992 replies to this topic

[Double-Oh Agent]

1. Licence To Kill
007 on a mission of revenge done right. Excellent villain--the best in the series--great Bond girl, fantastic stunts, terrific story. One of the most underrated James Bond films.

2. Octopussy
Arguably the most underrated Bond film. Great plot and terrific villain(s) in a thoroughly enjoyable film. And I have to say that Bond in a clown suit makes sense--it's done seriously and not for laughs as he's trying to hide from the authorities after he stormed onto the U.S. base in an effort to stop the bomb. Now the Tarzan yell on the other hand....Other than that though, Octopussy gets top marks.

3. For Your Eyes Only
Fantastic stunts throughout along with fantastic score by Bill Conti in a terrific Cold War thriller. Only blemish is Ernst Stavro Blofeld's ridiculous "delicatessen in stainless steel" line. Love the scene of Bond kicking Emile Leopold Locque's car off the cliff.

4. GoldenEye
After a six-year hiatus we finally got the hero we wanted and all was great in Bondland. Pierce Brosnan and company deliver a thoroughly exciting and satisfying film from the dramatic PTS to the climactic confrontation on the dish. Bond most definitely was back.

5. The Living Daylights
Solid if somewhat confusing plot, terrific stunts, and a more serious tone help make this a highly entertaining entry.

6. Tomorrow Never Dies
Another candidtate for most underrated Bond film. This has action galore--nowhere better than in the PTS and garage park sequences--one of the all-time best 007 scores by David Arnold, and a kick-ass Bond girl. A whole lot to like in this one.

7. Casino Royale
Daniel Craig gives the best debut performance of any 007 actor. Jaw-dropping free-running scene and equally astounding torture scene, awesome theme song, and Eva Green's Vesper Lynd make this a top flight entry.

8. The Spy Who Loved Me
Roger Moore cements his status as James Bond with this thoroughly entertaining film. Terrific henchman, great Bond girl, unbelievable stunts, incredible production design by Ken Adam, and solid score by Marvin Hamlisch make this one great.

9. Goldfinger
The benchmark for all that followed. So many iconic moments--girl painted in gold, razor-sharp bowler hat, indestructible henchman, a larger than life madman out to destroy the West, laser scene, the Bond girl's introduction, and Adam's "cathedral of gold" in Fort Knox. it's easy to see why this is considered the gold standard.

10. Skyfall
Nice PTS, solid song by Adele, and Bond girls are very good, but while I enjoyed this, I'm afraid I don't seem to like it as much as most people. Nevertheless, it's a solid and welcome entry into the Bond canon.

11. Diamonds Are Forever
Highly enjoyable film that is entertaining throughout. Wint and Kidd make terrific henchmen, a great fight with Peter Franks, and the score by John Barry is excellent while Shirley Bassey performs her best 007 theme song. Biggest drawbacks are the lack of a revenge storyline, poor special effects, cutting out the scene where Plenty learns where Tiffany lives, and getting the Mustang's two-wheeled exit backwards. Despite those drawbacks, however, the movie remains a lot of fun and you can't help but go along for the ride.

12. Live And Let Die
One of the best theme songs by Paul McCartney & Wings, George Martin's score, the crocodile farm, and boat chase all make this a solid and enjoyable Bond film.

13. Thunderball
Bond at his cinematic peak. Sean Connery in top form, a beautiful and lethal femme fatale, terrific plot, and nice gadgets make this one the biggest Bond of all.

14. Die Another Day
While not a great film, this is the one gets picked on way too much in the Bond community in my opinion. There's a lot to recommend it (Bond's capture, arrival in Hong Kong, sword fight, and car duel to name a few) and while the final third isn't as good as what has come before it, it doesn't detract enough to ruin the film for me.

15. From Russia With Love
The most spy-like film in the entire series. Great plot, great cast, the best fight scene of the series on the train, and a solid score make this one one to remember--with love.

16. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
George Lazenby pulls off what many thought was impossible--adequately filling the shoes of Sean Connery. While he does not top the original 007, he at least proves he--and those who follow him--is capable, and worthy, of replacing the legend. With Lazenby's athleticism and physicality, along with Barry's score, and Peter Hunt's direction, prove that 007, like diamonds, is forever.

17. The World Is Not Enough
Great PTS and storyline, but the parts don't flesh out the whole. Denise Richards disappoints with her acting skills and Robert Carlyle's Renard loses something in the transition to the screen which is nowhere better depicted than in his final underwhelming confrontation with Bond.

18. You Only Live Twice
This was the big one in story and scope but it doesn't rise as high as the previous three entries in the series. Connery's lack of enthusiasm brings down the film in spite of the awesomeness of Barry's score and Adam's incomparable designs.

19. Moonraker
A mixed bag here with some terrific stuff--i.e. centrifuge and dog attack scenes--offset by too much Wile E. Coyote humor--i.e. Jaws surviving two high falls and a gondola crash.

20. Quantum Of Solace
The only 007 movie with stuff I absolutely hate i.e. shaky cam, hyper-editing, the character of Elvis, the killing of Rene Mathis and Bond's treatment of his body--make this film a huge disappointment and that which outweighs all the good of the film--the Craig Mitchell fight, the opera sequence, the confrontation with Yusef Kabira. Maybe my stance will soften over time but I'm not optimistic.

21. A View To A Kill
Terrific insane villain and fabulous theme song can't hide the fact that Moore probably went one film too long.

22. Never Say Never Again
Entertaining henchwoman but terrible score. If you ever wanted to see what a Bond film would be like outside of EON, this is it. It's good but a lot of things (i.e. EON trademarks) are missing and it shows. Still a good effort, but not one I'm anxious to see happen again.

23. Dr. No
The first 007 film. All that has come after owes a lot to it's style and success. That said, it also feels like the first one as it is smaller in scale than the others and not as over the top in the stunt department either. I enjoy the film and respect it immensely, but it is among my least favorites of the series.

24. The Man With The Golden Gun
A lot of potential goes by the wayside with Bond going up against a cold-blooded assassin. Feels like the movie could have and should have been bigger. Only significant stunt is the AMC Hornet barrel roll, meanwhile, Britt Ekland's Mary Goodnight is too bumbling for a Bond girl, and the energy crisis substory helps give the film a dated feel--and not for the better.

[tdalton]

• Licence to Kill
• Quantum of Solace
• The Living Daylights
• From Russia With Love
• Casino Royale
• Dr. No
• For Your Eyes Only
• Thunderball
• On Her Majesty's Secret Service
• Live and Let Die
• Skyfall
• Octopussy
• A View to a Kill
• The Spy Who Loved Me
• GoldenEye
• Diamonds Are Forever
• Tomorrow Never Dies
• Moonraker
• Goldfinger
• You Only Live Twice
• The World Is Not Enough
• The Man With the Golden Gun
• Die Another Day

Edited by tdalton, 02 December 2012 - 06:33 PM.

[Nicolas Suszczyk]

After this year's Bond 50 marathon re-reviews, here are the final results.

 

 

1. GOLDENEYE

2. TOMORROW NEVER DIES

3. ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE

4. CASINO ROYALE

5. SKYFALL

6. LICENCE TO KILL

7. THUNDERBALL

8. FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

9. THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH

10. THE SPY WHO LOVED ME

11. OCTOPUSSY

12. GOLDFINGER

13. MOONRAKER

14. THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS

15. DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER

16. A VIEW TO A KILL

17. YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE

18. FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

19. THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN

20. LIVE AND LET DIE

21. DR NO

22. DIE ANOTHER DAY

23. QUANTUM OF SOLACE

[TheFacility]

Ranking the Bond films is always somewhat difficult, as we all know our lists change from time-to-time.  The films are within a spot or two of where they should be (in my mind).  This is a list of my favorites, not necessarily a list of the "best".

 

1. Thunderball
2. On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
3. Goldfinger
4. The Spy Who Loved Me
5. GoldenEye
6. From Russia With Love
7. The Living Daylights
8. You Only Live Twice
9. For Your Eyes Only
10. Licence To Kill
11. Skyfall
12. Moonraker
13. Live And Let Die
14. Dr. No
15. Casino Royale
16. The World Is Not Enough
17. Tomorrow Never Dies
18. Diamonds Are Forever
19. The Man With The Golden Gun
20. Octopussy
21. A View To A Kill
22. Quantum Of Solace
23. Die Another Day

[MI6Operative]

1.- GoldenEye:
I do believe this is the film that saved Bond and redefined him forever. Brosnan is incredible, the way I imagine Bond to be. To me he has all the right elements of Bond without overdoing any of them, unlike Dalton, Moore and Craig. 006 is just brilliant, an incredible villain, with an interesting plan motivated by such an intimate reason. Of course there’s the addition of truly memorable characters such as Valentin Zukovsky and of course Judi Dench’s M. Bond’s best friend, his equal, as the villain? Bond driving a Tank through St. Petersburgh? A Bond girl that actually saves the world in the end? Memorable henchwoman? Adequate and moderate use of gadgetry? Sold.

 

2.- From Russia With Love:

Sean Connery is flawless and at his very best here. This, right here, is why he’s at the top of everyone’s favorite Bond list. This film is equally as flawless, a true espionage film, with memorable characters in Tatiana,Kerim Bey (played by my countryman Pedro Armendariz, in his last performance) Klebb, Grant and the shadow of Blofeld. Exemplary use of realistic gadgets that should be used more often in Bond. Quite possibly the most beautiful Bond girl. Exemplary is truly the word to describe this film. Every Bond movie should look back at this.

 

3.- On Her Majesty’s Secret Service:

Lazenby gives a very good performance for an amateur actor and his not being famous allows one to truly visualize Bond in him. A true example of what a book-film adaptation is. It is the most emotionally driven Bond ever, and features the immortal line: “We have all the time in the world”. Savalas to me was the best Blofeld and the development of Tracy and Bond’s relationship really makes you feel for Bond in this one. It’s indispensable in understanding who Bond really is. It’s just obligatory to watch this to any Bond fans.

 

4.- Licence To Kill:
Dalton is incredible as Bond, so dark, full of emotion, although mostly negative ones. You really feel the parallel of OHMSS’s ending and LTK’s beginning, and in that way you really understand what is Bond’s drive and how intimate it is.  The fact that you’ve followed the Leiter character through all of Bond’s films really makes it hit the mark, surpassing the genre of films where the cop is avenging his partner. Great film, set in a more realistic world, essentially doing what Craig is getting all the praise for, except decades before.

 

5.- For Your Eyes Only:

Others speak of TSWLM as Moore’s best, but this is it for me. A necessary comeback to basics, FYEO is truly a masterful spy film, with one of Bond’s coldest kills yet and incredibly suspenseful sequences that manage what other films can’t without nuking the fridge in the attempt, not to mention Moore’s best performance as Bond. The throwbacks to elements of FRWL and OHMSS are there but this movie really owns its story. The fact that it features one of the most useful and beautiful Bond girls is just the cherry top.

 

6.- Goldfinger:
Really, the film that codified the Bond tropes, this is an utter classic. Goldfinger, Oddjob, the revered Aston Martin loaded with gadgets, the “Bond as the villain’s guest” thing, it’s all there. And of course, who could forget Pussy Galore. This film is the definition of quintessential Bond.

 

7.- Tomorrow Never Dies:

Brosnan’s second Bond. I always though that Carver, while over the top, was one of the more believable villains, seeing as how communication tycoons really DO try to take over the world in one way or the other. The appearance of the true Bond girl to match Bond: Wai Lin played by the great Michelle Yeoh, is memorable, as is the arrival of the Walther P99, the incredible back-seat driving sequence, ample use of mostly believable gadgets, great action, all in all make this a truly enjoyable film, if a little light on the story.

 

8.- Thunderball:

Connery’s Bond at it’s most grandious, the sheer scale of the film is to be commended. It’s still the highest grossing  Bond film ever after adjusting for inflation, and it features a truly unforgettable underwater battle royale, a sequence that really blew me away. Add to that one of the most unforgettable girls ever, quite possibly my favorite, in Domino, and I’m sold.

 

9.- Live and Let Die:

Moore’s first film as 007 is drastically different from all the other Bonds, set in the U.S against drug smugglers whilst adding a refreshing mystical element in Solitaire and Baron Samedi. Truly memorable characters, quite possibly the best Bond song by Paul McCartney, great action and Moore in a memorable Bond outfit sporting a veritable Handcannon all make this film great.

 

10.- The Living Daylights:

Dalton’s first was a welcome change of pace to a more serious Bond, although still not as serious as LTK. Dalton really owns Bond and the action and story are both entertaining, with a unique change of scenery to the Middle East, having Bond as ally of the Afghan resistance. Unique and very well made, Dalton is for me the biggest draw of the film.

 

11.- The Spy Who Loved Me:

The epitome of Moore’s style of Bond films, this is an apt celebration of 10 years of Bond, and it has everything a Bond film should have. Agent XXX is also a welcomed addition to Bond lore and a truly remarkable character, alongside the unforgettable Jaws. This is as far as a Bond film should go in regards to fantasy without getting too over the top.

 

12.- You Only Live Twice:

Connery’s second to last performance as Bond is also a remarkable film, finally introducing us to Blofeld in person, in his secret volcano lair (it feels awesome to type those words), thus making this film one of the main codifiers of the entire franchise, made complete with great action scenes, memorable ally Tiger and the then-exotic Japan. It’s down point for me though is playing into old racial stereotypes by having Connery disguised as a japanese man, complete with slouched posture, wacky hair-piece and cosmetically slanted eyes.

 

13.- The World is Not Enough

I never got the hate for this film. Yes, Richards is despicable and possibly the worst Bond girl ever. That being said everything else is perfectly fine, with a good plot and introducing a truly unique villain in the character of Elektra. Brosnan gave such a great performance as Bond that Ebert called him “after Connery, the best Bond”, and I agree. In this film, he is hurt, vulnerable, betrayed, we do get to see an interesting side of him. Zukovsky’s return as a truly charismatic man and the villain Renard are great additions, though Renard was left a bit unexplored. Dench’s involvement in the story was genius and it features a truly immortal and defining Bond quote: “I never miss”. Hell, the villain and motivations are so good, they were ripped off in order to make Skyfall!

 

14.- Dr. No:

The one that made it all possible deserves its credit and, in retrospective, is refreshing in its small scope and simplicity when compared to the more grandiose Bond films. Connery is amazing as Bond and as a plus, it features my favorite Felix Leiter appearance. Dr. No is a memorable villain, setting the archetype for many disfigured menaces yet to come, though I wish we had seen more of him. “That’s a Smith and Wesson, and you’ve had your six”.

 

15.- Skyfall:

Everyone’s new favorite is a very good film, but not flawless as everyone seems to think. Bardem and Dench really carry the film, and the advent of Fiennes as the new M is applause-worthy and Kudos to the new Q. However I resent that this film is to The Dark Knight what Moonraker is to Star Wars, and that several important elements of it seem to be recycled from GE and TWINE. Bond should be the trendsetter, and not the follower. And I also fear the film is afraid of Bond. They fear the gadgets, the wit, the fortitude and unrealistic infallibility of him. They keep mentioning the Old ways are best, yet shy away from them. Bond does nothing but utterly fail at everything he sets out to do in this film, except perhaps not getting killed himself. However, dwelling into Bond’s origins is a good idea, even if the climax had all the style of Home Alone: All Grown Up. I loved the “Welcome to Scotland” line, and the “back to square 1” feeling the ending gave you though

 

16.- Casino Royale:

I’ll never be able to look at Craig and think of “Bond”, perhaps because of the same reason why Dalton fans dislike Brosnan. That being said, Royale is a great film full of great performances by most of the cast, shining through its casino scenes and the appearance of Vesper. It helps one understand the character of Bond. However, as an unpopular opinion I’d like to add that it has what for me is the most un-Bondian quote ever, regarding Le Chiffre’s dying while scratching Bond’s man-bits. Bond would never say that, and if he did, he would have done so with style and class, unlike the Jersey Shore delivery we got here.

 

17.- Die Another Day:

The much reviled last Brosnan film! It truly doesn’t deserve all the hate it gets. Compared to other fantastic films such as DAF and MR, this is rather tame. The first half or so of the movie, up to arriving at the Ice Palace is some of the best Bond ever. A solitary Bond, reeling from being betrayed and having spent months in torture, now on his own, hunting the villains in communist Cuba armed with only a revolver? Incredible. However, Jinx is possibly the second worst Bond girl ever and the CGI in the ice surfing scene is ridiculous. Icarus in an off itself as well as the invisible car aren’t that far fetched when compared with the rest of the franchise, but are out of place. Brosnan’s performance, however, is really good through and through.

 

18.- Diamonds Are Forever:

The last film from a difficult and bored Connery. It started the trend of over the top antics with lunar buggy chases, bland action, and attempts at comedy such as the whole “changing the master cassette back and forth antic”. However Blofeld was enjoyable, if totally devoid of dignity after seeing him in drag, and Connery remains Connery. An enjoyable film, like all Bond films, but still one of the worse.

 

19.- A View To A Kill:

As bad as some view this film to be, I rather liked several parts of it, particularly the fact that it was more serious about itself than most of Moore’s era. The strongest point of the film is certainly Christopher Walken as Max Zorin, with his psychopathic savagery hiding skin-deep behind his radiant smile. However, Moore, pushing 60 is way to old for the role and looks very out of place, and that PTS with that musical theme... I cringe.

 

20.- Octopussy:

This film is quite enjoyable but the whole campiness of it really drags it down. It gets points for featuring Q prominently and the scenes in India, though. In the end, Bond flies through the jungle bellowing like Tarzan, spends a good portion of the movie dressed as a circus performer and the final act disguised as a clown. I’m sorry, it might have made sense in context (it really didn’t, it felt forced) but it’s just out of place.

 

 

21.- Moonraker:

The epitome of silliness, of the zany, over the top Moore films. Oh, you can’t argue this film is fun. I was laughing half through it and facepalming through the rest. It’s a great laugh, like it was intended to be, but it strays so far from real Bond that it cannot be considered a good Bond film. It’s not the Sci-Fi that I hate, mostly its the fact that, like Skyfall, it tried to cash in on the success of another, unrelated great film. That’s just something I dislike on principle. But Moore kept his chin up through it all, the film delivers on the laughs and Drax is an interesting enough villain.

 

22.- The Man With The Golden Gun:

As a kid growing up I was under the impression that this was the best Bond film ever, not because I had seen it but because of how revered Scaramanga seemed to be, how often the title was mentioned, etc. It truly was a wasted opportunity and a self parody of the Bond tropes. It features what could have been a marvelous Bond villain in the form of Christopher Lee’s Scaramanga, but everything else is just cringe worthy, with silly sound-effects over great stunts and a truly imbecilic Bond girl. Never again do I hope to see Bond firmly grasp a Sumo wrestler’s backside.

 

23.- Quantum of Solace:

As I said, I’m not a Craig fan and will never rank him as the best Bond, but that is not the reason why this is at the bottom. As mentioned before, I find every Bond film to be enjoyable one way or the other, but this movie just isn’t a Bond film. It features this strange blonde character “James Bourne” who spends all movie doing the most un-bondian things imaginable. As I said, I dislike Bond films that try to imitate other successful films; this one is the worst, because it completely tries to alter Bond into Bourne, a clear no-no. Ah well. Olga Kurylenko is radiant?

[Call Me Hilly]

1st On Her Majesty's Secret Service

2nd Skyfall

3rd Casino Royale

4th Licence To Kill

5th The Living Daylights

6th From Russia With Love

7th Moonraker

8th Thunderball

9th You Only Live Twice

10th The Man With The Golden Gun

11th The Spy Who Loved Me

12th Octopussy

13th Goldfinger

14th Diamonds Are Forever

15th Quantum Of Solace

16th For Your Eyes Only

17th Goldeneye

18th A View To A Kill

19th Live And Let Die

20th Dr No

21st Tomorrow Never Dies

22nd The World Is Not Enough

23rd Die Another Day

 

If we include the 2 unofficial films, Never Say Never Again would be 12th, while the original Casino Royale would be way last!

A couple of points:

As you can see, im not a great fan of the Brosnan films although I like Brosnan as Bond. Its a shame he wasnt given a really good story to work from as Dalton before and Craig after have done.

I think Goldfinger and especially Dr No are overrated and Moonraker underrated (the sequence where the girl leads Bond through the temple is stunning, especially in HD).

Also I dont know what that means, but my top 3 films all have the leading lady die at the end!  

 

[Mallory]

1. Skyfall

2. On Her Majesty's Secret Service

3. From Russia with Love

4. Goldfinger

5. Casino Royale

6. The Living Daylights

7. Licence to Kill

8. The Spy Who Loved Me 

9. For Your Eyes Only

10. Octopussy

11. GoldenEye

12. Thunderball

13. Live and Let Die

14. Quantum of Solace

15. Dr. No

16. Moonraker

17. A View to a Kill

18. Diamonds are Forever

19. You Only Live Twice

20. The World is Not Enough

22. Tomorrow Never Dies

23. Die Another Day

 

 

 

I would put Never Say Never Again just above Moonraker.

[FredJB007]

1. Skyfall
2. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
3. From Russia with Love
4. Goldfinger
5. Casino Royale
6. The Living Daylights
7. Licence to Kill
8. The Spy Who Loved Me 
9. For Your Eyes Only
10. Octopussy
11. GoldenEye
12. Thunderball
13. Live and Let Die
14. Quantum of Solace
15. Dr. No
16. Moonraker
17. A View to a Kill
18. Diamonds are Forever
19. You Only Live Twice
20. The World is Not Enough
22. Tomorrow Never Dies
23. Die Another Day
 
 
 
I would put Never Say Never Again just above Moonraker.

Mallory, this is the best list I've seen so far. I agree with you 100%. Nice job.

[Mallory]

Thanks, Fred! It was a little difficult to put together. Chosing Octopussy over GoldenEye was difficult but I got more out of Octopussy.  I would rank Thunderball higher mostly because Domino and Fiona but I had to incorperate my brain into the list. 

 

I figure not many would agree with my low placing of YOLO but it really is my least favorite Connery film. 

 

Top five was easy. 

[B5Erik]

So here's the updated list circa 2012 including QOS and Skyfall (NOW UPDATED AFTER REWATCHING SEVERAL BOND MOVIES):

1. Licence To Kill
2. Dr. No
3. From Russia With Love
4. Thunderball
5. Skyfall
6. Casino Royale
7. The Living Daylights
8. For Your Eyes Only
9. Tomorrow Never Dies
10. Goldeneye
11. You Only Live Twice
12. The Spy Who Loved Me
13. The World Is Not Enough

14. Quantum of Solace
15. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
16. A View To A Kill
17. Octopussy
18. Never Say Never Again
19. Goldfinger
20. Diamonds Are Forever
21. The Man With The Golden Gun
22. Die Another Day
23. Moonraker
24. Live And Let Die

Edited by B5Erik, 31 December 2012 - 06:47 AM.

[SecretAgentFan]

Wow. LALD is your least liked. Unusual placing.

[PriveJJ]

1 From Russia With Love
2 The Living Daylights
3 Goldeneye
4 Licence To Kill
5 Casino Royale
6 For Your Eyes Only
7 Skyfall
8 A View to a Kill
9 Dr. No
10 Live and Let Die
11 Goldfinger
12 You Only Live Twice
13 The Man with the Golden Gun
14 Octopussy
15 Quantum of Solace
16 Tomorrow Never Dies
17 The Spy Who Loved Me
18 Moonraker
19 On Her Majesty's Secret Service
20 The World Is Not Enough
21 Thunderball
22 Die Another Day
23 Diamonds Are Forever

Edited by PriveJJ, 07 February 2013 - 08:32 PM.

[seawolfnyy]

TSWLM at 17 and TB at 21?...interesting

[PriveJJ]

TSWLM at 17 and TB at 21?...interesting

 

I've never been able to get into Thunderball, which is funny, because I've always enjoyed the book. The Spy Who Loved me is ok, nevertheless I've maybe been a touch harsh with its placing - it could be a place or two higher. Positions 8-13 are fairly interchangeable for me, I dislike the last two immensely though.

[Aziz Fekkesh]

TSWLM at 17 and TB at 21?...interesting

 

I've never been able to get into Thunderball, which is funny, because I've always enjoyed the book. The Spy Who Loved me is ok, nevertheless I've maybe been a touch harsh with its placing - it could be a place or two higher. Positions 8-13 are fairly interchangeable for me, I dislike the last two immensely though.

I watched "Die Another Day" again on Blu-Ray just the other... day and as a result it has now plummeted like a stone to the very bottom of both my best-to-worst and favourites lists. There's much in it that I enjoy but the sleazy innuendo and the substitution of crap CGI for stuntwork make for painful viewing.

[TheLivingDaylights]

1. On Her Majesty's Secret Service

2. Skyfall

3. From Russia With Love

4. Casino Royale

5. GoldenEye

6. Goldfinger

7. The Living Daylights

8. Dr. No

9. Licence to Kill

10. Live and Let Die

11. Thunderball

12. Quantum of Solace

13. You Only Live Twice

14. Tomorrow Never Dies

15. For Your Eyes Only

16. The World is Not Enough

17. Moonraker

18. The Spy Who Loved Me

19. Diamonds are Forever

20. The Man with the Golden Gun

21. A View to a Kill

22. Octopussy

23. Die Another Day

[Hockey Mask]

TSWLM at 17 and TB at 21?...interesting

 

I've never been able to get into Thunderball, which is funny, because I've always enjoyed the book. The Spy Who Loved me is ok, nevertheless I've maybe been a touch harsh with its placing - it could be a place or two higher. Positions 8-13 are fairly interchangeable for me, I dislike the last two immensely though.

Thunderball makes my eyelids heavy...every time.

[sharpshooter]

My attempt at a revised ranking. I always find these tough.

 

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
From Russia With Love
Doctor No
Thunderball

Goldfinger
You Only Live Twice

 

Skyfall

Casino Royale
The Spy Who Loved Me
Moonraker
Goldeneye
Quantum of Solace

 

Licence to Kill

The Living Daylights

Octopussy
Tomorrow Never Dies
Diamonds Are Forever
Live and Let Die

The Man With The Golden Gun
For Your Eyes Only
Die Another Day
The World is not Enough
A View to a Kill

[seawolfnyy]

 

TSWLM at 17 and TB at 21?...interesting

 

I've never been able to get into Thunderball, which is funny, because I've always enjoyed the book. The Spy Who Loved me is ok, nevertheless I've maybe been a touch harsh with its placing - it could be a place or two higher. Positions 8-13 are fairly interchangeable for me, I dislike the last two immensely though.

I watched "Die Another Day" again on Blu-Ray just the other... day and as a result it has now plummeted like a stone to the very bottom of both my best-to-worst and favourites lists. There's much in it that I enjoy but the sleazy innuendo and the substitution of crap CGI for stuntwork make for painful viewing.

DAD is a sore spot for me too. Just so much wasted potential. However, I will say that the film looks fantastic on Blu-Ray. While the second half of the film is damn near unwatchable plotwise, the film looks great in all its 1080p glory.

[Walecs]

Skyfall

GoldenEye

On Her Majesty's Secret Service

From Russia With Love

Casino Royale

Licence To Kill

For Your Eyes Only

The World Is Not Enough

Die Another Day

Tomorrow Never Dies

The Man With The Golden Gun

Doctor No

Goldfinger

Casino Royale '67

The Spy Who Loved Me

The Living Daylights

Live And Let Die

Thunderball

Diamonds are Forever

A View To A Kill

Moonraker

You Only Live Twice

Quantum of Solace

Octopussy

[Stubris]

Updated after recent re-viewings to include Skyfall & non EON productions.


CASINO ROYALE
OHMSS
SKYFALL
FOR YOUR EYES ONLY
FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE
THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS
THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
OCTOPUSSY
DR NO
QUANTUM OF SOLACE
GOLDFINGER
GOLDENEYE
MOONRAKER
LICENCE TO KILL
THUNDERBALL
LIVE AND LET DIE
YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE
THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH
A VIEW TO A KILL
TOMORROW NEVER DIES
THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN
DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER
DIE ANOTHER DAY
NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN
CASINO ROYALE 67

High climb for QOS...Goldeneye falls a bit...Skyfall amongst the cream already.

[Georgi Koskov]

1) Goldfinger
2) From Russia with Love

3) The Spy Who Loved Me

4) Skyfall

5) Goldeneye

6) Casino Royale

7) The Living Daylights

8) OHMSS

9) Dr No

10) Live and Let Die

11) Octopussy

12) Tomorrow Never Dies

13) Thunderball

14) Licence to Kill

15) A View To A Kill

16) For Your Eyes Only

17) The World is not Enough

18) The Man with the Golden Gun

19) You Only Live Twice

20) Moonraker

21) Die Another Day

22) Diamonds are Forever

23) Quantum of Solace

[Professor Pi]

I read through all these posts last night (Yes, ALL of them from 2002 on ... ) and there were a few interesting trends:

 

Only one person ranked The Man with the Golden Gun as their #1, but knocked it down in subsequent rankings.

No one ranked Tomorrow Never Dies as their #1. (I claimed it on another post "One of these has to be someone's favorite Bond movie")

Every other Bond movie was picked by someone to be #1.

DAD started out that way before it fell to the bottom within a year or so.

QoS started out that way, but fell to somewhere between #5 to #10 for most people.

Skyfall is pretty high at the moment but might fall a few notches before it finds its final resting place.

Every Bond movie was picked as someone's dead last except maybe Goldfinger and From Russia With Love. 
While several movies go up and down, DamnCoffee's estimation of GoldenEye went from #21, to #15, to #9 before finally settling in at #8.

 

Bond movies I have always liked from their very first viewing:

Goldfinger, Casino Royale, Licence to Kill, The Spy Who Loved Me, Octopussy, Tomorrow Never Dies

 

The ones I initially disliked but came to value as among the top Bonds:

For Your Eyes Only, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, The Living Daylights, Quantum of Solace

 

The good that should like more than I do...

From Russia with Love, Skyfall, GoldenEye, Doctor No

 

Ones I wish were better ...

Never Say Never Again, The World Is not Enough

 

Crap I like and am willing to excuse:

Diamonds Are Forever, Live and Let Die, Moonraker

 

The ones that fell from grace:

Die Another Day, Thunderball

 

Ones I never thought were good:

A View to a Kill, The Man with the Golden Gun, You Only Live Twice

 

So to sum up from #1 down to #24 after factoring in the good, the favs, the guilty pleasures, and the crap:

GF, CR, OHMSS, LTK, FYEO, TSWLM, TLD, OP, FRWL, TND, SF, QoS,

TB, LALD, DAF, DN, NSNA, GE, TWINE, MR, DAD, AVTAK, YOLT, TMWTGG

 

Twelve of these I have watched in the past four months, all I've seen at least nine times, it's been over ten years since I last saw AVTAK, the one I've seen the most is FYEO (I'm guessing over 50), the least would be TMWTGG. 

[tdalton]

Based on my recently concluded marathon of the Bond films, my updated ranking:

 

1. Licence to Kill
2. From Russia With Love
3. The Living Daylights
4. Dr. No
5. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
6. Quantum of Solace
7. For Your Eyes Only
8. Casino Royale
9. Octopussy
10. A View to a Kill
11. Live and Let Die
12. Moonraker
13. Skyfall
14. GoldenEye
15. Tomorrow Never Dies
16. The Spy Who Loved Me
17. You Only Live Twice
18. Thunderball
19. Goldfinger
20. Never Say Never Again
21. Diamonds are Forever
22. The Man With the Golden Gun
23. The World Is Not Enough
24. Die Another Day

 

What kind of surprised me while taking in all of the films again was how much my opinions of Connery and Craig changed.  I used to rank Connery around the middle of the pack, in kind of a third-place tie with Roger Moore behind Dalton and Craig.  Even though it's probably not all that evident from looking at the rankings, Connery has easily moved into the second position behind Dalton.  Just off of the strength of Dr. No and From Russia With Love alone, I think he's able to move past Craig and Moore, but even looking at his performances in the films that didn't rank as highly, he was still fantastic in most of those films, it was just other aspects of those films that were a let down for me.  

 

Craig's tenure, however, lost a lot of its luster this time around.  His is a ridiculously uneven tenure, with Quantum of Solace representing the high point.  Casino Royale can't really decide whether it wants to be a fifth Brosnan film or a more serious take on the character.  It falls somewhere in the middle, as it tries to borrow a bit from Fleming, but it's indulgent action sequences and the decision to make Bond an immature rookie crush quite a bit of the good intentions behind it.  Craig, for me, ended up falling behind Dalton, Connery, into a third place tie with Roger Moore, with Moore perhaps even having an edge there as I can pull a sample of 3 films from Moore's tenure that I enjoy more than Craig's three.

 

I found myself this time around gravitating more towards the films that are more inspired by Fleming than the others.  All of the films in my Top 5 (LTK, FRWL, TLD, DN, OHMSS) all rely very heavily on Fleming.  Licence to Kill is a closer adaptation of Fleming's Live and Let Die than EON's own Live and Let Die turned out to be, and the other four films mentioned there also tend to lean more heavily on the literary Bond for inspiration, as opposed to the nonsense that would follow later in the series.

 

I was surprised to find A View to a Kill making my Top 10.  I'd always had something of a soft spot for it, but always ranked it somewhere in the 12-15 range, but it managed to sneak its way into the 10 spot.  Overall, the biggest move from my list list was Thunderball, which fell ten spots from #8 to #18.  The biggest gainer was, I think, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, which jumped from the #9 spot to the #5 spot.  

Edited by tdalton, 02 April 2013 - 01:51 AM.

[Belmont]

I was surprised to find A View to a Kill making my Top 10.  I'd always had something of a soft spot for it, but always ranked it somewhere in the 12-15 range, but it managed to sneak its way into the 10 spot. 

 

I was surprised to see it that high too, given the movies that appeared in your Top 5. I'll give AVTAK this though, I find the first half pretty fantastic and totally Bondian - great PTS, great stuff at Zorin's estate, great work by Moore and Macnee, and one of John Barry's best scores of the post-'60s era.

 

I think Moore is particularly on his game in AVTAK - he seems more engaged (to me at least) than in either FYEO or Octopussy (save for his great work toward the end during the confrontation with Orlov.)

[mrevans]

Moore did give a good performance in AVTAK.  His age just worked against him.  The script should have better accommodated an older Bond or at least have made Stacy Sutton's character closer to his age (ex: Octopussy).  There's no reason she had to be so young. Or Tanya Roberts for that matter. 

[coco1997]

Good list, tdalton. I enjoyed following your marathon post by post in the other thread.

My list looks pretty similar to yours, only that Skyfall would rank higher and my bottom five would have:

 

20. The World Is Not Enough

21. The Man With the Golden Gun

22. Never Say Never Again

23. Diamonds are Forever
24. A View to a Kill

I just find A View to a Kill so painfully dull. Every time I attempt to watch it, hoping something will finally click and I might actually enjoy it that time, I wind up falling asleep. I think it was definitely a well-intentioned effort by EON, with a great casting coup in Christopher Walken, a fantastic score by John Barry and a fairly believable plot, but it ultimately winds up being so much less than the sum of its parts.

I rank Die Another Day above Tomorrow Never Dies and The World Is Not Enough because, although it's nothing more than a big, stupid action film, it's the one Bond that's thoroughly enjoyable if you turn your brain off the moment the gunbarrel sequence begins (and even then, the first 40 or so minutes of the film are pretty solid). TND has the most disappointing final act of any Bond film, with quite easily the most intriguing storyline of the Brosnan films disintegrating into a half-assed, Rambo-lite shoot 'em up that should be beneath the franchise. The climax of DAD is the biggest and dumbest in the series, but it feels like the natural conclusion to the type of film it is.

Say what you will about its plot holes, but the sheer look of the film and the level of talent both in front of and behind the camera put Skyfall on a whole other plane than just about every other film in the franchise, IMO.

[Skylla]

1: GE, QOS, FYEO, GF 

 

2: TND, SF, TB, FRWL, TSWLM, OP, CR, NSNA, OHMSS, TLD 

 

3: MR, LTK, YOLT, DN, TWINE 

 

4: DAD, TMWTGG, LALD

 

5: DAF, AVTAK 

 

As close as I come to a ranking, because i really love them all.....

 

so 1 has to be like you love your firstborn daughter and 5 the love for your mother in law :-)

[columbo]

1 - For your eyes only 

 

2- Goldfinger

 

3- The Spy who loved me 

 

4- From Russia with love 

 

5- You only live twice

 

6 - Octopussy

 

7- Thunderball

 

8- OHMSS

 

9- The Living Daylights

 

10 - Casino Royale

 

11- Diamonds are forever

 

12 - Dr.No

 

13- Skyfall

 

14 - Goldeneye

 

15 - Licence to kill

 

16 - Moonraker 

 

17 - Never say never again

 

18 - The man with the golden gun

 

19 - Quantum of solace

 

20 - Live and let die

 

21 - A view to a kill

 

22- The world is not enough

 

23 - Die another day

 

24 - Tomorrow never dies....

 

 

 

i'm stunned to discover that some years ago my favorite movie FYEO was in the end of the lists....

 

It's recovering like Bond at St.Cyrils

[coco1997]

 1. Licence to Kill
 2. Octopussy

 3. Skyfall

 4. Casino Royale

 5. On Her Majesty's Secret Service

 6. The Living Daylights

 7. Goldfinger

 8. For Your Eyes Only 

 9. Goldeneye

10. From Russia With Love

11. Moonraker

12. The Spy Who Loved Me

13. Quantum of Solace

14. Thunderball

15. You Only Live Twice

16. Dr. No

17. Live and Let Die

18. Die Another Day

19. Tomorrow Never Dies

20. The World Is Not Enough

21. The Man With the Golden Gun

22. Never Say Never Again

23. Diamonds Are Forever

24. A View to a Kill