The James Bond Franchise: Diamonds Are Forever (1971)

After the disappointment that was George Lazenby, the powers that be decided they had to have Sean Connery back, so the former 007 actor was made an offer, that he could not pass up. Connery agreed to come back for one film only, got a nice amount of money out of it and a good deal for three films of his own choosing at United Artists.


With Connery back as Bond, the attention of screenwriter Richard Maibaum now went into fashioning a filmable story out of a Fleming novel that was hopelessly dated and unusable. Where Ian Fleming now put his villains up as mobsters, Maibaum adapted this to be a scheme of Blofeld's and Spectres. After a number of screenplay polishes by Tom Mankiewicz, the film turned out to be all right but upon the completion of filming, it was clear that this was not one of the greatest Bond films of all.

Nevertheless Diamonds Are Forever has several very interesting scenes. One is actually shot in Amsterdam, the only time that Bond has been in the Netherlands so far. An exciting car chase in Las Vegas did cause some problems for shooting as there were many onlookers when the stunts were shot.

Whether it was intentional that Blofeld was again played by another actor, who is to say, but Charles Gray does not really succeed in making Blofeld a diabolical fiend. And the assassins that Bond has to deal with, Wint and Kidd, seem an odd couple as an adversary for Bond as their mannerisms would almost certainly indicate that they might very well be the very first gay hitmen in film history.

Nevertheless, a fantastic John Barry score adorns the film, supporting a splendid Sean Connery doing his thing admirably, with an old pro's grace, as it was said in a review. Shirley Bassey adds a wonderful flavour for the title song and Guy Hamilton, who earlier directed GOLDFINGER, delivers an entertaining film, that seems to be in line with the more humorous tone the films were to engage in with the coming of the next Bond actor, Roger Moore.

Captains Courageous: James Tiberius Kirk

In the Classic series of Star Trek, Captain James T. Kirk is the man who holds the ultimate power. Played by William Shatner, Kirk is the man who commands a top of the line spaceship with exquisite technology and weaponry and who is assisted by a crew of all nations.

Gene Roddenberry based Kirk on Captain Horatio Hornblower, a man of action and yet of emotion and reason. Within Star Trek, Spock personified the reason and Dr. McCoy personified the emotion, thereby completing Kirk as one of three in a classic trio. William Shatner always played Kirk close to his own character but as he has said this is more out of necessity than any other reason when you are one of the stars of a televsion show.


Although Kirk was not the first Captain of the USS Enterprise, he certainly was its Captain for the longest time. After the first five year mission, shown in the original series that ran from 1966 to 1969 (and the animated show of 1973 and 1974), he returned to the NCC1701 in Star Trek The Motion Picture and remained at its helm until he deemed it necessary to destroy her to turn death into a fighting chance to live (Star Trek III The Search For Spock, by the words of Dr McCoy).


Kirk subsequently captained the NCC1701A until that vessel was decommissioned (after Star Trek VI The Undiscovered Country). After an unfortunate event that seemed to claim his life aboard the Enterprise B, Kirk finally met his fate while playing a pivotal role in the defeating of Soran on Veridian III (in Star Trek Generations).

William Shatner has also written several books about Kirk in what is jokingly referred to as the Shatnerverse (the Star Trek Universe according to Shatner). Since he brought Kirk back from his own demise with The Return, he has been campaigning to also be resurrected in the films but since J.J. Abrams took over the reins of the franchise, the role of Captain James T. Kirk is in the capable hands of Chris Pine.

The Best TV Shows !!

STAR TREK has been a show that I can remember going back as far as I can remember watching television. My family was one of the lucky ones in the street to have an early color model and we were watching a lot of shows at the time that I have fond memories of. I remember Bonanza, I remember Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, I remember Daktari and I even remember the Ron Ely Tarzan television series. But the fondest memories I have is of seeing the adventures of the intrepid crew of the NCC1701 USS Enterprise in the classic show Star Trek.

I guess I was about 3 years old so it must have been around 1969 or 1970 when these adventures were televised in our country. Yes, I do recall reading that some episodes were shown in 1967 already but I would have been too young to watch those. Also that would not have been shown in color then for in the Netherlands color television made its entrance around 1968 or 1969. I remember that we were watching Star Trek with great regularity as we were treated by not only our own Dutch televsion station but by the Belgian television station and the German station as well (this last of course in a German synched version, which was funny at times). So we sometimes were watching the same episodes over and over again. But we never got all of the 79 episodes in the first years. At that time, packages of about 37 episodes were affordably sold to foreign stations before episodes were stripped daily, as was the custom later on.

A Scene from Where No Man Has Gone Before from the Remastered Editions of 2006/2007

The classic Star Trek show was repeated about three times in my first 12 years of my life. And while other shows were forgotten or otherwise remembered as being dated later on, Star Trek somehow remained in my mind's eye as being fresh all the time. Which is why the original show has never dated for me. I guess William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy would have liked to have been that young again. Of course, there are many episodes that are worthwhile and it would be terribly presumptuous of me to do that in one single article. So for that matter, I will be discussing episodes here on my blog that I consider to be worthwhile, no matter what. For yes, it has always been said that the first and second season episodes featured the best episodes (which I don't deny) but there were some real gems present in the third year as well. ( I am particularly fond of All Our Yesterdays, which shows us a very interesting side of Spock in a terrible situation. )

So let's start the Trek.

The James Bond Franchise: On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)

The departure of Sean Connery made it clear to Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman that some decisions needed to be made for the series to be able to continue. Saltzman and Broccoli were in agreement they needed a new actor for their superspy but how would this be brought to an audience who was used to Connery? A suggestion was made in a tentative screenplay to have Bond undergo a plastic surgery operation to give him a new face, as his old face had already become too well known in the wrong circles. Well thought out, practical and usable, yet the producers decided ultimately to look for the best actor they could find and just have him take on the role as if nothing else had happened all the time. Considering the people that were tested, it is very surprising that the winner of this contest seemed to be an Australian model by the name of George Lazenby, who had no previous acting experience outside a television commercial!!!


In order to support the newcomer, it was also decided to get actors of real stature around him so they would help to allow him to rise to their level and make him look as Bondlike and as professional as could be hoped for. An incredibly strong screenplay seemed to be the best basis to build on.



Indeed, On Her Majesty's Secret Service was a fine Fleming novel that was eminently adaptable to film and would make for an excellent thriller. John Barry's excellent moodsetting score would also help, but in the end, it all comes down to one thing.
George Lazenby can not act his way out of a paper basket!

Had Sean Connery had the honor of getting married as Bond and see his wife shot dead mere minutes afterward, his performance would have made you want to cry your eyes out. As it is, Lazenby merely goes thru the motions and lacks any emotional investment in his role.



Other than Lazenby, the film is surprisingly good. Storywise it is brought back into the real world with as little in gadgetry as is possible. Story Logic also can be commended in this film ( a lot of times stories like this can make very little sense ) and the other actors make a valiant effort to come across with as much gusto as is desired. So finally we end up with a film that could have been so much better, if only Connery had stayed on.

Noteable about this film is, as mentioned above, that Bond gets married to the daughter of a mob man, who also gets to play a little part in the rescue operation. Diana Rigg, just like Honor Blackman in Goldfinger, coming from the television show THE AVENGERS, plays Teresa di Vincenzo with a flair that certainly helps the film. Also Telly Savalas, who had cornered the market at the time playing villains, played a wonderful Blofeld, even though this film played the story as if Blofeld had never yet come face to face with Bond before. (Oops, maybe that plastic surgery bit was excised too quickly from the screenplay?) Oh well...




Director Peter Hunt delivered not at all a bad film. It is just as good though that Lazenby did not decide to stick around. He was offered the next film too. He opted out. Too bad about this film.....

Sometimes you might wonder how it could have been, if Connery had been at bat this time around. You can dream, can't you?

The James Bond Franchise: You Only Live Twice (1967)

If there is any reason why Sean Connery wanted out of the Bond series, this is the one. You Only Live Twice, although based -partially- on an Ian Fleming novel, was in short a Bond film that missed its mark. It was for the sixties too incredible a story for a James Bond vehicle.

True, Flemings story was not entirely filmable but some things that were added are simply beyond what was reasonable for Bond at the time. Bond becoming an astronaut was exactly that: Too much. The same goes for Bond : Autogyro Pilot. The entire sequence with the Little Nellie contraption is so outrageous, it would have violated multiple laws in Japanese airspace.



Nevertheless, the film does start with a great teaser opening. Bond is shot dead, apparently and buried at sea. It turns out he is not quite as dead though when he shows up to pick up his orders. The nonsense this film puts him in goes as far as to state : ninja school! For crying out loud, I hear you thinking. Sorry, I was thinking that.



The organisation of Spectre is now seen to man a huge volcano crater set, ingeniously designed by Ken Adam for a ludicrous budget at the time. And naturally, when you mention Ninja School, no it is not the Ninja Turtles who come and help Bond out.

Donald Pleasance had the honor of portraying Blofeld in his first onscreen appearance but Pleasance is ludicrously over the top and sports a ridiculous scar over his face.



Well, there is one good thing. The brilliant music of John Barry manages to save the day and keep this film from being so ludicrous as it pretends to be. Nancy Sinatra sings the title song and makes a good effort of bringing atmosphere in a film that otherwise fails to keep your tongue out of my cheeck. Bleh!

It is also a shame that the technical demands could not keep up with Roald Dahls inance screenplay. The end results is a film replete with shots that make you go Oh No, How Could They? Well, they could and did.

Bad Film, is all I can say.

The James Bond Franchise: Thunderball (1965)

For Sean Connery's fourth James Bond adventure, Thunderball, also based on Ian Flemings novel, it now seems that a very credible plot and great production values sometimes do not prevent the first cracks coming into the franchise.

You see, even though the plot works well, is credible and spectacular and leads to visually interesting locales, the story seems to lack drive and freshness. Also Sean Connery, a bit disillusioned with the effect the adventures of James Bond had on his acting career, seems sligthly disinterested.



Adolfo Celi is the mastermind who has an airplane highjacked for the nuclear bombs it is carrying. It is Bond's task to find them and he does, with the right kind of assistance. However, when the US Marines have to come in to save the day, it somehow feels the writers could not come up with a sufficiently original ending themselves.

Also, the pressures of making such a tremendously exciting film now start showing as the editing has a number of flaws that unfortunately could have been prevented. This is a big shame, as the film could have been so much better. But rumours have it the original director's print ran well into three hours and therefor required drastical editing to bring it down to manageable length.

Add to that that Celi does not succeed in bringing a new kind of villain (you know, he reminds you of the other guy) and you have a film that fails slightly to satisfy your needs. Never mind that John Barry did a great score again. Tom Jones does an admirable title song too.


Part of Thunderball's history is the Kevin McClory side of the story. Kevin McClory was one of the persons who were involved with Ian Fleming in trying to make a Bond film in 1958 and 1959. Because they failed to get funding at the time, the project did not come off the ground. Ian Fleming used the story they concocted together for his next Bond novel and then the trouble started.

You see, Kevin McClory wanted his share of the profits once the novel hit the bookshelves. He and Jack Wittingham had done a lot of work in getting the story right with Fleming and now it seemed Fleming was pretending the story was all his. The judge spoke in favour of McClory and McClory won the film rights and various other benefits. But when the judge gave it's judgement, the first Saltzman & Broccoli films were already out, making big bucks.



McClory saw he could not compete with Sean Connery as Bond so he contacted the EON Producers and suggested teaming up. They did and produced Thunderball. Then, the rights would revert to McClory after 10 years again. So in 1975, all the Thunderball rights came back to McClory and there the origins of NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN lay.

Thunderball is not a bad film, but instead of fast, fresh and exciting, it seems to toddle on at its own speed. Which is not the best speed. Still, not bad in all.

The James Bond Franchise: Goldfinger (1964)

With Sean Connery's third outing as James Bond, the franchise immediately hit its peak. Goldfinger, this time not about a Spectre Agent but about an equally nefarious businessman of low scruples, is in many ways the best Bond film ever made.

First of all, the story is strong, fresh and runs briskly along with excitement, humour and the lot. Based for a great deal on Flemings story, again certain elements were changed for the film: a buzz saw was changed into an industrial laser set up, which at this time was wildly new and exciting.



Second, the acting is still top notch. Sean Connery has never been better and his opponent, Auric Goldfinger, was played to the proverbial hilt by German actor Gert Froebe. Honor Blackman, who at the times left the television show THE AVENGERS for this film, played the controversially named Pussy Galore and Harold Sakata had the part of an unusual henchman by the name of Odd Job. Shirley Eaton played the girl who gets spray-painted in gold.


Again, a wonderful plot is concocted by Goldfinger to make him the wealthiest person alive, but of course, with James Bond interfering, it does not all quite work out as he would like.

Again the film would be supported by a sublime musical score by John Barry. Shirley Bassey performed the title song which became an immediate number one hit on the top charts.


What more is there to say? Oh yes, I forgot to mention the wonderful Aston Martin DB5 that Q outfitted just for James's use. What a nifty piece of work! Again TOP Marks for this film. The Bond films unfortunately would never be this cool again!!

The James Bond Films: From Russia With Love

The return of everyone's favorite secret agent in this film, released one year after Dr. No, was, to no one's surprise, a gigantic success and represented a breakthrough for the character as well as for the franchise. From Russia With Love, based on Ian Fleming's successful novel that was mentioned in the press to be among President John F. Kennedy's favorite novels, managed to tweak the Bond formula to perfection, while retaining an optimum of Fleming's novel.




Fleming had politicized the drama in his novel by marking the Russian secret service (also known as SMERSH in the novel) as the heavies, but the producers changed this into the terrorist organisation called SPECTRE, which would become Bond's major Nemesis during the first 10 years of the franchise.

The formula for the films became evident here: for the first time in the series the film starts with a pre-title sequence in which in some way the danger is visualized. A sumptuous musical opening follows with a very suggestive title sequence, after which the story starts to unfold. Bond gets his mission from M, is equipped with some gadgets by Q, for the first time played by Desmond Llewelyn, who would be Q as much as Connery would be Bond, for the rest of his life and off Bond goes to the exotic locale: in this case Istanbul.
The film follows Ian Fleming's novel rather closely, but it takes enough distance to allow for several other incidents to be inserted, such as a boat chase and a sequence in which Bond is chased by a helipcopter. Yet, the formula is clear and allows this film to enjoy a solid base in the novel and still be as original as though it had been written just for the screen. The spectacular musical score by John Barry also manages to endow the film with a quality that helps it transcend it's rather conventional photography and editing, making it one of the most succesful and efficient Bond films yet.


Bond is played to perfection by Sean Connery, who by now also seems to enjoy the character. Robert Shaw plays a formidable opponent as Red Grant, a former British agent who defected to the Russians. (At least according to the novel.) The Bond girl, used primarily as a lure in this film, is Tatiana Romanova, played by former model Danielle Bianchi.



Even though the story does take its time, the film works excellently in bringing a taut thriller with exciting moments, interspersed with humour on all the right places, supported by the previously mentioned musical magnificence of John Barry.
Aside from the fact that the film is dated a bit, it still shines as one of the strongest entries of the 1960s. Top marks on all levels.




And you could tell Connery was beginning to like Bond as well. His performance has never been more on the money as here. Well, maybe in Goldfinger. Terence Young again directed the actors in this film, which was the last one Fleming would see in his lifetime. Fleming died shortly afterward. But this would not stop the producers from going on with another Bond epic to follow.