48 replies to this topic

[Qwerty]

From CBn's main page...

CBn Reviews 'The Spy Who Loved Me'
Forum members review the tenth James Bond film

[Qwerty]

Without a doubt, James Bond's All Time High.

[zencat]

Without a doubt, James Bond's All Time High.

Hmmm...I think that's Octopussy.

Here's my review.

It's the best James Bond film of them all. Period.

[Janus Assassin]

I don't remember making a review for that. But whatever, it's cool.

[Qwerty]

I don't remember making a review for that. But whatever, it's cool.

http://debrief.comma...ndpost&p=375656

[Janus Assassin]

Oh ok... so that what the countdowns were for.

[Qwerty]

http://debrief.comma...showtopic=24641

This thread explains.

[DLibrasnow]

To be honest I've forgotten which ones I have reviewed and which ones I haven't

[Qwerty]

You can check by reading/searching through those threads. They've all been collected in my post linked above.

[DLibrasnow]

Well I know the next one Moonraker was number 17 on my list -- in my opinion its the weakest of the Moore 007 pictures.

[Qwerty]

The Moonraker mainpager will follow in a few weeks.

[JackLordIsFelix]

I watched TSWLM the other night and was amazed at how well it holds up today. Aside from a few relatively minor things like the disco score and some of the fashions, it could easily be released in 2005. There's something not quite '70s about it -- it seems to channel the best of the Connery years with the larger-than-life Ken Adams sets and a story that takes its time developing. And Roger Moore is at his absolute best here -- I daresay just a notch below Connery's definitive Bond performance in FRWL.

[Qwerty]

I watched TSWLM the other night and was amazed at how well it holds up today.

Definitely stands the test of time in my opinion. It's one of the reasons that The Spy Who Loved Me is just so watchable. It's always a fun movie. The 'fantastic 007' idea clearly worked here.

[Qwerty]

[Moderator's Note: Poll added to this thread.]

[BoogieBond]

My favourite. Gorgeous locations, beautiful cinematography, the Lotus, Jaws, Ken Adams sets, the ski chase, more Bondian moments than you can shake a stick at. Beautiful women, gadgets , clever dialog, great song, Rog at his best, it all comes together in TSWLM.
I do like the film very much, by the way

[Aris007]

One of the best ever if not the best. Classic henchman, car and the most beautiful Bond girl of them all.

[sark]

It's a little Moore overblown than I prefer, but definatly one of Rog's two best (the other being the down-to-earth FYEO).

[dogmanstar]

I like Spy but would be interested to know why so many fans rate it so highly. I've never quite got it. Stromberg seems very weak, the plot is okay, but some things seem so . .. . . I dunno formulaic (?). SPY doesn't surprise me, on the whole, the way other Bonds do. But the best? I'm not sure. I'm not saying this to get a rise out the posters on this thread but asking for a genuine fan to help me see what am I missing.

[Turn]

I like Spy but would be interested to know why so many fans rate it so highly. I've never quite got it. Stromberg seems very weak, the plot is okay, but some things seem so . .. . . I dunno formulaic (?). SPY doesn't surprise me, on the whole, the way other Bonds do. But the best? I'm not sure. I'm not saying this to get a rise out the posters on this thread but asking for a genuine fan to help me see what am I missing.

I feel the same way. I didn't see TSWLM when it first came out, although I had the chance. It remains one of two Bond films I never saw on the big screen. I wonder if I had seen it on its first release if I would have liked it better. Instead, I saw it on television and after I saw Moonraker, which I like a lot better. To this day I tend to not rank the film very highly.

As far as its appeal, TSWLM seems like a greatest hits package and I think that's part of what makes it work for some. It was the first real epic Bond picture of the '70s as well and introduced Jaws, which helped, not to mention the ski jump ushering in the era of the huge stunt.

[dogmanstar]

Greatest hits package. Well said, I wish I had thought of that.

Maybe that is part of its appeal? After two very different films, Moore and the filmakers settle down a little bit to make a very 'big' Bond movie. Perhaps viewed in that way, but I'm still puzzled by all the ten out of ten ratings.

[DaveBond21]

Greatest hits package. Well said, I wish I had thought of that.

Maybe that is part of its appeal? After two very different films, Moore and the filmakers settle down a little bit to make a very 'big' Bond movie. Perhaps viewed in that way, but I'm still puzzled by all the ten out of ten ratings.

I first heard it described as a Greatest Hits package back in 1991, in the sleeve notes of a Bond themes cassette.

Yes, it's a great Bond movie, definitely in my Top 5. I love everything about it, the locations, the women, the cars, the villains, the plot. I especially love the outdoor scenes of this one. Plus it had the PTS that all Bonds since have tried to match.

[Golden Claw]

Like its two Lewis Gilbert clones YOLT & Moonraker, TSWLM gets nothing less than a big fat F grade from me for being the second worst Bond movie of all time. I just can't understand why everybody praises it sky high. I found TMWTGG a hundred times better. I'll just say it flatly: this movie nearly put me to sleep. No other Bond movie has done so, not even Moonraker & DAD (these 2 made me puke).

The only good thing about this movie is the extremely beautiful song. I wasn't impressed by the parachute jump either: Moonraker's skydiving stunt is much better. The reason I hate this movie so much is that it follows the dreaded Bond formula to a T. They should've only released the song without the rest of the movie.

Moore's second gunbarrel is the worst gunbarrel of all. The PTS is very average. What does this movie have that other movies don't? Nothing. Anya Amasova is supposed to be Bond's equal? What a joke. Nowhere does she give the feeling of being Bond's equal; and in the end, just like all the others, she is reduced to being a damsel in distress. Stromberg is the weakest villain of the series and Jaws is just your standard Bond henchman. This movie has some of the worst acting in the series. Rodge, after a fantastic performance in TMWTGG turns into a stone sculpture and Barbara Bach can't act for nuts. Rodge does not play British secret agent James Bond in this movie: he plays an aging superhero by the same name. Even the much acclaimed scene (Rodge revealing he has murdered XXX's lover) is very wooden and not at all tense. It's downright pathetic.

This movie is so predictable that right from the start I was predicting what would happen next and I proved right at least 80% of the time. I knew at the start that the dead man was XXX's lover. Some people claim that this movie is 'serious'. Poppycock. This is Bond made by Walt Disney: a very light-hearted, immature movie meant for kids. That's right: a little boy's Bond movie.

Wish this movie had never existed. An absolute disgrace to the Bond franchise (along with its 2 Lewis Gilbert clones).

[SPOTTER]

I gave the film 9/10. I don't know why. I should have given it 10 really. I think until 2006's CASINO ROYALE, this film was the last of the great Bond films. I loved Moore's first two and rank LIVE AND LET DIE my favourite but this film is great also. Moore turns in a another good performance,it has classic villains, one of the best Bond girls, one of my favourite title songs and one of the best pre credit title sequences. (and the plots not too shabby either)

Edited by SPOTTER, 21 April 2008 - 04:18 PM.

[Mr_Wint]

I just rewatched this films 2 days ago, for the first time since 6 years! And yes, it still in my top 3. A wonderful Bondfilm!

[BoogieBond]

I just rewatched this films 2 days ago, for the first time since 6 years! And yes, it still in my top 3. A wonderful Bondfilm!

Agreed. I think for me it is one film where everything clicked. They set out to make an epic Bond adventure with great action, humour and glamour and pulled it off. You cannot do this every Bond film and there are those that I feel it didn't quite work(what they tried for and what they achieved didn't work).
I think they pull the film off with style and panache. The ski jump still holds up, just because of the pause between him going off the cliff and the parachute opening. The bit where Bond puts the "out of order" sign on Kalba, I think is a nice touch.
I know the Epic, light hearted Bonds are not to everyone's taste. But TSWLM is one where I think it worked and was great. I would site CR as a film where they were looking for the more edgy, grounded, violent portrayal. And it clicked again. In a way it is the direct opposite of SWLM, but with the correct balance. CR has just enough humour and lighter moments, and SWLM, ditto has just enough serious moments.

Edited by BoogieBond, 21 April 2008 - 07:49 PM.

[DaveBond21]

and SWLM, ditto has just enough serious moments.

Indeed it does - including the ski chase, the briefing with M and Freddie Gray, the scene when Anya mentions Bond's dead wife, the conversation with Anya when Bond admits to killing her boyfriend, the bomb retrieval scene, and the encounters with Stromberg.

[john.steed]

The Spy Who Loved Me is my second favorite Bond film following only Goldfinger. While many Bond fans prefer the darker Bonds (i.e. License to Kill), I prefer those with, as BoogieBond called it, "style and panache". Moore is, after Connery, my favorite Bond and he was at his best, both in the lighter scenes ("keeping the British end up") and in the more serious scenes such as those with Anya. I also loved the opening scene, Jaws, the Lotus, and the music. The scenery is also great and this is one of Bond films that I would most like to see on a large screen again.

[Johnboy007]

10/10.

I believe it was the first one I ever saw, and it remains my favorite by far. After several consecutive mediocre outings they don't appear to be holding anything back this one. Roger Moore, Curt Jurgens, and Richard Kiel (before the ridiculousness of Moonraker) are all as good as it gets. A bevy of genuine beauties. The action is at its highest level: Bond skis off of a cliff, eludes a motorcycle and a car before driving off into the ocean, turns the car into a submarine, shoots a helicopter down from underwater, and leads an epic battle against Stromberg's forces aboard the tanker.

Some might say the one-liners are too much, but the whole bit in Egypt and "How does that grab you?" are classics.

Marvin Hamlisch's score was nominated for an Oscar, and Carly Simon's song is one of the best the series has had. As the song goes, "Nobody does it better!"

[jaguar007]

8/10
This is the first Bond I saw in the theater (saw some on TV prior). While I usually prefer the more serious BOnd films, TSWLM is one of the most well made and is the pinnacle of the "epic" bond movie.

[ChrissBond007]

7/10

Yeah I know that many people loved this one, but I'm not a BIG fan of TSWLM. Some years ago this was after Goldeneye my favourite Bondfilm, until I saw more. I love the first half, great pre title, the indroduction of my favourite henchmen Jaws and Roger give a exellent peformance as Bond. But I don't like the second half.

Barbara Bach looks good, but her acting wasn't that good, I think. Curd Jürgens is a good actor, but his character does nothing more than push buttons. Roger Moore and Richard Kiel are great, I love those confrotations between the two. Mayby when I watched it again I would rated it higher.