The Bond franchise is one of the most successful in pop culture. The film franchise celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, spanning 25 official films and three unofficial films. They span a wide spectrum in quality, story, and tone and the franchise has been able to adapt to changing tastes and a changing political situation. As Pop Culture Maniacs’ resident Bond fan I offer up my ranking of all the films.
28. Casino Royale (1967)
Say what you will about all the other Bond films (official and unofficial), they all follow the basic rules of narrative film. They have a plot, people can follow the events and the motivations of the characters. The 1967 version of Casino Royale broke these rules and made one of the most incomprehensive films ever.
Charles K. Feldman had the film rights to Ian Fleming’s first novel and tried to work with EON to adapt it. Feldman and EON were unable to come to an arrangement, so Feldman ended up making an all-star spoof.
Casino Royale (1967) was a mess of a production. It had five directors, three credited screenwriters and many more did uncredited rewrites. Peter Sellars and Orson Welles hated each other so much that Sellars left the production and Woody Allen was so frustrated that he took a flight from London to New York whilst still in costume.
Casino Royale (1967) ended up being a random collection of scenes that were barely strung together. The plot was so messy that it started with a retired James Bond getting coerced to rejoin MI6, Bond nearly getting seduced by a load of attractive young women, has a flying saucer land in the middle of London, and ends with a massive fight in a hotel where everyone dies.
It was a film that had barely anything to do with its source material and failed as a parody of the Bond craze of the ‘60s.
27. Diamonds Are Forever
Diamonds Are Forever saw Sean Connery return to the franchise on the promise of a big payday and United Artists producing two projects for the Scottish actor. The best thing to come from Diamonds Are Forever was the film The Offence.
This Bond film saw 007 investigate a diamond smuggling ring. This simple mission ended up with Bond facing his nemesis who he thought had died and the use of a giant space laser.
After the disappointment of On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’s box office the Bond producers thought the franchise needed to be lighter. This was a film that had a campier tone. There was a lot more humour and sillier elements like the gay assassins, the bikini cad bodyguards, and Bond visiting the set for a fake moon landing.
This film ended up seeming like an Austen Powers film. The villains had a giant space laser made of diamonds and the villains had many doppelgangers thanks to plastic surgery. The villains captured Bond three times in the film and yet he escaped every time. I wanted to scream ‘just shoot him.’
Diamonds Are Forever was one of the worst-looking Bond films. It seemed like most of the budget was spent on Connery so there was no money left for special effects or set design.
26. Die Another Day
Die Another Day is generally disliked by Bond fans and general film viewers, even though it was a profitable entry. This was the notorious film that had a giant space laser, DNA-changing technology, and an invisible car. Die Another Day ended up repeating a lot of the mistakes Diamonds Are Forever did.
Die Another Day also tried to copy the trends of action cinema of the early 2000s and foolishly saw xXx as a serious threat. Because of this Die Another Day tried to be an extreme film which resulted in some dreadful action sequences like the windsurfing moment, The Matrix-style filmmaking, and one of the worst theme songs in the franchise’s history.
Die Another Day did have a strong start because of the pre-title sequence which was a terrific action sequence and the title sequence showing Bond getting tortured. The film had a great setup with Bond getting captured and tortured and getting disowned by his own agency. It was a shame that the film devolved into sci-fi silliness so quickly.
25. Spectre
The Daniel Craig era was one of yo-yoing quality. Casino Royale and Skyfall were followed by disappointing follow-ups. Spectre was one of these disappointing follow-ups. Spectre was a hyped film because it brought back many of the important players who made Skyfall and saw the return of SPECTRE for the first since in the official series since 1971.
Spectre was a remarkable film in the franchise because it managed to bore fans and annoy them at the same time. The producers wanted Spectre to be Skyfall 2.0 because it was looking at similar issues as it was in 2012. Spectre wanted to explore Bond’s role in an espionage world of cooperation, surveillance, and drone warfare but Spectre lacked the freshness and flair of Skyfall. As an action film Spectre just went through the motions. The actions lacked any sort of spark or energy which made Spectre one of the most lacklustre films in the franchise.
The biggest issue with Spectre was how it brought back the titular organisation. In the least surprising twist possible it was revealed Christoph Waltz’s character was really Blofeld. The filmmakers end up annoying fans when it was revealed that Blofeld was Bond’s stepbrother and he created SPECTRE as a way to get personal revenge against Bond. These were the decisions that upset fans because it undermined Bond’s character, the events of the previous films, and the reasoning behind SPECTRE.
24. The Man with the Golden Gun
The Man with the Golden Gun was a film made quickly so it could capitalise on the success of Live and Let Die. This rushed production was evident because the film had a lot of issues.
The Man with the Golden Gun suffered from poor characterisation and some sloppy filmmaking. Roger Moore’s Bond was an utter bastard in this film. He was abusive towards Andrea Anders, a woman who was held captive by the film’s villain, and Mary Goodnight was treated like a sex toy. Goodnight was one of the most useless Bond girls: she made things worse.
One of the film’s most recognisable stunts was the corkscrew jump. This great moment was undercut by the slide whistle.
The screenplay and filmmaking were clearly rushed. The villains had an opportunity to kill Bond but choose to put the spy in a martial arts academy. Bond was rescued by one of his allies and his two nieces but they failed to complete the mission because they just drove away without the spy. The filmmakers felt the need to bring back J. W. Pepper and had the racist sheriff team up with Bond who was giving chase in Bangkok.
The saving grace of the film was Christopher Lee as Scaramanga. Lee was an incredible actor and he gave his role a sense of gravitas. He played his role as a dark mirror to Bond, someone who could match 007 in ability and charisma. Scaramanga was one of the best-characterised villains by this point of the franchise.
23. Octopussy
Octopussy was a film of two halves. It wanted to be an adventure film in an exotic location (i.e. India) and a Cold War thriller, but the two didn’t mesh.
Octopussy wanted to replicate Raiders of the Lost Ark by trying to be fun and light-hearted. The Indian side of the story saw Bond and his ally having a Tuk-Tuk chase, Bond doing his best Tarzan impression, and Bond telling a tiger to sit like it was a dog. The Cold War story involved a more grounded plot where a rogue Soviet general tries to smuggle a nuclear bomb into an American Air Force base.
Octopussy was tonally jarring because the Cold War was treated a lot more seriously but it involved a circus train being used to smuggle the bomb into West Germany and Bond having to disguise himself as a clown. The plot was convoluted because it involved rogue Soviet elements smuggling out Fabergé eggs to India. The main villain’s motivations were never explained.
The director, John Glen, was much more comfortable with the Cold War story. The action in Germany had tension, whilst the scenes in India were campy and a cheesy affair.
22. A View To A Kill
A View To A Kill was Roger Moore’s final film as James Bond and even he admitted it was one film too many. Moore was 58 years old when he made the film and it showed because he had to be doubled a lot and he was still acting like he was a younger agent.
A View To A Kill was a remake of Goldfinger. Both films have the same villainous plot where a tycoon was trying to enrich themself by causing a disaster. In Goldfinger the villain tried to set off a nuke in Fort Knox, whilst in A View To A Kill, Zoran tried to flood the silicon mines near San Francisco. It’s a formula that has proven to work.
Where A View To A Kill excels was with its villains. Christopher Walken and Grace Jones were a great pair as Max Zoran and May Day. Zoran was one of the most psychotic villains in the series: he took pleasure when he killed a load of miners and he was prepared to kill thousands to enrich himself. May Day was a beast of a woman because she was an athletic henchwoman who can kick ass. She had a brilliant redemptive moment where she sacrificed herself to stop Zoran’s bomb.
21. Quantum of Solace
Quantum of Solace was the Bond film with great potential but hampered for a few reasons. After the success of Casino Royale, a sequel was fast-tracked. This happened at the worst time because it coincided with the 2007 Writers’ Strikes, so the writers could only submit an outline instead of a completed script. The situation was so bad that Daniel Craig and Marc Forster had to do onset rewrites. Quantum of Solace was the shortest film in the franchise so far since it was near constant action.
Quantum of Solace aimed to be an emotional continuation with Bond processing his grief after Vesper’s death becoming filled with rage as he sets out to bring down the secret organisation that controlled her. However, Bond just came across as a brute who killed everyone who crossed his path. The character development for Bond wasn’t there for this film.
Nor did it help that Quantum of Solace had one of the worst villains it has ever produced. Dominic Greene was a generic bad guy who wasn’t imposing, intimidating, or charismatic, traits Bond villains normally have. It was a waste of Mathieu Amalric’s talent.
The final issue for Quantum of Solace was the action scenes. The film was heavily influenced by the Bourne franchise: Bourne’s second unit director, Dan Bradley was hired for Quantum of Solace. What resulted was chaotic action sequences that suffered from over-editing and shaky cam.
Quantum of Solace did have two great female leads with Olga Kurylenko and Gemma Arterton. Kurylenko’s Camille had the best characterisation in the film because she wanted revenge against the man who killed her family and had mental and physical scars. Arterton’s Fields had a lot of cheek and spunk in her brief appearance.
Quantum of Solace did have some cool scenes that updated Bond tropes for the modern age. The opera scene was a standout as Bond interrupts a Quantum meeting that was taking place at a performance of Tosca.
20. Moonraker
Moonraker was infamously the film that sent Bond into space. It was derided as one of the dumbest films in the franchise. Moonraker was not without problems because it was a film made to jump on the Star Wars bandwagon, was a reskin of The Spy Who Loved Me, and was utterly goofy in places like when Dolly saved Jaws in Rio de Janeiro. Some critics have labelled it one of the worst Bond films. Others consider ita to be a guilty pleasure.
Moonraker was not without virtue. Michael Lonsdale as Hugo Drax was a terrific villain. He had a dry delivery and witty dialogue. He was hilarious as someone who seemed to be mildly annoyed by Bond.
Moonraker had some outstanding set-pieces. The film opened with one of the greatest stunts in the franchise where two men fight in freefall over a parachute. The special effects for the third act set in space were fantastic and the nerd inside all of us can enjoy the space battle.
Even though Moonraker was one of the lighter entries in the franchise, the film did have a dark sequence when Connie Dufour was hunted down by dogs.
19. Casino Royale (1954)
The 1954 adaptation of Casino Royale saw the first-ever screen appearance of the famous secret agent. Ian Fleming sold the rights to Casino Royale to CBS for $1,000 and the network adapted the novel as an episode of Climax!
Casino Royale (1954) stuck closely to the story novel, up to the point where Le Chriffe tortured Bond. The adaptation was focused on the action in the Casino as Bond tries to beat Le Chriffe at baccarat and force him to betray his Soviet paymasters.
The biggest change this adaptation made was changing Bond’s nationality to American. The episode was made for an American audience. Barry Nelson had a chiselled all-American look and he did have a funny witticism early in the episode. Otherwise, he was a strait-laced version of Bond. Other changes the episode made was merging Vesper and Mathias into one character and making the torture scene less graphic.
The best feature of the episode was Peter Lorre as Le Chiffre. Lorre was an acting legend and he was able to make the character charismatic and menacing.
Climax! aimed to make their version of Casino Royale a Hitchcockian-style thriller. It was more about character interactions and tension instead of action. This version of Casino Royale ended up being a decent episode of ‘50s TV.
18. Never Say Never Again
Never Say Never Again is the highest-ranked unofficial Bond film on this list. Never Say Never Again was possible because Kevin McClory successfully sued Ian Fleming for the Thunderball film rights and the producers had to come to an agreement with the Irish screenwriter.
When McClory was finally able to make his version of Thunderball he was able to hire Sean Connery and give the Scotsman a big payday. Connery’s appearance in the film gave it a unique selling point because it meant he was going to play the character one more time.
Connery did come back to the role with ease. He was charming and witty, and even though he was in his 50s still had the required physicality to play Bond. Connery could still give audiences some witty lines, like revealing who his best lover was. The most memorable action scene was between Bond and Lippe because it was a destructive brawl in a health spa.
However, Never Say Never Again had to stick to Thunderball’s story closely. It couldn’t divert from the major plot points, nor could they develop some of the more interesting ideas like M being hostile to Bond, the Double-0 section being deactivated, and Bond’s advancing age. But even with these limitations Never Say Never Again was an entertaining if formulaic Bond film.
17. Thunderball
Above Never Say Never Again is the film it’s based on, Thunderball. Thunderball was the fourth film in the series. It saw SPECTRE stealing two nuclear bombs and blackmailing NATO for $100 million, leading Bond to investigate in The Bahamas.
Thunderball was a visually striking film. Ken Adam was on fire with his set design like the MI6 briefing room and the SPECTRE meeting room. The SPECTRE meeting scene was brilliantly parodied in the first Austin Powers movie. There was a lot of impressive underwater photography for the film, showcasing the Junkanoo parade and Thunderball had the first true Bond title sequence.
Thunderball had a great set of characters. Luciana Paluzzi was a scene stealer as Fiona Volpe, a femme fatale who enjoyed working for the bad guy. Adolfo Celi as Emilio Largo had a distinct look because of his eye patch and he looked good in a white tuxedo. Claudine Auger was one of the most beautiful ladies to play a Bond girl and she was the first kept woman in the film series. Connery had some fun moments in the film. I enjoyed the line ‘I know a lot about women.’
However, the film did suffer from long and lumbering underwater sequences and the climax was rushed. The finale used speeded-up footage which looked ridiculous, and Domino was freed by a random henchman who grew a conscience.
16. The World is Not Enough
The World is Not Enough aimed to be a more character-driven Bond film with a more grounded plot. It was a Bond film that was filled with trauma and betrayal and a villain’s scheme revolving around the oil industry in The Caucasus.
The World is Not Enough success was with its character development. Elektra King was one of the most interesting and underrated characters in the franchise. She was a kidnap victim who ended up turning her captor into her pawn. Elektra held a vendetta against M because the government official told her father not to pay the $5 million ransom for her. Elektra’s story acted as a dry run for Raoul Silva’s in Skyfall.
Sophie Marceau was brilliant as Elektra. She was beautiful, elegant, vulnerable, and cunning. She was a brilliant piece of casting. Elektra was both the main Bond girl and the main villain.
However, Marceau’s brilliance was counterbalanced by Denise Richards as Christmas Jones. Richards was a stunt casting because she was a young hot actress in the late ‘90s and dressed like Lara Croft. She was miscast as a woman who was meant to be a nuclear physicist working with the US Army.
The World is Not Enough did have some solid action sequences. The best scene was the river chase that saw Bond chase an assassin from Vauxhall Cross to the Millennium Dome. Other major sequences were the ski chase and the helicopter flying around with a load of buzzsaws behind it.
15. No Time to Die
No Time to Die is the most recent film from the franchise and the hardest to place. No Time to Die had a turbulent production because it changed directors and had a massive rewrite, Daniel Craig broke his leg whilst filming, and the release date was changed because of the Pandemic. It seemed like this film was cursed.
No Time to Die did well with critics and at the box office but the reaction from fans was mixed. It had some great action sequences like the opening in Matera, Bond and Pamola working together in Cuba, the car chase in Norway, and the final set piece at Safin’s lair. It gave Craig a proper send-off as Bond, Ana de Armas was a scene stealer in her role, and it did as times play out like a Bond version of a horror film.
No Time to Die did have issues. The biggest was the ending which divided audiences. The characterisation was underdeveloped. Safin’s motivations after killing SPECTRE were vague. It leaned towards a sci-fi direction because the villain’s plot involved nanobots and nanobot viruses. It felt more like a Fast & Furious or a Mission: Impossible film at times.
14. Live and Let Die
Live and Let Die is a Bond film I have a soft spot for. It was the first Bond film I remember seeing. Live and Let Die was Roger Moore’s first film as 007 and he stepped into the role with ease. It was a marked improvement over the previous entry.
Live and Let Die had a more grounded plot because it involved a Caribbean dictator smuggling heroin into America and set out to monopolise the American drugs market. It had a grittier tone when it was set in New York, whilst still having plenty of classic Bond tropes, i.e. girls, gadgets, exotic locations, and secret villain hideouts. It had some cracking action like the boat chase on the bayou and the car chase in the Caribbean.
Live and Let Die had one of the best Bond theme songs with Paul McCarthy and Wings performing a high-tempo rock song. Jane Seymour was a glorious woman who played the main Bond girl.
However, elements of Live and Let Die have not aged well, particularly the portrayal of African Americans. It was a film that used supernatural elements which were out of place for a Bond entry. It’s best to go into Live and Let Die with the thought that it’s a product of its time.
Live and Let Die was the high point of the Bond series in the early ‘70s.
13. Dr. No
Dr. No was the film that started it all for the official film series. Dr. No was based on the sixth Bond novel, yet it was chosen for adaptation because it had a straightforward investigation story and was set mostly in Jamaica.
Dr. No was a strong introduction to the series. It had the hook of the Three Blind Mice assassinating an MI6 agent, the cool introduction of Sean Connery’s Bond at the casino, and the then provocative scene of Honey Ryder in a bikini. It had tropes that became the hallmarks of the franchise, like the famous theme by Monty Norman and having a charismatic villain in a lair.
Dr. No was made on a modest budget, so it forced the film to have a more grounded approach. Bond had to act more like a detective, and he didn’t have gadgets so needed to be more resourceful. Bond acted as a cold figure like when he killed Professor Dent.
The film was still able to stand out visually because of Ken Adam. His work on Dr. No was noticed by Stanley Kubrick, leading to Adam working on Dr. Strangelove.
Dr. No was surpassed by later films in the franchise, but it was a good start that led to better things.
12. You Only Live Twice
You Only Live Twice was one of the most fun films in the franchise, even if elements today would be considered problematic. This was the film that saw Bond go to Japan and stop a villain who was trying to start World War III.
You Only Live Twice was an epic of a film. This was the Bond film that had the Volcano lair, which acted as a location for a massive battle between SPECTRE and Japanese intelligence. It was a scene The Simpsons has parodied twice.
It was also the film where Bond met Blofeld and he was wonderfully played by Donald Pleasence. He played the most recognisable version of the character.
The basis of You Only Live Twice where a villain is trying to manipulate two factions into a war ended up being used twice more by the franchise: The Spy Who Loved Me and Tomorrow Never Dies. It’s a solid story idea.
The problematic part of the film was when Bond had to disguise himself as a Japanese man.
11. For Your Eyes Only
When the Bond series releases an outlandish film, the follow-up acts as a counterbalance by being more grounded. This happened with Moonraker and For Your Eyes Only.
For Your Eyes Only was a stripped-back Bond film with a more realistic story. This Bond film sees the British and the Soviets racing to find an ATAC system that has sunk in Albanian waters. Both sides needed to liaise with elements of the criminal underworld to achieve this. It was a film that took away Bond’s gadget and made a bold statement by blowing up the Lotus Esprit from The Spy Who Loved Me.
For Your Eyes Only was a more character-driven film. Melina Havelock was an example of this because she wanted to get revenge against the man who murdered her parents, and Bond tried to show her the impact of such an act. It was the most serious film during Moore’s era. It was a film that provided one of Bond’s coldest moments when he killed Locque by kicking a car off the side of a cliff.
Although For Your Eyes Only was more serious, there was some humour. Sadly, the humour was the weakest part of the film. This included Bond’s encounter with a bald villain with a fluffy white cat, the end with Margaret Thatcher and Bibi trying to get Bond to sleep with her. The jokes involving Bibi did feel icky.
10. Tomorrow Never Dies
Every Bond fan had a guilty pleasure film, one they know that isn’t the best but they still love it. Mine is Tomorrow Never Dies, a film I used to watch a lot on VHS, and I still enjoy it.
Tomorrow Never Dies was made quickly after the success of Goldeneye and it was a troubled production. Principal photography started without a completed script, Pierce Brosnan and Teri Hatcher had a falling out, and the Daily Mail reported that the crew was prepared to walk off from the film because of director Roger Spottiswoode. However, Brosnan and Spottiswoode denied the reports.
Despite these reports, Tomorrow Never Dies was an entertaining film that has themes that are still relevant. This was the film where a media mogul was trying to manipulate a war between Britain and China so he can dominate the coverage and get exclusive rights in China. It takes a joint effort from Bond and Chinese agent Wai Lin to stop the maniac.
Tomorrow Never Dies had some incredible action scenes. It had an excellent opening where Bond had to hijack a fighter jet, the car chase in the car park, and the chase around Saigon. This was the film that had one of the toughest Bond girls due to Michelle Yeoh being a skilled martial artist.
The film was able to provide some character moments for Bond due to the scene where Bond finds Paris Carver had been killed. It was a moment of pathos in a fairly light-hearted film. Jonathan Pryce gave a wonderfully over-the-top performance as the main villain.
9. The Living Daylights
The Living Daylights was the first Bond film to star Timothy Dalton. It was a very good start to his short tenure as 007. Following the Roger Moore era, the Bond franchises changed direction and became more grounded and realistic. It acted as a precursor to the Daniel Craig era.
The Living Daylights was a Cold War thriller. It was about a power struggle within the KGB and how a KGB defector tried to manipulate MI6 into doing his dirty work. However, Bond had suspicions and aims to get information from a sniper he shot in Bratislava.
This film was a more serious-tone film. Dalton’s Bond was shown to be colder and more calculating than Moore’s Bond since he used romance to get information from the Bond girl. The locations were more realistic because the film took place in Bratislava, Vienna, Tunis, and mostly importantly, Soviet-occupied Afghanistan. For fans of the more realistic Bond films, The Living Daylights was a treat.
The Living Daylights was still an entertaining film. There were some incredible action scenes like the opening in Gibraltar where a training exercise turned deadly, and the action in Afghanistan. The scene on the transport plane was an iconic moment.
The Living Daylights also offered audiences an insight into Bond’s viewpoint, like when he said didn’t kill amateurs, and was pained when one of his allies was killed. Whilst the film was more serious in tone there were lighter moments like Bond meeting a lady in Gibraltar and showing how Bond smuggled Koskov out of the Eastern Block through a gas pipeline.
8. Licence to Kill
Just ahead of The Living Daylights is Dalton’s second and last Bond film, Licence to Kill. Licence to Kill was the film that saw Bond get involved with the War on Drugs. Licence to Kill was one of the darkest films in the franchise. It had some glorious moments of violence like Krest’s head exploding and Dario falling into a grinder.
Licence to Kill saw Bond face off against a ruthless drug lord after Felix Leiter gets tortured and his wife is killed on her wedding day. Bond was forced to go rogue and try and infiltrate Sanchez’s organisation. It was a film that showed Bond as a resourceful agent who convinced Sanchez he was an ally and tricked the drug lord into killing his henchmen.
Licence to Kill was made as a revenge thriller and one of the personal Bond films. It also had some incredible action sequences, especially the truck chase at the end. It’s a standout sequence. At the end of the film Bond was bruised and battered and it felt like Sanchez could have killed him.
Licence to Kill was not well received when it was first released and it underperformed at the American box office, but time has been kind to the film. It’s now well-regarded by the fandom.
7. On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
Keeping to the theme of Bond films getting reappraised, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service follows Licence to Kill on this list. On Her Majesty’s Secret Service was the only Bond film that starred George Lazenby and even though the film wasn’t well received upon its release, it is now considered one of the best in the franchise.
Following the outlandish adventure of You Only Live Twice was On Her Majesty’s Secret Service aimed to be a more grounded, character-driven Bond film. Bond’s main mission infiltrating Blofeld’s secret base in Switzerland and try to get the villain to leave Swiss soil so he can be arrested. However, Blofeld has plans to blackmail the world by threatening to kill all the world’s crops.
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service was famously the film where Bond falls in love and this was what made this adventure stand out. Bond falls for Tracey di Vicenzo and their relationship gave On Her Majesty’s Secret Service its heart. Bond gets drawn to a damaged woman, he saved her from committing suicide and Tracey saves Bond when he was trying to escape from Blofeld’s goons in Switzerland. On Her Majesty’s Secret Service has the darkest ending in a Bond film because Tracey gets killed and Bond cries over her body.
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service was more of a thriller than an action film. Bond had to go into Blofeld’s base under a fake identity and avoid getting caught. There were still some good action scenes in the film like the ski chase and raid on Blofeld’s base and Lazenby was one of the most physical actors to play 007. Telly Savalas was portrayed as the most physical version of Blofeld because his version of the character was willing to get into a scrap.
The big issue for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service was the two storylines felt disjointed. A later Bond film was able to blend the spy adventure and the romance story better.
6. The Spy Who Loved Me
The Spy Who Loved Me is seen as one of the best films from the franchise and arguably Roger Moore’s best Bond film. The Man With the Golden Gun was a disappointment with critics and audiences and it ended the working relationship between Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli, The Spy Who Loved Me needed to be a success. After a three-year break, 007 was back with a bang!
The Spy Who Loved Me saw the return of Lewis Gilbert (You Only Live Twice) and he made an epic of a Bond film. It was a film with big stunts and set-pieces like the Royal Navy submarine being hijacked by an oil tanker, the ski chase resulting in Bond using a Union Jack parachute, the car chase in Sardinia which saw the Lotus Esprit turn into a submarine, and concluding with a massive battle on a ship.
The Spy Who Loved Me had a similar setup to You Only Live Twice. Both films start with a vessel getting stolen and a villain who’s trying to manipulate NATO and the USSR into war. Yet it was able to overcome this issue by bringing in its own ideas. Anya Amasova, the Bond girl in this film was shown to be 007’s equal, forced MI6 and the KGB to work together to stop a greater threat, and had one of the most famous henchmen, Jaws. The film also supplied one of the best Bond songs, Carly Simon’s “Nobody Does it Better.”
5. Goldfinger
Goldfinger was the film that cemented the Bond formula. It had the first film with a title sequence, gave Bond his Aston Martin DB9, had a larger villain in the form of Auric Goldfinger, and a silent and deadly henchman. It was the film that brought in more humour, one-liners, and action into the franchise.
This Bond film was a one-off adventure during the Connery/Lazenby era. It was the only film where Bond didn’t face off against SPECTRE in some form. Instead, Bond faced an egomaniac villain who planned to enrich himself and wreck the world’s economy by nuking Fort Knox. It became a plot template that the franchise reused in A View to a Kill, and The World Is Not Enough.
Goldfinger gave the Bond franchise some of its most memorable moments like Bond removing a wetsuit to reveal he’s wearing a tuxedo, Bond finding Jill Masterton had been painted and left on his bed, and Bond nearly getting cut in half by a laser. It was the first film in the franchise to have a woman with a sexually suggestive name, and Oddjob was one of the great henchmen. Because of this, Goldfinger has been parodied by The Simpsons and Austin Powers and referenced within the franchise in Die Another Day, and Quantum of Solace.
Goldfinger does at times come across as a bit too goofy, like the scene where the US army pretended to be knocked out and allowed Goldfinger and Chinese special forces into Fort Knox. The most questionable scene to a modern audience was when Bond was able to shag Pussy Galore straight. But it’s still an excellent Bond film.
4. Goldeneye
Like The Spy Who Loved Me, Goldeneye was considered a make-or-break film for the franchise. It was made after a six-year hiatus and made after License to Kill’s lacklustre box-office return, a legal dispute between EON and Pathe, and made after the fall of the Berlin Wall. It ended up being one of the best films in the franchise.
Goldeneye was the first two Bond films to be directed by Martin Campbell and he showed he had a knack for making Bond movies. He made an excellent film that acted as a soft reboot of the franchise and brought Bond to the Post-Cold War world.
This was a film that had the magic mix of high-octane action and character-driven drama. It gave audiences a little insight into what drove Bond, like when Natalya asked why Bond was so cold, and Judi Dench’s M deconstructed the agent with her ‘sexist, misogynist dinosaur’ quote.
Goldeneye had some great set pieces like the pre-credit scene in the Soviet Union, the tank chase around St. Petersburg, and the final fight in the Trevelyan’s lair. The final clash between Bond and Trevelyan had a personal edge to it, which made it a richer experience. Plus, Trevelyan was a former 00, so he had the same set of skills as Bond.
Goldeneye stands as one of the great action films of the ‘90s and considering the number of quality films from that decade that’s an impressive achievement.
3. From Russia With Love
From Russia With Love was the second official film in the franchise and the pinnacle of Sean Connery’s tenure as James Bond. This was a film that combined a grounded Cold War story, with the more fanciful aspects of the Bond franchise, i.e. SPECTRE.
From Russia With Love was made as a follow-up to Dr. No. SPECTRE wanted revenge against Bond after the death of Dr. No by setting up a trap for 007 and planning to humiliate MI6. MI6 willingly walked into the trap because they had the opportunity to steal a Soviet coding device, and Bond walked into it because he could shag a beautiful Russian lady.
From Russia With Love aimed to be a realistic spy thriller. The story of MI6 trying to steal information and technology from the Soviet Union could easily have worked for a John le Carré novel or an Alfred Hitchcock thriller. Bond was given believable gadgets and Istanbul was a hive of espionage. The plotting played it straight, like when Bond questioned Tatiana about the Lektor device, and Bond explores the catacombs so he can plant a bomb under the Soviet consulate.
From Russia With Love acted as the first travelog film in the franchise. The film showcased some major sites in Istanbul and Venice and the Orient Express train journey.
From Russia With Love had a load of memorable characters. Tatiana was beautiful and she was much more active in the plot than Honey Ryder in the previous film. It was a film with two villains – first was Red Grant, a dark mirror to Bond, and Rosa Klepp, the mastermind of SPECTRE’s plan.
2. Casino Royale (2006)
Casino Royale (2006) was the second film directed by Martin Campbell and it marked the second time he revitalised the franchise. Casino Royale was a hard reset and brought Bond back down to Earth with a gritty tone and grounded story.
Casino Royale (2006) was inspired by the first novel by Ian Fleming. The film expanded and modernised the story. Casino Royale (2006) acted as an origins story because it showed Bond work on his first mission as a 00. In this film Bond must defeat a terrorist banker called Le Chiffre in a Poker tournament because it would force the man to surrender to MI6. Bond’s ally on the mission is Vesper Lynd, the first love of Bond’s life.
Casino Royale (2006) had everything I wanted in a Bond film. It was a seriously toned film that had a grounded plot and a character-driven story. It was a stripped-back affair because Bond didn’t have any gadgets and Q and Moneypenny weren’t included. Casino Royale (2006) had some terrific action scenes, like the opening fight in the toilet, the parkour chase, the chase in the airport, and the final fight in the house sinking in Venice. It was a film with a harder edge, as shown by Bond’s first two kills and Chris Cornell’s rocking theme song.
Bond in this film was a brash agent who was too willing to use violence. He was given a character arc where he became the efficient agent audiences know and love. The heart of Casino Royale (2006) was his relationship with Vesper. It started with an air of sexual tension before turning into a romantic relationship. Casino Royale (2006) had a great tender moment when Bond sat with Vesper in the shower after she experienced death for the first time, and Bond was pained when he saw Vesper take her own life.
1. Skyfall
My top spot can easily flip between Casino Royale (2006) and Skyfall. The margin between them is minor. Both are not just great Bond films; they are great films in general. However, my pick to top this list is Skyfall.
Skyfall was made after a four-year break for the franchise and MGM suffering from financial troubles. Skyfall was made for the 50th anniversary of the film franchise and EON pulled out all the stops for this film. It had an all-star cast with the likes of Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, and Ben Whishaw. Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes was hired to direct and Oscar-nominated screenwriter John Logan co-wrote the screenplay with franchise regulars, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade.
Like Casino Royale (2006), Skyfall was a character-driven film with great action and aimed to be a grounded take on the character. It was one of the most thematic films in the franchise because Bond was an aging agent fighting in a changing world with new threats. Skyfall acted as a metaphor for the franchise whose critics see it as outdated but the franchise still has life in it. That mission was accomplished because Skyfall received near universal acclaim and was the first Bond film to break the billion-dollar barrier.
Skyfall had a fantastic villain with Raoul Silva, a hacker and former MI6 agent who had a vendetta against M. He oozed a dark charisma as shown during his introductory ‘rat’ speech and his goal was personal. He wasn’t looking for riches or power. This Bond film made the most out of Judi Dench’s M who was central to the plot and the film showed what made her tick.
The action was exemplary, like the opening in Istanbul, the chase in the London underground, and a showdown at Bond’s childhood home. It was a film that was filled with tension, like when Bond was racing to get to the inquiry to save M from Silva.
Skyfall was one of the most beautiful-looking films because Roger Deakins worked as the cinematographer. Standout moments were the fight in Shanghai that was done in a single take, and the use of fire during the action at Skyfall.
