James Bond: The Ultimate Collection (1962-2012) + Volume Collections

[AKORIS]

Originally Posted by Outlander

Me too.

Except for On Her Majesty's Secret Service and Spectre. Those two are awful.

[koberulz]

Originally Posted by Man From Hammer

Not sure if this is connected but:
The US discs all include the original soundtrack aswell as the surround remixes. In the UK (and possibly Australia) all the titles that received individual releases prior to Bond 50 do not include the original soundtracks.

I have the US set.

I'm wondering if it's just a random phrasing difference, or if they've for some reason futzed with the mono track for some films.

Originally Posted by ROSS.T.G.

I love OHMSS. I also really like Spectre. I really don’t understand the hate for it.

I don't understand people who think OHMSS is bad. It's one of the best films in the series, if not the best.

I've not seen Spectre since I saw it theatrically, and I remember not really feeling one way or the other about it. I've seen people upset about the twist being too obvious but to me it was so obvious it never occurred to me until reading those reviews that it was intended as a twist at all. That may or may not be a good thing.

[darkness2918]

Originally Posted by Outlander

Me too.

Except for On Her Majesty's Secret Service and Spectre. Those two are awful.

I like Spectre but I agree with On Her Majesty's Secret Service. That's the only Bond film so far I don't really care for at all.

[BluProofie]

OHMSS is the best.

The only ones in dislike are Diamonds Are Forever and Octopussy, though TMWTGG is close.

[Markgway]

Top Five:

Licence to Kill
Goldeneye
Casino Royale
From Russia with Love
Octopussy

[Verisimilitude1984]

Great lists everyone - seems we're largely all in a consensus

I love all the Bond actors, they all brought their own interpretation and style to the role.

If you'll indulge me, I'd be interested on people's thoughts on all the Bond films?

Dr. No (Good = Ursula Andress coming out of the ocean; Bad = A little underwhelming compared to later ones in its bombast but it started here!)

From Russia With Love (Good = Red Grant on the train; Bad = the Gypsy fight)

Goldfinger (Good = practically everything but especially the Aston Martin for me; Bad = maybe ***** Galore's Flying Circus by today's standards)

Thunderball (haven't seen this one fully yet)

You Only Live Twice (Good = Blofeld and the finale; Bad = Bond as a Japanese man)

On Her Majesty's Secret Service (Good = practically everything, from the music, Diana Rigg, the opening and ending; Bad = perhaps Blofeld's nefarious scheme)

Diamonds Are Forever (Good = seeing Connery again; Bad = how it completely disregards OHMSS)

Live and Let Die (Good = music, villains - supernatural element, Jane Seymour; Bad = plays a little slow and like a blaxploitation film in parts)

The Man With The Golden Gun (Good = the opening, Christopher Lee, car stunt; Bad = Britt Ekland's character)

The Spy Who Loved Me (Good = the opening, the villains - Jaws; Bad = Anya Amasova)

Moonraker (Good = not much, the villain's scheme and the return of Jaws; Bad = everything else)

For Your Eyes Only (Good = theme song, car chase, more serious tone after Moonraker and Moore killing the villain in the car; Bad = a little slow in places)

Octopussy (Good = love Louis Jourdan, theme song, Maude Adams)

Never Say Never Again*unofficial* (Good = both female stars; Bad = film just doesn't quite work for me)

A View To A Kill (Good = Christopher Walken in every scene especially his last, music; Bad = slow until the stable plot has past and perhaps a younger actor may have worked better as the tone of this film is dark in places)

The Living Daylights (Good = Timothy Dalton, the scene where his co-agent dies and Dalton's rage; Bad = villains are weak)

Licence To Kill (Good = practically everything and that stunt; Bad = a very different sort of Bond film but I don't think it's a bad thing, just a matter of preference)

Goldeneye (Good = villains, story; Bad = theme song isn't the best)

Tomorrow Never Dies (Good = Teri Hatcher; Bad = most of it, just a bit mundane and Teri Hatcher is wasted)

The World Is Not Enough (Good = Elektra King is a fascinating character; Bad = Denise Richards's character, some action scenes just seem generic)

Die Another Day (Good = not much; Bad = most of it, especially the bad green screen surfing scene)

Casino Royale (Good = back to a more serious tone, villain, Eva Green, harkens back to earlier Bonds in plot and style; Bad = the theme song)

Quantum of Solace (Good = not much at all; Bad = this one is just so boring compared to the previous one and I don't like the argument that it's Casino Royale Part 2 as a film should stand on its own merits)

Skyfall (Good = theme song, personal story, villain, aston martin; Bad = a bit Home Alone-esque by the end)

Spectre (Good = return of Spectre, harkening back to the style of earlier Bonds; Bad = wasn't as captivating as it could have been, back story of Blofeld was a mistake imo)

[imsounoriginal]

Challenge accepted:

[Show spoiler]Dr. No -- the one that started it all. A bit rough around the edges, but that's not a bad thing.

From Russia With Love -- the only actual spy movie of the series, and it's a doozy.

Goldfinger -- the prototype. The perfect one. The one against which all others must be judged.

Thunderball -- slow start, repetitive finale, but that middle hour is vintage Bond and some of Connery's best moments.

You Only Live Twice -- dynamite first hour, loses steam in the second. The beginning of the "extravagant Bond," where spectacle started to trump storytelling. Arguably Barry's best score, and one of the more visually beautiful Bond movies.

OHMSS -- a little flabby and the Lazenby dub is annoying, but otherwise perfect. Probably my favorite Bond score (the only one I own on vinyl).

Diamonds are Forever -- Need to rewatch, easily the one I've seen the least. My least favorite of the series. The one good thing I can remember off the top of my head is that elevator fight ("You just killed James Bond!").

Live and Let Die -- dumb as hell, kind of a harbinger of what to expect from the Moore era, but it's got that great song and some all-time great action sequences. Not to mention Jane Seymour ooh la la... (and how can you say No to Yaphet Kotto as the big bad?).

Golden Gun -- another dumb af movie saved by individual elements rather than the sum of its parts: Knick-Knack, Sir Christopher Lee, the return of Sheriff Pepper, that lovely boat chase, and of course the opening and finale in Scaramanga's fun house. Oh, and I love having M and Moneypenny in that slanted, sinking-ship office. Ken Adam's mark on the franchise can never be understated.

Spy Who Loved Me -- a collection of classic moments. The movie that saved the franchise. Not much to say that hasn't been said already. Not the Moore movie I watch most often, but it is his best one.

Moonraker -- I don't mind Bond going into space. I don't mind Bond driving a gondola into the Venice square and having pigeons go "WTF." I mind Jaws finding love in the arms of a little mountain girl. That was... an odd choice. Drax is one of my favorite Bond villains. And the bit where they send the dogs after that girl in the woods is genuinely terrifying.

For Your Eyes Only -- I know this movie has its fans, and on paper it's fine. But I just find it boring. It over-corrects everything people supposedly didn't like about Moonraker. And for trying to be such a serious Bond, that opening sequence is the worst of the franchise, and having Thatcher go wet because of a parrot is just stupid. Oh well.

Octopussy -- used to be my least-favorite Bond, but rewatching it recently, it moved all the way up to my second least-favorite Bond. Great villains (shoutout to Kabir Bedi, who along with Amrish Puri aka Mola Ram basically became Bollywood's resident stern/military father for the better part of thirty years).

A View to a Kill -- my guilty pleasure. Probably my favorite Moore movie. I know he hated it, but there are too many things here to like, either genuinely or ironically. I dunno. Maybe being a clone of Goldfinger helps this movie.

The Living Daylights -- no Bond movie has improved more for me over time than this one. Honestly this is probably the most rewatched non-Craig movie for me over the last few years.

Licence to Kill -- great Bond movie. People who don't like it... I dunno what to tell you. It's all there, and it's nearly perfect.

Goldeneye -- the Brosnan ones are what I grew up with, both as movies and video games. This one will always be special to me. And the tank chase is my favorite Bond action sequence. Martin Campbell is the unsung hero of new-age Bond.

Tomorrow Never Dies -- another Bond that's perfectly adequate on paper, but I just find boring to watch. There's something so... perfunctory about it. Not the worst Brosnan movie, but it is the most boring Brosnan movie.

TWINE -- it's between this and QoS for the title of Most Underrated Bond Movie. Had they cast literally anyone other than Denise Richards, people would be talking about how ahead of its time TWINE was. (Also, this game was better than Goldeneye. Better multiplayer. Yeah I said it.)

Die Another Day -- so dumb but so good if you just give into it. And honestly, everything up through M re-recruiting Bond in the abandoned underground station is solid Bond. After that it goes to hell, but if you just take it as the Michael Bay version of Bond, it can be "so bad it's good."

Casino Royale-- objectively speaking, the best Bond film ever made. And my personal favorite movie.

Quantum of Solace -- the most underrated Bond movie ever made. It's got action, character, political intrigue, a great score, some STUNNINGLY Fleming-esque sequences (the silent stalking of the opera is one of the best sequences in the series), and doesn't get enough love for how well-done it is on a purely technical level. Visually gorgeous, too. But by FAR has the worst title song.

Skyfall -- more than enough has been said about this movie, so I'll just add that it's not only the most gorgeous Bond movie, it has the best pre-title sequence of the franchise.

Spectre -- bloated and stupid as hell by the third act, but the action sequences are good, I dig the look and score of the movie, and Craig is such a great Bond (my favorite) that he makes it worth sitting through. Shoutout to the airplane sequence that's basically an update of the tank chase from Goldeneye.

[Doctorossi]

Originally Posted by imsounoriginal

[Show spoiler]Quantum of Solace -- the most underrated Bond movie ever made.

I almost agree with you here, but I think Thunderball just pips it for that title (it's had decades to accumulate under-appreciation).

[stvn1974]

I used to hate Moonraker with a fiery passion but no longer. I can get enough out of each Bond film to enjoy them.

[Verisimilitude1984]

Very interesting imsounoriginal. I don't think there's anything I'd disagree with (well, perhaps QOS!).

A View To A Kill is a really enjoyable one. I know it's not regarded highly generally by Bond fans but I love it's 80s cheesiness and the villain's plan is great. I love Christopher Walken and that bit at the end where the villain sort of half-chuckles to himself with the realisation that...that's why I love it. It really gave a personality to the character. I am surprised Moore didn't like it but it was a darker film.

[Man From Hammer]

Originally Posted by koberulz

I have the US set.

I'm wondering if it's just a random phrasing difference, or if they've for some reason futzed with the mono track for some films.

I don't understand what you are saying.

To clarify, because of the multiple languages on the European discs the original tracks were not included on any of the individually released titles.
The films that first appeared on Bluray in the Bond 50 set do have the original tracks although all (or most) of the individually released movies also had the "Inside...." documentary recreated in HD. While the interview footage remains SD , the titles, the film clips and the photos are all rescanned in HD and in 16:9.
The Bond 50 premiers don't have HD documentaries

[koberulz]

I like how you start out trying to clarify...something, and then end up waffling about HD and SD documentaries.

[BluProofie]

Originally Posted by imsounoriginal

Challenge accepted:

[Show spoiler]Dr. No -- the one that started it all. A bit rough around the edges, but that's not a bad thing.

From Russia With Love -- the only actual spy movie of the series, and it's a doozy.

Goldfinger -- the prototype. The perfect one. The one against which all others must be judged.

Thunderball -- slow start, repetitive finale, but that middle hour is vintage Bond and some of Connery's best moments.

You Only Live Twice -- dynamite first hour, loses steam in the second. The beginning of the "extravagant Bond," where spectacle started to trump storytelling. Arguably Barry's best score, and one of the more visually beautiful Bond movies.

OHMSS -- a little flabby and the Lazenby dub is annoying, but otherwise perfect. Probably my favorite Bond score (the only one I own on vinyl).

Diamonds are Forever -- Need to rewatch, easily the one I've seen the least. My least favorite of the series. The one good thing I can remember off the top of my head is that elevator fight ("You just killed James Bond!").

Live and Let Die -- dumb as hell, kind of a harbinger of what to expect from the Moore era, but it's got that great song and some all-time great action sequences. Not to mention Jane Seymour ooh la la... (and how can you say No to Yaphet Kotto as the big bad?).

Golden Gun -- another dumb af movie saved by individual elements rather than the sum of its parts: Knick-Knack, Sir Christopher Lee, the return of Sheriff Pepper, that lovely boat chase, and of course the opening and finale in Scaramanga's fun house. Oh, and I love having M and Moneypenny in that slanted, sinking-ship office. Ken Adam's mark on the franchise can never be understated.

Spy Who Loved Me -- a collection of classic moments. The movie that saved the franchise. Not much to say that hasn't been said already. Not the Moore movie I watch most often, but it is his best one.

Moonraker -- I don't mind Bond going into space. I don't mind Bond driving a gondola into the Venice square and having pigeons go "WTF." I mind Jaws finding love in the arms of a little mountain girl. That was... an odd choice. Drax is one of my favorite Bond villains. And the bit where they send the dogs after that girl in the woods is genuinely terrifying.

For Your Eyes Only -- I know this movie has its fans, and on paper it's fine. But I just find it boring. It over-corrects everything people supposedly didn't like about Moonraker. And for trying to be such a serious Bond, that opening sequence is the worst of the franchise, and having Thatcher go wet because of a parrot is just stupid. Oh well.

Octopussy -- used to be my least-favorite Bond, but rewatching it recently, it moved all the way up to my second least-favorite Bond. Great villains (shoutout to Kabir Bedi, who along with Amrish Puri aka Mola Ram basically became Bollywood's resident stern/military father for the better part of thirty years).

A View to a Kill -- my guilty pleasure. Probably my favorite Moore movie. I know he hated it, but there are too many things here to like, either genuinely or ironically. I dunno. Maybe being a clone of Goldfinger helps this movie.

The Living Daylights -- no Bond movie has improved more for me over time than this one. Honestly this is probably the most rewatched non-Craig movie for me over the last few years.

Licence to Kill -- great Bond movie. People who don't like it... I dunno what to tell you. It's all there, and it's nearly perfect.

Goldeneye -- the Brosnan ones are what I grew up with, both as movies and video games. This one will always be special to me. And the tank chase is my favorite Bond action sequence. Martin Campbell is the unsung hero of new-age Bond.

Tomorrow Never Dies -- another Bond that's perfectly adequate on paper, but I just find boring to watch. There's something so... perfunctory about it. Not the worst Brosnan movie, but it is the most boring Brosnan movie.

TWINE -- it's between this and QoS for the title of Most Underrated Bond Movie. Had they cast literally anyone other than Denise Richards, people would be talking about how ahead of its time TWINE was. (Also, this game was better than Goldeneye. Better multiplayer. Yeah I said it.)

Die Another Day -- so dumb but so good if you just give into it. And honestly, everything up through M re-recruiting Bond in the abandoned underground station is solid Bond. After that it goes to hell, but if you just take it as the Michael Bay version of Bond, it can be "so bad it's good."

Casino Royale-- objectively speaking, the best Bond film ever made. And my personal favorite movie.

Quantum of Solace -- the most underrated Bond movie ever made. It's got action, character, political intrigue, a great score, some STUNNINGLY Fleming-esque sequences (the silent stalking of the opera is one of the best sequences in the series), and doesn't get enough love for how well-done it is on a purely technical level. Visually gorgeous, too. But by FAR has the worst title song.

Skyfall -- more than enough has been said about this movie, so I'll just add that it's not only the most gorgeous Bond movie, it has the best pre-title sequence of the franchise.

Spectre -- bloated and stupid as hell by the third act, but the action sequences are good, I dig the look and score of the movie, and Craig is such a great Bond (my favorite) that he makes it worth sitting through. Shoutout to the airplane sequence that's basically an update of the tank chase from Goldeneye.

Wow, we agree on a lot of them.

TWINE and Quantum are so underrated.

[Markgway]

Most underrated: Quantum of Solace

Most overrated: Skyfall

[Man From Hammer]

Originally Posted by koberulz

I like how you start out trying to clarify...something, and then end up waffling about HD and SD documentaries.

I was clarifying the audio point because I didn't understand what you were trying to say about it.
And as it applied to the exact same discs it seemed worth mentioning the difference about the documentaries too. Hardly waffle, more like FACTS.

Sorry if its confusing

[jackinbox]

1. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
2. From Russia With Love
3. The Spy Who Loved Me
4. Goldfinger
5. Casino Royale
6. Thunderball
7. For Your Eyes Only
8. Dr. No
9. The Living Daylights
10. You Only Live Twice
11. Never Say Never Again
12. Goldeneye
13. Licence To Kill
14. The Man With The Golden Gun
15. The World Is Not Enough
16. Octopussy
17. Spectre
18. Live And Let Die
19. Tomorrow Never Dies
20. Diamonds Are Forever
21. Moonraker
22. Skyfall
23. A View To A Kill
24. Die Another Day
25. Quantum Of Solace

[dallywhitty]

Originally Posted by Outlander

Except for On Her Majesty's Secret Service and Spectre. Those two are awful.

[imsounoriginal]

Originally Posted by jackinbox

22. Skyfall

[Michael24]

We're ranking Bond movies? Goodie.

(in order of personal preference)
1. The Living Daylights
2. For Your Eyes Only
3. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
4. Casino Royale
5. Thunderball
6. Octopussy
7. The Spy Who Loved Me
8. Licence to Kill
9. From Russia With Love
10. Goldfinger
11. GoldenEye
12. Spectre
13. Dr. No
14. You Only Live Twice
15. The Man with the Golden Gun
16. Moonraker
17. A View to A Kill
18. Tomorrow Never dies
19. Die Another Day
20. Diamonds Are Forever
21. The World Is Not Enough
22. Live and Let Die
23. Quantum of Solace
24. Skyfall

* Official Bond movies only, so no Never Say Never Again

[rocknblues81]

Man, Skyfall's rep has sure went to the toilet. Everyone was tripping overthemselves to praise the movie when it was first released.