48 replies to this topic

[DR76]

TSWLM is one of the better Bond films I have seen. Despite the plot involving world destruction/domination, it seemed to have the feel of a real spy thriller. Kudos to director Lewis Gilbert and Roger Moore for one of his better performances.

[Cruiserweight]

9

[DamnCoffee]

10!

My favorite Bond movie (and first)
I love this movie so much.

[Aris007]

I watched it on Saturday and I had the best time of the whole week! Moore rocks in this one! His jokes are the best. And the action scenes, especially the one in Liparus are very good!

[DaveBond21]

I watched it on Saturday and I had the best time of the whole week! Moore rocks in this one! His jokes are the best. And the action scenes, especially the one in Liparus are very good!

Agreed. Also he looks very good for 49 here.

[Quincy]

I think TSWLM is a good Bond IMO, but not top 5 material as alot of posters claim. Moore's best entry? It very well might be although I am a big fan of FYEO. Stromberg is a great villain but I didn't care all that much for Anya or Jaws. Also, every time I watch this I have to skip the epic battle scene at the end. I hate it in films such as YOLT and TSWLM when Bond leads a group of commandos to face off against an army. It worked for me in TB b/c that was underwater and unique.

Overall I still think this is one of the better entries. 8/10.

[chrisno1]

In 2008 I watched all the Bond movies and wrote a series of reviews for another site. The aim was to watch them in order in the run up to the premiere of QOS. I succeeded and the reviews were well received.
However, subsequently, I have re-read my reviews and re-watched a number of the movies (the BFI had a whole 007 season earlier this year and I saw quite a few on the big screen again!).
This is my updated review for The Spy Who Loved Me.

THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
REVISED REVIEW 14/1/10

There is a moment midway through The Spy Who Loved Me when James Bond admits to his female Russian counterpart that he killed her lover, his justification being that “you don’t have time to think when someone’s shooting at your back.” It is an unsentimental scene and Roger Moore plays it perfectly, expressing with his voice the certainty his character is right while his face reveals the sorrow for the obvious pain he has caused. It is a powerful moment in a monumental film.

If Roger Moore finally finds his niche as Bond, and delivers his best performance, then he’s aided by producer Cubby Broccoli who belatedly throws off the shackles of the sixties and brings 007 bang up to date. We have a returning director in Lewis Gilbert, the man who helmed the visually impressive You Only Live Twice, and he brings a fresh screenwriter and a new photographer. Ken Adam also returns in abundance. The challenge was to create something from nothing, as the terms of the Fleming estate permitted only the title of Fleming’s novel to be used.

The Spy Who Loved Me touches on themes of nuclear war, food shortages and the future of mankind. The villain, Stromberg, is a maniac whose master plan is to house the survivors of a nuclear catastrophe under the sea; all he has to do is start the war. It’s insane of course, but that’s hardly relevant, what matters most is what we see on the screen and how much we enjoy it.

The movie starts at a cracking pace. Bond is skiing in Austria when he is attacked by Russian assassins; in escaping them he launches himself off a precipice and is saved from certain death by opening an emergency parachute. It is the most spectacular pre-title sequence since Thunderball and the thanks should go to ski-jumper/stuntman Rick Sylvester and cameraman/skier Willy Bogner. Aerial shots make a welcome return to enhance the scale of Bond’s predicament. From this scene on the audience knows they are watching something different. No longer is Bond tired and limping, he’s fresh, revitalised and reinvigorated.

Bond travels to Egypt where he meets the beautiful Russian agent Anya Amasova, cryptically code-named XXX. Barbara Bach is stunningly beautiful and her big round eyes and sharp face are suitably expression free; Anya is, after all, a product of the heartless Soviet Bloc. When she is required to seduce Bond, her eyelids droop and her lips part sensually; when she wishes to kill him she offers only a fixed steely stare. The scenes between Moore and Bach are excellent throughout, all yearning stares with guarded eyes. The element of will-they-won’t-they isn’t there – we know they will, but getting there is a delight. When she finally succumbs, the writer invokes It Happened One Night and the two of them undress on separate sides of an interconnecting door. Her role isn’t very physical and it’s a touch under drawn, but Bach makes the most of it, and Rosemary Burrows provides her with a series of stunning outfits to wear.

The travelogue around Egypt is well filmed by Claude Renoir, the first of a series of colourful and striking landscapes. Lewis Gilbert creates a tense atmosphere amongst the ancient tombs as 007 and XXX battle Jaws, a steel toothed seven foot killer who seems curiously impregnable. Switching swiftly to Sardinia, they meet Naomi, the buxom Caroline Munro, who also tries to kill them, this time from a helicopter, before they uncover more of the plot by using a Lotus Esprit that handily converts into a submersible. Munro has the distinction of being the first female we see Bond killing. It’s a pity she leaves the action so soon for there is some fine comic interplay between her, Moore and Bach.

Lastly the action moves to the Pinewood 007 Stage, or rather the interior of the Liparus oil tanker. So huge is this set, Ken Adam constructed a whole new sound stage especially for it. And it is suitably impressive, with gleaming gangways, stairways, monorails and three water tanks for the kidnapped submarines. Needless to say the plot is thwarted and the Liparus destroyed. Bond tracks his prey to Atlantis, a water-bound laboratory, where he finally kills Stromberg and wins the girl. It’s all highly satisfactory, with hardly a dull moment.

Is there anything to dislike? Well, Curt Jurgens’ Stromberg may be powerful, intelligent, decadent and stark raving mad, but he never once poses a genuine threat to Bond or Anya. It takes more than killing your secretary and leaving her shark severed arm on display in an aquarium to put the frighteners on 007. If Jurgens disappoints, he can’t be blamed for trying. The character is thinly based on Blofeld, the premise being that Bond would have avenged the death of his wife, neatly transposing Anya’s own revenge mission. Sadly a court injunction from Kevin McClory prevented Broccoli re-introducing SPECTRE. A story for the “if-only” brigade, then. In addition, Richard Kiel as Jaws, though brutishly impressive to look at, doesn’t cause our heroes any undue anxiety, except when disturbing their furtive love making.

The film is uneven at times and in between copious wry double entendres, writer Christopher Wood is referencing other Bond films. The plot is a virtual re-run of You Only Live Twice, except with submarines not space craft and it is Bond who frees the imprisoned crew, Jaws is another rendering of Oddjob, we have a special car from Q and an easily constructed wet bike a la Little Nellie, M has a hidden headquarters in an Egyptian tomb and there is even a fight on a train. Thankfully most of the copycat stuff is so well blended with the other bangs, crashes, kisses and uppercuts we hardly notice.

Importantly The Spy Who Loved Me has a new composer, the award winning Marvin Hamlisch. His score also dips painfully close to parody, such as when Bond and Anya walk the desert to the strings of Lawrence of Arabia or the clumsiness of the concluding male voice choir. But Hamlisch also provides an excellent finale, as the echoing music accompanies the cacophony of battle, and a whole series of evocative themes that match the silliness of what we are watching but do not overpower it. The Bond theme is revamped and Carly Simon sings an Oscar nominated title song, Nobody Does It Better.

The song title could almost have been the film title. There had been some doubts growing about James Bond; the previous few films had all failed to deliver in one way or another and Moore had not comfortably established himself in his role. But The Spy Who Loved Me dispels all those doubts, with interest. It’s a pivotal film in the James Bond canon and proved there was still life in Britain’s top secret agent. Stromberg couldn’t put it better himself: “For me this is all the world. There is beauty, there is ugliness and there is death.” In The Spy Who Loved Me, it’s there in abundance.

RATING 8 from 10

[Hotwinds]

So does this mean you dont like it?


I am watching it for the second time now with Roger's commentary which I get a great kick out of.
I may have agreed with you 100 percent years ago but now I love Roger and his Bond's. I think the only one I dont care much for is AVTAK which by the way is Roger"s least favorite. It needed to be bigger and more exotic.

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).

[elizabeth]

6. no idea why it's that high, but definitely not the best.

[sthgilyadgnivileht]

There is something about this film.
Its well respected by most, even if not liked by all.
Its not flawless but it is a powerful engrossing film. I think it could survive on its photography and sets alone, but here Moore really is superb, displaying all the reasons why only he could ever have taken Connery's shoes at the time.
Hats off to Lewis Gilbert for delivering Cubby's vision of a Bond film just too big to ignore.

[volante]

There is something about this film.
Its well respected by most, even if not liked by all.
Its not flawless but it is a powerful engrossing film. I think it could survive on its photography and sets alone, but here Moore really is superb, displaying all the reasons why only he could ever have taken Connery's shoes at the time.
Hats off to Lewis Gilbert for delivering Cubby's vision of a Bond film just too big to ignore.

After the qwirkyness of TMWYGG this film cements Moore as Bond. When we think back now to the following depths the franchise fell into; then TSWLM is a good stand alone outting

[SecretAgentFan]

Re-watched it. This was the first Bond film I had ever seen. My father took me to see this in the theaters when I was 8 years old. And I became a James Bond fan. This film and STAR WARS sealed the deal for me and inspired my love for cinema.

So, of course, I am biased. I do admit, however, that I had watched the film so many times that I kind of lost track about how good it really is. Four years ago I had watched it again, for the first time on DVD - and I thought: yeah, still great film but... I don´t know. Maybe I had watched it too often.

Now, having seen it on the remastered ultimate edition DVD with some perspective - I was floored how fantastic this film still is and always will be. I had such a good time with this.

Why? Moore really gives a signature Bond performance, the film moves extremely fast, has stunning locations (and changes them frequently which I like in a Bond film - a real travelogue) and surprising gadgets that still astound. It has a fantastic villain and Jaws as a scary henchman (he is still fear-inspiring in this one, I think, not because of his teeth but because of his sheer size: in the train sequence one can see how much he towers over Moore, his hand grabs Moore´s head as if he could crush it with no real effort). Also, the film is relentless. It always delivers the next setpiece.

The film often gets faulted for becoming too much of a fantasy. I don´t see that. In fact, I was surprised how much of the character interaction is rooted in seriousness. I had forgotten that Bond really gets insulted when Amasova is talking about Tracy. This scene, together with the IMO really well played scene in the hotel where Bond explains why he has killed Amasova´s lover, are the needed contrast to the fine-tuned (and never silly) humor that never goes over the top. I really understood in this film why Moore-Bond uses humor: to deflect from everything that is boiling underneath.

If there is one weak aspect about the film, then it´s Barbara Bach´s acting. She looks absolutely stunning and is most effective when she is reacting. But her vocal delivery at times seems... well, weak. But this is never a real problem - the editing makes it work.

Considering Marvin Hamlish´s score - I love it. Too much 70´s style? Hey, this film was made in the 70´s! Every Bond film is a sign of its times. And I consider the main theme which is also the title song "Nobody does it better" one of the greatest film score melodies.

By the way, I was always sad because the soundtrack CD did not feature enough of the score. Having paid close attention this time, I must say that there is not that much score in the film. And the "Bond ´77"-track is really a composite of many scenes in the movie. So, there is no expanded version needed.


So - to me, this film remains one of the best Bond films.

10 out of 10.

P.S. The tongue-in-cheek lightness of the title song actually works so well that I hope that Bond 23 will also go back to that style of theme song. Just to lighten things up and make it a bit more about having fun. Make no mistake: I adore QOS. But to have a third Craig-Bond being brooding and serious would be "old news". Craig has to refresh and show that he can be all about fun, too.

[Guy Haines]

Re-watched it. This was the first Bond film I had ever seen. My father took me to see this in the theaters when I was 8 years old. And I became a James Bond fan. This film and STAR WARS sealed the deal for me and inspired my love for cinema.

So, of course, I am biased. I do admit, however, that I had watched the film so many times that I kind of lost track about how good it really is. Four years ago I had watched it again, for the first time on DVD - and I thought: yeah, still great film but... I don´t know. Maybe I had watched it too often.

Now, having seen it on the remastered ultimate edition DVD with some perspective - I was floored how fantastic this film still is and always will be. I had such a good time with this.

Why? Moore really gives a signature Bond performance, the film moves extremely fast, has stunning locations (and changes them frequently which I like in a Bond film - a real travelogue) and surprising gadgets that still astound. It has a fantastic villain and Jaws as a scary henchman (he is still fear-inspiring in this one, I think, not because of his teeth but because of his sheer size: in the train sequence one can see how much he towers over Moore, his hand grabs Moore´s head as if he could crush it with no real effort). Also, the film is relentless. It always delivers the next setpiece.

The film often gets faulted for becoming too much of a fantasy. I don´t see that. In fact, I was surprised how much of the character interaction is rooted in seriousness. I had forgotten that Bond really gets insulted when Amasova is talking about Tracy. This scene, together with the IMO really well played scene in the hotel where Bond explains why he has killed Amasova´s lover, are the needed contrast to the fine-tuned (and never silly) humor that never goes over the top. I really understood in this film why Moore-Bond uses humor: to deflect from everything that is boiling underneath.

If there is one weak aspect about the film, then it´s Barbara Bach´s acting. She looks absolutely stunning and is most effective when she is reacting. But her vocal delivery at times seems... well, weak. But this is never a real problem - the editing makes it work.

Considering Marvin Hamlish´s score - I love it. Too much 70´s style? Hey, this film was made in the 70´s! Every Bond film is a sign of its times. And I consider the main theme which is also the title song "Nobody does it better" one of the greatest film score melodies.

By the way, I was always sad because the soundtrack CD did not feature enough of the score. Having paid close attention this time, I must say that there is not that much score in the film. And the "Bond ´77"-track is really a composite of many scenes in the movie. So, there is no expanded version needed.


So - to me, this film remains one of the best Bond films.

10 out of 10.

P.S. The tongue-in-cheek lightness of the title song actually works so well that I hope that Bond 23 will also go back to that style of theme song. Just to lighten things up and make it a bit more about having fun. Make no mistake: I adore QOS. But to have a third Craig-Bond being brooding and serious would be "old news". Craig has to refresh and show that he can be all about fun, too.

I actually liked Hamlisch's music score (less enthusiastic about the theme tune - too laid back for my liking) and I was disappointed when none of the action music he wrote for the film which was missing from the original release of the soundtrack album appeared on the remastered CD. A missed opportunity there.

As for Bond 23, a rehash of some of the "lighter" Bond films would leave me unenthusiastic. I'd go and see it once and then wait until the DVD came out so that I could watch it again and fast forward the naff bits. On the other hand, a 23 in the style of Goldfinger or Thunderball I would probably watch at the flicks many times.

[Lachesis]

A very good film, Bond or otherwise, and a solid 7 from me. (as per my imdb ratings, anything over 5 is a film I definitely enjoy.)

While the plot is a rehash of YOLT (even down to the dialogue in some cases) there's enough energy and gloss to make you forgive that. On the downside Barbara Bach and Curt Jurgens are not lighting any fires in the acting stakes but on the positive we have those beautifully filmed locations, some taut action and Moore...err more relaxed and charismatic in the role than ever before.

Hamlisch's score has tended to date, but it fits the character and mood of the film very well imo (but like Guy, the actual theme is a bit too laid back for Bond).

[Mr. Somerset]

10/10 for me. My fave Moore epic (though LALD and FYEO are tied for second). Roger is the definition of cool here. Very suave.

[Andy Bond]

Very good entry in the franchise. After the last couple of efforts, the film really stepped up when it came to being epic. The locations are great and there is some superb action, particularly in the PTS and the Lotus scene. It has everything people have come to expect from a Bond film. Stromberg is a good villain and I liked the majority of the scenes with Jaws partcicularly early on.

It's interesting that they decided to mention the death of Traci in this film after keeping a lid on it for so long and that was a really good scene, as was the one where Bond admits to killing XXX's lover. I can see the argument about it slightly being a ''greatest hits package'' , there in't much what we haven't seen before but the film does a good job.

8/10.

[Aziz Fekkesh]

This was the second Bond I'd seen in the theatre and I'm completely dippy about it. One reason is the music: Hamlisch, Mozart, Bach, Chopin. Old Fred's Nocturne in D-Flat made a wonderfully creepy background for the scene in which Mr. Sterling sees the PA's hand in the fish tank.

[Iceskater101]

I think it is so funny watching these movies now, when I was in 3rd grade, I loved how James Bond looked and that was all I cared about. Now, I watch the movies and actually pay attention to what Bond says. He is such a man whore...

[seawolfnyy]

Still my all-time favorite.