No pay attention, 007. It was a Bond movie that tended to divide critics at the time, and some accused the franchise of having lost its way. Bond aficionados also took quite strong positions on the film, with some loving it and others loathing it. Yet opinions of the film have mellowed considerably over the decades and it has built up quite a cult following.
The new issue of the popular and glossy nostalgia sci-fi and cult magazine Infinity (issue no. 73), which has just hit the shelves of many British retail outlets, celebrates the 50th anniversary of Roger Moore’s second James Bond film The Man With The Golden Gun (1974), and views the movie ‘as a terrific slice of entertainment’.
Decorated on the front cover with the colourful main poster from the film, which is also available as a full two-page poster in the middle of the magazine, an article by Roger Crow in the new issue takes a suitably nostalgic and fond look back at the main storyline for the film and the key participants involved. It includes some interesting memories from Britt Ekland (who played Miss Mary Goodnight) and the late Desmond Llewelyn (who returned as ‘Q’, the gadgets Quartermaster, after being absent from Roger’s first Bond adventure). The article on Golden Gun is also illustrated with a nice range of publicity stills and production shots from the film, and at one point explores the extent to which the film compared and differed to Ian Fleming’s original (and final) novel. There is also some keen discussion of Roger Moore’s tailoring style for his second turn as 007, which is described as the ‘boldest, most colourful wardrobe the character wore in the series – along with some of the very best suits’.
Golden Fun
As Crow notes, some highlights in the movie included Christopher Lee’s eponymous bad guy, the arch assassin Francisco Scaramanga, the three-nippled gunman who charges a hefty price for his services ‘and is essentially the anti-007’. Indeed, while they are both professional killers, one does it for Queen and Country, and the other does it for the money.
This clash of personal philosophies leads to a duel of sorts, and some of the best acting and dialogue of the film when Roger Moore’s 007 meets Christopher Lee’s villain over the dining-table in Scaramanga’s Island lair. As Crow points out, ‘It is the simplicity of the story which makes this work so well: alpha male assassin versus alpha MI6 spy’. This duel reaches a tense climax in Scaramanga’s ‘fun-fair’ and maze of mirrors, watched over closely by the untrustworthy assistant Nick-Nack. According to Crow, it’s a ‘stripped-down affair which doesn’t boast epic sets or dozens of allied troops storming the bad guy’s lair. Just Bond vs. Scaramanga in a duel to the death’. And it is this simplicity of storyline that partly gives the movie its charm and great entertainment value, which arguably still stands up some fifty years later.
Moreover, Crow recalls his conversations in the past with Britt Ekland and Desmond Llewelyn. Britt commented that it was ‘such a privilege to be part of that kind of movie. I never truly understood at the time that it would have this kind of massive following stil, and interest. It’s fantastic that it has this kind of following all over the world!’ She also reflected on her memories of the massive explosion during the finale at Scaramanga’s lair. Desmond offered his thoughts on Roger Moore: ‘I’ve always said that Roger Moore is a much better actor than most people think. Roger was established enough to be able to create a different Bond to Sean, yet keeping him roughly the same’.
It was also, of course, the film that featured the first appearance of Maud Adams in the Bond movie franchise; here she played Scaramanga’s beautiful mistress Andrea Anders, who secretly wants Bond to kill her controlling lover and free her, but falls victim to Scaramanga’s brutal revenge. Maud Adams made a welcome return to the 007 franchise for a much larger role in Octopussy (1983), again opposite Roger Moore.
The magazine Infinity has carried some great Bond coverage in recent times and, if you still love hard-copy mags as a source for your interest in all things 007, this new issue is well worth adding to your collection. There is also a tantalising hint that a future issue will discuss Roger Moore’s third Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me. Superb! The new issue of Infinity, no. 73, is on sale now in all good UK retailers, priced £4.99 (Can $15.99/ US $12.00).
Publicity still of Roger Moore with Britt Ekland.