The Man With the Golden Gun – A good blend of Bond

The Roger Moore Bond era came in for a fair bit of criticism; not only did he have to compete with Sean Connery’s interpretation of the superspy, but, by adding more wry humour to the franchise, people saw his films as too comic to be believable. ‘The Man With the Golden Gun’ is Moore’s second outing and I think it’s possibly the film that bridges the gap between dark and comic, incorporating elements of both, but never leaning directly towards either.

For a start we have no hollowed-out lair for a Persian cat-stroking super villain to reside in.  Instead, we simply have a rival hitman who has his sights set on being the best in the world.  Of course that means removing one 007 in the process.  So it’s far more of a simple premise when compared to the typical plans for world domination that Bond has to thwart on a day to day basis.  Christopher Lee plays the rival hitman, Scaramanga, with typical charm and menace, making him almost appear as Bond’s ‘dark side.’ There’s plenty of near misses between the two in what could be described as a ‘cat and mouse’ type affair until the inevitable climax.

So, the plot is simple and deadly in nature, but it wouldn’t be a Roger Moore Bond film without humour.  As I mentioned, the jokes never really detract from the obvious danger Bond is in at all times.  Scaramanga’s primary henchman ‘Knick-knack’ may be small in stature, but more than makes up for his lack of size in terms of brutality and mischief (sometimes so much so you could be mistaken for watching a David Lynch film as the ‘arena’ set during the duel is pretty psychedelic – and, when you mix it with a cheeky but mysterious dwarf, you have a precursor to Twin Peaks if ever I saw one!).  The jokes hit the mark and about the ‘silliest’ the film gets is the return of Sherriff JW Pepper who some people will most likely find irritating and detracting from the overall story (however, I really enjoyed his over-the-topness!).

So, combine the darkness of the Connery era with some Moore humour and you have a winning combination.  Naturally, you also have the beautiful locations, exciting chase scenes and Britt Ekland as the obligatory Bond girl.  But if you don’t want to get quite as silly as Bond making Tarzan noises while swinging through a jungle (Octopussy), yet don’t want quit the levels of brutality displayed by Connery when he strangles a woman with her own bikini (Diamonds Are Forever) then this is a perfect in between Bond film that should entertain all.

9/10 almost as perfect as The Godfather