The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)

Overrated and overhyped

It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

The early movies of Ian Fleming's stories of the arch british agent James Bond, were all badly acted slapstick movies for children. Only when Timothy Dalton took over, the novels cool wit and class finally came through. Pierce Brosnan made it even more believable, and Daniel Craig gave us chills down the back for his gritty realism, without losing any of the former. But this one, alas, only shows how embarassingly bad 70's movies could be. But back then people baught it! Myself included :)

Near the end when Bond is chasing Herve Villechaize around the bedroom, Villechaize starts throwing wine bottles. Empty wine bottles.

James Bond is called in to help find a solar device that, in the wrong hands, could potentially turn the sun's rays into a lethal weapon. To do so, Bond must deal with a highly paid assassin named Scaramanga. When one of Scaramanga's gold bullets shows up an MI6 headquarters with Bond's name engraved on it, Bond is convinced he's Scaramanga's next target. But what if he can find Scaramanga first? It's off to Macao, Hong Kong, and Thailand to find a potentially dangerous device and an assassin. As much as I love the James Bond franchise, I admit that all Bond films are not created equal. The Man with the Golden Gun is what I call a lesser Bond film. It has its share of strong points that I really enjoy, but there's too much that doesn't work for me to list it among the best. Instead of the normal comments I write, here a laundry list of what does and what doesn't work for me:What works for me:Christopher Lee – In a better Bond film, he would most certainly be remembered as one of the best super-villains that Bond faced. He's got the presence, size, and acting ability to pull it off. Instead, he's forced to play a guy in track suit with three nips who kills people in a carnival funhouse. Nick Nack – Despite his stature, Nick Nack makes for an excellent baddie. He seems to delight in causing harm to others. Maude Adams – I can't think of an actress who played a Bond-girl who did a better job of acting. You can see the fear, hatred, and resentment in her eyes when she's with Scaramanga. It's an outstanding performance. She's easily the standout in the film for me.It's fun – At the end of the day, this is still a James Bond film. Despite all the issues I have with it, The Man with the Golden Gun is still a fun movie that provides some degree of entertainment. It's not perfect, but I still enjoy it.What doesn't work for me:Sheriff Pepper – Why in God's name did they bring him back? Once was bad enough. The comedy – There's way too much comedy (or attempted comedy). Bond's quips are cringy, the school girls defeating the trained karate dudes is stupid, and Britt Ekland's bumbling Goodnight is annoying. (By the way, I really hate that this was the role Britt Ekland was given in the James Bond series. I would have loved to see her given a more traditional Bond girl role.) Ruining a great stunt – The car jump in The Man with the Golden Gun is legendary. Why did they decide to use a slide whistle sound effect as the car jumps the river? Why let a cheap sound effect ruin an uber-cool moment?The plot and flow – I'm going to have trouble explaining this, but here goes – More so than in any other Bond film I can think of right now, the solar device is a true McGuffin. Watching the film again last night, I had to ask myself on several occasions, "what's the point of all this?" The main plot line is never really clear. And, the film changes pace about a dozen times. One minute it's a karate movie, while the next it's a madcap chase film. It's jarring.If I had a list of favorite Bond movies (and I'm not sure why I don't'), I'm guessing The Man with the Golden Gun would place in the bottom five or so films. I still rate the movie an above average 6/10, but by Bond standards, that's pretty poor.

This second outing for Roger Moore's Bond is a slightly bloated, overlong film packed with far too much in the way of exposition and dialogue and far too little in the way of any decent action, aside from one major car chase occurring about halfway through. The silly antics are spoiled by grievous mistakes (the jaw-dropping comedy sound effect during the 360 degree car jump totally ruining the excitement of the moment, turning a truly memorable and dangerous stunt into nothing more than a juvenile cartoonish joke) and some ill-judged attempts at humour which feel out of place and unnecessary. The plot itself is rather good and offers one of the most interesting villains in the whole Bond series, a man akin to Bond yet on the opposite side of the good/evil spectrum.Once again there are some nice locations to look at, Macau and Thailand here being the main setting for the action. Some kung fu antics and a minor martial arts tournament-style battle enliven the otherwise leaden pacing about halfway through, a sequence followed by a fun speedboat chase and the welcome reappearance of Sheriff J.W. Pepper from LIVE AND LET DIE, a racist red neck caricature so overdone that it's unbelievable! Unfortunately as the film slowly moves towards the finale, any excitement and inventiveness seems to have gone out of the window, instead we see director Guy Hamilton rehashing moments of brilliance from GOLDFINGER and others. The finale, taking place in a carnival fun house, is a severe letdown and highly anticlimactic. The theme tune by Lulu is also one of the worst I've heard.The casting offers up some nice choices; Christopher Lee as the villainous Scaramanga is excellent in the part, fleshing out his character no end and making him a highly interesting contrast to Bond; unfortunately his midget henchman Nick Nack (as played by the slightly seedy Herve Villechaize) is more annoying than menacing and has far too much screen time. Lois Maxwell returns for a cameo as Moneypenny, Bernard Lee has a little more (welcome) screen time than previously and it's good to have Desmond Llewellyn back as Q, even if it is for only a short period. Minor but familiar players include Soon-Tek Oh as Lieutenant Hip, James Cossins as British agent Colthorpe and Marne Maitland as one of Bond's contacts. Glamour content comes from Britt Ekland, saddled with a rather boring character and much more fun in THE WICKER MAN, and the truly gorgeous Maud Adams as a femme fatale. Being a major Roger Moore fan, I found his performance to be spot on once more. Worth a watch for fans of the series but generally a minor disappointment even when compared to films that I love but others dislike, such as A VIEW TO A KILL.