Thunderball (1965)

7/10

We've got ourselves a Broken-Arrow, James Bond style

stamper13 December 2004

Thunderball is the fourth entry in the ever ongoing James Bond franchise and in my opinion one of the better installments. This film features the secret services arch-enemy SPECTRE and I must say that in this episode of James Bond adventures it works better than in From Russia with Love. What I liked about this film, was that there were a lot of good one-liners from Connery, that there weren't too many goofy stunts / henchmen / gadgets and that the film was able to maintain exciting throughout. I've read quite a few comments stating that the underwater scenes dragged on too long, but I must say that I felt even that bit to be quite entertaining and thrilling. I actually have only one criticism and that regards the ending. I felt that the whole out-of-control boat thing was really stupid. I mean I understand that they tried to make it look spectacular, but in using the same technique they used to buff up the fistfights, they made it look cheesy and cheap. Luckily this is just one short moment in the film and the film is not ruined by something as a dreadful character or a bad actor. All in all this is one of the better Bond films and well worth watching if one sets out for 2 hours of pure adventurous entertainment with a standard-formula story.

7 out of 10

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8/10

"I hope we didn't scare the fishes."

fdpedro6 September 2004

Warning: Spoilers

Out of the 20 official entries of the James Bond series (to date) "Thunderball" is often mentioned as 'the underwater one' and for a very good reason. It had big shoes to fill since the previous year's "Goldfinger" became a box-office phenomenon across the world. Although Thunderball was even more successful, there are debates on weather or not it was a better film. In this fan's opinion, it was.

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 (and parodied) 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 and older husband Emilio Largo (Adolfo Celi). Bond eventually finds out Largo himself is the eye patch wearing SPECTRE #2 and he is in charge of the nuclear warheads. Will he survive Largo's squad, including lethal assassin Fiona Volpe (Luciana Paluzzi), and a tank of sharks?

"Thunderball" is directed by Terence Young picking up after Guy Hamilton from the previous film. Young, who directed the first two films of the series, is certainly one of the most important filmmakers of the Bond saga. In the hands of some hack, "Thunderball" could have easily been an overlong boring disastrous attempt, but Young fills the screen with the same thrilling charm and glamour that made the first two Bonds so unique. The most cinematic of all Fleming novels, the movie is quite faithful to its source material while adding some welcomed changes (the character of Fiona Volpe for example) an therefore making it a more entertaining movie-going experience.

The action is mostly underwater and that is what usually divides fans of the series since some find them sleep-inducing. The special effects crew was awarded with a Best Special Effects Oscar in 1966 and for a very good reason. The film's extensive use of underwater photography was quite breath-taking for it's time. And the visual effects themselves are quite impressive, especially the explosion featured in the climax which shattered many windows in Nassau. Thunderball is based mostly on thrills than stunts, which is something recent Bond films should start to concentrate on. It is all well orchestrated to one of John Berry's most memorable contributions to the Bond saga. The '007 theme' is used at its best during the action sequences, especially during the climatic fight at Largo's yacht. The theme song, sung by Tom Jones, is one of the most memorable tunes of the series, although I prefer the original unused song "Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang".

Two usual standards of the series, villains and girls, are both filled quite successfully. Adolfo Celi is one of the most parodied villains (eye patch anyone?) but his portrayal of #2 is incredibly fun to watch. He is indeed a one-dimensional character, but a very memorable one. Claudine Auger is one stunning-looking woman and her acting skills are above average for the time. She is one of the most likable Bond girls around and her lack of clothing makes her quite heir apparent to Dr. No's Honey Rider in terms of sexiness. But Luciana Paluzzi steals the show with Fiona Volpe. She is the first Bond girl to stand up to the agent's charms (Pussy eventually gave up) and the psychotic look of rage in her eyes responding to Bond's macho insult is particularly memorable: 'But of course, I forgot your ego, Mr. Bond. James Bond, the one where he has to make love to a woman, and she starts to hear heavenly choirs singing. She repents, and turns to the side of right and virtue... (she steps on Bond's foot)... but not this one!' Volpe stands second only to Xenia Onatopp among the sexy girl villains.

This is the last time we see Connery at his best portraying 007 before he was eventually bored with the in later entries, particularly in "Diamonds are Forever". He indeed shows why he is considered by most fans to be the best among the Bonds. He has amazing screen presence and a suave charm of a sophisticated playboy that just makes every guy want to be him and every girl want to be with him.

One of my personal favourites and certainly on my top five, "Thunderball" is one of the most well rounded Bond adventures to date. Exotic locations, beautiful women, battle sequences, gadgets, suspense, terrific music, and a memorable villain add up to the best of the "popcorn" Bond movies. Terrific entertainment!

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8/10

The idea of the British Government having Big Ben strike seven times at six o'clock is brilliant...

Nazi_Fighter_David8 July 2005

Warning: Spoilers

A NATO Vulcan Bomber carrying two atomic bombs had crashed in the Caribbean To make a serious situation even more critical, SPECTRE then informed the British government that it had hijacked the plane's cargo Unless a ransom of £100 million was paid in seven days, a major city in England or the US would be destroyed

M16 called in all its top agents, but only one had a lead: James Bond With four days to go, 007 flew to the Bahamas, where a femme fatale, a beautiful avenger, and a big game predator fish collector, a tough Italian mafia type posing as a millionaire adventurer in Nassau, called Emilio Largo awaited him Largo (Adolpho Celi) is actually the ruthless one-eyed SPECTRE No. 2, who can easily turn from charmer to killer when SPECTRE business is at stake

Fiona Volpe's introduction while wearing a sheer negligée in Derbal's (Paul Stassino) bedroom was definitely an early highlight of "Thunderball." Luciana Paluzzi is a very sexy ruthless villain Definitely one of the better female characters in the series

Bond appears to be a bit cavalier at timesspending far too much time bedding one conquest after anotherwhen duty calls, he responds quickly and decisively After three films, the 007 character has been established Now, it's time for Bond to have a little funas shown in the scene where he consumes Conch Chowder, Beluga Caviar and Dom Perignon '55 (he once scorned), or the scene in the French château where he kills SPECTRE's agent and takes time to throw flowers on the body or the scene in Shrublands where he discovers the body of a NATO aerial observer and steals a bit of fruit as he leaves Touches like these set "Thunderball" apart from other Bond movies

With ingenious gadgets provided by Q, wonderful underwater sequences, great special visual effects (rewarded with an Oscar), nice music score, and exotic scenery, the film remains as a lavish tropical paradise where sandy beaches, coral reefs and bikinis prevailed... The viewer suddenly gets a tremendous sense of the tropics, of carefree vacations, cool tropical drinks, and moonlights romance

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6/10

Budget Bloated Bond still holds some merit

pyrocitor27 October 2007

After the legendary success of Goldfinger , expectations were understandably astronomical for the next Bond installment, with 007 producers determined to consistently push the envelope, delivering a "bigger and better Bond" than ever before. Unfortunately, this determination proved to be both the strength and weakness of Thunderball, the resulting sequel. On the whole, the film is by no means a failure, but the producers' determination to cash in on elements which made Goldfinger such a success led to overkill excesses which sink Thunderball's overall quality.

The plot is even more outlandish than Goldfinger's radiation of the fort Knox gold reserve, pushing the threat to a more global context with the destruction of major world cities by atomic weapons. As well as being a particularly poignant plot device at the time, in the midst of the Cold War, the gist of Thunderball may seem quite familiar to those who frequent more modern political action thrillers, such as The Sum of All Fears. Despite the larger than life premise, Thunderball remains far more grounded in reality than several later Bond exploits (including You Only Live Twice and Moonraker) which tended to drift into being overly silly and ludicrous. Thunderball still takes itself relatively seriously, with several surprisingly dark moments, which help counterbalance the slightly comical yet still thrilling sight of of seeing Connery in a jet pack, and dramatically aid the overall quality of the film.

However, Thunderball's significantly larger budget is mostly misused through underwater photography sequences, which, although interesting to look at (and were likely moreso back in the 1960s, where such a sight was very seldom visible to the public eye) for the most part fail to further the plot in any way, and drag on excruciatingly long. However, the film does boast some strong cinematography (and some stunning locations), the action sequences (including a tense chase sequence through a Mardi Gras parade) are solid, and an unreasonably catchy Tom Jones title track surprisingly helps not hinders the film.

Unfortunately, for however many of the film's previous strengths, the film descends into utter chaos during the film's final quarter with a painfully repetitive and indecipherable underwater battle (it is increasingly difficult to tell which underwater army is which, who is winning, or why it should even retain our interest) a boat chase flaunting special effects which have dated decidedly unfavourably, and laughably inexplicable character motivations seemingly thrown in to finally tie up the increasingly unravelling mess. It is a disappointment indeed to see what started out with such promise sink into such a banal conclusion.

The character of Bond himself is surprisingly reduced to far less screen time than is usual for a 007 film, which is unfortunate, as Connery gives arguably one of his strongest performances as Bond, oozing self assurance and panache, yet an unprecedented darkness amidst the one liners ("I think he got the point" being the most classic). This time around Bond not only gets hurt, but is not afraid to hurt, unflinchingly bestowing surprisingly vicious physical punishment against his adversaries

The supporting cast proves to be a very hit and miss affair. While former model Claudine Augere certainly looks the part of a sixties Bond girl, but unfortunately for the most part retains the static lack of emoting also associated with them. Adolfo Celi's eye-patched frown makes a visually iconic Bond villain, and is suitably menacing, but as the film progresses, he loses his threat element more and more, eventually degrading to a flimsy carbon copy of an adversary by the final act. Luciana Paluzzi steals the show from all but Connery, making one of the most chilling Bond femme fatale figures in the franchise. Paluzzi, despite the potential to coast by on her sensual looks, refuses to play the part on autopilot, and exudes laudable charisma and threat throughout. The unfortunately named Rik Van Nutter makes the most generic and forgettable CIA agent Felix Leiter of the Bond series, but Bernard Lee and Desmond Llewelyn are on top form as the ever endearing M and Q.

As overlong and let down by some unfortunate overuse of budget and dated special effects as the film may be, Thunderball is nonetheless a noteworthy and suitably engaging early Bond effort. Connery himself, in one of his most charismatic renditions of the role is enough to merit watching, and the film for the most part runs along at a brisk enough pace to retain audience interest. While the film is less likely to enthrall those who are not already Bond purists, fans of the character or series should easily be able to extract moments of enjoyment from Thunderball.

-6/10

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7/10

An Enjoyable Film from an Equally Enjoyable Series

Uriah436 April 2013

Two nuclear warheads are stolen from a British Vulcan by the secret criminal organization known as SPECTRE. With only a small time to meet the blackmail demands the British send James Bond (Sean Connery) to the Bahamas to try to find the warheads and the people responsible. Anyway, what I liked about this film was that it had just about all of the ingredients that have made this series so entertaining. It has action, suspense, sly humor, innovative gadgets and a bevy of beautiful women to include Claudine Auger (as "Domino) who won the title of "Ms. France" in 1958, Luciana Paluzzi as the evil assassin named "Fiona", Molly Peters as the attractive masseuse named "Patricia" and Martine Beswick ("Paula") who played the role of one of the gypsy women in the James Bond film "From Russia with Love" in 1963. It even won an Academy Award for special effects. Along with that, I especially liked the underwater battle between the frogmen at the end of the film. In short, I thought that this was an enjoyable film in an equally enjoyable series. Definitely recommended for all fans of James Bond.

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7/10

Excellent entry in which Bond goes into action to recover two nuclear warheads stolen by Spectre

ma-cortes13 October 2013

Over-the-top James Bond movie in which he confronts Spectra and killer hoodlums around the world . World is threatened with destruction James Bond (a magnificent , as usual, Sean Connery) then goes to Bahamas and meets Emilio Largo (Adoldo Celi , as a formidable Bond villain) , a high-ranking nasty agent and involving a beauty (Claudine Auger) in order to retrieve atomic missiles that were stolen by Spectre and its Agent nº 2 . In Bahamas James has an ally character , another agent named Felix Laiter (Rick Van Nutter) . 007 is being lured into a deadly trap , and he will need all of his force , intelligence and cutting-edge technology to triumph over the enemies that seek to destroy him . Bond is pursued by Largo and his hoodlums .

This solid , slick thriller with magic mix of action-packed , dazzling stunts , gadgetry , self-deprecating humor and romance provided by sexy company as Claudine Auger ; in addition , Luciana Paluzzi as a memorably sexy villainess , after being rejected for the role of Domino . This is a very amusing installment , though when was released suffered from comparison to its two admittedly superior predecessor ¨From Russia with Love¨ and ¨Goldfinger¨ . Fourth entry Sean Connery as James Bond is very fine , he does remarkably well , he has toughness , irony, humor and sympathy, however also has coldness ,cunning , intelligence and roughness . Sean Connery said that this movie was his personal favorite out of the Bond films he did . Here Bond is an efficient , relentless agent trying to chase obstinately the criminals , traveling around the world as always , as this time is mostly set in Islas Bahamas . Bond to achieve his aims , along the way uses violent means , pulling off brutal killings against enemies who wreak all sorts of havoc . As always Bond will use "state of the art" and fantastic gadgets provided by ¨Q¨ interpreted , as usual , by Desmond Llewelyn , he would reprise the role of "Q" in 16 subsequent Bond films . In addition , there appears the usual as Lois Maxwell, ¨MoneyPenny¨ and Bernard Lee as M . Here appears four wonderful women ; Claudine Auger , Molly Peters Luciana Paluzzi and Martine Beswick who formerly played in ¨From Russia with love¨ as a gypsy at a memorable fight . This was the second James Bond movie to provide key elements for the series' success ; it was the first of Maurice Binder's opening titles sequences created in the form that they would become most famous for. It was also the first to have movie posters which had panoramic adventure-scene artwork.

The picture contains Connery's stylish acting , comic-strip adventure , sensational pursuits , spectacular set pieces , great stunts , tongue-in check humor , frantic unstopped action , amazing gimmicks and stimulating images like are the spectacular chases , the overwhelming underwater scenes made by Ricou Browning , and the breathtaking fights . As is like a roller-coaster , as is fast-paced , light, excitement, funny and entertaining ; it's a winner for oo7 fans and non-fans alike . The chase and suspense formula wears strong in this entry . The action-packed includes : impressive chase scenes in his Aston Martin , underwater battles and Bond escape in a rocket-propulsion Jet Pack originally designed and invented for military use , it is also known as the Small Rocket Lift Device . Hoping for an end to the Cold War, producer Kevin McClory didn't want James Bond's main enemy to be Russian, so for the film version his nemesis is the fictitious criminal organization Spectre . Enjoyable title song and stirring musical score fitting to action by John Barry in his classic style , the score allegedly still contains riffs from Monty Norman's work on ¨Doctor No¨. In premiere , ¨Thunderball¨was panned by reviewers , ; however , time has proved it to be one of the more amusing films based on Ian Fleming novels . . It was remade eighteen years later as ¨Never say never again¨ by Irvin Kershner , with Klaus Maria Brandauer (Adolfo Celi role) , Kim Basinger (Claudine character) and Barbara Carrera (Luciana Paluzzi role) .

Riveting and fancy main titles by habitual Maurice Binder , he returned to the series to design the main title sequence for this movie after being absent from the previous two Bond movies ; for the opening main title sequence, title designer Binder filmed swimmers swimming naked in black and white before adding in the color by an optical process afterward. Furthermore , eye-popping and overwhelming production design by Ken Adam . It's brimming with colorful and fascinating cinematography by cameraman Ted Moore . Evocative photography ,much of the film was shot on location, with only a bare minimum of back projection used ; something quite unusual for a film of 1965 . The motion picture was well directed by Terence Young ,author of three best James Bond films : ¨Dr No¨ , ¨From Russia with love¨ and ¨Thunderball¨ and directed to Audrey Hepburn in a good thriller titled ¨Wait until dark¨ and a failed film titled ¨Bloodline¨.

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10/10

So he strikes... like Thunderball

michelerealini5 October 2005

This is one of the TOP Bond movies of all time.

Sean Connery is at his peak of fame as 007 and his character of Bond works in an excellent way. His portrait of the suave sophisticated super spy is tough, ironical, glamorous and a bit cynical; physically he's in great shape. This is the definitive image of Bond -which entered the movie history.

"Thunderball" is the fourth 007 movie. Many things have changed since the small budgeted "Dr.No". Here we a have a larger than life adventure, full of gadgets and jokes.

When SPECTRE steals some nuclear weapons Bond has to investigate everywhere -also under the sea- to avoid World War 3. He does it, as usual, facing a spiteful villain -Adolfo Celi- and a femme fatale -Luciana Paluzzi-. The prize for his effort is Domino -Claudine Auger-.

The film is still exciting... 40 years after its release we always wonder how underwater scenes are so accurate. The film is a mix of revolutionary technology, British humor, sex and gorgeous women. In 1965 it was unbelievable to see such films. "Thunderball" in the Sixties was like "Matrix" in 2000, maybe with a stronger impact than the latter on audiences, popular culture and fashion.

"Thunderball" marks the peak of Bondmania in the Sixties and the beginning of the gadget era for 007 -although for someone the decline of the serious James Bond begins here...

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7/10

Sir, I'd respectfully request that you change my assignment to Nassau.

hitchcockthelegend24 April 2012

Thunderball is directed by Terence Young and adapted to screenplay by Richard Maibaum and John Hopkins from a story by Kevin McClory, Jack Whittingham and Ian Fleming. It stars Sean Connery, Adolfo Celi, Claudine Auger, Rick Van Nutter and Martine Beswick. Music is scored by John Barry and cinematography by Ted Moore.

The fourth outing for James Bond (Connery) sees 007 assigned to the Bahamas to try and thwart SPECTRE's number 2 operative, Emilio Largo (Celi). Largo has hijacked two atomic bombs from NATO and sets about extorting huge ransoms of money. If his terms are not met he will blow up major cities.

It was meant to be the first James Bond film, but Thunderball became part of a long drawn out legal battle between Kevin McClory, Jack Whittingham and Ian Fleming. Eventually an out of court settlement was reached and Thunderball rolled into theatres in 1965. After the colossal success of Goldfinger, and Bond as a pop culture phenomenon, producers Albert Broccoli & Harry Saltzman knew that they had to try and up the ante to keep Bond on top. They were also acutely aware that many imitators were springing up on film and TV. These facts led Bond to go epic, with the producers going for a more is more approach, however, Thunderball is a considerable step down from Goldfinger.

As with many other Bond movies, Thunderball polarises opinions amongst the fans. Some are happy to laud the pure entertainment value on offer, the reliance on hardware and gadgets viewed as an aid to the Bond persona and not a hindrance to his humanistic worth. Technically the film is often exceptional, be it on or under the water, director Young really crafts some Bondian quality. The exotic Bahamas locale is beautifully realised by Ted Moore, Barry's blunderbuss score is one of his best for a Bond movie and Connery has charisma in abundance. The girls, too, are delightful, particularly Auger who positively sizzles with sexuality. Bond's by play with M, Q and Felix Leiter (Nutter very enjoyable and more charismatic than Cec Linder in Goldfinger) is well scripted and performed. While for those who adore the gadgets and daring stunts? Thunderball excels with its assortment of trick vehicles, under water weaponry and aids and radioactive pills! Without doubt the near $6 million budget is all up there on the screen.

Yet for other fans, and this is the category I fall into, it's a film of too many flaws to be considered one of the greats. Whilst it's undeniable that when it hits the high points it excites royally (the extended underwater battle is eye popping brilliance), but there's too much languid passages in the overlong running time. Young himself lamented that he couldn't get the pace right on account of the plot structure. The other major problem for me is Celi as Largo. Visually he's striking, with his white hair and eye patch, he well looks villainous, but physically he's wrong and someone you can't buy into as a man able to not only take on Bond, but to overcome him as well! While the finale lacks a grandness to reward those having sat for over 2 hours with the film. But what do I know? Film made a stunning $141 million at the box office! And the fanaticism that began with Goldfinger reached epic proportions here.

The more is more approach worked for the makers, and it ensured that for the time being Bond was going to stay in this epic, gadget effects strewn groove. Connery wasn't happy, he had voiced his concerns about Bond becoming characterless, while he hated the mania surrounding the films and his role within them. He would return for the next instalment, You Only Live Twice, question was, would it be his last performance as Bond? 7/10

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10/10

Thunderball 1965

wrestlingsitewebmaster8 October 2005

This James Bond film was fantastic. The characters in the film were really interesting and every single actress/actress plays his/her part with professionalism.

This film involved a lot of scenes involving water, but I'm not complaining, because it was really fascinating to see that instead of the usual dry land scenes. One interesting note was the scene in which Fiona Volpe fires the rocket at the car chasing 007, Bob Simmons the stunt driver was almost killed in the spectacular scene. Simmons also played the man dressed up as a women in the beginning of the film. Sadly Bob Simmons died in 1988.

Rik Van Nutter (yeah, yeah even I laughed when I seen his last name!) played Felix Leiter in a fantastic fashion. He was cool and when a situation arose he was calm about it. Van Nutter who is now 75 years old was not asked to play the part again, for reasons which are unknown but he will always be remembered for being one of the more memorable actors to play Leiter along with Jack Lord (Dr No, 1962) and David Hedison (Live and Let Die, 1973 and Licence To Kill, 1989).

The man they called Ernst Stavro Blofeld oh yes! was played by actor Anthony Dawson who played Professor Dent in Dr No. Although we don't see Dawson's face in the film his voice was dubbed so it could be more frightening and entertaining. Just seeing Dawson sitting in that chair behind the screen with that little white cat (isn't that cat a legend?!) sends the chills down your spine. Anthony Dawson sadly passed away in 1992 from cancer.

Finally the villain who was wonderfully played by Adolfo Celi - Largo was a fascinating character. Even this SPECTRE agent had his love for a particular animal that being Golden Grotto sharks. As suspected Celi had his voice dubbed for the final version of the film. Unfortunately Celi passed away in 1986 from a heart attack.

This film ranks up there with the best along with From Russia with Love (1963) and Goldfinger (1964) and if you like James Bond you'll like this! Overall Grade - A*

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7/10

A kind of good Connery Bond

willcundallreview8 May 2014

Rating-7/10

Thunderball is a Bond that may be slightly slower than the ones before it, but it still packs a punch in the franchise and stands tall among all the entries. With Connery continuing his suave but violent role, he manages to make this film fun yet plausible at the same time with the villain being not so insane as seen before. I felt that this film was solidly a Kind of good film film, and here below is why I felt so.

The story is good fun and the adventure although maybe not scraping every part of the world, still manages to get a lot of out of only one real location it is set in. It has some good action and good scenes that are quintessential to any Bond fans, with big weapons and an underwater scene that is one of the resounding images of this film, it is just all good stuff, and with a plot that isn't afraid to be both light and dark.

Connery comes back with maybe a film that wouldn't be his proudest Bond, but still manages to entertain and do a job that many think, no one can do better. Largo the villain is a good villain, maybe slightly stereotypically Bond but is still a bad one, which turns out good. I felt Adolfo Celi who plays him is very good and stands out for me as one of those villains who is evil when you least expect it, a cunning man indeed.

The stunts are good fun and some of the things involved go a long way to entertain you, I especially liked that this film didn't have to rely on car chases for fun, it has more thrilling chases and a lot of boats are involved too. It is written OK and the script doesn't really go anywhere to help the film although Connery uses it well to his advantage, overall it is Connery who helps this film to it's rating.

The only thing I could really find wrong with this film is that at times it can be slow and maybe just a bit boring, I feel this was only because the film has one setting for the majority of the film and although it is an interesting plot, maybe the over use of location effects it. It could also be said that the film lacks enough humour needed for early Bonds but that it is really up to you if you decide to watch it.

Bond fans should enjoy this and although I don't think this will be there favourite one, it will still serve to entertain. Those who like Bonds with a much more spy like feel will enjoy this as he seems to get into some hiding places and stake outs to root out his enemy. One more thing to say is that this film has some great characters throughout and who is good and who is bad is always hard to predict, good fun.

Overall I give this a 7/10, Solidly a kind of Good film, with this you have to just enjoy this and see exactly what Sean can do in a Bond film, I will mention the underwater scenes again because Connery executes them very well and it is one thing that sticks in your mind when you think about the film. Just see what you think with this and ignore all other ratings including mine, you might just love this.

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10/10

My favorite Connery Bond movie.

Aaron137522 November 2002

Out of Connery's Bond movies this one is my personal favorite. It has the best location, the best action, and the best women. Sure it also has lots of flaws, but I still really enjoy this one. SPECTRE has hijacked some nuclear weapons and is threatning to use them if they do not get what they want. So Bond has to find the missles and put a stop to SPECTRE's plans once again. Almost the entire movie takes place on a tropical island, much like Dr. No, but this one has a better plot and a great underwater fight scene at the end that make it a much better film than Dr. No. From beginning to end I find this one of the most enjoyable Bond flicks.

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7/10

Licensed troubleshooter

petra_ste1 October 2014

Warning: Spoilers

James Bond is the quintessential male wish fulfillment fantasy: a stylish, unflappable Ubermensch who travels around the world shooting bad guys, bedding hot women, driving cool cars and playing with hi-tech gadgets. A guilty pleasure, but a meticulously planned one.

The main reason of Bond's initial success was creator Ian Fleming's talent, with his vivid prose and gift as a storyteller; still, what catapulted the character into super-stardom was the casting of Sean Connery in Dr. No. Once established the template, these movies started to live and die by the strength of the following ingredients: a charismatic 007, a memorable villain, captivating Bond girls, cool set pieces.

Thunderball features a still excellent Connery in the main role; a cunning villain in Adolfo Celi's eye-patched, beak-nosed Emilio Largo, who owns a swimming pool with sharks and steals an atomic bomb for SPECTRE; two of the most beautiful women in the series, brunette Claudine Auger and redhead Luciana Paluzzi; an underwater battle which has aged surprisingly well.

Later remade with the "unofficial" (as in "not part of the canonic movie series by Eon Productions") Never Say Never Again, notable for a suitably odious Klaus Maria Brandauer as Largo and a borderline-geriatric 007: the age gap between Connery and Bond girl Kim Basinger was over twenty years.

7/10

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5/10

The best classic underwater Sean Connery's Bond film my all time favorite

ivo-cobra817 November 2017

This is the best Bond with Sean Connery his fourth film. It is my second favorite James Bond 007 Sean Connery film. This is my all time favorite Bond film. It has everything: great villains, awesome gadgets and beautiful women. It is Connery at his best. The first one will always be Goldfinger this one will be the second one. Underwater Bond seriously one of my favorite James Bond 007 film from Sean Connery I grew up watching this movie even as a kid. This movie is underwater Bond seriously a classic one of the best Sean Connery films ever. I love Goldfinger to death this movie in my opinion is a classic! It is really, really a good movie I have enjoy it every minute. It is a fun film I only wish it wouldn't have been so long.

Thunderball (1965) the fourth James Bond 007 film and the fourth Sean Connery film. Seriously this movie is my second favorite Sean Connery film I had a blast with this film. It is in my top 10 James Bond films.

The film follows Bond's mission to find two NATO atomic bombs stolen by SPECTRE, which holds the world to ransom for £100 million in diamonds, in exchange for not destroying an unspecified major city in either the United Kingdom of Great Britain or the United States of America (later revealed to be Miami). The search leads Bond to the Bahamas, where he encounters Emilio Largo, the card-playing, eye patch-wearing SPECTRE Number Two. Backed by CIA agent Felix Leiter and Largo's mistress, Domino Derval, Bond's search culminates in an underwater battle with Largo's henchmen.

This movie is awesome it is real Bond film I have enjoy it. SPECTRE's Number Two has a house in which he has two poles. One pole is empty the second one has sharks in it. In which he push the button and kills one of his informants sharks eats him. You have in the beginning scene in which James Bond kills Colonel Jacques Bouvar, a SPECTRE operative.

Bond uses for a escape a jetpack. We see a jetpack in this movie. SPECTRE's Number Two and his henchmen hijack the plane and they put it right above the sharks. Movie reminds me on Deep Blue Sea I love movie about Sharks I love them. That is why this movie is so interested. Bond goes to Nassau for searching two stolen warheads. Here he meets sexy babe girl Domino Derval (Claudine Auger) in which he later reveals to her that her brother is dead and he was ordered by Emilio Largo (Adolfo Celli) to be killed now she want's revenge and she helps Bond to recover those two stolen warheads. She later kill's Largo with a harpoon. There is another girl Fiona Volpe (Luciana Paluzzi) who is a SPECTRE agent and she follows James Bond around. There is another girl Paula Caplan (Martine Beswick) Bond's CIA ally.

The movie has a huge impact on me it has incredible underwater scene including climatic action packed battle between US Air Force and Largo's henchman. James Bond has much more to do then in the first two movies.

Adolfo Celi as Emilio Largo SPECTRE Number Two was a bad-ass he was actually really more smart then Dr. No. He was a great villain I miss movies like this. He had a two poles one with sharks and one without it. He had a yacht and the hatchet how could they all steal nuclear warheads.

Claudine Auger as Domino Derval Bond's girl was a sexy hot beautiful babe I miss girl's like this. Bond had such a luck to find such a babe. She wanted revenge when she find out Largo killed her brother François (Paul Stassino). She was more French but areal classic babe.

Fiona Volpe's introduction while wearing a sheer negligée in Derbal's (Paul Stassino) bedroom was definitely an early highlight of "Thunderball." Luciana Paluzzi is a very sexy ruthless villain Definitely one of the better female characters in the series. We also see a motorcycle launching a rocket-propelled grenade to kill Lippe and it was Fiona Volpe as masked rider driving a motorcycle.

I love the sequence in which Fiona and her henchman kidnap Paula and Bond goes to SPECTRE Number Two's house to save the girl but he find's her dead. Then he flee's from his house and he battle's Largo's henchman they both fall's in to the pool in which Largo shout's the door and he let's shark's from the second pole to eat Bond and his men of course Bond kill's him and he escapes sharks.

You have a great explosion in which marines destroy the yacht. Reall practicable effects. The underwater scene really never bothered me like some other people did.

I love this flick to death it is my second favorite Sean Connery's Bond films. Sean Connery him self was a classic Bond he was really the best of this film. When he was in clinic and Nassau he was a bad-ass.

Thunderball is a 1965 British spy film and the fourth in the James Bond series to be produced by Eon Productions.

10/10 I love this film to death even as a kid it was guilty pleasure of mine.

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7/10

For entertainment this achieves the highest of any other Bond movie.

dvc515914 June 2007

Connery is back, better and more buff than ever, as super agent James Bond 007, this time seeing him on a mission in the Bahamas to prevent a nuclear catastrophe from happening. The cinematography is beautiful, as the Bond Girl Claudine Auger, who looks smoking hot in her bikini.

For the acting, Connery is always there to take the spotlight. He zigs and zags his way around friends and foe in order to succeed. He is still the charming, witty, and deadly secret agent we have come to know him for. The villain is also good here, because not only he has one of the most diabolical plans ever, he also looks diabolical (an eye patch).

The action here is non-stop, especially the underwater scenes. Some call these scenes overlong, thus causing the length of the film to be 2 hours and 10 minutes, quite long, but to me, it's just breathless and pulse-pounding. Also, the beginning of the film will want you begging for more Connery. Most of the action sequences rely on the team's special effects, but it's no problem, since the special effects are damn good for a 1965 movie, even by today's standard. Which is why it deserved to win the Oscar for Best Visual Effects.

Crew also reigns here. Producers Brocolli and Saltzman return once again, as well as Terence Young, director of the first two Bond films. This was his final James Bond film before he went on to direct Audrey Hepburn in her Oscar-nominated performance in the 1967 thriller Wait After Dark. It shows that you have a class filmmaker at the helm. John Barry gives us a beautiful and fast-paced score that mounts up the tension every time.

Overall, probably the most entertaining Bond ever.

7.73/10

Delton

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7/10

Underwater scenes slow down action

SnoopyStyle12 December 2013

This is the fourth Bond film, and it's a bit of a step back. SPECTRE has stolen two nuclear weapons from a NATO aircraft, and is blackmailing the west for £100M. Bond must investigate leading him to Bahamas.

Adolfo Celi is playing the bad guy Largo. He's not as scary. The most interesting thing about him is an eye patch. The pace is a lot slower this time around. It's mostly due to the massive amount of underwater work. It's a big technical challenge, but it doesn't maintain the tension. The action is slower underwater, and the people can be obscured by the action. I guess the underwater work was cool back then, but it doesn't make it great viewing today. As far as gadgets, the Bond franchise keeps it coming with a rocket pack. There isn't an evil henchman like Oddjob. There isn't an iconic Bond girls in this one although they are very beautiful. It's a small step backwards for the franchise.

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7/10

A sunny Bond classic

Leofwine_draca14 November 2016

Warning: Spoilers

When I first watched THUNDERBALL, I found it a big comedown after the excellent GOLDFINGER. I didn't care for the underwater sequences and found it overlong. This is, however, a strong Bond film for the female characters, with no less than three important women popping up during the film's course. The first is sexy assassin Luciana Paluzzi, the second the pneumatic femme fatale Claudine Auger whose red-headed fieriness is one of the film's highlights. The third female is the beautiful Martine Beswick, only a couple of years away from her Hammer debut and looking fine as usual. Adolfo Celi is a passable villain who feeds the odd enemy to his pet sharks (!); the rest of the cast is packed with familiar and welcome faces, so there's no fault there.

Of course, it's as well made as usual, with good effects, gorgeous scenery in the Caribbean setting, cool music and fine acting from Connery and co. On my second viewing, I realised that the stylish underwater sequences (shot by Ricou Browning, no less) actually make THUNDERBALL stand out from the crowd by offering something new. The ending manages to feel fresh and exciting and with an increased level of violence, with all manner of bloody stabbings and impalings that wouldn't be allowed were the action taking place above ground. Sure, the sped-up action is a little cheesy, but then that's all part of the fun.

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Great Villain and the Best Bond Babes!

shepardjessica6 July 2004

This Bond film (the 3rd best; the others being From Russia With Love, Goldfinger and 4th would be Dr. No) has exotic locale, superb soundtrack, formidable bad-guy, the hottest real Bond gal (Claudine Auger as Domino), other hot chicks - Martine Beswick and Lucianna Paluzzi, and Sean's toupee still looked good before his final three Bond adventures.

There may have been too many Bond effects underwater in this one, but everything else about it makes up for the scuba scenes, which are necessary to the "plot". Adolfo Celi (Largo) had presence, great white hair, an eyepatch, and figured out Bond almost immediately. It flows with best scenery (Bond-wise) and had no major problems, although a tad long. A 7 out of 10. Recommended for 1965!

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10/10

THUNDERBALL- My Alltime Favorite 007 Flick

flynn106615 October 2006

Warning: Spoilers

Let's get this straight right here and now,this is my favorite Bond flick.Do I consider it the best,almost.That honor goes to FROM Russia WITH LOVE however THUNDERBALL is my personal favorite.Let's start with that man among men, Sean Connery.In THUNDERBALL, he's at his physical peak as an actor, he owns this part,otherwise every actor since him wouldn't be unfairly compared to him when they play 007.In this movie he was 34 or 35 and looks like he could take out a terrorist organization.Plus Connery has more charisma than any twenty actors that've ever lived.His Bond was a total s.o.b. which is why he's my favorite Bond,no teary eyes when a colleague or dame gets offed,he just catalogs it and takes it out on the perpetrator when he gets his hands on 'em.He's a brutal cold-blooded assassin.A football hooligan in a Saville Row suit.Is this exactly what Ian Fleming had in mind for 007? No, but with Connery you believe he could pin a man to tree with a speargun and go back to charming a beautiful woman less than a second later. He is my idea of 007 in this movie, Charming, hard-as-nails and will use anyone and any tactic to stop the bad guys.It obviously bothers him that Domino gets hurt (otherwise he'd have left her on the boat in the climax)but he's got a job to do.His fight scenes are fun to watch (not like real fights which aren't fun in any way to watch),they're ooh cool! and build up the idea that Bond is the secret service's best agent.It can't be said enough times,Sean Connery is the coolest actor who ever has or will live.I like the other Bond actors, all of 'em but for me Connery is IT. Now, The villains,I've heard some folks say Largo in this movie isn't up to snuff.I highly disagree, what is a SPECTRE if not a glorified mafiosi? Terrorists, mobsters the only difference sometimes is ideology and that is only sometimes.Adolfo Celi has beau-coup presence and charisma, enough to where you think he could be a criminal mastermind,easily.He ain't pretty or young and I think that's what the younger audiences don't like,nowadays everyone in movies has to look like GQ posterboys.Celi is loathsome as Largo,you can't wait for him to bite the big one and how he does is absolute poetic justice of course seeing Connery beat him savagely is lotsa fun too. Luciana Paluzzi as Fiona Volpe is my all time favorite Bond girl,she's cruel,vicious,sadistic and a match for Connery's Bond in the bedroom and the killing fields.She's one of the few henchman to put Connery's Bond on the run and bleeding to boot.Plus she's one of the sexiest redheads in the history of mankind.There's no converting her to the side of the angels she likes being evil, it gets her off.It's nice not seeing a character being rationalized and given the "relativity of evil" crapshoot we always see nowadays in flicks,some people just love hurting others and it's fun watching an actress playing that kinda part especially with as much relish as Luciana Paluzzi does here. Now to the good girl,Domino as played by Claudine Auger.WOW! she's beautiful no matter what.She's not given a lot to play with here but she's playing the innocent in wayyy over her head and in need of a real man like Connery's Bond to rescue her, although she does return the favor later in the flick.She's sympathetic,lovely and seeing her being tortured by Largo just intensifies one's desire to see Largo dead as Dillinger. The story is a cool race against time as Bond tries to find the stolen nukes before SPECTRE unleashes them on the western hemisphere. Bond goes through Largo's lackeys like crap through a goose and it's fun to see Connery in unabashed anti-hero mode.It's wrong maybe of me to enjoy it so much but his speargunning of Vargas is my favorite part, Vargas was such a loathsome little maggot,as a kid he kinda creeped me out so when Connery offed 'im, I cheered. If there's a weak spot in this flick it's Leiter,I wish Jack Lord could've returned but Rik Van Nutter was the closest to the Fleming Leiter in looks (except he had all his limbs, then again that've been taking method acting a bit too far).However he is my second favorite Leiter. The underwater action sequences are a bone of contention with lots of folks, but not me.I love'em, I have no problem differentiating the good guys from the bad guys.The music, the grappling over knives and spearguns by the combatants it gets my blood pumping.Not to mention Bond's dirty fighting tactics and his gear,or maybe I'm an aquatic action movie junkie.All said this flick is the epitome of the "cinematic" 007 for the Fleming 007 that's FROM Russia LOVE. I love this movie sooo much it's one of my ten favorite all time movies.Those that don't like it well that's your God-given right but I just don't get ya,probably a two way street,eh? If you like good harmless,non-p.c. 60's action movie fun, I don't think you could make a better choice than THUNDERBALL,made in the days when action movies didn't have the pacing of an A.D.D. victim on crack,sorry that was cheap and beneath me,albeit true.

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7/10

Great to watch, but a definite step down for the franchise

planktonrules23 March 2008

THUNDERBALL was the fourth film in the James Bond series and unfortunately, it was a step down from the previous three--probably due to an overuse of gadgets and some poor supporting performances (particularly from the rather wooden "Bond girls").

The first third of the film was actually the most interesting to me but certainly was low on action. Bond was at a sanitarium recovering from his last mission. I thought this was a great touch--seeing him covered in scars so that you could see he wasn't superman! Here, he accidentally stumbles onto a horrible plot--one of the more exciting ideas from the Bond films. It seems that Number 2 (a BAD choice of names, I know) is hatching a plan to steal atomic weapons so he can blackmail the world!! Once Bond leaves for the Caribbean, the film becomes a little less interesting, though I must admit the entire sequence involving the airplane landing there was pretty high on the cool factor. What wasn't cool were the silly women he met--one malevolent lady who, as usual, Bond beds and a sweet one who, as usual, Bond beds! Both had very little personality and frankly were dull in almost every way (you can probably guess how they weren't).

Not a bad film at all, but certainly not among the best Bond movies.

By the way, due to a strange little copyright problem, this film was remade by an entirely different film company about two decades later and the film, once again, starred Sean Connery. It was very aptly named, NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN--and frankly, it's a lousy knock-off of THUNDERBALL and is inferior in most every way.

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10/10

Sean's best Bond

ericolsen195329 December 2004

After disliking Goldfinger, because of the pasty-faced, chubby villain with the mute hit-man joined to his hip, I really took a liking to this flick. Emilio Largo, though much older than James, is a more-worthy, quite-athletic opponent who's surely able to beat the crap out of you if he can't beat you with plots and technology! Loved the appearance of the Vulcan bomber, the underwater photography, the basic plot line AND the very-beautiful, very-evil Spectre Woman, Fiona Volpe! She can murder me anytime. Also enjoy Bond's numerous, surely remarks throughout...when "Every Double-0 man in Europe" is hastily called to a meeting in Whitehall, James sloughs off it's importance "Somebody probably lost a dog." This helps set the tone for the casual bravery of Willis in "Die Hard" and Gibson in "Lethal Weapon". James Bond just doesn't take much seriously, even when his life is in peril, or when someone has just accidentally murdered his dance-partner.

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7/10

Too many boring underwater scenes

ivan201210 June 2014

Do you have an enthusiasm for water sports like Bond? If you do then you will probably love Thunderball. For me, however, there were too many boring underwater scenes (snorkeling, diving, or whatever he was doing), and that drags the rating down to a 6/10. This film is still a fun adventure. It just doesn't compare favorably to the other Bond films. I actually liked the remake, Never Say Never Again, more than this. On the plus side, Thunderball has more than the usual number of Bond girls. I counted four (two good, one henchwoman, and one which was not involved in the plot). The bad guy (No. 2) was also one of the more memorable Bond villains. A 6/10 is still a good score for me, so don't get the wrong impression. I still like this film. It just has some boring parts that make it a below average Bond film.

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8/10

"Yes, I thought I saw a spectre at your shoulder."

elvircorhodzic21 September 2017

THUNDERBALL is an adventurous action thriller, the fourth in the James Bond series, in which the secret agent 007 gets a mission to find two NATO atomic bombs stolen by SPECTRE, which holds the world to ransom for £100 million in diamonds, in exchange for not destroying an unspecified major city in either England or the United States. It is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Ian Fleming.

This is an exciting exotic adventure where our secret agent again seduces attractive beauties, while constantly keeping pace with dangerous enemies, and after all of that, he finds time to appropriate jokes. Mr. Young has made more space for secondary characters, unlike his previous films in the series. A fictional story has touched the boundaries of fiction and absurdity, however, despite this, there is no exaggeration. Skillfully designed plots fully correspond to rich dialogues.

The scenery is outstanding, there are again some interesting devices and many beautiful and attractive young women.

Sean Connery as James Bond was exposed to a physical strain as never before. His charm, once again coming to the fore, although he was again cold and uncomfortable to the beauties in this movie.

Adolfo Celi as Emilio Largo is the main antagonist and SPECTRE operative Number Two. He is a kind of attempt to insert some kind of pirate character in the story. After Auric Goldfinger this is a bit ridiculous.

Their support are Dominique "Domino" Derval (Claudine Auger) as a Largo's mistress and Bond's ace in the hole, a beautiful and dangerous SPECTRE agent Fiona Volpe (Luciana Paluzzi), who playing an interesting game with agent 007. There is an inconclusive CIA agent Felix Leiter (Rik Van Nutter), Bond's attractive assistant Paula Caplan (Martine Beswick) and standard M (Bernard Lee) with his secretary Miss Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell).

Well, an underwater battle is memorable.

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6/10

Watery Bond.

BA_Harrison16 June 2012

Based on the first four Bond films alone, I would say that Connery peaked as the nation's greatest spy in From Russia With Love, the series dropping considerably in quality thereafter. Thunderball is perhaps a minor improvement over Goldfinger, but still nowhere near as good as his sophomore adventure.

The main issue I have with this film is its rather thin storyline, which displays very little in the way of imagination: SPECTRE steals a couple of nuclear bombs and holds the UK and US to ransom; Bond investigates. The fact that I have been able to sum the plot up in so few words gives some idea how pedestrian it all is.

Thunderball also suffers from some incredibly ill considered moments, the 'rack' on full speed and the blatant use of back projection and speeded up footage during the car and boat scenes being particularly cringeworthy; the less said about Bond blackmailing a hot health spa nurse into having sex with him the better...

The film's spectacular underwater finalé is well staged and the cinematography is good, but it lacks a sense of genuine excitement, the action seemingly moving at half speed, failing to generate the adrenaline rush one might expect from a climatic Bond battle. It all gets so tedious that the camera even occasionally wanders from the fight to explore some of the colourful underwater wildlife.

On a more positive note, the opening fight scene is full of energy and sexy SPECTRE assassin Fiona Volpe (Luciana Paluzzi) has a very impressive rack.

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5/10

Nice underwater theme, but gets pretty boring

vailsy18 May 2008

This certainly has all the elements for a great Bond film but despite some memorable moments, it gets pretty boring and feels very long

A lot of scenes are fairly pointless and it's really a plot by numbers at times. Bond finds this clue then onto the next scene and so on, with the film never really settling down. It'd probably have to rate as one of the noisiest early bonds too with lots of ridiculously loud scenes

As normal it's great in a retro way, with lots of interesting gadgets making for some great sound effects. The underwater propulsion vehicles sound particularly brilliant

For underwater action though I prefer 'The Spy Who Loved Me'. 'Dr No' wins out on the beach theme with a superior Bond girl. 'Live and Let Die' is better for a Caribbean flavour etc

Overall not one of my favourite Bonds, and not the franchises finest hour

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7/10

Lots of women, enemies and water

MattHankinson23 September 2020

Warning: Spoilers

The opening scene with the man in drag and the jet pack is hilarious.

Domino and volpe are very attractive women in this film, (along with numerous others it's hard to keep up!)

There are lots of enemies (number 1, number 2....) which gets a bit confusing, and the plot maybe drags on a little too long and tries to over complicate itself however it's a decent bond film and a good follow on from the previous 3!

Special mention to the underwater battle at the end, that really was something I've never seen before!

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