19 replies to this topic

[Mr. Blofeld]

In honour of tim partridge, I've decided to create a thread to ascertain your opinions on:

Who is the Best '60s Bond Cinematographer?

Your choices:

Ted Moore (Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, and Thunderball)
Freddie Young (You Only Live Twice)
Michael Reed (On Her Majesty's Secret Service)
I've decided to stay impartial in this survey; let the sport commence!

[jrcjohnny99]

Tho its one of the weaker pics, I LOVE Young's work in YOLT; he an artist of the highest order and his work on YOLT may only be beaten within the series by Tournier's work on Moonraker...

[Ytadel]

Ted Moore by far. His work is gorgeous and he (along with Ken Adam as production designer) established the look for the franchise.

[PrinceKamalKhan]

Freddie Young. His work on You Only Live Twice is among the best cinematography, if not the best, rivaled only by Jean Tournier's work on Moonraker as jrcjohnny99 stated.

[Cruiserweight]

Michael Reed

[sharpshooter]

It's a toss up between Young and Reed, but I'll go with Young.

[Double-Oh Agent]

I'll go Ted Moore because, as Ytadel said, he established the look of the series and Thunderball looks fantastic.

[O.H.M.S.S.]

Very difficult choice. All three deserve very high marks for their work on the 60's Bond films. I'll have to go with Freddie Young though, really brought that epic, exotic Japanese feeling to that movie.

[PPK_19]

Very difficult choice. All three deserve very high marks for their work on the 60's Bond films. I'll have to go with Freddie Young though, really brought that epic, exotic Japanese feeling to that movie.

Agreed. Young did a magnificent job on YOLT. Probably why its my favourite Connery Bond flick. That shot of Bond running over the rooftop of Yamagato industries fighting off all the henchmen is a standout.

[Mr. Somerset]

Michael Reed

Ditto. OHMSS is brilliant.
All are great though and future Bond cinematographers could learn a thing or two from these legends.

[Colossus]

Young

[Tybre]

Tie between Michael Reed and Ted Moore for me.

[glidrose]

I'm going to vote for Ted Moore, tho' Freddie Young is in some ways superior.

 

Ted Moore: Dr. No and Goldfinger are stunning looking. FRWL isn't in their class, but the gypsy sequence looks fantastic. The rest of the film appears a bit grimy. TB is really uneven: the day scenes appear chalky but the night scenes are stunning and so sumptuous. Again, TB needs to be seen in widescreen to be appreciated.

 

Freddie Young: A better cinematographer than Ted Moore, but methinks YOLT could have been better shot.

 

Michael Reed: OHMSS. The day scenes are ugly. Muddy colored, when the colors aren't garish and contrasting. Flat tv-lighting. The night scenes are gorgeous.

 

A special shout-out to Nic Roeg's work on CR'67.

[Grard Bond]

Freddie Young!

You only live twice looks gorgeous and so much better than the other sixties Bond movies.

Ofcourse the first ones established the look of the films, but are not in the same class of the cinematography of YOLT.

[The Krynoid man]

Freddie Young

[Shrublands]

It's Freddie Young for me too.

[Satorious]

This one is torture! I'm going to go Reed, but I really want to shout an honorary mention to Young - who did some spectacular work on YOLT.

[Guy Haines]

My vote is for Freddie Young also. That said, one scene from OHMSS I particularly like, even though some of it is bound to be back projection, is that featuring the Draco helicopter force over the alps being intercepted by the Swiss Air Force. The combination of the cinematography plus John Barry's score was quite something, imho.

[glidrose]

My vote is for Freddie Young also. That said, one scene from OHMSS I particularly like, even though some of it is bound to be back projection, is that featuring the Draco helicopter force over the alps being intercepted by the Swiss Air Force. The combination of the cinematography plus John Barry's score was quite something, imho.

 

Yep, I'm with you. Don't know why but OHMSS's night scenes are as fantastic look as they day scenes are dire.

[jmarks4life]

I like Ted Moore here.