Month: November 2021

Connery Returns: “Diamonds are Forever” (1971)

Emma3 Comments

James Bond (Sean Connery- at 40 y.o. w/ bushier eyebrows) has a new mission- find out who has been smuggling diamonds. He takes on the identity of “transport consultant” Peter Franks and joins up w/ Tiffany Case (Jill St. John), an American diamond smuggler. Mr. Wint (Bruce Glover- father of Crispin) and Mr. Kidd (Putter Smith) are the dangerous/eccentric duo tailing Bond. Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Charles Gray- who played a British ally in You Only Live Twice) also has his hand in this game; he has changed his looks (again). Can Bond finally defeat his ultimate enemy?

M: We do function in your absence, Commander.

George Lazenby was asked to make a second Bond movie, but declined. Burt Reynolds was the first choice to replace him, but was unavailable. Roger Moore was offered the role of Bond, but he was unavailable due to his commitment to a TV series. Tall/handsome Mexican-American actor John Gavin (best known for his supporting role in Psycho) was signed to play Bond in this movie. Adam West turned down the role b/c felt that Bond should be a British actor. Michael Gambon turned down the role because he was “in terrible shape.” At the last minute, Connery agreed to return as Bond; Connery was paid $1.25M (a figure unheard of in those days); he donated it to the Scottish Education Fund (which is awesome)! Albert R. Broccoli insisted that Gavin be paid the full salary, for which his contract called.

[Tiffany Case opens the door almost nude]

Bond: That’s quite a nice little nothing you’re almost wearing. I approve.

Tiffany: I don’t dress for the hired help. Let’s see your passport, Franks.

[Bond gives her his passport. She looks it over]

Tiffany: Occupation: Transport Consultant? It’s a little cute isn’t it? I’ll finish dressing.

Bond: Oh, please don’t, not on my account.

Tiffany (the first American Bond Girl) is argumentative, loud, and brash when compared to previous Bond girls; she was meant to be a commentary on American women. Actresses considered for the role of Tiffany included Raquel Welch, Jane Fonda and Faye Dunaway. Jill St. John had originally been offered the part of Plenty O’Toole, but landed the lead after impressing director Guy Hamilton during screentests. Tiffany’s home was actually owned by Kirk Douglas- how cool!

[Mr. Kidd spots Bond and Tiffany at the airplane. He returns to his seat]

Mr. Kidd: [to Mr. Wint] They’re both aboard. I must say Miss Case seems quite attractive…

[pause]

Mr. Kidd: …for a lady.

[Mr. Wint glares at Mr. Kidd]

Mr. Kidd: Heh heh heh heh!

[Mr. Wint, unamused, still glares at Mr. Kidd]

Producers cast Lana Wood (sister of Natalie) as Plenty O’Toole after seeing her in Playboy. Her voice was dubbed and she is standing on a box for some of her scenes w/ Connery (b/c even in high heels, she was too small to fit into the frame w/ him). Unlike her sister, Lana is a very wooden (pardon the pun). Willard Whyte (Jimmy Dean- best known for his sausage commercials) was based on Howard Hughes. Whyte owned the Whyte House in this movie; Hughes owned a real Las Vegas hotel (the Desert Inn). Dean was an employee of Hughes at the Desert Inn; he later confessed that he was uneasy portraying a fictional version of his boss. Shady Tree (Leonard Barr) is based on veteran Vegas comedian Shecky Greene.

[while fumbling inside the pipeline, Bond sees a rat]

Bond: Well, one of us smells like a tart’s handkerchief. [sniffs] I’m afraid it’s me. Sorry, old boy.

One of the first things I noticed re: this movie- it looks a BIT cheap (and NOT only b/c it’s set mainly in Vegas). Because of Connery’s high fee, the special effects budget was scaled back. Bond’s escape through a moon landing “movie set” refers to the popular conspiracy theory of the time that the real moon landings were faked. This may be confusing to some (younger) viewers- LOL! The Moon Buggy was inspired by an actual N.A.S.A. vehicle, but w/ additions like flailing arms (as the producers thought it didn’t look “outrageous” enough). It was capable of road speeds; the fiberglass tires had to be replaced during the chase sequence b/c the heat and desert soil ruined them.

Some scenes here have NOT aged well! Plenty is caught by some thugs, wearing nothing but her underwear and high heels, and tossed into the pool. Some fans/critics noted that this has misogynistic undertones. The same can be said of the opening teaser scene where Bond interrogates a woman by pulling up her bikini top and nearly strangling her w/ it. Wint and Kidd hold hands in one scene and banter like a romantic couple; some viewers felt this portrayal wasn’t so bad, but others called it homophobic.

[1] …Sean Connery is back–too bad the film, in many ways, sucked. That’s because by now, the plots seemed more like comic books and the character of Bond seemed more like self-parody than anything else. While in the past Connery played his character rather straight, here he was playing a smirking and smug guy–as if he was looking at the camera and saying “ain’t I cute?”

[2] …we have a tacky script that relies too much on slapstick and unfocused direction. And the acting is not great, Sean Connery is my favourite Bond mainly due to his suavity and charisma but he seems bored and uninterested here and gives an unusually flat performance in the role…

[3] The globe-trotting action takes in Amsterdam and Las Vegas this time around, culminating with an explosive action set-piece on an oil rig in the Atlantic. There are many varied locations used, from action in hotel rooms, circuses, gambling halls and even the desert. There are only two chase scenes in the movie but both are goodies… […] Finally, the action set-pieces are also rather good. The standout is a fight to the death in an old-fashioned lift, of all places, featuring Connery going fist-to-fist with boxer Joe Robinson.

[4] When he first showed up on screen I was taken aback by his aged appearance, looking quite much older than his forty years at the time. […] Story wise, the diamond smuggling concept started out strong but seemed to get frittered away as the film progressed.

-Excerpts from IMBD reviews

Meet the New Bond: “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (1969) starring George Lazenby, Diana Rigg, & Telly Savalas

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George Lazenby (an Aussie car salesman/part-time model) steps into the role of James Bond (after Sean Connery refused). Bond meets the 2nd most powerful leader of a criminal org, Marc-Ange Draco (Italian actor Gabriele Ferzetti), and becomes close w/ Draco’s daughter, Tracy (British TV star Diana Rigg). She was 38 y.o. at that time; she looked classy and confident. Bond then heads off to hunt down Ernst Stavro Blofeld (now played by a American TV star- Telly Savalas) in Switzerland, posing as ancestry expert/professor, Sir Hilary Bray (George Baker). The remote facility (supposedly for allergy research) is heavily guarded and managed by a German woman, Irma Bunt (Ilse Steppat). Anglophiles will get a kick out of seeing a V young Joanna Lumley as one of Blofeld’s international ladies; she went on to comedic fame in Absolutely Fabulous.

Actors considered for Bond included Americans and Brits: Adam West (Batman), Jeremy Brett (Sherlock Holmes), John Richardson (a conventionally handsome up-and-coming actor), Oliver Reed (who went on to have a great career- his last role was on Gladiator) and Roy Thinnes (who I know from One Life to Live). Having secured a suit ordered, but uncollected by Connery, and getting a Rolex and haircut like him, Lazenby talked his way into meeting producer Albert R. Broccoli, producer Harry Saltzman, and director Peter R. Hunt. After falsely claiming he had acting credits, he got a screentest. Lazenby then confessed to Hunt that he wasn’t an actor. Hunt laughed and said, “You just strolled in here and managed to fool two of the most ruthless bastards in the business. You’re an actor.”

As of 2021, Lazenby is the youngest actor to portray 007, as he was only aged 29 during filming. We see the only signature gun barrel sequence where Bond drops down on one knee while shooting at the audience. The theme song We Have All the Time in the World was the last song that Louis Armstrong recorded; he died 2 yrs later. Lazenby wanted to do most of his own stunts, but the studio wouldn’t allow him. During one of the stunt scenes, Lazenby broke his arm, delaying the filming of many of his later scenes.

Though Lazenby doesn’t have as much charisma as Connery, he looks good in the outfits and carries himself w/confidence (no doubt b/c of his experience as a model). You can tell that he hasn’t acted before- for sure! Many viewers noted that Lazenby has good chemistry w/ Rigg in their romantic scenes. Savalas (best known as Kojak) does a fine job in his villain role. As for Draco- ugh- he’s a misogynist who thinks his daughter needs to follow his ideas. He tries to arrange a marriage (no joke) between Bond and Tracy- yikes!

What I liked about it, that we’ve tried to emulate in this film [Inception], is there’s a tremendous balance in that movie of action and scale and romanticism and tragedy and emotion. -Christopher Nolan (filmmaker)

There is a freshness and energy here, unlike most of the previous franchise films. It also looks a lot better; it had a $7M budget, a shooting schedule of 9 mos. (half on location), and a crew of 120. These filming techniques appeared for the 1st time: slow-motion (Bond is knocked out in his bedroom), flashback (Bond remembering Tracy being captured), and “breaking the fourth wall” (Lazenby looking into the camera after saying “This never happened to the other fella”).

[1] …this is my vote for the best James Bond film. No, it’s not because I am a George Lazenby fan. Despite this Aussie not being right for the role, this movie deserves kudos for being so intelligently written–possessing a depth that was never equaled in any other Bond film. Bond, for the first time, was human. Another reason I loved this film is because it was a very long and complex film–making it seem leisurely yet exciting throughout.

There are two plots in the film that run concurrently. First, Bond happens upon a very spoiled and confused lady (Diana Rigg). She is an emotional mess and she needs stability in her life. In a very odd choice, she drifts towards the usually irresponsible and shallow Bond–who in his own way needs her as well. Second, Blofeld is back again and he’s up to something–but what this diabolical scheme is, no one knows.

In addition to the exceptional plots and writing, this film also had amazing but appropriate stunt-work. The skiing scenes were amazing…

[2] It is not the best Bond but it is light years away from the worst. George Lazenby may be a tad inexperienced and the least charismatic of the Bonds, but he is still likable and does try hard, that I can see. (…) Terry Savalas is great as Blofeld, and Diana Rigg is splendid as Tracy. The cinematography and scenery are beautiful, and John Barry’s score and Louis Armstrong’s theme song are simply terrific. In conclusion, better than I thought and dare I say underrated.

[3] I’m not going to put 100% of the blame on Lazenby but I really wonder what the hell the producer’s were thinking. I’m sure they did screen tests or something and at some point they must have known that the actor simply couldn’t pull off anything in the role. He didn’t have the look to believed as a sex symbol and he didn’t have the acting talent to pull off some of the darker, more serious moments that the film goes for. I also thought his comic timing was downright horrendous and made for some really embarrassing moments…

[4]Rigg is every spy’s dream: a madly attractive woman with plenty of intelligence and also spirit, as she reveals in the climax when she tackles a thug.

The movie also benefits from some decent, fast-paced action scenes and genuinely funny humour. This was the first time Bond went skiing and his antics on the slopes easily beat those of Moore. The snowbound locales make for plenty of inventively staged set pieces, like the car chase taking place in a stock car race or the high-rise antics around a cable car.

-Excerpts from IMDB movies