User Reviews

James Bond (Sean Connery) investigates a diamond smuggling ring, which leads him to Las Vegas. There he meets beautiful Tiffany Case (Jill St. John), fends off kooky hit men, and comes face-to-face with his arch-nemesis Blofeld (Charles Gray). Sean Connery's last 'official' Bond film doesn't get a lot of love from the serious crowd but I happen to like it. Among the criticisms are that it's "too Americanized," "too much like a comic book," and "too trashy." If you're the type who gets your panties in a twist over any of those things you will probably agree with the detractors on this one.

Personally, I thought it was a lot of fun. Sean Connery's perfect. My favorite Bond. Charles Gray is a nice Blofeld. Kidd & Wint (Putter Smith, Bruce Glover) are enjoyably quirky henchmen. Jill St. John's a great Bond girl. It's got good action, hot women, a memorable Shirley Bassey theme song, and lots of humor. Voluptuous Lana Wood's Plenty O'Toole is one of the sexiest Bond girls ever. This is the one with Bambi & Thumper as well as Jimmy Dean, the sausage king! There's a lot to like about it. If you're someone who enjoys the Bond movies for colorful escapist adventure more than for dark espionage stories, you should like this as much as I do.

When it comes to Bond films I watch with trepidation, as I either really like them or absolutely hate them. Diamonds are Forever falls in the former category although I'm not totally sure why. It's like after the serious action-packed 60's they decided to just calm down and relax, this is the most chilled out and mellow Bond film there is. It has that air of coolness that only early 70's films seem to have. There is a plot of sorts but there's no rush to get there. John Barry's score is his most jazzy and laid back. You feel this was the Bond film that most inspired Tarentino. Do you think so Mr Wint, I do Mr Kidd. Connery seems to really enjoy himself playing Bond again, now surprisingly looking older than his forty years although he was still younger than Roger Moore when he played Bond for the first time the following year, the role seems to fit him even better than before. It's a cool...(7/10).

MI6 agent James Bond is sent to infiltrate a diamond smuggling ring but soon uncovers a plot headed by his nemesis Blofeld that threatens the world.

After George Lasnby's management declared he would not be returning, Sean Connery was lured back by UA with huge pay cheque (which he used to set up a foundation for Scottish artists). Connery has been unjustly accused of going through the motions the iconic role that made him is star. While he comes across campy at times due to his mannerisms not fitting his ageing looks, contrary to popular belief it's clear that he puts in 100 percent especially in the fight scenes notable the lift set up where he kills 'James Bond'.

Director Guy Hamilton's use of the (at the time) contemporary setting of Las Vegas gives Diamonds a slightly dated look and it appears less classic than earlier outings, also the production feel cheaper especially compared to its predecessor.The practical stunts are great from the aforementioned lift fight, to the car chases and finale. Like its setting the score is less classic/traditional and very '70s, of its day, but the theme (belted out wonderfully) by Shirley Bassey is excellent and the tune appears throughout. Richard Maibaum and Tom Mankiewicz's screenplay is as many of the Bond films - a mixture of great adventure and excitement, that is let down by some unnecessary injected humour as oppose to wittiness. However, it's interesting and different departing from the typical Bond style. This coupled with the real locations and Ken Adams toned down sets retain that Bond je ne sais quoi.

Charles Gray who appears in You Only Live Twice (1967) as Henderson, is now main antagonist Ernst Stavro Blofeld, he's a great actor but at times hams it up in almost Rocky Horror show proportions and comes off quite comedic instead of dangerous. Both Lois Maxwell as Miss Moneypenny and Desmond Llewelyn as Q return in there enjoyable roles, Moneypenny notable not behind a desk and aids Bond. The supporting cast especially the crooks are well cast, older looking wise guys, gangster types that give the film a little weight.

Jill St. John as diamond smuggler Tiffany Case is refreshing as a Bond girl, while not the most classically beautiful, her character has a rough frank feistiness about her. The Blofeld's two villain accomplices are memorable and although clearly a gay couple, they are far more menacing than Blofeld himself especially Bruce Glover's Mr. Wint.

Mostly set in Vegas, California and Amsterdam it's also probably the least exotic of the Bond's. That said, it's still a fun adventure with one some of the most memorable dialogue of the series.

MASTER PLAN: steal a lot of diamonds to fashion an orbiting super-duper laser to, guess what, blackmail the world! The pre-credits teaser functions as an epilogue to "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," with Bond hunting his arch-nemesis, Blofeld, in a quick series of scenes throughout the world. The filmmakers tried to recapture the best of "Goldfinger" in this one, using the same director and singer Bassey on the credits again. Ending up with even a pale imitation of the best Bonder is not such a bad thing, but it also points to the lack of originality besetting the series by this time. This one probably breaks the record for unusual types of killings, mostly courtesy of gay assassins Wint & Kidd, who go through a bunch of victims very quickly early on. The odd flavor and juxtaposition (detail of diamond smuggling over surreal liquidations) is an attempt to make Bond edgy & relevant now that the seventies began. The danger with all the attempts to be unusual, whether in regard to deaths or chases, is that it dips into a cutesy atmosphere a bit too far. Those fans fond of the seriousness in the previous film would probably not be amused, since it comes across as a dark parody of the usual spy stuff. That being said, Wint & Kidd, who represent the worst excesses of this film, end up as the highlights. From their very first scene in the desert, where they seem to draw inspiration from a scorpion, these two oddballs have the audience guessing on what they would do next - they are goofy, yes, but also lethal - interesting because they are somewhat original.

Bond's mission, tracking an involved diamond smuggling operation, takes him briefly to Amsterdam, but he ends up in Las Vegas for most of the story. A subplot involves a missing billionaire, obviously patterned after Howard Hughes, who was still living as a recluse at this time. M and, especially Moneypenny, have less screen time in this one, though Q pops up in an amusing scene testing one of his gizmos on some one-armed bandits (Vegas is no match for Q). Though the scenes in Vegas itself are less exotic than those of most Bond films, the film also makes good use of the surrounding desert terrain and there are numerous grand sets, notably a huge futuristic lab building, complete with tests of a fake moon landing, as well as a house built into the rocks. There is a good auto chase on the streets of Vegas, which has the infamous 'two-wheely' by Bond thru an alley. The two weird assassins pop up every now and then; they even have their own theme score, an eerie yet playful little tune. One of them looks very strange (Smith, a jazz musician with no acting experience), while the other (actor Glover, father of Crispin Glover) looks more normal but has very strange inflections to his speech. Every time they show up, a strange tension surfaces for the viewer. Besides Wint & Kidd, other outrageous foes for Bond include Bambi & Thumper, two wild martial arts girls who nearly knock his teeth in. Their scene has a lot of energy and you won't soon forget them. The story is well-paced for the most part, with less of those slow spots that afflicted many of the later Bonders. However, a couple of deleted scenes with the Plenty character makes things a bit confusing for her character arc.

Connery is, of course, several years older since his last Bonder, but he looks pretty much the same as he did in "You Only Live Twice." There may be a hint of grey around the edges and, in his scenes with M, it no longer comes across as 'the old man and the wiseguy kid' repartee, despite their best efforts. But Bond is still the ideal male here and it's still believable that femme fatale Tiffany falls for him by the end. She's a curious mixture of flaky girl and worldly woman, usually flippant in her approach, sort of reflecting the trivial nature of this Bonder, where nothing happening is really of grave import. That's why, when Blofeld's (him again) real plan is revealed, it's a bit out of left field; all of sudden, we see a super laser detonating missiles around the globe and everything has changed into matters of international import. Blofeld, as played by Gray, is more urbane and effeminate than the previous two versions, more attuned to a villain planning world domination, but he's also too civilized, too polite to Bond in the climactic sequence, diffusing his threatening presence. CIA liaison Leiter recalls the non-descript Leiter of "Goldfinger," as well. The climax on that oil rig sea platform in Baja is not very well done, with Blofeld's end especially disappointing (he would not return, except in the teaser of "For Your Eyes Only"). But, the epilogue is excellent. Bond, but not Connery, would return in "Live and Let Die." Bond:8 Villain:7 Femme Fatales:7 Henchmen/women:8 Leiter:6 Fights:8 Stunts/Chases:8 Gadgets:6 Auto:7 Locations:6 Pace:8 overall:7

Diamonds Are Forever is often described as a Roger Moore film starring Sean Connery, but it goes even farther than that. Whereas Moore ushered in ironic/silly codings, Diamonds contains the most overtly camp humour the series ever indulged in. The film also contains the most amount of nudity, and arguably the rudest jokes of the franchise. The title quote is Connery's quip to a girl with ever-changing wigs, while later we get the immortal "I'm afraid you've caught me with more than my hands up."

There's the sense of the odd, or uneasy, about this one all the way through. From the theme title (and what a great song!) precipitated by a cat's cry to the homosexual henchmen Mr.Wynt and Mr. Kidd. Their unnerving air is not the result of their gay, slightly homophobic, portrayal, but in Putter Smith's performance as Kidd. Not a trained actor, but an accomplished jazz bassist, this off-kilter playing creates an unconscious, unsettling atmosphere.

It's this juxtaposition which compels throughout. Like seeing Britain's top espionage agent doing the childhood "snogging with yourself" routine then smashing a man's head through a window just seconds later. It's a superficially lightweight film, but with a nasty, almost bitter undercurrent. Connery's obvious resistance to the role actually serves it well here, given that this is the first post-wife Bond movie. Bernard Lee plays an unusually terse M to complement this abrasive 007. Such a starch display cuts through the smug underpinnings of the character and makes the cheesy one-liners more palatable. He looks older than in any of his other Bond films - Never Say Never Again included – but this also fits his anguished, bereaved state. In line with this most misogynistic of Bond pictures, Jill St. John's character development passes from intelligent, through to devious and down into simpering bimbo.

Incidental music is a bit disattached, and often feels like it belongs to another film. It works against, rather than with, the picture it's there to support. Yet although not quite the best of the series, this and the following Live and Let Die are the most distinctive in look, feel and style. They're light, pacy, poppish takes on the format, full of comicbook verve and wit. Guy Hamilton's direction is also very good; making the most of the LA location with use of expansive aerial shots.

The plot seems fairly complex, though maybe that's because it's underdeveloped and submerged beneath slightly irrelevant setpieces. I had to smile at the line "Get him off that machine, that isn't a toy" as Sean boards the moonbuggy. I remember after the film it became one, a primary-coloured Dinky version with a spinning radar. Brings back memories, that.

Blofeld, who has now taken up cloning and cross-dressing, is played here by Charles Gray. Although at the time it was four years before he would become the criminologist in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the two are now inseparable, in my mind at least. As if this wasn't enough high camp to go round, there's also Connery being demolished by Bambi and Thumper, a couple of sadistic female gymnasts.

If something about this quirky, offbeat Bond (and some sources list it as the seventh least successful in terms of gross) doesn't quite gel, then it greatly improves on repeat viewings.

The movie resulted to be Sean Connery's last appearance as Bond before he returned again in ¨Never say never again¨ by Irwin Keshner . M ( Bernard Lee )assigns an under-grade mission to Bond dealing with diamonds robbing but the events go worse . This time Bond confronts Blofeld (Charles Gray) and a strange couple , Mr Kid and Mr Wint (Bruce Glover and Putter Smith ) in a intrigue about diamonds smuggling and a final with satellite full of nuclear weapons , holding of the world to ransom . Bond is helped by a Howard Hughes type recluse (Jimmy Dean) and of course Q (Desmond Llewelyn ). And the extraordinary presence of a marvelous girl (Jill St John) and secondary appearance another Bond female ( Lana Wood, Natalie Wood's sister ) in the ordinary Casino of Las Vegas .

The film contains spectacular fights , action packed , car chases , apocalyptic and overwhelming scenarios along with the typically glossy ingredients series but Sean Connery looks a little bit boring ,in fact is his Bond last film , before his surprising return . It is held together by fine acting and above all, and overwhelming level of tongue-in-cheek . Sean Connery as James Bond is cool , he has coldness and toughness , typical characters of the famous personage , but also earns in irony , suavity and smoothness . The interesting screenplay based on Ian Fleming's novel is written by Richard Maibaum and the recently deceased Tom Mankiewicz. The action is very good , the cinematography by Ted Moore is magnificent , the sets decent , but the real clincher is the fact that Bond is once more performed by a hero with the right stuff . The struggles were carefully choreographed by very accomplished athletes as a pair gorgeous killer karate female bodyguards and performed like a dance routine requiring each participant to hit their mark at the correct time . The picture is produced by habituals Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli filmed on location in Amsterdam , Netherland , Los Angeles ,Nevada and Pinewood Studios ,London,England. The atmosphere is faithful to the actual location but the interiors on a set at Pinewood Studios. Appropriate and wonderful -as usual- musical score by John Barry .Main title song is catching and marvelously performed by Shirley Bassey . The motion picture is well directed by Guy Hamilton who also directed ¨Live and let die¨, ¨the man with the golden gun¨ with Roger Moore and the best Bond : ¨Goldfinger ¨also with Sean Connery . Indispensable and essential watching for James Bond fans .

In this 7th Bond movie, there is little of Bond's prowess in sex and violence... Connery's return to his role for a final throw is simply disappointing... Seeking a diamond smuggler, Bond has adventures in Amsterdam, in a Los Angeles crematorium, in various Las Vegas gambling parlors, and in a secret factory in Nevada desert...

For that Bond receives an urn containing a hoard of gems; leads the police on a wild chase; drives a Moonbuggy and a tiny Mustang convertible on two side wheels; wins at the Craps table; struggles superbly with two hot-tempered vixens; rips off a woman's top bikini; substitutes a fake computer tape; tries to escape from a blazing coffin; and knocks what he thinks is the real Blofeld // For the audience, it's intended to function as a glorious reinstatement of Connery-Bond, avenging Tracy's murder...

Jill St. John is the free agent who defies Bond's charm, but is reduced to a weak heroine, as she displays none of the class we've come to expect of a Bond girl... Nevertheless this redheaded diamond smuggler becomes the first American Bond beauty who does know how to wear a 'nice little nothing.' Jill inspires the best line in the movie...

Charles Gray becomes the third actor to portray a wildly sophisticated Blofeld on-screen following Donald Pleasance and Telly Savalas… He succeeds as the reclusive tycoon Ernest Stavro Blofeld who creates doubles of himself to confuse Commander Bond... He hates martial music and takes no chances with his staff... His hit men are "gay and fun," Mr Kidd and Mr Wint... Putter Smith is the sadistic Mr Kidd and Bruce Glover is his sinister sidekick Mr Wint… Jimmy Dean plays the multimillionaire Willard Whyte unaware that his company is being improperly used by Blofeld for his devil scheme for world domination...He is held prisoner in his desert mansion which is protected by two female karate experts nicknamed Bambi and Thumper...

Lana Wood becomes the glamorous society girl who meets Bond at a Las Vegas crap table… One night she barely had enough time to remove her top, and gets an undeserved but chilling sendoff...

Desmond Llewelyn is Bond's gadget man, Q, who tries out an electromagnetic controller for his own amusement that makes an entire raw of slot machines hits jackpots...

Lois Maxwell is, as always, the loving Moneypenny in emigration uniform, this time, who still is aching for a diamond ring; Bernard Lee is the imposing 'M' who assigns 007 to infiltrate the smuggling ring and find out who was stockpiling stolen diamonds; Norman Burton is the CIA agent Felix Leiter who greets Bond and asks which part of the stiff holds the gems; Joseph Fürst is the brilliant scientist Dr Metz, who thinks that Blofeld is a mankind's benefactor, and a believer in world disarmament; and Bruce Cabot is Whyte's treacherous right-hand-man...

You don't review James Bond movies, you evaluate them, rate them according to how well they meet expectations. There are certain things one has come to expect, even demand of a Bond film and each individual effort either delivers or it doesn't. So, here are ten elements that make a Bond film a Bond film and how DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER rates on a scale of 1 to 10:

Title: DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER: A slight perversion of the once popular ad line used to sell wedding rings, this title suggests romance, but certainly that is the last thing on the film's agenda. It's a wonderfully deceptive title. 10 points.

Pre-Credit Teaser: Bond "kills" Blofeld, which supposedly seems to tie up major loose ends from ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE. But considering that when last we saw him, Blofeld was murdering James' new bride, such a confrontation should have immense power. An important turning point in the series slips past with no acknowledgment. Though the opening does serve to show that Sean Connery is back and George Lazenby has been released from Bondage. 2 points.

Opening Credits: Maurice Binder's style of opening montage is wearing just a tad old and predictable. Pretty enough with its diamond-studded theme for 4 points, but not good enough to do justice to the:

Theme Song: It is said that originally the film was to be a followup to GOLDFINGER, with his brother taking up where Goldfinger left off. That never came off, but certainly "Diamonds are Forever" is a perfect companion piece to the earlier theme song. It, of course, has the fabulous Shirley Bassey doing the vocals again, but it also repeats the cynicism of applying sensuous lust to material wealth. It's an anti-love song, much like "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend," only it doesn't hide its hard-edged avarice under a bouncy tune. It is, I think, even better than "Goldfinger," and may be the prefect James Bond song: amoral, stylish and seductive. 10 points

"Bond, James Bond": Connery is back, a bit chunkier and a tad grayer, but apparently his extended vacation from the role of 007 paid off. Personally, I think this is his best Bond work as Sean strolls through the film with relaxed charm and a complete understanding that this film, if not the entire series, is a comedy. Bond purists tend to disregard DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER because of its flip attitude, but that is what makes it my favorite. 10 points.

Bond Babes: Lana Wood, Natalie's sister, is on hand as the mandatory eye candy, and is all-too-disposable as Plenty O'Toole. But someone had the bright idea of making the main Bond Girl someone with a flair for comedy. Enter maturing starlet Jill St. John, the epitome of 1960's cheesy, Playboy sexuality. Whatever her limitations as an actress, St. John certainly had the knack for using her sexuality as an amusing toy and still maintain the edge that she is a lot smarter than she looks. As Tiffany Case, her intelligence seems to diminish as the film wears on (it seems the women Bond beds all end up dead or dumb), but her ability to fill a bikini remains indisputable. 9 points.

Bond Villain: Ernst Stavro Blofeld is back again, though only his love of fluffy, white pussycats remains constant. The intense geek of Donald Peasence and the uncouth thug of Telly Savalas are replaced by Charles Gray, who opts to play the part with droll, bemused wit and -- radically -- a full head of hair. Gray never gained iconic stature as Blofeld (that would come later as the Blofeld-like narrator in THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW), but for my money he is the best Blofeld, a villain of classy arrogance who is singularly unimpressed by Bond. 10 points.

Bond Baddies: Ah yes, Mr. Kidd and Mr. Wint; as played by Putter Smith and Bruce Glover, they are the Chip and Dale of Bond assassins; two more gracious and well-mannered killers would be hard to find. The film has been accused of homophobia for including a pair of gay killers, but considering the sheer number of assassins to cross Bond's path, it would be more discriminatory to exclude them based on their orientation. Wint and Kidd are at once gay clichés and yet surprisingly non-stereotypical. Nonetheless, they glide (prance? skip?) through the film with cold-blooded assurance and a rather endearing affection. And if they aren't butch enough, there's always Bambi and Thumper (Lola Larson and Trina Parks) on hand to beat the tar out of James. 9 points.

Plot: Blofeld hopes to corner the diamond market to use them on some sort of outer space laser with which he can -- again -- hold the nations of the world for ransom. Doesn't this guy ever learn? They even do the "you've killed James Bond" bit again. 5 points.

Production values: Bond's globetrotting brings him to the glitz and pseudo-grandeur of Las Vegas in all of its tacky glory. It makes for a nicely surrealistic backdrop, appropriate for the film's self-mocking attitude -- though a major chase scene is marred by the large number of tourists standing along the route, watching the filming. 7 points.

Bonus Points: The Bond producers' love of unorthodox casting pays off with the selection of country singer and sausage maker Jimmy Dean as the reclusive millionaire based on Howard Hughes. It is such a bizarre choice, yet Dean's country boy charm is a wonderful contrast to both Hughes' nutty behavior and to the bemused sophistication of Bond. 5 points.

Summary: DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER is a turning point in the series; the gritty, pseudo-realism of the early films is gone in favor of slick comic book sci-fi gloss. Whatever the series loses in thrills it makes up for in fun.

Bond-o-meter Rating: 81 points out of 100.

DAF is one of the weakest, laziest movies in the franchise.

For a start, where is the action? Apart from a good close quarters punch up in a lift, there is hardly any. What remains is lacking in energy and played mainly for laughs. 007 beaten up by two acrobatic women - until he just holds them underwater in a swimming pool. An awful slapstick car-trashing chase in Vegas. And the big finale is anything but. We have a few of Blofled's henchmen fighting a few helicopters. Bond does almost nothing except swing Blofeld's escape pod around with a crane.

Which brings us to another point - this is without doubt the least serious Bond movie ever. It is borderline comedy throughout, clearly influenced by the likes of The Man from UNCLE and the Batman TV show. Blofeld dresses in drag at one stage. Most of the supporting characters are comic relief. The sinister henchmen, Wint and Kidd, would stand out in any other movie due to their extreme black humour, but here they are just wasted. Jill St John's Tiffany Case is amongst the worst Bond girls, silly and helpless.

We even see Q - in Vegas - cheating on a slot machine.

At least Connery is back right? Wrong. He's clearly on set, but equally clearly thinking about his next round of golf. Even his delivery of 'Bond, James Bond' is awful. He isn't helped by some awful costume decisions, including a brown tweed suit, and a pink (!) tie. Connery's huge payout for this film means everything else looks cheaper than before; by the climax you have embarrassing helicopter explosions, clearly animated, that would have been superbly detailed model shots in previous (and later) movies.

There is virtually nothing good to say about Diamonds. The film is so lacking in energy or excitement that only the plot manages to pull it along. It's a series of weird and comedic scenes that hardly feel like a Bond movie in any way, and it's hard to believe this came after On Her Majesty's Sceret Service. The film scrimps so much on the action that you are left watching a bizarre, parallel universe version of Bond where nothing remotely Bond-ish seems to happen. It feels almost like a live-action version of a Saturday morning Bond cartoon, watered down for the kids (Bond never even uses his gun).

Two plus points; Shirey Bassey's theme tune is superbly atmospheric and mysterious. Jill St John is very sexy. That's it. Connery came back, the director of Goldfinger came back, and the result was this farce.

Many people are apparently put off by this Bond film. Sure, Sean Connery is older, you see Blofeld (this time with a head of hair) and the series seemed a tad out of place in 1971, when the anti-war movement was running strong.

This movie is not Goldfinger, despite the presence of Guy Hamilton at the helm and Shirley Bassey as the singer of the title theme. What this movie is is a stylish romp that seems to bear some nod to the Batman TV series in terms of style. In some other respects, this movie plays almost like an Anglicized version of "The FBI," or like "The Persuaders."

And that is not at all bad!

The original femme fatale of the 1966 Batman series, Jill St. John, is the female lead here, and is fun to watch. She shows a lot of spirit in the role. Charles Grey is fun to watch as Blofeld, because he brings a real wit to the role. The dialogue is definitely sophisticated, and it is a very stylish production that I think holds up well. And Lana Wood does a fine job here, too! (Oh, and I met her in Detroit in May 2009; sweet lady!!)

This movie is also more daring in terms of sex than any other Bond: The public display of affection the thugs Wint and Kidd show, as well as the topless scene of Lana Wood's character.

Gadgets don't seem to dominate this outing. It's no 1960s Connery film (the lead actor's older), nor a 1970s Moore outing (more serious). This movie is sandwiched between the two eras, and it rightly should be taken on its own terms. Which means, I think it is one of the most enjoyable Bond films made--a sophisticated, stylish romp. It is, in my view, a most enjoyable Bond (and my personal favourite)!

In 1967 Sean Connery quits the role of James Bond. Panic! Producers replace him with Australian born George Lazenby, who makes "On Her Majesty Secret Service". This film does reasonably well at the box office, but not as well as the previous episodes... Furthermore, a big part of the audiences and many critics savage Lazenby's performance, rather pale compared to Connery's Bond portrait. "OHMSS" has been revalued since, but at the time of the release it's perceived like a disappointment.

In '71 producers hire American actor John Gavin for "Diamonds are forever" (DAF), but at the very last minute Sean Connery decides to come back to the role for one time only...

The film is a kind of remake of "Goldfinger" -there is Sean, of course; director Guy Hamilton; Shirley Bassey sings the theme; the story takes place in America; here too we have glamorous elements (diamonds instead of gold).

The movie is funny, Sean looks amused and quite relaxed in traveling between Amsterdam and Las Vegas to investigate about a diamond illegal traffic.

Nevertheless it's the "worst" of his Bonds... It's his less interesting outing as 007. When we think about him as Bond we think about the episodes of the Sixties, when the series was at its beginning. "Diamonds" has not the classical atmosphere of "Goldfinger" and "Thunderball" -the rhythm of DAF is not constant, there are also too many jokes, and a more American humor of the movie spoils the "Britishness" of 007. The first part of the film is boring, the second half has more action -although the final battle scene is not very well done.

Sean is Sean, but here he looks older than his age -curiously he looks fitter and more charming in "Never say never again", an "unofficial" Bond done 12 years later! By the way his presence in this film saves the show completely and a good entertainment is guaranteed.

After the relative commercial failure of On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and the subsequent departure of the unlamented George Lazenby, the Bond producers were desperate to lure Sean Connery back for just one more outing as James Bond. Connery was reluctant, but the huge sum he was offered to come back was too good to resist, and Diamonds are Forever thus became his last official Bond film. Sadly it is a thoroughly unworthy exit, for DAF is an inane, flabby film that suffers from lazy scripting and an excess of camp humour, reducing Bond to the level of self-parody.

It seems that the aim of this film was to rekindle the spirit of Goldfinger, after audiences did not take kindly to the relatively serious OHMSS. Not only did Connery return, but so did Goldfinger director Guy Hamilton and other crew members who had worked on that film; even Shirley Bassey was back to sing the theme tune, which is one of the few good things about DAF. However, it lacks either the wit or elegance of Goldfinger, relying instead on a succession of bad puns and tedious chase sequences, including a particularly stupid one which sees Bond being pursued across the desert while driving a moon buggy. The decision to set most of the film in Las Vegas does not help matters, for it is a very un-Bond like place which just serves to make the film feel even more cheap and tacky.

The casting is a mixed bag. Connery never gave a bad performance as OO7, but he is at his most detached and uninterested here, going through the motions but never looking as if he is doing it for anything other than the money. Even though he was only 40 when he made it, he also looks rather old in this film, which does not help credibility. Charles Gray is OK as Blofeld, but plays it far too camp and never seems the slightest bit menacing, which is not a good idea if you are playing Bond's arch-enemy. Jill St John's Tiffany Case is a spirited Bond girl, but unaccountably she becomes more and more stupid as the film goes on, and never becomes as strong a character as she should have been. Wint and Kidd, Blofeld's homosexual henchmen, provide quite good comic value, even though they are outrageous gay stereotypes; nevertheless, their antics seem very out of place in a Bond film, being more suited to Are You Being Served. As for Jimmy Dean's Willard Whyte, I found him to be one of the most irritating characters in any Bond film, though thankfully he does not get much screen time.

There are some good points in the film, including an effective fight between Bond and Peter Franks in Amsterdam, and a memorable scene in which OO7 has to grapple with two striking young women called Bambi and Thumper. In general, however, DAF feels tired, trying to compensate for the lack of a decent script with its childish humour and endless stunts. It is all a long way away from the classic Connery Bonds of the early 60s, and indeed DAF is much closer in tone to the jokey Roger Moore films that would follow it during the rest of the 70s, although most of those have more going for them than this film. All in all, DAF is more of a feeble exercise in camp comedy than a stylish spy thriller, a sad way for Connery to leave the part that had made him a star. Of all the Bond films, probably only Moonraker is worse.

I first saw this in the early 90s on a vhs. Revisited it recently. This is the seventh in the Bond series and Sean Connery reprises the role of James Bond for the sixth time. (Must b a huge paycheck). This time Bond impersonates as a diamond smuggler to infiltrate a smuggling ring and soon uncovers a plot by his old enemy Blofeld to use the diamonds to build a space-based laser weapon. A big lol man.

This time Bond faces several Blofeld lookalikes, mafia henchmen Wint n Kidd n two acrobatic bodyguards, Bambi n Thumper. The only noteworthy stuff in this movie is the 2 wheels aka the alley car. A Mustang passes through a narrow alley tilting on two wheels. This was way before The Fast n the Furious. Bond gets to cool off with only Jill St. John as the other Bond girl Lana Wood gets a shocking discard. Sean Connery is looking haggard n outta shape. The Bond girl Jill St. John aint that attractive compared to the earlier Bond girls. In fact, the other buxom babe who is there for a short stint is more attractive.

More info about the assassins, Wint n Kidd from the novel. They r sadistic assassins n enforcers working for the The Spangled Mob (American Mafia family based in Las Vegas). They both kick Bond into unconsciousness while wearing football cleats/studs.

Film begins well, showing us Connery's return to the role (after bailing out after You Only Live Twice in late 1966/ early '67) as Bond tracks down and seemingly kills Blofeld. A perfectly done title sequence goes quite well with a great title song, before we get down to business: an initially literal adaptation of Fleming's novel, as Wint and Kidd smuggle diamonds out of Africa, after brutally killing the courier, and the deliverer. Bond, none too enthused about being assigned to what he calls "a relatively simple smuggling matter," is sent to intercept the next link, a professional smuggler called Peter Franks, in Amsterdam. Bond, after rendezvousing with yet another smuggler (gorgeous Jill St. John) ends up beating Franks' ass in close-quarters-combat in a lift, in another highlight of this movie.

Unfortunately, after the exciting and well done first forty minutes, leading this Bond fan to think I'm about to watch potentially one of the best Bonds, the screenplay degenerates into a seemingly never-ending series of gags and pratfalls and silly vignettes. Jill St. John and Lana Wood are both gorgeous, but Jill loses interest halfway through the movie and becomes a bumbling nitwit, and Lana Wood has only a cameo, played strictly for laughs. Throw in a Bullitt-inspired car chase through the Las Vegas Strip, a faked moon landing, a Howard Hughes clone Willard Whyte, and some type of diamond powered space laser(?) and that makes up the majority of the second half.

Bond, after violently fending off the attacks of several armed guards in the pre-title sequence, and the aforementioned fight in the lift, basically has his ass handed to him by a pair of female gymnasts, in what will forever be remembered as one of the dumbest and most inane scenes in any Bond film.

Charles Grey is a wonderful actor, and I do wish they had used more of him in the Bond series, but he was a terrible Blofeld, too nice of a guy to be an international terrorist set on killing Bond, and they've turned Blofeld into a cross dressing terrorist with a cat fetish? Connery's weight was obviously up and down during filming; as he is briefed by M., it looks like he needed a crowbar to fit into his suit. Likewise, by the poolside, with the body floating in it. Those thick, bushy grey sideburns only made Connery look older. Indeed, he turned 40 years old during filming, but he looked closer to 60.

The ending is anticlimactic; the fight in the lift was more exciting.

Overall, the film is enjoyable for its first third, then in a surreal way for its final two thirds, but I wish they had followed the plot of Ian Fleming's original novel more closely. That would have made the film consistently good. Or at least, not as uneven as it is now. Filming wrapped in September 1971, and it was released to cinemas in December of 1971; its rushed post production undoubtedly contributed to its randomness.

James Bond's movies are pure escapism, enjoyable, surround of gorgeous girls, diabolic villains, great actions, blast and adventure all around the globe, on Diamonds are Forever wasn't different, follow the same formulaic success, therefore this turn it was a little low degree on early Bond's pictures, a strong Americanized due the movie was shot mostly in America, a high budge for a small results, but has an odd couple that call my sharp eye, Mr. Kidd & Mr. Wint, actually they were on a secondary role, always following the story in countless sequence, they are quite sure gays characters, some few lines spoke by them leave that feeling and those smart lines were a true highlight to the picture, they are a gleam of light on darkness, also the Bambi and Thumper are worth mentioning, the Eye Candy Jill St. John meets the expectations of the Bondgirl, here including Lana Wood as well even in shortest time, they were absolutelly enough sexy, the Villain Charles Gray is above average with his white cat wearing a diamond necklace, Connery even aged has a robust acting, pristine entertainment!!

Resume:

First watch: 1988 / How many: 2 / Source: TV-Blu-Ray / Rating: 7.5

In Lana Wood's autobiography, she wrote she was disappointed that some of her scenes were cut but she doesn't detail (although she does go into detail about having sex with Connery and his personal hygiene.) I was always puzzled about the scene when Tiffany Case/Jill St. John finds Bond by the pool at her house and sees Plenty dead and anchored to a cement block in the pool. Bond tells her that Wint and Kidd must have thought that Plenty was Tiffany and murdered her by mistake (a horrific kind of death that was not filmed). The last Plenty was seen before this moment was her being tossed out the hotel window by the mobsters so how did she know who Tiffany was and how did she know where she lived? In a deleted scene, Plenty soaking wet in a towel returns to Bond's hotel room and goes through Tiffany's handbag and looks at her ID. This was a bad editing decision. I've read about another scene that has Plenty breaking into Tiffany's house and trying on her wigs when Wint and Kidd show up. This explains why Tiffany asks Bond why her wig is in the pool before she sees Plenty's body.

This is a tongue in cheek Bond movie and the first that drifts well into comedy at times. Previous Bond movies had some jokes in it but not quite like this. Diamonds Are Forever starts the trend with comedy that Moore's movies would carry on with. The humor peaked with Octopussy which is alot of fun for a Bond movie. It hasn't quite been as fun as that or this movie since. Given the direction of the franchise, they might as well go back to comedy.

Diamonds Are Forever has an interesting plot which strangely mirrors reality. Blofeld's plan to destroy nuclear weapons with a laser mounted on a satellite sounds alot like the Strategic Defense Initiative or Star Wars as the media coined it during the Reagan era. Only difference is the motive behind the use of the satellite. They also parodied Howard Hughes and the moon landing hoaxers. Who ever said conspiracy theories couldn't be good comedy?

This is a decent Bond movie that doesn't take itself so seriously which is probably why movies like this are beginning to age so well. Bond movies now go overboard (overbored is more like) with the drama which is making them heavy handed.

Every character is a little jokey. Even Charles Gray's Blofeld has a comedy line or two.

Charles Gray's a clone, genetically a splice, after being assassinated by a Japanese ninjas knife; he's morphed to Ernst Blofeld, Henderson the role he had held, fulfilling what was told in You Only Live Twice (albeit as different people).

(1971) Diamonds Are Forever ACTION ADVENTURE

James Bond (Sean Connery) thought he killed his number one nemesis Ernest Blofield (Charles Gray) at the movie's opening and as it turns out, he is very much alive, using diamonds to make his powerful laser satellite to blackmail countries that have nuclear arms. He controls them with a coded tape cassette, which he also uses to disguise his voice as Willard Whyte. This is the seventh or eighth James Bond movies out of 25 or if you want to include the two of "Casino Royale" from 1967, and "Never Say Never Again" that is not owned by the Broccolli family.

Sean Connery made it clear during the filming of "You Only Live Twice" that he was sick of playing James Bond. After four years, 1.25 million dollars, an agreement to receive one-eighth of the film's gross profit, and a commitment to finance two additional projects of his choice, Connery returned for another spin as the world's deadliest government agent. Sadly, the man who electrified the world for six years returned for a problematic movie that at best is a disappointment and at worst a large black stain on his legacy.

Many of the problems that drown "Diamonds Are Forever" show up in the opening minutes. It begins where "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" ends. Bond is on the revenge trail following the murder of his wife. Connery's face remains hidden to raise anticipation, but when it finally appears, my reaction is shock.

At one time he looked like the handsome, debonair ladies man he is supposed to be, but at 41, Connery has outlived the part. He has more wrinkles, his eyes have darkened with age, he is getting fatter, and his hair is grayer. I once watched a clip online of a scene where he is standing next to Q, played by Desmond Llewelyn, who was 56 years old with white hair. I initially mistook him for one of Q's assistants.

"From Russia with Love" displayed Connery at his best. In every possible way, he made the part his own with an authority neither he nor the five actors following him have since been able to equal. This time he was just doing it for the money, and it shows. In "Goldfinger," he said "Bond, James Bond" with focus and cool. Here, it is delivered with unexpressive staccato. When he is ordered to put up his hands, he moves them to the side like a man bored with being bored.

Diamond smuggling out of South Africa has risen over the past two years. Since no smuggled stones have reached the market, the British government fears somebody may be accumulating them in preparation for a market dump. A string of recent murders in South Africa leads them to fear that operations are being shut down, leaving them little time to bust the smugglers. James Bond is sent undercover as smuggler Peter Franks. His mission takes him to the casinos of Las Vegas, where he discovers the involvement of his old enemy, Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Charles Gray).

Gray is another problem evident from the beginning. Blofeld is supposed to be bald, but even if Gray was bald he would not remotely look or sound the part. In "From Russia with Love," Blofeld seemed like a god. Gray is not imposing, and seeing the mighty Blofeld dressing as a transvestite is the worst insult in the series. For the ignominious title of worst Bond villain, Gray loses to Stephen Berkoff from "Octopussy," but barely.

When Bond finally discovers Blofeld, how does he react? He indulges in polite conversation. The movie forgets that Bond is speaking to the man who callously murdered his wife, and that Blofeld is addressing the man who broke his neck.

Another huge minus is the general lack of excitement. It has a good start with an intense elevator fight between Bond and the real Peter Franks. If you see this film, which I strongly discourage, savor that fight, because "Diamonds" becomes pretty anemic afterwards. The remainder lacks intrinsic interest or excitement. Aside from a slick nighttime street chase, the little action that is left looks fake and slow. When Bond is faced with trouble, what does he do? He runs, preferably in a phony moon machine. From start to finish, he does not fire a single bullet. Adding insult is the cheap climax. Six years earlier, this franchise won a visual effects Oscar. Now they are reduced to creating nuclear explosions that look like puffs of smoke. Connery's salary supposedly slashed the special effects budget even though the franchise made over a 400 million dollar profit since "Goldfinger." Two musicians are cast in supporting roles. Imagine "Quantum of Solace" casting Garth Brooks and Wynton Marsalis. Ironically, it is country singer Jimmy Dean who brings the most convincing act to the table. Jill St. John and Lana Wood are wasted as the bimbo and harlot, respectively. Mr. Wint (Bruce Glover) and Mr. Kidd (Putter Smith) are the gay hit men who don't know each other's first names, and the best I can say about them is that they die entertainingly.

"Diamonds Are Forever" marked the beginning of sad decade for Agent 007. Were it not for "The Spy Who Loved Me," the series likely would have died. A movie with shoddy writing, substandard acting, misplaced atmosphere and bad characters cannot succeed. Diamonds slowly decay into other forms of carbon, so they are not truly forever. Neither is Sean Connery.