Toby Atkin-Wright

Another Bond film today, and Beth has maintained her enthusiasm. I always rather liked “The Man with the Golden Gun”. It is critically viewed as being one of the weaker films in the series, but for me Christopher Lee is a joy on screen. (He more than makes up for the deeply irritating Britt Ekland).

The oriental locations and the then-trendy kung-fu work quite well, and Beth was very taken by the reappearance of Sheriff J. W. Pepper, and by the midget butler Nick Nack.

Before Christmas, Beth expressed an interest in watching James Bond films. This delighted me; I’d been looking forward to watching Bond films with her, but I hadn’t wanted to rush her into something that she wasn’t ready for. I am always happy to watch Bond.

So when she started talking about them, I let her watch all the trailers on iTunes. She worked through all of the trailers three times.

Today we watched “Live and Let Die”. I thought we’d start with the Roger Moore films; they are my favourites and the light blend of action and quips should suit Beth. She thought it very exciting, and is greatly looking forward to “The Man with the Golden Gun” tomorrow.

We should be safe up until Timothy Dalton; then the films go from PG to higher age ratings.

This afternoon I developed an urge to watch “For Your Eyes Only”, my favourite Bond film, so now it’s playing on the Blu-ray. I’ve watched it more than any of the other Bond films; I think Roger Moore is at his best in this film, and the supporting cast (including Julian Glover and Topol) are excellent. I find there is more to see in this film every time I watch it.

There are also downsides; the pre-credits sequence is possibly the worst of the lot of them (although deftly executed), and the best thing I can say about Bill Conti’s score is that it is of its time. But the title song — and the opening title sequence — are excellent.

John Glen’s direction is effective; without flair, but very good in the action sequences, especially the sinking of the St Georges. The locations are gorgeous — the Havelocks’ yacht in Greece, Gonzales’s villa in Spain, the ski resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo, and the mountain-top monastery of St Cyril’s.

There is less reliance on gadgets than in previous and subsequence films; perhaps a reaction against the excesses of “Moonraker”. Bond’s Lotus is symbolically destroyed near the beginning of the film, which is followed by a chase with him driving a 2CV.

Walter Gottel, as General Gogol, is a joy, and Charles Dance has a small but memorable role as a thug. And Carole Bouquet has beautiful eyes.

What a film.

This afternoon I developed an urge to watch “For Your Eyes Only”, my favourite Bond film, so now it’s playing on the Blu-ray. I’ve watched it more than any of the other Bond films; I think Roger Moore is at his best in this film, and the supporting cast (including Julian Glover and Topol) are excellent. I find there is more to see in this film every time I watch it.

There are also downsides; the pre-credits sequence is possibly the worst of the lot of them (although deftly executed), and the best thing I can say about Bill Conti’s score is that it is of its time. But the title song — and the opening title sequence — are excellent.

John Glen’s direction is effective; without flair, but very good in the action sequences, especially the sinking of the St Georges. The locations are gorgeous — the Havelocks’ yacht in Greece, Gonzales’s villa in Spain, the ski resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo, and the mountain-top monastery of St Cyril’s.

There is less reliance on gadgets than in previous and subsequence films; perhaps a reaction against the excesses of “Moonraker”. Bond’s Lotus is symbolically destroyed near the beginning of the film, which is followed by a chase with him driving a 2CV.

Walter Gottel, as General Gogol, is a joy, and Charles Dance has a small but memorable role as a thug. And Carole Bouquet has beautiful eyes.

What a film.