Best Bond Film

[JasonEvans]

So, I was watching Casino Royale on DVD last night with my son (we saw it in theaters too) and he remarked that it was his new favorite movie. So, I said, "well, you should see some of the other Bond movies then!"

That got me to thinking-- what is the best Bond movie ever. So, I put up this poll. Sadly, I am only allowed to post 10 options so I had to eliminate a few pretty good films. Still, I feel good about these 10 being the most likely to be on anyone's list of the best ever.

Enjoy and be sure to back uo your vote with an explanation:

[JasonEvans]

As an aside, did I leave out some film that should be elligible for the top ten?

-Jason "as I looked at a list, I was surprised how few of them were even under consideration for me-- there were about 3 or 4 and then not many others in the same category as the top" Evans

[Chance the Gardener]

Goldfinger and From Russia with Love obviously are the quintessential Bond movies. However, I'm also fond of the following two that were omitted from your list:

On His Majesty's Secret Service: Probably the Bond movie that was most faithful to the source material. Yes, Lazenby was pretty wooden as Bond, but I thought the movie had a nice balance of action and romance. Diana Rigg was excellent as Bond's short-term wife. Also, how can you go wrong with a movie featuring Telly Savalas?

Tomorrow Never Dies: Brosnan seemed alot more comfortable as Bond in this movie than in Goldeneye. Plus, its fun to have a villain that's a cross between Bill Gates and Rupert Murdoch

It would be interesting to have a poll on the worst Bond film. I bet there would be alot more diversity. My choice would be 'Diamonds are Forever': cheesy sets, bad jokes, and the pain of watching an overweight Sean Connery half-heartedly trying to recreate the Bond character he made famous.

[BluBones]

It's hard for me to leave off any Connery Bond, so the first thing I asked when I saw your list was, "Where is Diamonds Are Forever?" Even if it were on the list I wouldn't have voted for it, though. From Russia With Love is the pinnacle of Bondom.

[throatybeard]

First, I appreciate the good Bonds for their own qualities, rather than being one of these Connery-only chauvinists.

I'm probably the world's biggest Moore fan, but Man with the Golden Gun needs to be on a worst list, not a best list. The superior Moore films are, as Jason listed, Spy who Loved Me and Live and Let Die. Octo***** is quality Cold War, and For Your Eyes Only isn't bad. Moonraker has problems, mainly a wooden villain. I never need to see A View to a Kill again, and I'm surprised they made it.

I voted for Live and Let Die because it's my favorite, not because you can really truly argue it's the best. It's so deliciously stupid. It's got one of the best chase scenes in the whole Bond oeuvre, the boat chase on the Bayou, and probably the single most beautiful Bond girl, a young Jane Seymour. They haven't yet figured out that they want to make Moore the 1970s king of cheese yet, but the whole thing is silly enough the be appreciated meta-. I like Moore even better than Connery because I perceive Bond to be satire, not unironic action. Moore's funnier. If you're taking Bond seriously*, you've got a healthier suspension of disbelief than I can muster.

Die Another Day, the last Brosnan film, is the best of his four.

I want to like From Russia with Love best of the Connery films, but I had to concede to Goldfinger, even though the mad super-villain is not my favorite Bond formula.

* - I haven't seen the new film, but it's in my queue. I hear it's a real film, not merely a Bond movie.

[JasonEvans]

My top 5:

1. Goldfinger
2. Live and Let Die - I'm with Throaty on the great boat chase scene and I liked the ending with the sharks. Plus, when Bond uses the meat to send the Aligators into the bad guy cabin, well that's just cold ;)
3. Casino Royale - Great action nad a very believable Bond. Went on a bit too long, but enjoyable. Loved that Bond torture scene too-- nasty!
4. From Russia With Love - The movie that made all of us fall in love with Bond.
5. Goldeneye - The sight of Brosnan on top of that tank was just too awesome. The ending was pretty wretched, but I liked everything that took us to that point.

--Jason "I agree, the list of bad or disappointing Bond movies might be more interesting" Evans

[Chance the Gardener]

I agree the boat chase scene in LALD was fantastic. Also, its hard to go wrong with any movie featuring Jane Seymour ;)

However, LALD is lower on my list for two reasons. First, in the character Sherrif J.W. Pepper, it prominently features easily the most-annoying and unnecessary character to appear in the Bond series (Denise Richards as a nuclear scientist is a close second). Second, the death of the villain Kananga by inflation (where he basically blows up like a balloon, floats in the air, and pops) was friggin ridiculous. Couldn't they think of a more-realistic (by Bond standards) way to kill him off?

A Bond-related trivia question: What actor, who appeared in a relatively minor role in a Bond film, later went on to win an Oscar for Best-Supporting Actor?

[rthomas]

Did you actually censor yourself on the name of a Bond movie? What would you do with Austin Powers, Gold****** and The Spy Who ******* Me.

[throatybeard]

No, the board software did that.

You know what else is awesome about Goldeneye, Jason, is it probably has the finest opening stunt of all the films, where Brosnan drives a motorcycle off a cliff onto a plane.

They've spent more and more money for better and better effect in the opening stunt in the last two decades. (I'm not sure that some of the Connery films can even be considered to have one). Other great opening stunts can be found in Die Another Day (the hovercraft chase off a waterfall) and Octo***** (Moore turns his ultralight to 90 degrees through a door).

[JasonEvans]

No, the board software did that.

You know what else is awesome about Goldeneye, Jason, is it probably has the finest opening stunt of all the films, where Brosnan drives a motorcycle off a cliff onto a plane.

They've spent more and more money for better and better effect in the opening stunt in the last two decades. (I'm not sure that some of the Connery films can even be considered to have one). Other great opening stunts can be found in Die Another Day (the hovercraft chase off a waterfall) and Octo***** (Moore turns his ultralight to 90 degrees through a door).

And the opening stunt (which is actually an opening chase) in Casino Royale tops everything EVER!! If you have not seen it, you are really missing something.

Here it is- from YouTube: http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ovojHaug7U

-Jason "the idiot with his finger in his ear deserved to die!" Evans

[Jfrosh]

What about Moonraker? :D

Don't know what they were thinking when they made that one.

My all time favorite is Goldfinger.

[The Gordog]

Casino Royale is in my que, havn't seen it yet.

1. Tomorrow Never Dies - I love Micheele Yeoh in this movie, and I liked Bond's vulnerability when his hand seems to shake the slightest bit when he takes a shot of vodka realizing that Paris was going to be killed. Plus I hate the MSM so it fits.

2. From Russia With Love - great plot, often copied.

3. The Spy Who Loved Me - the best theme song, and one of the funniest. Great ski chase to open the film.

4. Die Another Day - Halle Berry!:)

5. GoldenEye
6. Live and Let Die
7. Goldfinger

[FewFAC]

Goldfinger - the title track never leaves my head
Die Another Day - visually one of the most appealing: the parachute stunt (by the villain, Bond's parachute stunt is about the only bad thing here), the ice driving, the swordfight, Halle Berry, the helicopter, the quips
From Russia With Love
Casino Royale - the freerunning was cool, but I rather liked Bond's phone call with M at the end

I think the best Bonds were left on the table thanks to Remington Steele.

[Reisen]

Casino Royale was absolutely fantastic. I'm going to stop by and pick up a copy on the way home from work.

I'm a lover of pretty much all the Bond films, although I'd have to put out License to Kill as probably the worst, with View to a Kill and whichever one had Denise Richards as the scientist (telling I can't even remember the name) down there too.

No one has mentioned "You Only Live Twice" and "For Your Eyes Only", which I think are pretty strong contenders for top 5 or top 10. Similarly, I'm a "Thunderball" fan, the underwater fight scene is pretty wild! At the time, the computer warfare game was considered ultra high-tech as well...

I'd probably move "Living Daylights" off the list (Just can't see a Timothy Dalton movie, who was easily the worst Bond, on the list). I'd also scratch "Man with the Golden Gun", and replace with the two I mentioned above. While I'm not a "Goldeneye" fan, it deserves a place on the list if only for a reason that it spawned the greatest console game ever...

[bluebear]

Casino Royale was absolutely fantastic. I'm going to stop by and pick up a copy on the way home from work.

I'm a lover of pretty much all the Bond films, although I'd have to put out License to Kill as probably the worst, with View to a Kill and whichever one had Denise Richards as the scientist (telling I can't even remember the name) down there too.

No one has mentioned "You Only Live Twice" and "For Your Eyes Only", which I think are pretty strong contenders for top 5 or top 10. Similarly, I'm a "Thunderball" fan, the underwater fight scene is pretty wild! At the time, the computer warfare game was considered ultra high-tech as well...

I'd probably move "Living Daylights" off the list (Just can't see a Timothy Dalton movie, who was easily the worst Bond, on the list). I'd also scratch "Man with the Golden Gun", and replace with the two I mentioned above. While I'm not a "Goldeneye" fan, it deserves a place on the list if only for a reason that it spawned the greatest console game ever...


Picking up my copy of Casino on my way too...

When I was younger, I really liked "For your eyes only" mainly because of the wide range of locations...definitely one of the more "adventurous" Bond films...Now, I like Thunderball, Dr. No, etc. better..which seem edgier and so much different than the Brosnan (and some Moore) flicks.. Casino is a great return to that..

[FewFAC]

I also thought of adding Thunderball, but thought the thread was trending more toward the cheesy Bond.

[Ping Lin]

My 5:

1. Goldfinger. Everyone's favorite, to be sure, but with good reason -- arguably the only film that actually improves on the original Fleming novel (which got ridiculous in certain places).

2. From Russia With Love. Probably the finest ensemble acting of the Bond series; just about everyone, from Shaw to Lenya, is terrific on the screen.

3. For Your Eyes Only. I'm surprised this hasn't gotten more consideration. My personal favorite Moore vehicle, this was a very slimmed-down and intense Bond, and compared to the other movies around it (Never Say Never Again, Moonraker) it's aged remarkably well.

4. The Spy Who Loved Me. One of the few Bond movies that feels genuinely epic in scope, with Moore's best acting moment ("The answer to the question is yes. I did kill him.") and the introduction of Jaws, what's not to like?

5. The World is Not Enough. Yes, it has the atrocious Christmas Jones, or else it would be ranked higher. But it's still Brosnan's best, and stocked with great characters and excellent writing. A somewhat flagging climax also lowers this, unfortunately.


Personally, I think a *bottom* five Bond is in order, and might be more entertaining -- you can start that poll if you like, Jason, but here's my choices:

Bottom 5, from bad to worse:

5. The Man with the Golden Gun. Some great dialogue between Lee and Moore save this from occupying a worse position, but I have to say that the slide-whistle stunt is a genuine nadir of the Bond films.

4. Die Another Day. I think about halfway through the film, the writers threw up their hands and confessed on the screen that they had no idea what they were doing.

3. Diamonds are Forever. Sean Connery, balder, fatter, and in a flamingo pink shirt! Just what we all wanted to see! Oh, no wait, we didn't.

2. A View to a Kill. Gives the lie to the proposition that Christopher Walken makes everything better.

1. License to Kill. This pains me, because I think that Timothy Dalton's a fine actor, and I think Living Daylights is a fine Bond film. But this film is wrong in so many ways that I can't begin to list them.

[aimo]

And, I've only seen Sean Connery as Bond, so I am obviously biased. But, I voted for From Russia with Love. I also really like Goldfinger and You Only Live Twice.

[dukepsy1963]

A bunch of us guys saw it in Durham...(first run)...the night before graduation in 1963...the karma was fantastic that night....

------------
I know....that was a long time ago...and then again it wasn't...time flies....

[throatybeard]

What about Moonraker? :D

Don't know what they were thinking when they made that one.


The movie, which isn't the best, or the opening stunt, which is great, and deliciously absurd? Although it probably irritates Physics teachers.

[Jfrosh]

The movie, which isn't the best, or the opening stunt, which is great, and deliciously absurd? Although it probably irritates Physics teachers.

I forgot about the opening stunt, that was fun, unreal, but what isn't in Bond films. What got to me was the whole "Jaws gets a girlfriend and turns good" angle.

[dball]

I forgot about the opening stunt, that was fun, unreal, but what isn't in Bond films. What got to me was the whole "Jaws gets a girlfriend and turns good" angle.

Richard Kiel's character does the same turnabout in "Pale Rider".

Point of reference: Kiel is same height as Zoubek.

[Lavabe]

Would someone PLEASE explain to me why Daniel Craig is still Bond? I gave him a pass on Casino Royale. I had hoped for more from him on Solace; I am greatly disappointed. It almost reminds me of the time shortly after Licence to Kill.

Then again, everything looks nice on BlueRay.:)

MAIN POINT: I am not changing my mind on this poll, some two years after it was first posted.

Paging Jason Evans: Is there any hope for the third Daniel Craig Bond?

Thanks,
Lavabe

[YmoBeThere]

I do think the value of Bond as a whole has been diluted over the years by other film series such as the Jack Ryan stuff or the Bourne series. Not that it wouldn't have happened anyway.

[captmojo]

"Where is Diamonds Are Forever?"
Stunning!


3. Diamonds are Forever. Sean Connery, balder, fatter, and in a flamingo pink shirt! Just what we all wanted to see! Oh, no wait, we didn't.



What we wanted to see was plenty more of Tiffany Case.

[DevilAlumna]

Some of the news articles around Natascha Richardon's death mentioned that she told Liam Neeson he shouldn't do Bond (he was in the running after Timothy whatshisname.)

Umm, Neeson as Bond??? I can't see that at all.

[DukeCO2009]

Would someone PLEASE explain to me why Daniel Craig is still Bond? I gave him a pass on Casino Royale. I had hoped for more from him on Solace; I am greatly disappointed. It almost reminds me of the time shortly after Licence to Kill.

Then again, everything looks nice on BlueRay.:)

MAIN POINT: I am not changing my mind on this poll, some two years after it was first posted.

Paging Jason Evans: Is there any hope for the third Daniel Craig Bond?

Thanks,
Lavabe

Are you kidding? He's great!

[YmoBeThere]

Are you kidding? He's great!

Ahhh....the voice of youth! Haha, I think there may be an era preference for Bond.

[moonpie23]

this is hard...

i'm going to have to say:

1. goldfinger (THE very best villain in ANY bond film..and prolly should have won something for it.)
2. dr no
3. from russia with love
4. casino royale (just a few things shy of making # 2)
5. You only live twice.
6. Our man Flint.


no remington steel in the top 5

no roger moore in the top 30

[ArkieDukie]

Think I'm biased b/c it's the first Bond movie I saw in the theater. I also liked Pierce Brosnan as Bond but didn't like Timothy Dalton. It goes without saying that I liked Sean Connery as Bond. I haven't seen any of the new ones with Daniel Craig in the lead role. Does that make me a bad person? :o

[moonpie23]

daniel craig is a BAD %@%@^ MOFO who would rather kill you than charm you....I like this presentation of bond.

[Icarus09]

Ahhh....the voice of youth! Haha, I think there may be an era preference for Bond.

Younger people, in this case males between 18 and 24, attend movies in much higher numbers than their older counterparts. So, if Columbia pictures is thinking about who to cast, and they know Pierce Brosnan is dragging the franchise down, it wasn't that surprising that they went with a bold choice. Does Craig behave like the bond in the novels or in the movies of old? No. But he does reinvigorate the audience that the producers are trying to appeal to.
As to the question of why Craig is still bond, both Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace have grossed around 600 million each. In 2002, Die Another Day, the last Brosnan bond movie, made slightly over 400 million. I would say Craig's doing fairly well (from a business POV) for the franchise.

[dball]

As to the question of why Craig is still bond, both Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace have grossed around 600 million each. In 2002, Die Another Day, the last Brosnan bond movie, made slightly over 400 million. I would say Craig's doing fairly well (from a business POV) for the franchise.

Die Another Day was $434M, a bit more than slightly over 400.
QOS was $567M, well shy of 600 and it cost nearly $100M more to make.

For me, the US boxoffice take is more interesting, Casino Royale was $6M+ more than Die Another Day and QOS was $2M or so more than CR.

While the films with Craig in them are doing well, there is no clear evidence those films wouldn't have done well with Brosnan or someone else. Each Brosnan vehicle was the leading US Bond film for its time. Each succeeding film picked up more dollars. I'm not sure that the box office take isn't as much tied into the increase in ticket prices as anything else. In 1995, Brosnan's first film, ticket here was $7 ($3.50 matinee), in 2002, Brosnan's last, ticket was $9 (matinee $5), last year for QOS, tickets were $11 (matinee $7.50).

[moonpie23]

i AM the bond demographic. despite my not being in my teens any more (physically) i have seen every bond movie on opening night at the theater since dr no.. with the exception of the last two pierce bros films..(die another day and world aint enuff) mainly because they DID have remmington in them...

and i love halle berry and denise richards.


brosnan's portrayal was becoming sterile. i enjoyed golden eye and tomorrow never dies, but, there was just something missing from the character....he wasnt JAMES BOND, he was PLAYING JB.

when they announced they had selected daniel craig for casino royale, i was thrilled....his portrayal and the writing are showing us a more realistic side of bond himself...

i like the darker side of craig, as i like the darker side of the Dark KNight..

[Icarus09]

Die Another Day was $434M, a bit more than slightly over 400.
QOS was $567M, well shy of 600 and it cost nearly $100M more to make.

For me, the US boxoffice take is more interesting, Casino Royale was $6M+ more than Die Another Day and QOS was $2M or so more than CR.

While the films with Craig in them are doing well, there is no clear evidence those films wouldn't have done well with Brosnan or someone else. Each Brosnan vehicle was the leading US Bond film for its time. Each succeeding film picked up more dollars. I'm not sure that the box office take isn't as much tied into the increase in ticket prices as anything else. In 1995, Brosnan's first film, ticket here was $7 ($3.50 matinee), in 2002, Brosnan's last, ticket was $9 (matinee $5), last year for QOS, tickets were $11 (matinee $7.50).

We've been looking at the same figures. I figured since we were talking about 100s of millions of dollars I could approximate a bit.
So are you saying that you'd rather see Brosnan still on the big screen? Do you think that he, in his mid-50s, would attract the more profitable younger audience than a man more than ten years his junior? Personally, I think his best performance (and the best movie of his tenure) was Goldeneye. He could have kept doing a decent job of course but I think it's safe to say that many professionals mulled over the personnel decision and figured a new Bond would earn more money. Brosnan obviously needed to be replaced at some point and I think he had the time to make his mark over 4 films. It'll be interesting to see how the next bond film does. I thought they could've done a lot better than Quantum of Solace.

[moonpie23]

well, when it;s all said and done, there IS a story to be considered. and the GOOD bond films had excellent villains. who were you scared of in QUantum? not really anyone....

i think that movie was more of a squash between a bond film and Sahara.


the next bond movie had better have a damn good bad guy!!!

[Icarus09]

well, when it;s all said and done, there IS a story to be considered. and the GOOD bond films had excellent villains. who were you scared of in QUantum? not really anyone....

i think that movie was more of a squash between a bond film and Sahara.


the next bond movie had better have a damn good bad guy!!!

Agreed, when studios are given a couple years to come up with a movie they should be able to come up with a good script.

[darthur]

As to the question of why Craig is still bond, both Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace have grossed around 600 million each. In 2002, Die Another Day, the last Brosnan bond movie, made slightly over 400 million. I would say Craig's doing fairly well (from a business POV) for the franchise.

It is not just business. Casino Royale is by far the best reviewed Bond film of the modern era, clocking in at 94% recommended on RT, compared to Goldeneye's 80% (with a good number of the reviewers listing Craig's performance as a highlight). Quantum of Solace was a step down at 65% recommended, but it still fared better than any of the Brosnan sequels. IMDB shows pretty similar trends overall.

Casino Royale is definitely my favorite in the series. It's overlong, but it benefit from modern-day special effects, it has the smartest script of the bunch in my opinion, and I think Craig is in the running for best Bond. Shrug - to each their own.