is about to shoot him, Largo is suddenly shot in the back with a harpoon gun by Domino and he collapses dead at the wheel. And Domino says to Bond "I'm glad I killed him" and Bond relieved says to her "YOU'RE glad???".
Luciana Paluzzi next up is great in her as the sexy and villainous, Fiona Volpe who is chiefly involved in Largo's schemes to carry out SPECTRE's evil plan and also try and kill Bond. Volpe is easily one of the series most memorable female villains and Paluzzi looks to be having a good time in the role.
Paluzzi also has some great moments that include the scene when Bond walks in on her while she is having a bath in Bond's hotel room. And she says to Bond in the scene "Oh, Mr Bond, aren't you in the wrong room?" and Bond teasingly says to her "Not from where I'm standing" and she says to him "Since you're here, could you give me something to put on?" and Bond her hands her shoes.
And afterward the two of them have sex and Volpe in bed playfully bites Bond on the shoulder and he says to her "You should be locked up in a cage!". And as they canoodle together in bed, Volpe stretches her arms up and holds onto the golden headboard rails and she says " Mmm... this bed FEELS like a cage, all these bars. Do you think I will be - safe?!".
And in the next scene, Volpe's henchmen show up and hold Bond at gunpoint and Volpe talks to Bond about his vanity and hers and Bond tells her not to flatter herself and that what they did meant nothing to him. And Volpe walks up to Bond and says "But of course, I forgot your ego, Mr. Bond. James Bond, the one where he has to make love to a woman, and she starts to hear heavenly choirs singing. She repents, and turns to the side of right and virtue... but not this one!".
And last of all Rik Van Nutter (great name!) does fairly well in his role as Felix Leiter although I wouldn't say he was the strongest actor to have played the part but he does well enough.
And Van Nutter has one or two good scenes that include his first main one where Leiter enters Bond's hotel room and Bond is at the other side of the door with his a silenced gun. And as Leiter start to say "Well, hello 00--" Bond punches him in the stomach to silence him as Bond is aware that a henchman might be in his room. And soon enough Bond finds the henchman in his bathroom in the shower and knocks him out and Leiter then says to Bond "Fine way to treat the CIA!" and Bond says to Leiter "Sorry, Felix, but you were about to say 007!". And as Bond drags the unconscious henchman out the shower, Leiter asks "Did you kill him?" and Bond says "You know me better than that, Felix".
And lastly there is the scene where Bond prepares to do battle underwater with Largo as he get's geared up with an underwater jet pack along with his scuba gear. And Bond quips at the heft of the jetpack "Everything but the kitchen sink!" and Leiter says to him "On you, everything looks good!" just before Bond dives into the water.
I would mention the regular supporting cast of Bernard Lee, Desmond Llewellyn (who for the first time goes to meet with Bond on location, wearing a very colourful shirt!) and Lois Maxwell but their roles are pretty brief in the film so suffice to say they all do well in their respective parts as you would expect. So with that being said I will not mention any of their dialogue just to save this section from getting any bigger!
DIRECTOR AND MUSIC
As for the film's director, Terence Young returns to the series after directing the first two films and Young replaced Guy Hamilton, who directed Goldfinder but he said he felt emotionally drained after his experiences of directing the film.
And Young does a pretty good job here with Thunderball although my main criticism of his direction would have to be that the film does feel a bit overlong overall and it could have benefited with being trimmed so the pacing is a bit inconsistent in places. Young also deploys the use of alot of underwater scenes and the underwater fight scenes are somewhat awkwardly staged.
Young also towards the end makes poor use of the front projection for the climactic battle with Largo onboard his ship, the Disco Valente, as the direction of the boat is frequently inconsistent with the images of the sea that are being shown that clearly would suggest that ship would have crashed alot sooner into the rocks! However despite this, Young does well with the film and he presents it as a good solid spy film with some good setpieces and suspense (especially the scene where Bond tries to evade Loupe which is really good and well built up).
As for the music, John Barry returns again and provides another fine score for the film and it features some fine new tracks. And my favourite track from it must be "The Street Chase" which incorporates Barry's own Bond theme, which he oftened used in the Connery era and its a great track as Barry builds up the tension in the scene very well with it. So overall its a very good score from Barry, perhaps not instantly one of his best but still a fine one by his standards.
And lastly I can't finish this section without mentioning the film's theme song that is sung by none other than Tom Jones and it is not too bad but for me its not one of the best Bond songs but it is still fairly memorable all the same. And the most noteworthy thing about this song was during its production when Jones sung the last note, he reportedly fainted in the recording booth and Jones himself said this so I guess it must be true. Anyway its a decent theme song.
FLAWS
As for flaws....yep Thunderball isn't quite perfect.
And to start off with the flaws I think the first one comes to down the pacing of the film as there are definitely certain scenes in it that are a bit boring and those scenes are chiefly the underwater ones, which feature in abundance here! And the underwater action as I previously mentioned is also a bit clunky in its execution and its rather convenient that the baddies were dressed in black and the good guys (presumably the CIA) were dressed in red, so we could tell which was which!
Another issue I had with the film was the whole idea of all the "00" agents being called to a big conference in response to SPECTRE's extortion demands of £100,000,000 in exchange for the two atomic bombs they hold. And as a result of this all the "00" agents are assigned to different locations to follow up leads on where the bombs might be yet Bond, at his request, to go to Nassau, is the one that get's the right location and finds the right bad guys as a result! I mean that is again pretty convient and also pretty inconvenient for all the other "00" agents who are basically wasting their time elsewhere! So I'd imagine that even though we don't see it, those agents most likely would have to be called off, since its a case of "Don't worry, Bond has this one covered, again!".
And further to this point, I guess its a case of NATO simply not wanting to give in to the demands of SPECTRE that they can't be bothered to actually give them the money they want (sorry the diamonds). However if they did pay the money then perhaps this would have ended the film a whole lot sooner and saved Bond all this trouble in the first place! But again it must the old "we don't negotiate with terrorists!" deal.
It also has to be said its surprising, or convenient at that, that Bond was never filed for sexual harrassment, particularly in the scenes when Bond seduces the physio, Patricia Fearing at the health clinic, as he first off tries to roughly kiss her and after she saves him from being nearly killed on the traction machine, he blackmails her into having sex with him! I mean it just shows what a prize asshole Bond really could be that ultimately he will use his dick to get what he wants whenever he wants without any cost! He not only has a licence to kill but a licence to shag antyhing that moves with any comeback aswell with it! (actually perhaps I should reprhase that!) ;-)
Then there is the scene where Volpe picks up Bond in her car as she is literally the first driver Bond get's the attention of as he tries to hitch for a lift. And not only that but she just happens to be staying at the same hotel as he is too! I mean now that is VERY convenient! Although to be fair Bond does make note of this too Volpe that it is "very convenient" that she stays at the same hotel as him too but it still doesn't make it any less daft or improbable.
And to elaborate further on the whole idea of Bond trying to steer Largo's ship, the Disco Valente away from the rocks, the film's use of front projection of the sea and the rocks is frankly ludicrous. And in several moments during that sequence we see Bond try and steer the ship away from the rocks but the front projection footage is clearly inconsistent with where he is steering and quite often you will see Bond is about to steer the ship into the rocks! So in reality given all that is going in that scene its extremely unlikely Bond would successfully steer the boat away from the rocks and he would most likely have gone up in smoke with Largo! But it is just a Bond film after all so we can just suspend the disbelief.
And last of all just how selfish is Bond that he leaves Largo's poor Polish scientist (played by George Pravda) who helped save Domino, to jump over the ship with just a life buoy, leaving him stranded in the ocean while Bond and Domino manage hitch a lift from a CIA plane! I mean the poor guy probably will either eventually get picked up or he might just be able to swim to shore if he is lucky enough. However Bond is quite happy to leave him to his own devices just so he can have it off once again with Domino, what a bastard! ;-)
Anyway that's it for the flaws.
SUM UP
So to sum up, Thunderball is an entertaining Bond film and a decent follow up to Goldfinger, however its not without its problems as it is a bit too long and is loaded with too many underwater scenes which get boring quickly. But if you can forgive the film all that then its still worth checking out and does feature some effective villains, a rather lovely looking Bond girl in Domino and Bond himself in good form delivering plenty of quips.
Right so that's it for now and I will be back soon with probably another Bond film review.
So till the next one its bye for now!
No comments:
Post a Comment