Product Details

• Actors: James Bond Ultimate Edition
• Format: NTSC
• DVD Release Date: November 28, 2006
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• ASIN: B000KP6ECI
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #536,390 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

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5.0 out of 5 stars Esoteric James Bond Film, November 14, 2007

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gobirds2 (New England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Man With the Golden Gun (DVD)

When I first saw "The Man with the Golden Gun" on its release I had mixed reactions about it. "Live and Let Die" had been such a departure from the James Bond we had been used to seeing, it was good to see some of the old elements return to this film.
The character of James Bond had been revamped in "Live and Let Die" in an attempt, I suppose, to dissociate Roger Moore's interpretation of Bond from that of Sean Connery's. In "Live and Let Die" gone were the "Martinis shaken not stirred," the Dom Perigone, Bond's virility, worldliness and sardonic wit. Even his wardrobe was over-the-top.
In "Live and Let Die" gone also was John Barry's score, Desmond Lewelin as Q, M's briefing at "Universal Exports" headquarters, the gambling casinos, engagingly futuristic and lavish sets, the sensuous and worldly bevy of Bond women.
"The Man with the Golden Gun" opens with Maurice Binder's gun barrel trademark, accompanied with the "James Bond Theme" this time played on strings, instead of guitar. That was a real innovation by John Barry, which he continued to use for Roger Moore. It was clearly evident Barry was back.
The first camera shot is of a surrealistically exotic locale on a beach where a beautiful girl towels down a tall ark man emerging from the water. The man is Scaramanga, the Man with the Golden Gun. John Barry's familiar background music accentuates the Epicurean surroundings and the film immediately looks like it has returned to more familiar Bondian territory.
As the film unfolded many of the aforementioned elements missing from "Live and Let Die" returned. There also seemed to be a more substantial plot as it initially unfolded. However, there were still undesirable elements that crept into the film as it progressed.
Britt Ekland seemed like she would have been a natural throwback to the sex symbols of the 60s akin to previous Bond Girls such as Ursula Andress, but her vaudevillian interpretation of Mary Goodnight was a fatal flaw. Another flaw was the return of Clifton James as Sheriff J.W. Pepper. Their performances were distractions from the main plot hindering the continuity of the story line.
The film flounders in the middle until it gets back on track when Bond finally travels to Scaramanga's island for a face to face confrontation. The film follows the Bond formula here. The villain gloats as he gives Bond a tour of his lair and technical wizardry he has acquired. They dine over some dialogue on the merits of good vs. evil and in the end come to the final showdown.
I'll admit that I always had a soft spot for this film ever since I first saw it. It returned many familiar elements absent from "Live and Let Die." For instance, we see Bond return to the gambling tables via the Casino de Macao. Many fans greeted the return of these elements in a positive response. Other fans still recognized the questionable elements that were still present in "The Man with the Golden Gun" and found these deplorable and responded accordingly. To older Bond fans the return of Sheriff J.W. Pepper wasn't exactly a welcome sight.
An often-overlooked asset to this film is Maud Adams' performance as Andrea, Scaramanga's beautiful mistress. She brings genuine compassion to the role as the tormented individual who can not escape her master. Only before each killing does Scaramanga exploit her sexually in ritualistic foreplay to increase his aim on the unfortunate individual he has been contracted for. In one scene Scaramanga cruelly rubs the golden barrel of his pistol against her lips in a symbolically phallic gesture in a moment of triumph after a successful killing. You can see the pain on Andrea's face and you feel empathy for her. Even though she appears here in the prerequisite sacrificial lamb role, she stands out as one of the best Bond girls of the series.
Lee's performance as the enigmatic Scaramanga was refreshingly energetic. He gave the assassin an amiable quality on the surface hiding a darker side beneath the skin.
Roger Moore's performance was an improvement over his first interpretation of Bond as a foppish and silly dandy. Moore appeared to give Bond a tougher edge in this one even though the script attempted to undo him. Given Roger Moore's previous performance and his meager screen accomplishments as Bond at that point in the series, the "duel between titans" it was not.
Some of the cinematography was very good. Bond's solo flight through the uprooted rock formations near Phuket, Thailand to Scaramanga's island was impressive. In the pre-title sequence there is an excellent camera shot that follows gangster Hood and Nick Nack through an anteroom. As they enter the parlor the camera continues to dolly forward while the lens zooms back giving the viewer an impression of the expanse and opulence of Scaramanga's domicile, a melding of the man-made with nature's volcanic rock.
Production designer Peter Murton's work on this film has always been underrated. Scaramanga's posh living quarters overlooking his grotto rivaled earlier set designs by Ken Adam. Also very impressive were extraordinary miniatures by Derek Meddings.
One bit of innovation combing location filming, miniatures and set design was the use of the half-submerged Queen Elizabeth, its hull at a 30-degree angle, scorched and rusted at rest in Hong Kong harbor. Hidden in the bowels of the sunken ship is the headquarters for the Hong Kong station of the British Secret Service. "It's the only place in Hong Kong where you can't be bugged" says a naval officer to Bond.
John Barry's scoring gave the film his much-needed familiar sound. Even though it was apparently much loftier, it was still very welcome.
If this were to be the last film in the series it would have been a sad final testament. Luckily greater things were yet to come. One is able to look back and just enjoy it on the beautiful DVD.