In Reply to: "Goldfinger" posted by rico on November 5, 2004 at 08:16:58:
And to me the best of the series.Erotic purrrrr of Pussy Galore
The cool ice of Tilley Masterson
The Gilt Edged menace of Goldfinger
The outrageous DB-5.
I thought that FRWL was a (very) slight letdown from DN. What with the very derivative helicopter/field/shooting scene (from North by Northwest) and the actress who played Tatiana Romanova COULD NOT ACT- she was not believable !
From Thunderball on, the movies became less and less believable. From the producers perspective, each successive movie had to outdo the preceding one.
I did like Diamonds Are Forever (in the minority among fans I know) and I think that Pierce Brosnan is doing a better job than Roger or Timothy.
As far as the most recent ones are concerned, I am sorry that Valentin Zukovski was killed off. I thought that Robbie Coltrane and Pierce Brosnan played off each other well. Heck I even envisioned a subsiquent plot concerning a Middle Eastern villian with a shaddowy KGB origin, who was originally Zukvoski's protege.
----GB and Russia have set up a London peace conference for the nations of the middle east. On the eve of the conference, the Israeli Foreign Minister, the US Sec of State and various Ministers from the Middle East are all assassinated by what are thought to be Islamic Fundamentalists. The conference is canceled.
Naturally the "00" branch and Bond go after the perpetrators.
Valentin Zukovsky however thinks the real mastermind is his one time Soviet era protégé who was from Afghanistan. At the same time Zukovsky has some tax issues with the British and American Governments. After all, he is a legitimate business man, but only to a point !
He seeks Bond's help when he discovers Bond in Monaco.....playing Baccarat(of course). After the game they are at the bar, discussing the recent assassinations, when Zukovsky suggest that the 2 of them sit down privately "like 2 people who have known each other for a long time". Bond reluctantly agrees and after several vodkas, Zukovsky outlines why he feels that his one time protégé may be behind the assassinations. Based upon details that Zukovsky discloses, Bond thinks he may be correct. When Bond asks for his
assistance in tracking him down, Zukovsky suggests a deal- his help and Middle Eastern contacts in exchange for help with his tax issues. Bond declines. Zukovsky reminds Bond of the times he helped him AND of the time he saved his life. Bond reluctantly agrees.Bond and Zukovsky begin the chase for the culprit. Zukovsky shows off the latest Black Market gadgets while Bond shows off the latest from "Q" branch.
Turns out Zukovsky is correct; his protégé is behind the assassinations..... The protégé is shown to be working between various extremist tribes and the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, PLO and Iran. He has been able to sell his influence with the extremists in exchange for the regional leaders ignoring his many illegal activities. At the same time he is organizing terrorist attacks against Israeli and US targets. A successful peace would not only
put him out of business, but also take away his power base.Bond and Zukovsky get him after many explosions, several close escapes, lots of exotic girls, and breathtaking scenery.
Close to the end "M" says she will "see what she can do about the tax
issues". Last scene is Bond and main movie girl + Zukovsky enjoying a
vacation.What do you think ?
Best,
Ross
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Follow Ups
- GREAT movie - Ross 11:06:34 11/05/04 (0)