One of the Greatest Bond Films
Added 2/11/2010
"On Her Majesty's Secret Service" has always been an underrated Bond film. People used to delight in putting it down because it was the only film to star George Lazenby as Bond. Years ago I saw a list that had it listed as the worst Bond film.
It has since been reevaluated and it is now recognized as what I've always known it to be: "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" is a great Bond film, one of my five personal favorites.
OHMSS is a triumph for the director, Peter Hunt (the former editor of the first 5 Connery Bonds.) He took a male model, Lazenby, with no acting experince other than a few commercials, and coaxed a very credible performance out of him. (For years people have imagined just how great this film would have been with Connery as Bond. If it is great with Lazenby, can you imagine it with Connery?) It is a crime that Peter Hunt never got to direct another Bond film.
This film has so many highlights: the location work in Switzerland is possibly the best in the series, the ski and bobsled action scenes have never been equalled, the action scene at the end with Bond and his allies assaulting Blofeld's fortress, Piz Gloria, at the top of a mountain is terifically exciting. It also features the best John Barry soundtrack in the series.
Now as for Lazenby: before this film was released he announced that it would be his first and last appearance as Bond. He fell under the influence of some guru who convinced him that the Bond films were relics of the 1960s, ( this film was released in 1969,) and would probably fade away after the '60s concluded. (Boy was he mistaken.) Lazenby gave the producers some ultamatums about how he wanted the character to change. They did not agree and it was bye-bye George. (It didn't take Lazenby long to realize how stupid he'd been and he has tried for years to get the Bond producers to invite him back for another Bond film. Not surprisingly, they have declined. He now appears at nostalgia shows autographing Bond memorabilia. I have met him twice.) It has always been in dispute over whether the producers of the Bond series were happy to see him go. True OHMSS did not gross as much as the previous Connery Bonds. However I read where the producers originally wanted to sign him to a 7 picture deal, before he obnoxiously scuttled that (and his entire career.) Also in dispute is Lazenby's relationship with his leading lady, the Shakespearian-trained actress Diana Rigg. There are many stories that she had contempt for his lack of acting experience, (even to the point of eating garlic before their love scenes.) Yet there are other stories that they had a romantic relationship while working on the film. Only those directly involved know which stories are true.
What is not in despute is that OHMSS, along with "From Russia, With Love" and the Daniel Craig "Casino Royale," is one of the most realistic Bond films and the closest to Fleming's book. It is certainly way better than the Connery Bond film that followed it: "Diamonds Are Forever." (I remember seeing "Diamonds" in the movies the weekend it opened and the audience was enjoying it immensely. I remember thinking, however, how much better OHMSS was than the Connery Bond. Predictibly "Diamonds" made way more money than OHMSS.)
In conclusion, OHMSS is a great Bond film. As much as I enjoyed the Daniel Craig "Casino Royale," I enjoy OHMSS much better. And while Lazenby's quitting after one film is, in retrospect, quite insane, it did give us Connery back in one more Bond film, (not counting the mediocrity "Never Say Never Again,") and Roger Moore, one of my favorites from his "Maverick" and epecially "The Saint" days,) in 7 Bond films.
The deluxe DVD, like all of the other deluxe Bond DVDs features a very good "Making of OHMSS" documentary and other special features. I look forward to the release of this Bond classic on blu-ray.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
The right Bond for the right picture
Added 1/31/2010
Let me set the record straight, once and for all. Only George Lazenby could have made this movie work! I'm so sick and tired of reading reviews from critics about how Sean Connery would have made this movie better. Lazenby has usually gotten the short end of the stick, because he had the misfortune of being the first man to succeed Connery in the role of James Bond. Comparisons between the two were inevitable. Critics have been quick to point out how Lazenby lacked the movie star presence and charisma of his predecessor. I can point out to them that that's the same problem that all of Connery's successors have had. I would suggest to these so-called movie experts to compare Lazenby to his successors, not his predecessor. I think of him as a cross between Roger Moore and Timothy Dalton. He combines the strengths of both and the weaknesses of neither. Lazenby can play both the comic and serious tones of the movie very well, and can make transitions between the two seamlessly. He also brings a down to earth quality to the Bond character that make his desire to fall in love and settle down more believable than it would have been if Connery had done it. It also strengthens the danger situations, because he's not the larger than life hero that Sean Connery was. What the critics took for a weakness, is actually his strength. Lazenby managed to do what no other actor who played Bond (including Connery) was able to do until Daniel Craig took over the role. He made James Bond human. And a human James Bond is what was needed to make this movie work, and it does, beautifully. The rest of the movie pretty much speaks for itself:great leading lady, great directing, great supporting cast, etc. The action, the laughs, and the drama are all there in one of the top five great Bond movies of all time.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
dreary... boring... dull, need I continue?
Added 1/31/2010
Got the movie from the library and had to turn off. The "dramatic" intro is a fist fight on the beach. Characters spend half the movie discussing plot. The script staggers with no chemistry. The music and interior decors are also grating. Bond resigns and then is rehired in scenes that are completely irrelevant. Too many Bond movies are for Bond fans only, and this one lacks even that moral victory. BAD!!!
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
|
Superior Bond Film
Added 1/30/2010
George Lazenby was just as good as Connery. He was very underrated. Too bad he didn't make ten more J.B. flicks.
Excellent Bond film - action, scenery, acting. Diana Rigg was great.The sequence showing the helicopter assault on Piz Gloria was the best action segment of all the Bond films. Telly Savalis was the best Blofeld.A must-see for all Bond fans.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
satisfied customer
Added 1/18/2010
I was quite pleased by the speediness of the delivery. I didn't realize the 2 disc DVD would not come in plastic packaging, it seems it came from a boxset. That information would have been useful in the description as it was a gift for my brother an avid Bond fan. However, he has no complaints as of yet! So overall, I'm a satisfied customer.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
