Atomic Blonde

Title: Atomic Blonde

Director: David Leitch

Released: 2017

Starring: Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, John Goodman, Til Schweiger, Eddie Marsan, Sofia Boutella, Toby Jones, Roland Møller, Jóhannes Jóhannesson             

Plot: It's 1989 and days before the collapse of the Berlin Wall, MI6 agent Lorraine Broughton is dispatched to recover a microfilm that contains the details of every intelligence agent on both sides of the Cold War active in Berlin, only to soon discover that she’s not the only one who wants to find it.

Review: I’m frequently surprised by what films are adapted from graphic novels with “Road to Perdition” and “A History of Violence” being prime examples and this is certainly the case for this film which is adapted from “The Coldest City” by Antony Johnston which has since the release of the film been renamed “Atomic Blonde” to strengthen the connection to the film.

While the idea of Charlize Theron being an action star might seem like a new direction for her career following on from show stealing turn as Furiosa in “Mad Mad: Fury Road” but at the same time it could be argued that she’s had this edge to her career since turning up in the problematic yet surprisingly not terrible remake of “The Italian Job” or “Promethus” were she’s seen doing push ups when she leaves her cryo-pod while her fellow crew mates are too busy throwing up. Needless to say much like Linda Hamilton she really is the hidden gem of an action heroine as she certainly proves here as she teams up with Director David Leitch who here minus his “John Wick” co-director Chad Stahelski is clearly attempting to continue in his efforts to re-invent the modern action movie.

While it might be sold on the premise of being a female John Wick a moniker that is almost as cringe-worthy and lazy as Hayao Miyazaki being refered to as the “Disney of Japan”. Sadly this really is not we ultimately end up getting here despite Theron efforts to really deliver something special and to her credit she really is one of the few remarkable things about this film, more so when her performance was the only thing I really wanted to save while the rest of the film just left me wanting to just tear it down to the studs and start over.

For Theron this film is something of a passion project and from her performance it’s certainly clear with her training for the film which saw Theron not only cracking two teeth but also sparring with Keanu Reeves who at the time was also gearing up for “John Wick 2”. When you see them results of her hard work on screen you really have to commend her hard work especially when it adds a sense of realism to her performance. More so when it comes to the action scenes which much like “John Wick” certainly have a kinetic flow to them as well as a touch of realism as her character is frequently beaten up and blooded from each encounter while being shown taken ice baths to deal with the injuries so that she can drag herself through to the completion of her mission. If anything it was these action scenes that I wanted to revisit more than the confusing plotting surround them.

The idea of setting the film during the cold war might seem refreshing it really doesn’t give the film much outside of providing a significant event to set the finale against. More so when going into the film I had no idea that it was even supposed to be set in the late 80’s instead believing that I was going to be watching Theron kicking ass in a post Soviet Russia especially seeing the random ass get up of fellow agent David Percival played here by an underwhelming James McAvoy who I ended up wishing they’d cut from the film or better still just have Joaquin Phoenix reprise his performance from “Buffalo Soldiers” whose character is what Percival essentially is once you remove the spy antics. Sadly due to his significance to the plot we are lumbered with him.

Elsewhere we get do get smaller and more effective performances from Toby Jones who plays Theron’s MI6 superior and much like John Goodman who plays his CIA counterpart is someone I never really tire of showing up in surprising places like this, but here he is really one of the few performances that I wanted to see more of here.

Ultimately the downfall of the film can be found in the plotting which packed with double agents and the inevitable double and dare we say triple crosses end up turning into a confused mess as the relevance of certain characters becomes all the more questionable the more twists that are added while others such as Sofia Boutella’s French agent Delphine are given things to justify their presence in the story which in the case of Delphine seems mainly to provide an unrequited lesbian sex scene between her and Theron which like so much of the padding here added nothing to the story bar some brief titillation, even though the film makers have been quick to defend her role as being a way to humanize Theron’s character despite the fact we are shown numerous shots of her pining for her lover and fellow agent we see being killed at the start of the film.

Soundtrack wise it’s as predictable as to be expected as the usual 80’s pop hits are dusted off because seemingly we can’t have any mention of the cold war without Kaleida’s “99 Luftballons” working its way in there while George Michael’s “Father Figure” just feels miss placed.. We do get a couple of highlights in David Bowie’s “Cat People (Putting out fire)” being used to the same effect it was in “Inglorious Bastards” with our female ass kicker putting on her make up while “London Calling” by the Clash works equally well.

Ultimately this is a forgettable spy thriller with some memorable action scenes which much like Theron’s performance will no doubt be one of the few things you remember about it when it’s over. Certainly this is a character I would see developed or dispatched on a less confused plot as this was far from the introduction it deserved.

Kingsman: The Secret Service

Title: Kingsman: The Secret Service

Director:  Matthew Vaughn
Released: 2014
Starring: Colin Firth, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Strong, Taron Egerton, Michael Caine, Sophie Cookson, Sofia Boutella, Samantha Womack, Mark Hamill

Plot: Gary “Eggsy” Unwin (Egerton) is an unrefined street punk who finds himself given a chance at redemption when he is recruited by Galahad (Firth) a member of the secret spy organisation Kingsman and soon tasked with stopping he villainous billionaire tech philanthropist Richmond Valentine (Jackson)

 

Review:  Having previously taken a stab at the superhero genre with “Kick Ass”, here Director Matthew Vaughn gives us his attempt to make spy movies fun again with the likes of Jason Bourne and the current more serious round of Bond film making the hayday of Bond, Flint and Harry Palmer seeing like a distant memory. Meanwhile the less said about teen spy Alex Cross  and the attempts to adapt his popular series with the abysmal “Stormbreaker” the better. Its also a project which sees him adapting another of “Kick Ass” creator Mark Millar’s comic books “The Secret Service”, while once more teaming up with long time writing partner Jane Goldman for the script.

Right from the start its clear that reality is very much an afterthought for Vaughn as his team of super spies set about taking out a group of middle east terrorists with the various explosions they cause turning into the title credits. At the same time the agents of the Kingsman organisation are undeniably British in their approach to their work, as they are made up of well-spoken and smartly dressed agents who use the names of the knights of the round table for their codenames, making them of course the polar opposite of Eggsy who lives in a council flat with his mum (Womack), baby half- sister and abusive stepfather.

While the two hour run time might seem bloated for this kind of popcorn spy film, the pacing is handled well by Vaughn who uses the first half of the film to cover Eggsy’s training by Merlin (Strong) whose methods frequently threaten the lives of the potential candidates, a fact actually pretty open about as he requests the candidates fill out the details on their personal body bags before they can start training. At the same time he thinks little about throwing them out of plane with a failed parachute or flooding their sleeping quarters while they sleep all which add to the films impressive action sequences, with Vaughn manging at the same time to work in a healthy dose of humour to the proceedings with Eggsy being lumped with a pug after mistaking it for a bulldog when the candidates are made to choose a puppy to look after and train.

Refreshingly Vaughn is continually more than happy to play around with the audiences expectations with the expected passing of training not happening and Eggsy failing to graduate rather than passing with the usual flying colours when he refuses to shoot his now beloved pug when requested by Kingsman head Arthur (Caine) making his eventual journey into the Kingsman ranks an interesting one to follow especially when we have such a fun relationship between Colin Firth’s super spy Galahad and Eggsy helped further still by the great on screen chemistry that both Firth and Egerton share. Firth of course playing up his established persona of the well-spoken upper class Brit as he takes Eggsy through the importance of tailored suits and attempting to bestow on him lessons in manners and chivalry. At the same time Eggerton’s journey from chav to gentlemen spy is made only the more believable thanks to a strong performance by the newcomer, who effortless transfers from one persona to the next.

Unquestionably the real draw here though is with the films action sequences, which manage to go well above the expectations laid out in the trailers, with Vaughn racking up an impressive pile of casualties, as he crafts huge set pieces such as the showdown in Valentine’s mountain top lair and more impressively Firth taking on a church full of people driven into a psycho frenzy by Valentine’s tech in a scene made all the more giddily enjoyable  by being set to the strains of Lynyrd Skynrd’s “Free Bird”. The action scenes throughout constantly providing to be inventive while the camera is held at the centre of the action and moving with such fluidity it really puts the action up with the likes of “The Raid” films and certainly a higher standard of action than we have come to expect from these kind of blockbuster. At the same time Firth whose only real action scenes before this have been his two fights with Hugh Grant in the Bridget Jones films, here shows himself to be the kind of surprise action hero that Liam Neelson proved himself to be in “Taken”, while the fact that Firth did 80% of his own stunt and fight scenes really only making it the more impressive when you see him effortless flowing from one opponent to the next, while amusingly even turning his umbrella into a deadly weapon.

What is really surprising here though is just how violent the film is with fights frequently turning into bloody and brutal affiars with anything which can be turned into a weapon frequently being used so, while nothing compares to the mass head exploding sequence at the films finale set to the tune of Elgar’s “Pomp and Circumstance”, though the fact they are exploding not in bloody showers of brain and skull but rather colourful puffs of smoke like fireworks I couldn’t help but feel was more a decision to ensure the film wasn’t lumped with a higher rating. Needless to say it’s still one of the more memorable scenes.

The other strength of the film is in its casting with Samuel L. Jackson clearly having a blast as Valentine who shakes up the usual villain model with his aversion to violence and blood preferring to leave the heavy lifting to his henchwoman Gazelle (Boutella) and her razor sharp bladed prosthetic legs who might be the most interesting villain since the clockwork gasmask clad Karl Kroenen in “Hellboy”. Elsewhere Michael Caine is on great form as he continues to pick up the senior spy roles that would have gone to Sean Connery was he still acting though here he once more gives us the great personality shifts we got with “Harry Brown” while hinting that he too was originally from the same humble beginnings as Eggsy. More surprising though is the appearance by Mark Hamill which I couldn’t help but feel should have been accompanied by the same kind of highlighting arrow that he got in “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back”.

On the downside Vaughn’s world crafting is painfully limited with society being divided into two groups of the privileged and lower class with no attempts to provide a middle ground for these two groups while at the same time no doubt reinforcing the general opinion that Brits are either cockneys or snobs. Equally frustrating is the sloppy ending which seems to deal that getting anal sex off a princess is in same way a modernisation of the typical Bond ending and as a result means that the film ends on more of a stumble than the high five its building up to.

Unquestionably this is an exciting and revival for the spy genre, reminding us that it doesn’t have to be bogged down with dour faced seriousness while laying the foundation which an exciting series can be built from, especially with a sequel already in the works at the time of writing which will no doubt determine if this series is more than a one shot film hung on a fun gimmick.

Machete Kills

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Title: Machete Kills
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Released: 2013

Staring: Danny Trejo, Mel Gibson, Charlie Sheen, Demian Bichir, Amber Heard, Lady Gaga, Sofia Vergara, Antonio Banderas, Cuba Gooding Jr.

Plot: Following on from the events of the original film, Machete is put on the path of revenge when his girlfriend Sartana (Jessica Alba) is killed by a mysterious masked man while attempting to capture weapons dealers supplying the Mexican drug cartels. Now recruited by President Rathcock (Charlie Sheen, here appearing as Carlos Estevez) with the promise of citizenship, Machete is sent to eliminate Marcos Mendez (Demian Bichir) who is currently threatening to fire a nuclear missile at the White House.  Soon however Machete discovers that the mysterious masked man might also be linked to the plot aswell.

Review: For a film which started out as a joke trailer in the financial misfire (yet critically acclaimed) “Grindhouse”, Machete has turned into quite the trilogy while at the same time certainly doing no harm for Danny Trejo’s stock. Launching him from token bad guy to recognisable leading man as in the wake of the original “Machete” it seemed that everyone couldn’t get enough of the former bare knuckle boxing champion of San Quentin and young offender councillor. Needless to say it was only a matter of time before director Robert Rodriguez gave the world a follow up to his cult favourite.

While the original film might have been the tale of a badass seeking revenge after he is double crossed by his employers, this film decides to spin the franchise off in a new direction as Machete here takes on more of a “XXX” style spy role as he dashes for the border with Marcos, who has hardwired the nuke to his heart and eventually sets out to foil the Bond villain esq schemes of the “Star Wars” obsessed weapons manufacturer Luther Voz (Mel Gibson).  It’s a certainly an intresting change of pace and one which actually benefited the film, especially when the original always felt that it was being hampered by being built around its fake trailer and as such was just finding a way to link each of the trailers set pieces together.

This time taking sole ownership of the director’s chair having previously co-directed the original with his long term editor Ethan Maniquis, this time it is truly Rodriguez’s film and one which certainly finds him a playful mood once again, as he aims to maintain the Neo-Grindhouse aesthetic from the fake opening trailer for “Machete Kills Again… In Space” and classic feature presentation title card, through to even throwing in an old school 3D sequence (yes the old blue and green glasses style) to rival his breaking film scene in “Planet Terror”. Equally at the same time this also see’s him throwing plausibility out of the window as the franchise doesn’t so much jump the shark but the whole freaking aquarium! Needless to say this is a film which like its closest comparison “XXX” works best when you’re not questioning what you’re watching and just enjoy the ride. After all there are countless movies and franchises currently obsessed with realism so what’s wrong with alittle raw escapism which is what you get here.

Having established the Mexican James Bond vibe early on Rodriguez really works it in every conceivable way, with Machete getting to utilise a number of customised machete’s including a tri-bladed model which his beauty queen liason (Amber Heard) refers to as the swiss army knife of machete’s  while still managing to keep the character every bit as gritty as he was in the first film, with Trejo with his trademark tattoos and tanned leather features fully embodies this character even more so the second time around, as he makes even Machete’s habit of referring to himself in the third person sound cool. This Bond theme also continues to the main villain here as Voz is every bit the bond villain with his scheme sounding very familiar to that of Drax’s in “Moonraker”, but despite this similarity here we get to see Mel Gibson on truly bonkers form, as he embodies the role even when engaging in a machete / sword fight while wearing a cape! Thankfully Rodriguez is one of the few people in Hollywood able to separate Gibson’s troubled personal life from the actor as he is truly one of the big draws here and perhaps only rivalled by the multiple personality antic’s of Birchir’s Mexican revolutionary Mendez whose hyper personality makes him another fun character while never pushing it so far that it becomes irritating.

Much like the first film Rodriguez has assembled a great ensemble cast to flesh out this colourful world he continues to craft here and one which see’s “Modern Family” favourite Sofia Vergara cranks up her crazy to psychotic as brothel owner Madame Desdemona who not only has her own army of prostitute assassins (a nod to Blaxploitation favourite “Dolemite” ) aswell as a twin minigun bra she refers to as her “Double D’s”. Equally game is Antonio Banderas, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Lady Gaga as the various faces of shape shifting assassin El Camaleón a role which not only sees Gooding Jr. giving his best performance in years, but also proving that Lady Gaga is more of an accomplished actor than first suspected, especially when I was left wanting to see more of her in this film and something which could be corrected in “Machete Kills Again…In Space” if the fake trailer is to be believed. True there are so which might argue that she has already had enough practice with the antics of her usual disco punk persona, but here she is in perfect form as she sneers her way through the film.

Upping the ante in every way possible from the first film, Rodriguez fully up the splatter as heads roll and helicopter blades especially are put to creative use on more than one occasion. The action scenes aswell are fully stepped up a number of fantastic set pieces including a “Mad Max” inspired car chase complete with George Miller style speeded up shots. Rodriguez though once again shows himself as a director with an eye for action, even if he might not be known as an action director, here he once more shows that he knows his way around a set piece and with his cousin Trejo he really does have the perfect grizzled action hero.

After the patchy “Machete” this film really steps up the fun of the first film, while correcting many of the mistakes made first time around, even if like the original it still suffers with a bloated third act. So with Sci-fi set to be the theme for the third and final part I can only imagine how Rodriguez plans on topping the madness of this film,  but if anything this film has certainly laid down a strong foundation, so leave your expectations at the door, just buy the ticket and enjoy the ride.

For Your Height Only

 

Title: For Your Height Only

Director: Eddie Nicart
Released: 1981
Staring: Weng Weng, Yehlen Cathral, Carmi Martin, Anna Marie Gutierrez, Beth Sandoval, Max Alverado, Mike Cohen, Tony Ferrer, Jim Gaines, Rodolfo ‘Boy’ Garcia, Romy Nario, Ruben Ramos

Plot: When Mr. Giant kidnaps the brilliant scientist Dr. Van Kohler (Cohen), in a bid to get his hands on the N-Bomb, superspy Agent 00 (Weng) is despatched to stop him.

Review: Possibly one of the better known Filipino genre movies no doubt largely in part to it’s 2’9 leading man and cult figure Weng Weng, with this film being possibly his most well-known. So with Emily (Deadly Doll's House of Horror Nonsense) looking at “The Man With The Golden Gun” as part of her 3rd Annual shortening. A full month of films devoted to the vertically challenged, be they dolls, trolls, spiders, monkey butlers, bratz, cats and more! What better time to revisit this shall we say unique film.

Setup exactly the same as the Bond movies it spoofs even shamelessly using the Bond Theme, with the title being a deliberate (and not to say obvious) play on “For Your Eyes Only” which was released the same year as this film, so hence we Dr. Van Kohler is kidnapped by the forces of evil, which in this case look like pretty much every other generic crime movie gang even to the point where they don’t even bother with an actual name for their organisation, though they do have a magic mirror which flashes on and off and serves as their sole source of communication with the illusive Mr. Giant. Still despite kidnapping Dr. Kohler it is still pretty confusing what their actual goal is  seeing how at one point it seems to be about flooding schools with drugs hidden inside loafs of bread, which is kind of a questionable plan seeing how kids don’t usually have access to large amounts of cash to buy drugs, which no doubt explains why they then change I to threatening the world with the N-Bomb, a device which is not only explained as to what it actually does, but never appears on screen and seemingly exists in name only.

While the villians attempts at actually villainy might be shall we say slightly unfocused, at least when it comes to the character of Agent 00 it is alittle more on target, as he is introduced in classic Bond style, lounging around the pool with a couple of bikini clad ladies, as despite his short stature he certainly never seems to have any problem with the ladies especially as he gives even Bond’s seduction skills a run for their money over the course of the film. Equally like Bond, Agent 00 has his own set of gadgets which are introduced via possibly the most vague gadget briefing ever, as he is passed the gadgets often with only a brief outline of what they do or in some cases such as his x-ray glasses no information atall other than “Pretty Cool, Huh?” as Agent 00 just gives a knowing smile. It is actually kind of handy that he knows what half of these things do as the audience is certainly never filled in, often only finding out when he uses them for the first time. The gadgets he is given, though seem like such a mixed bag, while frequently there to give another knowing nod to Bond, as Agent 00 not only gets his own “Thunderball” style jet pack but also a remote control hat seemingly modelled after Oddjob’s bowler hat from “Goldfinger”, only with non of the same deadly potential as this hat just floats around in front of the bad guys, who due to their pathetically cowardly nature are intimidated enough by this cheap effect of a hat on a string to just run away, leaving me now with the belief that flying hats are clearly a lot scarier to Filipino gangsters than the rest of the world!

Such randomness seems to come as standard with the majority of Agent 00’s gadgets, meaning that we gets scenes such as when he uses his x-ray glasses, which not only allow him to see the bad guys hiding in his hotel room, but also them naked seeing how x-ray works only on fabric and not actual human skin. Agent 00 also has his own mini PPK style pistol aswell as a quick assembly mini machine gun, yet when neither is available to hand, he never seems to have trouble finding a miniature weapon nearby, as seen during the climatic raid on Mr. Giant’s island hide away were he takes on a number of samurai warrior armed with a mini Katanta which seemingly appears out of nowhere. Needless to say either without his weapons he is just as capable with his martial arts skills, which are surprisingly nimble with the scenes were he gets to show off these skills, actually being one of the better handled and more coherent of the film, which randomly skips between random scenes on almost the same whim that “Sister Street Fighter” memorably did. Considering that Weng Weng was an avid martial arts enthusiast it is unsurprising hat these scenes are handled a lot better than most of the film, as he showcases not only surprising speed, but also a Jackie Chan style fluidity even as he utilises his surroundings frequently to his advantage, much like his height which seems to be a real weakness for the gangsters he faces, who frequently seem to be overwhelmed in these confrontations.

The real humour of the film though is with the questionable dub track, which it is hard to tell if it is supposed to be so intentionally funny or something which was added later in distribution. Either way it contains such gems as

"You're such a tiny little guy, though. Very petite, like a potato".

"why, he's making a monkey out of the forces of evil"

Or my personal favourite which is said in reference to a crime scene photographer

"I wonder if she does Bar Mitzvahs".

As I said it is hard to tell how much is planned, especially when the film features so many moments of physical comedy, such as a running joke about Agent 00 banging his head while sliding across the floor.

For all the randomness in the film, it is really a credit to Weng Weng that it is actually as watchable as it is, as he owns the character of Agent 00, as he confidently struts around n polyester suits and turtlenecks, often wearing sunglasses which almost cover his entire face, while making even somehow making more random moments of the film slightly more plausible than they could have been, no doubt thanks to his own abilities as an actor / martial artist and the end result despite the obvious budget restraints is the sort of enjoyable nonsense that you hope to find when hunting down these kinds of movies and while it is certainly not a lone example of dwarf-sploitation (if that’s the right term) with films like “The Terror of Tiny Town” and to an extent “Electra Glide In Blue” being other key examples, while Weng Weng would go on to make a sequel to this film “The Impossible Kid” aswell as the western “D’Wild Wild Weng” before his star began to fade, while this still remains one of the better and certainly more fun examples of the genre.

A View To A Kill

Title: A View To A Kill

Director: John Glen
Released: 1985
Staring: Roger Moore, Christopher Walken, Tanya Roberts, Grace Jones, Patrick Macnee, Patrick Bauchau, David Yip, Desmond Llewelyn, Robert Brown, Lois Maxwell, Willoughby Gray

Plot: Bond (Moore) returns from the USSR with a chip capable of withstanding a EMP, that would destroy a normal chip. Discovering the chip was made by Zorin Industries, Bond is despatched to investigate its owner, Max Zorin (Walken) unware that Zorin has plans to set off an earthquake in San Andreas to wipe out Silicon Valley.
 

 

Review: The fourteenth Bond film and seventh aswell as the final time that Roger Moore would play the iconic role and even more sadly the last time that Lois Maxwell would appear as Moneypenny. It would also be for the longest time when I was growing up my favourite of the Bond films and certainly the film were I was first mesmerised by Christopher Walken. However as time passed and the series moved on, this movie did slip from the top position as my favourite but yet it has still remained as one of my top five, despite being frequently regarded as the worst by many Bond fans aswell as by Moore himself who retired from the role after the film believing himself to be too old to play the role.

So why exactly is this film so hated? Honestly I could not say and while Moore might be showing his age at this point in the series, somthing especially highlighted in the previous film “For Your Eyes Only”, he is none the less of a presence here while finally being given a half decent villain to go up against especially with a peroxide blonde Walken as Zorin certainly being one of the more psychotic villains which Bond has been pitted against, as what Walken brings here is a pitch black streak of evil, which makes it hard to imagine either of the original choices for the role David Bowie (who opted to make “Labyrinth” instead) or Sting being able to pull it off, especially when Zorin’s psychotic side sees him having zero qualms about throwing spies into pump valves or even massacring his own minions in a scene which Moore would highlight as one of his main reasons for disliking the film considering it not a real Bond movie stating

“It stopped being what they were all about. You didn't dwell on the blood and the brains spewing all over the place."

Unsurprisingly as a result of Zorn’s violent whims it does make this this one of the most violent Bond films to date, even giving the controversial “Licence To Kill” a run for its money and no doubt only not more picked up due to the fact that the violence is not as explicit here, yet in many ways being a precursor for the violence seen in the Dalton films which followed. Zorin though brought a fresh new type of villain to the Bond series, especially when the villains had been becoming increasingly farcical over the course of the last few films, something especially not helped by the producers leaping on any popular trend as especially seen with the success of “Star Wars” resulting in Bond being sent into space in “Moonraker”. Here though Zorin is much more grounded and relatively gimmick free outside of the fact that he uses a blimp for his base of operations, a relatively tame choice especially considering the space stations, volcano lairs and private islands his predecessors had. Still it does have the amazing ability of disguising itself as a work shed and contains a hidden hatch for dropping Japanese business men out of inflight, while even more randomly a stash of dynamite for no real discernible reason. Such grounded villainy even stretches to his main henchmen or in this case henchwoman May Day (Jones)who has no gimmick outside of her Amazonian stature and strength. Infact the closest he gets to matching any of his predecessors is with his monocle wearing personal physician / former Nazi scientist Dr. Carl Mortner (Grey) whose medical experiments with steroids, we are lead to believe created Zorin in one of the few farcical moments of plotting….well that and the dynamite on the blimp, I mean seriously what is the deal with that?

Surprisingly on this mission Bond actually receives more assistance than normal as he is joined by CIA agent Chuck Lee (Yip) who was originally supposed to be Bond’s usual contact Felix Leiter, but due to the use of the Chinatown setting for Bond’s time in San Francisco, the character of Chuck Lee was created instead. More intresting through is the inclusion of Patrick Macnee who is no doubt best known for his own secret agent turn as Steed in “The Avengers” and whom here appears as MI6 agent Sir Godfrey Tibbet. Macnee is on great form here and shares some great back and forth banter with Bond when he goes undercover as Bond’s driver. Sadly for all the help he does get here, he does also get lumbered with possibly one of the most useless Bond girls in the form of Stacey (Roberts) who constantly seems to need rescuing, while at the same time being incable of doing anything without Bond’s help. Sadly when it comes to Bond girls in this entry he kind of lucks out, as even though he even seduces May Day, which considering that Moore and Jones didn’t get along means that the scene means that they share zero onscreen chemistry during his seduction scene.

The plotting is kept pretty tight throughout with minimal changes of location aswell several great set pieces including May Day’s memorable base jump from the Eiffel Tower, a fire truck chase through the streets of San Francisco and an exhilarating and highly fixed cross country horse race, while director Glen resists the need to include any friendly banter between Bond and Zorin, which has for so long been one of the cornerstones of the franchise were Bond frequently comes across almost chummy with the villains he is supposed to be stopping. True Glen does detract from some the action scenes with some overly jokey moments, such as Bond’s rapidly disintegrating car during the Paris chase or the mass destruction of police cars at the Golden Gate Bridge, but these are minor quibbles especially when the film is one of the better Moore helmed Bond adventures.

Perhaps it’s more down to various aspects of this film such as Walken’s delightfully villainous Zorin (possibly the best bond villain since Dax in “Moonraker”) or getting to see Grace Jones giving us another Amazonian turn which includes her lifting her then boyfriend Dolph Lundgren above her head, that I view this film so fondly, but even when I detach such opinions from the film, this is still one of the more enjoyable Bond romps even for its few faults.