ALL SCI-FI Forum Index ALL SCI-FI
The place to “find your people”.
 
 FAQFAQ   SearchSearch   MemberlistMemberlist   UsergroupsUsergroups   RegisterRegister 
 ProfileProfile   Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   Log inLog in 

Diamonds Are Forever (1971)
Goto page 1, 2, 3  Next
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    ALL SCI-FI Forum Index -> Sci-Fi Movies from 1970 to 2000
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
Bud Brewster
Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)


Joined: 14 Dec 2013
Posts: 17020
Location: North Carolina

PostPosted: Sat Nov 15, 2014 7:56 pm    Post subject: Diamonds Are Forever (1971) Reply with quote




In some ways this is the best Bond film since Goldfinger (which Guy Hamilton also directed), even though the climactic battle scene is small potatoes compared to the one in You Only Live Twice.

But there's plenty of action, humor, and girls — including Jill St. John as Tiffany Case, and Lana Wood as Plenty O'Toole.








The villain is Blofeld again, portrayed with decadent charm by Charles Gray — who, ironically, played a British secret agent in the 5th Bond film, You Only Live Twice — which, ironically, was the first Bond film to show Blofeld's face (Donald Pleasence).





The most memorable stunt is probably when Bond drives the Mustang through a narrow alley on two-wheels. Not bad. Very Happy





Blofeld steals a fortune in diamonds and uses them in the laser cannon of a killer satellite. Plenty of humor sparks the story, some of which is provided by two sissy hit men who prance in and out of the story. But the best laughs come from Connery himself, who portrays Bond not just as a suave agent but as a sly con man.

Since so much of the story takes place in Las Vegas, the producers elected to Americanize the cast by having Jimmy Dean play a kidnapped millionaire. The title theme is sung by Shirley Bassey of "Goldfinger" fame.

After Diamonds are Forever Connery avowed publicly that he'd never play Bond again, but in 1983 he succumbed to a generous offer to portray 007 one more time — and the producers gloated over their success in winning Connery back by titling the film "Never Say Never Again". Please note that Never Say Never Again was not produced by the same people who gave us all the other Bond films — and it shows.

_________________
____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


Last edited by Bud Brewster on Sat Mar 03, 2018 2:27 pm; edited 6 times in total
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Krel
Guest





PostPosted: Sat Nov 15, 2014 10:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sean Connery was really out of shape in this movie. A few years ago TCM was showing the Bond movies, in order on Friday nights. The first four Bond movies came out a year apart. The next two he did were two years apart.

It was interesting to watch the films so close together, and watch Sean Connery change as the series progressed. You could see his hair thin and his body thicken with each film. Although he was a former bodybuilder, I would think that it was hard to maintain a physical fitness schedule, with the schedule of a Bond film each year. He did a lot of world traveling in those movies.

David.
Back to top
Bud Brewster
Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)


Joined: 14 Dec 2013
Posts: 17020
Location: North Carolina

PostPosted: Sat Nov 15, 2014 11:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

_____________________________________

The quality of the Connery films forms a lop-sided bell curve, in my opinion, with a sharp upward slant on the left side, and the peak at Goldfinger, after which the whole spy craze slowly faded.

It was a wild and wonderful time for a 16-year-old guy who was dating like there was no tomorrow and who desperately wished he could be as cool as a certain British secret agent who had gadgets in his car that did real practical stuff like spray oil on the road behind him and throw unwanted passengers through the sun roof.

I spent a few hours one Saturday evening in the mid-sixties constructing a handmade shoulder holster out of cardboard covered with electrical tape, attached to a strip of elastic I snitched from Mom's sewing box.

I secretly wore it to church the next day under the coat of my Sunday suit -- with a small starter pistol, the kind used for races. I don't remember where I got it -- but I still have it somewhere, complete with a three-inch piece of aluminum tubing taped to the top as a "scope".

A scope . . . on a pistol. Rolling Eyes

I'll dig it out soon and take a picture of it. You'll die laughing. But they can't arrest me for it, because I have a license to kill. I made it myself.
Laughing
_________________
____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


Last edited by Bud Brewster on Wed Jul 20, 2022 12:11 pm; edited 2 times in total
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Pow
Galactic Ambassador


Joined: 27 Sep 2014
Posts: 3401
Location: New York

PostPosted: Mon Nov 17, 2014 8:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Every guy then wanted to be 007 & spending time with Jill & Lana. Very Happy
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Bud Brewster
Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)


Joined: 14 Dec 2013
Posts: 17020
Location: North Carolina

PostPosted: Mon Nov 17, 2014 8:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Obviously I was consumed by that very idea when I was a teen. Bond was the ultimate example of ability + confidence . . . while teens like me lacked both of those qualities, and we knew it. Very Happy

The franchise was never intended to be taken seriously, but the producers stopped trying to walk the fine line between realism and wish-fulfillment. Until the Pierce Brosnan films brought the whole thing back from the Land of Total Silliness, the later Bond movies made no attempt to do what the early ones did so well.

But by the time the Brosnan's movies came out I was well past my awkward teenage years . . . and well into my awkward middle aged years
. Very Happy
_________________
____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


Last edited by Bud Brewster on Sun Aug 13, 2017 3:16 pm; edited 1 time in total
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Bud Brewster
Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)


Joined: 14 Dec 2013
Posts: 17020
Location: North Carolina

PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2016 11:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

__________________________________

A sexy trailer for a sexy Bond movie. Just what this thread needs! Very Happy

__________________________________

_______ Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - trailer


_________

_________________
____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


Last edited by Bud Brewster on Wed Aug 03, 2016 12:55 pm; edited 1 time in total
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Skullislander
Solar Explorer


Joined: 13 Jul 2016
Posts: 74

PostPosted: Wed Aug 03, 2016 3:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I found this movie a bit of a let-down, although the Shirley Bassey theme song is still evocative.

Also features 'Jack Driscoll', or Bruce Cabot from the '33 King Kong in his last role.

A confusing mess, to me, this film: possibly the worst in the franchise — weak setpieces but I am sure it has it's fans.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Bud Brewster
Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)


Joined: 14 Dec 2013
Posts: 17020
Location: North Carolina

PostPosted: Wed Aug 03, 2016 12:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

I do agree it's weak, but I think it beats out all but a few of the Roger Moore films. However, this one looks really bad compared to all of the Pierce Brosnan movies.

The Brosnan movies managed to do the "Sean Connery" type of Bond films while dialing up the action and FX considerably.

_________________
____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Bud Brewster
Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)


Joined: 14 Dec 2013
Posts: 17020
Location: North Carolina

PostPosted: Thu Apr 06, 2017 3:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

As I mentioned in a post I made today for both Dr. No and Goldfinger, I watched Angelina Jolie in Salt recently, and it was actually a good "female Bond" movie. So I went looking for things to say about some of my favorites Bond movies.

IMDB trivia has a few nice items for this film (the blue text below). This first one is hysterical! Laughing
________________________________

During a late 1990s airing of the movie on TBS's Dinner and A Movie, Bruce Glover recalled that while filming their scenes together, he and Putter Smith had Sean Connery convinced that the two were actually openly homosexual. Glover added that a few years later while on an airline flight he was flirting with a female flight attendant, and suddenly heard a Scottish accented voice saying "You son of a bitch..." Glover turned around and saw the man was Connery.

Reportedly, the final scene Sean Connery filmed as Bond (at least in the official movie series) was the one in which an unconscious Bond is loaded into a coffin at the funeral home. So, Connery's last ever day of playing James Bond for EON Productions was Friday, August 13, 1971.

(Note from me: And that, folks, is proof that irony is not just a five-letter word that (almost) rhymes with Connery!) Laughing

According to Lana Wood's autobiography, she was the victim of a prank when she first met Sean Connery. Someone on the set told her to meet Sean at his Las Vegas hotel room. The door was open and she sat down in a chair. Sean called from the bathroom that he'd be there in a minute. He then walked out stark naked. They had a brief fling during filming, until she was abruptly dumped by Sean, who decided to carry on with Jill St. John instead.

(Note from me: And, my friends, should put to rest any doubts that Sean Connery was not as irresistible to women as James Bond was! Cool

The original plot had Gert Fr??be returning as Auric Goldfinger's twin from Goldfinger (1964) seeking revenge for the death of his brother.

(Note from me: This would have been tricky, wouldn't it? This film is about diamond smuggling, not gold smuggling. So, what would the brother of Auric Goldfinger's name be?

Adam Goldfinger? After all, the Latin word for diamond is . . . adamantem!

_________________
____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
scotpens
Starship Captain


Joined: 19 Sep 2014
Posts: 871
Location: The Left Coast

PostPosted: Thu Apr 06, 2017 10:56 pm    Post subject: Re: Diamonds Are Forever (1971) Reply with quote

Bud Brewster wrote:
After Diamonds are Forever Connery avowed publicly that he'd never play Bond again, but in 1983 he succumbed to a generous offer to portray 007 one more time — and the producers gloated over their success in winning Connery back by titling the film "Never Say Never Again". Please note that Never Say Never Again was not produced by the same people who gave us all the other Bond films — and it shows.

Never Say Never Again came about because of writer-producer Kevin McClory's lawsuit against Ian Fleming. The history of the legal issues surrounding the James Bond franchise is more entertaining than some of the Bond movies!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Skullislander
Solar Explorer


Joined: 13 Jul 2016
Posts: 74

PostPosted: Fri Apr 07, 2017 5:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I recently got the Bond box-set with 23 films I think it is and I will get around to viewing them all over time.

It took ages for me just to check all the discs worked OK.

This one from 1971 will entertain on a different level: its' ALMOST so bad it is good.

I have no TV at home any more and only project discs onto a reflective screen instead: DR NO and OHMSS work particularly well like this.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Krel
Guest





PostPosted: Fri Apr 07, 2017 12:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

My parents wouldn't let me go see this film because of the Playboy layout, they thought there was nudity in the movie. Little did they know that ship had already sailed.

Three years earlier I was ten, and went see "King Kong Escapes", which was doubled with "Coogan's Bluff", which did have nudity! You have to wonder about the reasoning with teaming a Clint Eastwood movie, with a children's movie.

David.
Back to top
Bud Brewster
Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)


Joined: 14 Dec 2013
Posts: 17020
Location: North Carolina

PostPosted: Sun Aug 13, 2017 3:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Skullislander wrote:
I found this movie a bit of a let-down, although the Shirley Bassey theme song is still evocative.

A confusing mess, to me, this film: possibly the worst in the franchise — weak setpieces but I am sure it has it's fans.

I mentioned earlier in this thread that the Bond films range from "A good time was had by all!" right down to "Take me home, this movie is a mess!"

In my opinion, the worst Connery / Bond film is Thunderball, with its waterlogged plot, a underwater battle in slooow-motion, and a climax on a "speeding" hydrofoil yacht which was sped up on film like the Keystone Cops! Rolling Eyes

It was a major disappointment after the slick and sexy Goldfinger.

You Only Lived Twice tried twice as hard, and it got most of the Bond elements right, but somehow "more Bond action" at the expense of "less Bond sophistication" ended up less sexy and fun.

_________________
____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


Last edited by Bud Brewster on Sat Mar 03, 2018 2:29 pm; edited 1 time in total
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
orzel-w
Galactic Ambassador


Joined: 19 Sep 2014
Posts: 1877

PostPosted: Sun Aug 13, 2017 6:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Bud Brewster wrote:
I secretly wore it to church the next day under the coat of my Sunday suit -- with a small starter pistol, the kind used for races. I don't remember where I got it -- but I still have it somewhere, complete with a three-inch piece of aluminum tubing taped to the top as a "scope".

A scope . . . on a pistol. Rolling Eyes


_________________
...or not...

WayneO
-----------
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Krel
Guest





PostPosted: Sun Aug 13, 2017 8:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Bud Brewster wrote:
A scope . . . on a pistol. Rolling Eyes Laughing

The scope used on the U.N.C.L.E. Special was a Bushnell Phantom scope. The Phantom scope was made to be mounted on a pistol, usually by a grip panel that incorporated a scope-mount.

David.
Back to top
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    ALL SCI-FI Forum Index -> Sci-Fi Movies from 1970 to 2000 All times are GMT - 5 Hours
Goto page 1, 2, 3  Next
Page 1 of 3

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group