You Only Live Twice (1967)
A mysterious spacecraft captures Russian and American space capsules and brings the two superpowers to the brink of war. James Bond investigates the case in Japan and comes face to face with his archenemy Blofeld.
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Very well executed
Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.
The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.
Y O U . O N L Y . L I V E . T W I C E (1967) - Living this film once is enough to be honest - - James Bond is dick! -!!!!There are couple of spoilers!!!!One can argue that they did it all the prevent a nuclear world war. But it is just sad to see super dedicated footsoldiers of SPECTRE and in this film's case, the 100 'modern ninja warriors' die like they didn't matter. The SPECTRE chaps are always so dedicated in defending the evil deeds set by their masters, especially after they,the masters have ran away leaving the SPECTRE chaps to continue to fight and die and fall like flies. I wonder whether SPECTRE pays anything to their families. Some kind of compensation. I hope they do. Respect to the fallen 100 'modern ninjas' too in this case. Now lets talk about the film. Sean Connery is at it again, on 'Her Majesty's Secret Service' which incidentally is the name of the next film in the series. He plays 'James Bond' again with codename 007. I think James Bond is a bit of a dick!At 1:16:05 Aki dies but at 1:17:50, the dickhead 'James Bond' is already trying to figure out how ugly or pretty is 'fake-mission' wife is going to be! You look at his expressions and you just want to slap him with a wet slipper on face!I think Bond is just an asshole who gets lucky every time. He happens to be there to meet Mr. Henderson when he is assassinated. Bond, being Lucky yet again to be there now chases the assassin and kills him and pretends to be him. In doing so, he manages to get to baddies' headquarters which is actually a 'front' for SPECTRE. And the story begins. What if the assassin had killed Mr.Henderson before Bond had arrived to meet him? Then? There won't be this story. There are few other 'Lucky happenings' that happen to happen just when Bond is there. And this is a pattern that is there in all the Bond films. I hate it.Let's talk about screenplay and the story. Can somebody please tell me why the hell was Bond carrying knee and hand suction pads? Why? Where was he carrying them under the kimono? And why was he carrying them? He had not yet found the hidden volcano lair? Total Bullshit!I just hate the typical formulaic pre-climatic fight between Bond and a strong baddie who is always the villain's sidekick, 'Hans' in this film. A tall, lanky, bulky chap who is shown only twice in the entire film, he is brought to fight Bond even when his masters have died or left. Why would you fight like that? What for? I can give myself a counter argument which would be that he is one of those super dedicated SPECTRE chaps! But it is a bit unrealistic. Its formula!Can some one please also tell me why would 'Number 11' take the hassles of pretending to be a traitor to Mr.Osanto and SPECTRE by escaping with Bond from the Osanto headquarters to an airport or airstrip somewhere, to get where they would have had to drive, find a plane, refuel it, check it for safety and then fly it to the middle of nowhere so that 'Number 11' could deceive Bond and try to kill him by leaving him stranded and stuck in the plane as 'Number 11' jumps out with a parachute! Why? Why go to all this trouble to kill him like this? Why? When you already had Bond in front of you, tied to a chair at place where 'Number 11' would be safe and have backup baddies! Why?SIMPLY RETARDED!The only saving grace for me in this film were the pretty Japanese girls, a few beautiful cinematic shot and the music which starts in the beginning. I happen to like this theme the most and it was absolute pleasure to hear it every now and then.A mediocre film with crappy sensibilities. All I can say is that the plot of the film, the concept, the idea that SPECTRE would somehow cause a nuclear war between US and USSR by deceiving them both is amazing, it the execution and the filmmakers' sensibilities that lets this film down big time.My ratings: 5/10 *****Watch it if you are not too bored!!!I must add that I loved the hidden-under-volcano set! Loved the grand scale of it and how it was designed.
"You Only Live Twice" is the only James Bond movie I ever recorded on VHS, and by the law of statistics, it was naturally the one I saw the most, but my connection with the film is only limited with these nostalgic trivia and if I have a soft spot for this 'Bond', I guess it is only because it grew on me "by default". Said differently, I wish I had recorded "Dr. No", "From Russia With Love" or "Goldfinger" which are far better than the last Connery's Bond of the 60's. But don't get me wrong, the film is far above average, and average by Connery's standard is still good enough.First of all, let's give it the credit it deserves, in terms of special effects, it is quite impressive. You can tell that the series reached maturity judging by the art-settings and pyrotechnics. I read that some critics thought the idea of a spacecraft hi-jacking another one was ludicrous, but the scene showing the unidentified vessel literally swallowing a spacecraft had nothing to envy from a classic of the next year, "2001: A Space Odyssey". That opening scene was well-done, and it was followed by other promising moments: a tense reunion where US diplomats throw the ball back at their Soviet counterparts, and Bond having an intimate moment before being gunned down in his bed. This is not the first time they try to fool the audience and the title is enough of a hint, so I doubt many then-viewers watched the opening sequences with concerns about their favorite Secret Agent's life. And speaking of the title, whatever rating I give to the film, there's one star owed to the magnificent score by Nancy Sinatra, there's something so hypnotic, sensual and strangely morose about this song that makes it unique in Bond's discography. But let's get back to the film, Bond is supposed to be dead. The film goes on the same joke and even features a funeral ceremony, where Bond's body is dropped to the sea, and this is where he's intercepted by a submarine and can be assigned his new mission. Sometimes, I love the Bond films for their opening sequences only, the mission is never as interesting as the little debriefing from M and a flirting session with Moneypenny. In "You Only Live Twice", the mission isn't as interesting as the setting in Japan, Bond must find out which mysterious country or organization is trying to ignite a war between USA and Russia. This is where the film really takes off and while there are many good things to appreciate in this first part, it's the immersion in the Japanese culture that provides some of the best moments, especially the trap door sliding leading to the meeting with Mr. Tanaki and the following massage session in his house, oddly enough, one of my all-time favorite Bond scenes.We all noticed Connery's athletic body and hairy chest in the previous films but it is quite uncommon that the physical attributes actually influence the dialogues. You can't tell if Ian Fleming wrote Bond with Connery's features, but it gave a realistic touch that the masseuses would indeed be fascinated by the hairy chest. Bond stops being a standard hero, but a character also defined by very specific physical attributes. I liked that part, and all the macho innuendo. Those were the days!After that, Bond encrypts a document stolen from a crooked Japanese businessman named Osato, and meets with the beautiful secretary Helga Brandt. I don't remember much from the first time I saw the film (I was twelve) but I remember very well that I had watched enough Bond films to know exactly what was going to happen. Ever since "Goldfinger", I knew the Bond movies always featured three Bond girls, two had to die, and the last one was kept for the final kiss, so I already knew the poor Aki would kick the bucket and poor Brandt would die in a way or another. But this isn't the best vintage of Bond girls anyway and the film kind of loses its pace during its middle section. To give you an idea, I remembered most of the film, but I had totally forgot about the helicopter chase, and I guess what it says is that many scenes could have belonged to any Bond film, which is the worst compliment you could give. Pussy Galore could only work in "Goldfinger", Red Grant was too serious to even work for Goldfinger but in "You Only Live Twice", the film needed to get straight to the final setting because that volcano headquarters was the highlight. But it's too short for the film's own good.Indeed, the climactic sequence finally confronts Bond to his archenemy Ernst Stavro Blofeld, played by a scary Donald Pleasance, but nothing really emerges from this confrontation, except for a few chitchat, and many opportunities to eliminate Bond, except that, for some reasons, Blofeld's priorities were to dispose of his useless henchmen, making useless points before killing Bond when someone could rescue him. Since I mentioned Red Grant, I remember that he refused Bond's plea for a cigarette, Blofeld accepted. That he'd fall for a trick that didn't fool a henchman says a lot about how overrated this villain is. Or maybe he was just victim of this weird feeling of rush and urgency that couldn't exploit the climactic setting to its fullest."You Only Live Twice" isn't the freshest Bond, but at the very least, it's one of the Top 10 best of the series, marking the last Connery appearance, as he was afraid to be typecast and felt it was time to live twice a second cinematic career.
The last Connery Bond of the sixties must be one of the most gloriously rich and entertaining films of the decade. So be warned if your're looking for reality or substance, this is high calibre cinematic escapism only! With You Only Live Twice the film makers provide an adventure that outdoes all past Bond movies in terms of scale. While Roald Dahl's script follows the Bond template with great locations, characters and gadgets to enjoy, the concept of an arch villain in a hollowed out volcano trying to create World War 3 is the tour de force here. Bond has to find the hide out and stop the plan, and enlists the Japanese secret service for help along the way. The work of three Oscar winners is standout: Freddie Young's cinematography creates the requisite Bond atmosphere; Ken Adam's production design is nothing like anyone had seen at the time and composer John Barry's score is literally music to the ears. Enjoy Sean Connery in fine form as Bond. Strictly to be appreciated in widescreen only and via the biggest screen you can get your eyes on.
You Only Live Twice is a great movie with a well developed plot and a good cast. It is a very fun film in the 007 franchise as we see James Bond team up with Japanese agents to take down an organisation that have been destroying spacecraft. It has a sense of humour and never takes itself too seriously, which makes it an easy, relaxing viewing. It is, on the other hand, very typical, it does not really offer anything new or exciting to the franchise, which is why I chose to give it an eight over a nine. There is an overly large focus on gadgets, to a degree that it comes across as lazy writing. Bond rarely uses his own skills to get out of certain danger, as he has a gadget specifically made for the peril he is in almost every time. Sean Connery still shines in the lead role, even in his fifth portrayal of the character, his wit, charisma and screen presence is still highly evident, as well as stellar chemistry with love interest Mie Hanna, he holds the whole film together and makes it worthwhile. It is certainly flawed, but the imperfections of You Only Live Twice can be easily overlooked as it is an enjoyable, action packed installment of the James Bond franchise. James Bond is sent to Japan to investigate the disappearance of an American spacecraft. Best Performance: Sean Connery