Bond VII - Diamonds are Forever

-Choking a chick with her own bra is just plain cold.

-I know the Bond films aren't really sequential but they really should have made some reference to his dead wife (I know it happens in a later film).

-Blofeld is not just a different actor but nearly a different character. Is it because he had plastic surgery? This is a bit unclear in the opening (the entirety of which is given away in the film's trailer, btw). Man, he doesn't even have the same kind of cigarette hold as Savalas. Plus it's distracting that he's the guy from Rocky Horror.

-I've always been amused by these guys, Mr. Kidd and Mr. Wint. (And I found out that Putter Smith who plays Kidd was a musician who played on tracks like "You've Lost That Loving Feeling." Really. OH, and Wint is Bruce Glover whose son is Crispin Glover!) They're creepy and a bit comedic but...well, I like em.

-On the other hand, Kidd makes a remark about how Jill St. John is attractive "for a lady" and I'm not clear if he's, like, gay or what. I think that's the deal.

-As for Jill St. John, they're pushing the envelope with her walking around in bra and panties. Then Bond says something about not minding hair colour as long as "the collar matches the cuffs" and takes it further. It's as about as edgy as Bond films get in terms of sex.

-Man, I LOVE Bond's kissy trick! If you've seen the film, you know what I mean.

-Again, the uselessness that is Felix Leiter. If Bond didn't introduce him you'd never know.

-The diamond extraction is convoluted if ingenious...still, Bond gambled a bit on being able to get out of that coffin.

-The whole Plenty O'Toole bit is amusing, including the bit where the mobsters throw her out a window and then admit, "I had no idea there was a pool there."

-It's Circus Circus! All shiny and new! Its mere presence in a Bond movie suggests that it's a classy joint but it's the most frightening place in Vegas. Almost 40 years ago Hunter Thompson said it's "what the whole hep world would be doing Saturday night if the Nazis had won the war." And it's gone downhill since then.

-Why is the CIA operating in the USA? I'm pretty sure it's outside of their mandate. Does Leiter even know the FBI exists?

-Bond stole my clipboard trick! My three golden rules are:

1) Taking a clipboard will always make you look busy

2) WD40 can loosen anything

3) Duct tape can secure anything

-The moonbuggy escape is pushing things.

-Jill St. John is cute and fills out a bikini but, um, not the strongest actress.

-Wow, it's Blofeld! Two Blofelds! He doesn't explain everything to Bond which is progress but why the elaborate murder? He could shoot him. Instead he puts him in an elevator, gasses him, has him trucked out to the desert; he remains passed out long enough for the pipe he's dumped in to be lifted, secured and buried as part of a watermain or something. He gets awoken by some unexplained pipe-cleaning robot. Nice one, Blofeld! No wonder you never win, asshole.

-A pink tie? Dude - you're JAMES BOND.

-Ah, Bambi and Thumper. I guess because of the PG they cut away when Bambi knees him in the nuts. Really, I'm not entirely clear what they're doing...guarding Willard Whyte?

-Now, this Whyte guy is established as a Howard Hughes-type recluse which is why Blofeld can take over for him with no one wondering anything. But, aside from being a bit of a blowhard, he seems like a normal guy. Oh, and a hammy actor.

-I can't believe Q is cheating in the casino. Uncool, man.

-Dear lord - Blofeld in DRAG? The he explains his plan AND falls for the ol switcheroo trick. This guy DESERVES to get his ass kicked by Bond.

-His li'l escape submarine is a great idea - if only he didn't need to rely on someone to pick it up on a crane and drop it. By the way, henchmen: When the boss heads for the escape submarine, that's the time for you to stop fighting.

-Oh, and isn't this oil rig in Baja? In Mexico? Being attacked by US Marines? I see an international incident here.

-Ah, the demise of Kidd and Wint. The improv with the skewers would have been admirable but for the fire...I guess that's better than going with a bomb tied between your legs. Oh, well.

So long, Connery! Next stop: Roger Moore! Voodoo-style!

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