Thunderball (1965)

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Bigger budget does not always make a better movie
Comment: After the success of "Goldfinger", the Bond producers secured the film rights to "Thunderball" and tripled the budget. The basic plot is simple but good: Largo, working for Spectre, steals atomic missiles and demands a ransom. Unfortunately, "Thunderball" is considerably longer than the previous movies, but there's less plot. The script is dull and the direction lifeless. Most of the budget seems to have been spent on the underwater sequences. But they're not well made, only chaotic and go on for way too long. They become the anticlimax of a movie that had already lost my interest. "Thunderball" is one of the few Bond movies that manages to bore me. Not recommended.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: ANOTHER TOP CLASS BOND ADVENTURE
Comment: Out of the 21 official entries in the James Bond series Thunderball is often mentioned as the underwater one and for very good reason. It had big shoes to fill since the Bond film before it was Goldfinger and Goldfinger became a box office phenomenon across the world. Although Thunderball was more successful there are debates on weather it was a better film or not.

Picking up after the most unusual pre titles scene featuring MI6 secret agent James Bond meeting his match with... a man in drag and escaping in a jet pack. Thunderball features the most generic Bond plot: The international terrorist organization SPECTRE led by a mysterious unseen cat stroking leader, hijacks two nuclear bombs for a huge extortion plan. James Bond (Sean Connery) is sent to Nassau where Domino Derval (Claudine Auger), the sister of the pilot who appears to be responsible for the theft, resides with her wealthy older husband Emilio Largo (Adolf Celi). Bond eventually finds out Largo himself is the eye patch wearing No. 2 of SPECTRE and he is in charge of the nuclear warheads.

Thunderball is directed by Terence Young picking up directing duties after Guy Hamilton from the previous film. Young fills the screen with the same thrilling charm and glamour that made the first Bond films unique.

The action is mostly underwater and that is what usually splits the fans of the series and some find them boring and sleep inducing. The special effects crew got awarded with a Best Special Effects Oscar in 1966 and for very good reason. The film extensive use of underwater photography was quite breath taking for the time and the special effects themselves are impressive, especially the explosion featured in the climax of the film. Thunderball is based more on thrills then stunts and the theme song is sung by Tom Jones is one of the most memorable songs in the series.

Connery shows why he is considered the best Bond by most fans as he has amazing screen presence and a suave charm of a sophisticated playboy.

Thunderball is one of the most well rounded Bond adventures to date. Exotic locations, beautiful women, battle sequences, gadgets, suspence, terrific music and a memorable villain. A brilliant Bond film with very good entertainment.

Thank you for reading my review.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Not bad... but not great
Comment: An ok performance by Sean Connery in this 4th installment to the Bond series. The story line involves crime syndicate SPECTRE stealing two nuclear missiles from a british fighter jet and holding the world to ransome for millions of pounds. A reasonable story line- and granted there are some intriguing gadgets like the ingestible homing device etc. But the underwater scenes are so utterly boring- that I find myself literally falling asleep! The pre-title scene is nothing spectacular either- especially in comparison with the partly successful Goldfinger. Good in parts, but rubbish in others.
Tom Jones' title song however and John Barry's musical score do as usual add atmosphere and excitement to the otherwise mediocre parts of the film.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: The best mix of all things Bond
Comment: And the above title basically sums up why this is such a great Bond-film.

First of all, there is of course Connery. His script boasts more quips than in the previous 3 outings, but the way in which he blends them into the dialogue here turns the laconic humour into one of Thunderball's greatest assets - never does it get cringeworthy or overkill like in many of the later installments.
His subtle, nonchalant approach to the part is what makes this, i.m.o, his best performance as 007 after From Russia With Love.

Next, you just can't deny that the scenery and exotic feel make this film so very 'James Bond'. The Bahamas backdrop is used fairly well, and the aquatic cinematography is truly excellent, even by today's standards. The casino; the beach; the coral reefs; the islands - classic stuff all round.

The plot is of course hokum, but very well staged. Bond is quite quickly on the trail of a plan to steal nukes from a routine excercise NATO flight, SPECTRE are at the root of the evil with Blofeld's right hand man Emilio Largo (well played by eye-patched Adolfo Celi) in charge of the operation.

You can't fault this film for being slighty slow-paced in places, as that is the nature of underwater movement, if you don't like those scenes then get a beer or something - but don't be too long as the rest is certainly worth your while, Thunderball is quite simply classic Bond.

It may not be the best Connery did, but it's quite easily the most complete James Bond film to date - replete with all the ingredients 007 should be made of.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Connery.. IS.. James Bond .He was born for the part.
Comment: When 'Thunderball' first came out, I remember going to see it in the Savoy cinema in O'Connell Street one sunny saturday afternoon. This was my first James Bond encounter and I knew it was not going to be my last.I was taken on an adventure I will remember for as long as I live.
This DVD takes pride of place in my Bond collection. The film is great. The extras are great. You will not be disappointed.
I rate this film as the best James Bond film ever.
Buy it.

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James Bond's fourth adventure takes him to the Bahamas, where a NATO warplane with a nuclear payload has disappeared into the sea. Bond (Sean Connery) travels from a tony health spa (where he tangles with a mechanised masseuse run amuck) to the casinos of Nassau and soon picks up the trail of SPECTRE's number-two man, Emilio Largo (Adolfo Celi) and his beautiful mistress, Domino (Claudine Auger), whom Bond soon seduces to his side. Equipped with more gadgets than ever, courtesy of the resourceful "Q" (Desmond Llewelyn), agent 007 escapes an ambush with a personal-size jet pack and takes to the water as he searches for the undersea plane, battles Largo's pet sharks, and finally leads the battle against Largo's scuba-equipped henchmen in a spectacular underwater climax. This thrilling Bond entry became Connery's most successful outing in the series and was remade in 1983 as Never Say Never Again, with Connery returning to the role after a 12-year hiatus. Tom Jones belts out the bold theme song to another classic Maurice Binder title sequence. --Sean Axmaker