Goldfinger (1964) - The 007 template gets perfected in fabulously entertaining third spectacle

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A hype-pushing, bold poster for Guy Hamilton's Goldfinger, which promises action, star charm and titillating sexiness

James Bond is back, this time investigating a gold smuggling kingpin.

Goldfinger is written by Paul Dehn (Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)) and Richard Maibaum (Dr. No (1962)), based on the same-titled 1959 novel by Ian Fleming (Live and Let Die (1954)), the 7th in his Bond series, and directed by Guy Hamilton (The Ringer (1952)). It is the third film in the Bond franchise.
Gert Fröbe (Ludwig (1973)) is the fat Goldfinger villain, who schemes to break into the US Treasury's Fort Know gold depository and turn all the gold radioactive. Goldfinger is the silliest film of the Bond franchise up to its point, but hysterically enjoyable all the same.
The golf scene, the Aston Martin gadgets, Goldfinger's exit through a tiny airplane window, - there's a long list of memorable scenes and elements in Goldfinger, which as a movie is similar to the Bond franchise overall in that as entertainment product, it is irresistible.

Related posts:

Bond franchise: Spectre (2015) - Mendes' second Bond delivers 
Skyfall (2012) - Mendes elevates a slickly produced modern Bond to thrilling heights 
Die Another Day (2002) - Tamahori makes a thrilling, grand piece of Bond escapism 
A View to a Kill (1985) or, Once a Gentleman, Always a Gentleman! 
For Your Eyes Only (1981) - Glen debuts with wacky, action-packed Roger Moore Bond
Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - Connery's last Bond adventure is a colorful romp 
From Russia with Love (1963) - Several remarkable elements make Young's 2nd Bond an enduring classic  
Dr. No (1962) - Bond # 1 is one attractive package
Guy Hamilton: Top 10: Best car chases in movies reviewed by Film Excess to date
Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - Connery's last Bond adventure is a colorful romp

Top 10: Best franchise movies 

Watch a delightful clip from the film here, in which Q (Desmond Llewlyn) instructs Bond in the gadgets in his new Aston Martin car

Cost: 3 mil. $
Box office: 124.9 mil. $
= Blockbuster (returned 41.6 times its cost)
[Goldfinger premiered 17 September (London, UK) and runs 110 minutes. The film's budget was the equivalent of the preceding first (Dr. No) and second (From Russia with Love) Bond movies combined, and it is the first in the franchise to put focus on America. Terence Young left as director when he was refused a profit percentage. Shooting took place in Switzerland, the UK including London, Miami, Florida, Kentucky and Washington DC from January - July 1964. Fleming visited the set but died in August, shortly before the film's premiere. The production received permission to film around Kentucky's Fort Knox, the US Bullion Depository, where they violated the flying permits by flying way too low and were harshly reprimanded by the military. All the Fort Knox interiors were shot in a studio set in England. Glass doors in the Leicester Square cinema in London were broken by the ecstatic crowds at the film's premiere. The film recouped its budget in 2 weeks; with Guinness Book of World Records recording it the 'fastest grossing film of all time' and New York's DeMille cinema staying open 24 hours a day to screen the film nonstop. The film grossed 23 mil. $ (50 % of the gross) in North America in its initial release and 46 mil. $ globally. With a double feature re-release with Dr. No in 1966, the gross grew to 51 mil. $ (40.8 % of the total gross) in North America and 73.8 mil. $ elsewhere for a reported enormous 124.9 mil. $ total. The film won the Sound Effects Oscar; it was also nominated for a BAFTA, a Grammy and other awards. Roger Ebert gave the film a 4/4 star review, translating to two notches higher than this review. The film was the first Bond movie to tie gadgets to the character, and the toy version of his Aston Martin DB5 car reportedly became the year's best-selling toy. Bond returned in Thunderball (1965). Hamilton returned with uncredited direction on The Party's Over (1965) and as credited director with Funeral in Berlin (1965); he returned to the Bond franchise with Sean Connery's (The Longest Day (1962)) last Bond portrayal, Diamonds Are Forever (1971). Connery returned first in The Hill (1965). Goldfinger is certified fresh at 98 % with an 8.6/10 critical average.]

What do you think of Goldfinger?

For Your Eyes Only (1981) - Glen debuts with wacky, action-packed Roger Moore Bond

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The action-surrounded pair of firm, tanned female legs wearing a bikini bottom backwards, with Roger Moore's 007 centered, make up this effective poster for John Glen's For Your Eyes Only

SPOILER Bond villain par excellence, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, is killed by getting dumped into a chimney in the title sequence. The story thereafter circles around the sinking of a British ship.

- Maybe, it could be added with some confused doubt, because the link between the ship, the wacky action and kitschy love scenes are never more than precarious. 
For Your Eyes Only is the 12th film in the Bond franchise, written by Richard Maibaum (Zarak (1956)) and Michael G. Wilson (The Living Daylights (1983)), based on two short stories from Ian Fleming's (Moonraker (1955)) For Your Eyes Only (1960) story collection, and directed by debuting John Glen (The Point Men (2001)), who had previously served as editor on 3 Bond pictures.
Roger Moore (Paper Orchid (1949)) does fine as the gold-lined spy, whom he portrays for his fifth time here, but the film nearly works as a Bond spoof in itself, - it is that silly. Charles Dance (Your Highness (2011)) is a minor villain, and the funny final scene has British prime minister Margaret Thatcher talking to a parrot.
For Your Eyes Only is funny and features lots of well-made action, (as well as down-played, dull sets, as regular Bond art director Ken Adams wasn't available and was replaced by Peter Lamont.) It is a lesser entry in the series.

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John Glen: Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992) - The ill-fated but entertaining ensemble adventure 
Top 10: The best action movies and TV-series reviewed by Film Excess to date
A View to a Kill (1985) or, Once a Gentleman, Always a Gentleman! 

Watch the title sequence for the film here

Cost: 28 mil. $
Box office: 195.3 mil. $
= Huge hit (returned 6.97 times the cost)
[For Your Eyes Only premiered 24 June (London, UK) and runs 127 minutes. The creators attempted to get Bond back to basics and a more reality-based story after the wild fantasy of preceding film Moonraker (1979). Shooting took place in Greece, Italy, the UK, including London, and in the Bahamas from September 1980 - February 1981. A 23 year-old stunt man was killed during filming of the bobsleigh chase. The film opened #3 to a 6.8 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it grossed 54.8 mil. $ (28.1 % of the total gross). It set a new  opening day record in the UK and became the second-highest grossing Bond picture overall, following Moonraker's 210.3 mil. $. Bill Conti and Mick Leeson's title song was nominated for the Best Song Oscar, lost to Arthur's Theme from Arthur. It was nominated for the equivalent Golden Globe. Glen returned with the next Bond film, Octopussy (1983), also Moore's next film. For Your Eyes Only is fresh at 72 % with a 6.5/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of For Your Eyes Only?

From Russia with Love (1963) - Several remarkable elements make Young's 2nd Bond an enduring classic

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James Bond returns to action, combat, stylish garbs and sexy women on this fabulous painted poster for Terence Young's From Russia with Love

When the evil organization SPECTRE lures MI6 agent James Bond to Istanbul with a Russian beauty and the chance to procure a Soviet cryptographic devise, 007 is launched on a perilous journey for the Lektor machine, his life and the life of the lovely Tatiana.

From Russia with Love is the first Bond sequel, following Dr. No (1962). It is written by Richard Maibaum (Diamonds Are Forever (1971)) and Johanna Harwood (Call Me Bwana (1963)), based on Ian Fleming's (Dr. No (1958)) novel From Russia, with Love (1957), and directed by returning Chinese-born, British master filmmaker Terence Young (The Secret Agents (1965)).
It is filled with Sean Connery's (The Man Who Would Be King (1975)) Bond brand of sexist one-liners, spy setups, the later heavily parodied SPECTRE organization, gadgets, cool locations such as the memorable lethal spy nest of Cold War Istanbul and the gypsy camp that sees alluring belly-dancing turn into a wild cat-fight, - and the Orient Express.
Add to this Connery, the ultimate Bond, who is in his prime as the suave character here; Pedro Armendáriz (The Uprooted (1960)) in his final part as Turkish gentleman Kerim Bey, beautiful Daniela Bianchi (Special Mission Lady Chaplin (1966)) as the main Bond girl, who just can't get enough James, and Robert Shaw (A Man for All Seasons (1966)) as the blond goon, Grant. - And Lotte Lenya (The Appointment (1969)) as the iconic, lesbian, shoe-knifing villain, Rosa Klebb.
From Russia with Love is more scruffy, suspenseful, colorful and handsome than Dr. No; it relies more on espionage elements than lushly exotic locales and is reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece North by Northwest (1959). It is a spectacle of the rarest order, one that reeks of sex. - And it is certainly one of the top 3 Bond movies of all time.

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Terence Young: Top 10: Best franchise movies

Top 10: Best UK movies reviewed by Film Excess to date

Dr. No (1962) - Bond # 1 is one attractive package
Other films in the Bond franchise: Spectre (2015) - Mendes' second Bond delivers Skyfall (2012) - The overly celebrated third pout from Daniel Craig as Bond in slick production
A View to a Kill (1985) or, Once a Gentleman, Always a Gentleman!  Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - Connery's last Bond adventure is a colorful romp
Casino Royale (1967) - The packed spy spoof frontrunner, a film very much of its time (spoof comedy - not an official part of the franchise)

Cost: 3 mil. $
Box office: Reportedly 78.9 mil. $
= Mega-hit
[From Russia with Love premiered 10 October (London) and runs 116 minutes. Connery was paid 54k $ and a 100k $ bonus for his performance in the film. The elaborate chess set cost a huge 150k $ to construct. Shooting took place from April - August 1963 in Turkey, including Istanbul, Italy, England, including London, Scotland and - the shots of rats - in Madrid, Spain. The production was rushed to completion just the year after the first Bond film, and several remarkable problems occurred: Armendáriz was diagnosed with inoperable cancer during production: He completed almost all of his scenes without delay, in pain, and took his own life when he could no longer act. Young crashed into the ocean in a helicopter with the art director and a cameraman in Scotland, but was rescued and completed the day's shooting. Days later, Bianchi's driver fell asleep during their commute, and the actress' face was bruised in the accident, barring her from shooting for two weeks. A boat rented by the production sunk in Turkey's Bosphorus strait, and the final explosion got out of control, burning one person's eyelids and seriously injuring 3 stunt men. The film went over schedule and budget: Its original budget of 2 mil. $ seems to have ended up vastly over its limit, if the 3 mil. $ final cost is accurate. The original international gross is listed as 12.5 mil. $, double Dr. No's take, becoming the most popular movie at the British box office of 1963. With many later re-releases, the film's North American gross has risen to 24.7 mil. $ (31.3 % of the reported international gross of 78.9 mil. $). Original reviews were a mix of praise and ridicule. The film was nominated for a Golden Globe and won a BAFTA, among other honors. Young returned with The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders (1965). Connery returned in Woman of Straw (1964). The next Bond movie was Goldfinger (1964), with Connery, directed by Guy Hamilton. Young directed one more Bond movie; Thunderball (1965).  From Russia with Love is certified fresh at 96 % with an 8/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of From Russia with Love?

Dr. No (1962) - Bond # 1 is one attractive package

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Sean Connery strikes an unusual pose on this poster for Terence Young's Dr. No

QUICK REVIEW:

Dr. No is the first James Bond movie ever, based on Ian Fleming's 7th Bond novel of the same name.

Agent 007 is sent to Jamaica, because one of his colleagues in the British intelligence service is reported missing there. The clues lead him to the island Crab Keyes, where the evil genius Dr. No has a lab that makes something unspecified which produces nuclear radiation. SPOILER - Bond blows that up!

The concept for the following 22 Bond movies to date, (movie # 24, Spectre (2015), will be released later this year) is impressively determined already here from the solid get-go, and Dr. No is an instant pleasure as the slightly chauvinistic male agent fantasy that the Bond character and universe is.
Sean Connery (Time Bandits (1981)) is perfect and very dashing as the suave gentleman hero without any ties, except for his employer, and Ursula Andress (Clash of the Titans (1981)) is beautiful and perfectly lovely as Honey Ryder, one of the series' most memorable Bond babes. Canadian New York-actor Joseph Wiseman (The Valachi Papers (1972)) is the titular, ice-cold villain, whose gimmick, - often a physical defect, which most of the Bond villains have, - is his crab-like steel hands. He isn't among the series' most exciting, and there are parts of Dr. No that draw out a bit.
Ken Adam's (Barry Lyndon (1975)) spectacular sets are a main attraction already from the first film here, and John Barry's (Howard the Duck (1986)) legendary theme also gets imprinted forever in our audial memory in Dr. No.
Much has happened for James Bond since the film: In Dr. No, 007's mission really gets hairy as he arrives to the island of Dr. No in the dead of night. - And lies down to sleep!
The film is written by Richard Maibaum (Thunderball (1965)), Johanna Harwood (Call Me Bwana (1963)) and Berkely Mather (The Long Ships (1964)) and directed by British, Shanghai-born master filmmaker Terence Young (The Valachi Papers), who would later direct two more of the franchise's best films, From Russia with Love (1963, # 2) and Thunderball (1965, # 4).

Watch the original, corny-fun trailer for the glitzy Technicolor movie here

Cost: 1.1 mil. $
Box office: 59.5 mil. $
= Mega-hit
[Dr. No was given its relatively low budget by United Artists, who were not certain what kind of an animal they would have on their hands and therefore rolled the film out without great confidence in North America, at first on double-bills and on a limited number of screens. The film would go on to gross 16 mil. $ (27 % of the total gross) in North America, from a reported 19 mil. admissions. The film was pushed by an elaborate PR campaign that included tie-ins to various products. Dr. No is also infamous for booming the sales of bikinis, through its scenes of exotic Swiss beauty Andress in the two-piece.]

What do you think of Dr. No?

A View to a Kill (1985) or, Once a Gentleman, Always a Gentleman!

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Agent 007 stands assured by a glamorous blonde high up on San Francisco's Golden Gate bridge on this wonderfully drawn and painted poster for John Glen's A View to a Kill

A dope-using race horse court owner has himself been manipulated by some ugly Nazi doctors and really plans to flood California's Silicon Valley and monopolize the microchip market. Obviously this is a case for Great Britain's #1 spy, agent 007, James Bond! 

 

A View to a Kill is written by Richard Maibaum (Goldfinger (1964)) and Michael G. Wilson (For Your Eyes Only (1981)) and directed by great British filmmaker John Glen (For Your Eyes Only (1981)), whose 3rd Bond film it is. Overall it is the 14th in the Bond franchise, with a title drawn from Ian Fleming's (Thrilling Cities (1963)) short story From a View to a Kill (1960), but the script is entirely original.
Scores of critics - seemingly including the late Roger Moore (Ivanhoe (1958-59)) himself - think that the film is a tacky, awful Bond film with a dinosaur lead, but personally, I think it's a terrifically entertaining film, possibly one of the best Bond films ever, and certainly Moore's best. It is his 7th and last as the agent, which he has portrayed more times than any of the long-running franchise's other 5 starring actors.
Christopher Walken (Domino (2005)) and Grace Jones (Conan the Destroyer (1984)) are a villain couple from heaven; sexy and wild; and Duran Duran's title song is eminent and is used extensively in the film's beautiful score by Bond-regular John Barry (Chaplin (1992)).
The action scenes and locations are spectacular and fun, and the film is especially be a treat for anyone with a penchant for the 1980s on screen. Lois Maxwell (Age of Innocence (1977)) plays Miss Moneypenny for the last time in the film, and Dolph Lundgren (War Pigs (2015)), then boyfriend of Jones, has a tiny part, his first credit.
Forget the badmouthing this film has received and still does: A View to a Kill was a world smash and is still a colorful, fun, exciting and excellent action-adventure movie!

Related posts:

Bond franchise: Spectre (2015) - Mendes' second Bond delivers 
Skyfall (2012) - Mendes elevates a slickly produced modern Bond to thrilling heights 
Die Another Day (2002) - Tamahori makes a thrilling, grand piece of Bond escapism
For Your Eyes Only (1981) - Glen debuts with wacky, action-packed Roger Moore Bond
Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - Connery's last Bond adventure is a colorful romp 

Goldfinger (1964) - The 007 template gets perfected in fabulously entertaining third spectacle 
From Russia with Love (1963) - Several remarkable elements make Young's 2nd Bond an enduring classic  
Dr. No (1962) - Bond # 1 is one attractive package
Top 10: Best car chases in movies reviewed by Film Excess to date
Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - Connery's last Bond adventure is a colorful romp  

John Glen: Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992) - The ill-fated but entertaining ensemble adventure 
Top 10: The best action movies and TV-series reviewed by Film Excess to date
A View to a Kill (1985) or, Once a Gentleman, Always a Gentleman!  

For Your Eyes Only (1981) - Glen debuts with wacky, action-packed Roger Moore Bond 

Watch a teaser for the film here

Cost: 30 mil. $
Box office: 152.4 mil. $
= Big hit (returned 5.08 times its cost)

[A View to a Kill premiered 22 May (San Francisco, USA) and runs 131 minutes. David Bowie and Sting were approached to play the Max Zorin part eventually played by Walken. Shooting took place from June 1984 - January 1985 in Switzerland, England, France, including Paris and in California, including San Francisco. A stuntman was fired in Paris, when he parachuted from the Eiffel Tower without authorization from city authorities, because he was disappointed another stuntman was used for the film's Eiffel Tower jump scene. Glen has said that the film went two weeks over schedule but was made 5 mil. $ under budget. Duran Duran were hired to write the theme song, after the group's bassist John Taylor had teased producer Albert Broccoli at a party; "When are you going to get someone decent to do one of your theme songs?" It was the first Bond theme song to reach #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. The film opened #2, behind fellow new release Rambo: First Blood Part II, to a 10.6 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it stayed in the top 5 for another 4 weeks (#2-#3-#4-#5) and grossed 50.3 mil. $ (33 % of the total gross) from 14.1 mil. admissions. The international gross numbers are regrettably not released. Many critics lashed out at Moore's age, 57 at the time, including the first Bond, Sean Connery, and eventually Moore agreed: In 2007 he remarked; "I was only about four hundred years too old for the part." The film was nominated for a Golden Globe. Glen returned with The Living Daylights (1987), the next Bond movie; he would end his Bond turn after one more; License to Kill (1989). Moore returned with a voice performance in The Magic Snowman (1987) and theatrically in Fire, Ice & Dynamite (1990). A View to a Kill is rotten at 38 % with a 4.96/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of A View to a Kill?