“Well, one of us smells like a tart’s handkerchief.”
Ah, so here we are. We’ve reached, in my opinion, one of the weaker entries in the Bond franchise. After On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and George Lazenby’s departure from the series, United Artists wanted Sean Connery back. In fact they wanted him back so much that they payed him a record amount (at the time) of $1.25 million. They wanted to recreate the success of Goldfinger, hence why they hired the director of that film; Guy Hamilton. Don’t get me wrong there are still some great moments in Diamonds Are Forever, which I’ll get on to in a minute. But the silly parts of the movie, and the camp tone, almost overshadows them.
There are good moments though. One great scene see’s Bond fighting diamond smuggler Peter Franks in a lift. It’s really well choreographed fight scene, and in such a cramped space it’s so tense. Sean Connery might be pushing 40 and perhaps he’s only doing it for the paycheck, but he holds his own. Another cool scene is the ending sequence, set on an oil rig. It’s a typically Bond-y place to end the movie on and Connery remains witty throughout. As well as that there’s the famous car chase which is just awesome. I’ve read a review saying “he (Connery) shuffles through the motions like some ageing heavyweight showboater” but I disagree. He is older, he’s perhaps a bit flabbier around the edges and he’s greying a bit but he’s still the same suave gentleman spy that he was in Dr. No. Or at least I think he is.
The villains are weak in Diamonds Are Forever. Blofeld is back but he’s stupider than ever, after making doubles of himself he just keeps letting Bond get away. There’s also a scene in which Blofeld dresses up as a woman. This is just silly. Bond has always been a bit camp, but this is Austin Powers level of silly. It’s just weird. The henchmen in this movie are Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd. They’re two, obviously gay, very strange hitmen. A lot of critics don’t like them, but I really do. They’re eccentric, and a little creepy but I think they’re just great.
Another weak link in this movie are the Bond girls. The times had changed and people weren’t happy with women who were just there for eye candy. Tiffany Case looks great, one of the best looking Bond girls. But she’s just useless. She is ditzy and clumsy and just gets in the way.
Overall, this is not one of the best. BUT, a mediocre Bond film is still an entertaining movie in it’s own right. I still have a soft spot for this diamond smuggling adventure, despite its crappy Bond girl and overly camp tone.
Up next – Live and Let Die, one of my all time favourites.
Reviewed by Jack 😛
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