Goldfinger

I first saw this in the late 80s on a vhs. Revisited it recently. This is the third installment in the Bond series n Connery reprises his role as James Bond for the third time. While vacationing in Miami Beach, Bond is directed by the MI6 n CIA to keep an eye on a bullion dealer Auric Goldfinger at the hotel there. During the investigation, Bond uncovers the gold magnate's sinister plan involving the United States Bullion Depository at Fort Knox.

This was the first Bond movie to introduce the extensive use of technology and gadgets by Bond. It was also the first one where a Bond girl is killed. Quantum of Solace, includes an homage to the gold body paint death scene (inspired from this movie) by having a female character dead on a bed nude, covered in crude oil. In this one, Bond faces a sinister and sadist villain known as Goldfinger and his strong henchman, Oddjob, who kills people with his razor sharp hat. He gets to cool off with Honor Blackman n Shirley Eaton.

In the book, Goldfinger is an expert pistol shot who never misses, and always shoots his opponents through the right eye. He tells Bond he has done so with four Mafia heads. In the book, Oddjob has a taste for cats as food, apparently acquired during a previous famine in Korea.

I wouldn't put too much money on it, but in a small friendly wager, I'd be willing to bet that those who are Bond fans like Goldfinger best of all Bond films. Especially those who think Sean Connery is the best and only man whoever should have played 007.

Certainly the most dangerous opponent Bond ever faced was Odd Job, who was Auric Goldfinger's bodyguard and all around assassin. I believe he was the most dangerous opponent James Bond ever fought with in all of his films. Watch that fight scene that Harold Sakata had with Sean Connery, he's got Connery almost down for the count. Fighting skills can only carry you so far when your opponent outweighs you and is built like a brick outhouse. In fact it's only sheer trickery in which Connery overcomes Sakata in a shocking conclusion.

As for Gert Frobe who was Goldfinger he's the ultimate Bond villain with the ultimate plan. He's even got his men fooled who think they're going to rob Fort Knox so he can corner the world's gold supply. Actually Goldfinger plans to blow up Fort Knox with an atomic bomb and then he'll really corner the market. Of course it's up to 007 to stop him.

The Bond girls are more luscious than ever with two of them, Shirley Eaton and Tania Millet meeting their demise. Eaton was the famous golden girl who Goldfinger suffocated by painting her entire body with gold paint. And of course there's Honor Blackman who switched sides do to the charms of James Bond. Who can ever forget a character name like Pussy Galore.

I well remember when Goldfinger was released in 1964 just in time for the presidential campaign. The Republican candidate was Barry Goldwater that year for you young people, not alive at the time. Poor Barry was busy defending himself from charges that he would scrap Social Security, sell the Tennessee Valley Authority and lob one into the men's room at the Kremlin. So all he needed was a film to come out with a master villain with a name so similar. The Democrats had a field day spoofing the title song that Shirley Bassey made such a hit from.

Without the Goldwater reference, Goldfinger is still a great action film, one of the best of Bond.

Every individual James Bond film has some good assets and at least two or three special qualities that make it fantastically entertaining. "Goldfinger", however, exclusively has great assets and special qualities! I think this third entry in the series is almost unanimously – and righteously – labeled as THE best Bond movie of all. It's definitely also the most quintessential title to watch in order to get fully acquainted with the lead character's personality and working methods, as well as with the type of assignments he receives from his employer, his opponents and the hi- tech attributes he gets to help him. You'd expect all this to become clear already in the first film, "Dr. No", but the character created by Ian Fleming was still fairly unknown back then and hence the production values were a lot lower. Barely two years and only one sequel later, James Bond had already become a phenomenon and "Goldfinger" delivered the incredibly high expectations of the fans. It truly also is a terrific film, with an utmost solid script, a top three legendary villain and various highly memorable action & suspense sequences. Personally, I have the bizarre habit of ranking my favorite Bond movies based on the evil- factor and charisma of the villains, and thus "Goldfinger" is quite high up there thanks to the sublime roles of Gert Fröbe as the titular character and Harold Sakata as Oddjob, his silent but deadly henchman who pulverizes golf balls with his bare hands and throws around his killer-hat of steel. The gold-obsessed magnate has thought up an ingenious plan to rob the entire American gold supply from Fort Knox and naturally it's 007's job to prevent this from happening. Therefore Bond infiltrates into Goldfinger's private affairs twice; messing up his game cheating routines and seducing his female accomplices. Auric Goldfinger is undoubtedly one of the most vicious Bond-villains, but arguably also one of the dumbest! Never before or after did 007's opponents receive so many open and easy chances to eliminate him, but Goldfinger decides not to take the risk and kill his disloyal female assistants instead! Many, many sequences in this third Bond film are pure vintage, including the white tuxedo underneath the diving suit, Shirley Eaton's golden corpse, an uncomfortable laser beam moment and – of course – every scene with that awesome Aston Martin!

Forty years after it's initial release, the third 'James Bond' film, GOLDFINGER, remains the quintessential 007 film for many fans, with a level of hysteria upon it's initial release that younger fans may not fully appreciate. It set records at that time as the fastest-grossing film in history (making back it's $3,000,000 production cost in a mere 2 weeks, on only 67 screens), spawned the first massive 007 merchandising 'blitz' (with everything from jigsaw puzzles, dolls, and lunchboxes, to shoes and cologne, and even Aston Martin DB5 automobiles offered as 'collectibles'), launched a whole new genre of 'spy thrillers' to TV and film (with the debut of the Ian Fleming-approved TV series, "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." in America, and the increased popularity "Danger Man" and "The Avengers" would enjoy in Britain), and gave the franchise it's first worldwide #1 hit song, sung by Shirley Bassey. Everyone was crazy about 007, with a resulting pandemonium that rivaled the adoration of the Beatles in it's intensity!

The story, pitting the British secret agent against a megalomaniac whose master plan was to explode a 'dirty' nuclear device at Fort Knox, thus poisoning the American gold supply, and making his own gold reserves infinitely more valuable, would benefit from 'perfect' casting. German actor Gert Frobe (his voice dubbed, as he barely spoke English), was an ideal Goldfinger, a rotund, piggish monster who always 'cheated' to win, at cards, golf, or dealing with adversaries. His 'right-hand man', Oddjob, played by Hawaiian wrestler Harold Sakata, became the prototype of every subsequent villainous henchman; silent, nearly invulnerable, with an evil grin and a steel-edged bowler hat he would toss that could cut the head off a marble statue.

Bond's women were never sexier; Shirley Eaton, 27, created a sensation in a 5-minute appearance as 'Jill Masterson', who betrays Goldfinger for a tryst with 007, and ends up a nude corpse covered in gold paint; and 27-year old "Avengers" alumni Honor Blackman, as the lesbian pilot 'Pussy Galore' (yes, the name DID cause problems with American censors), who discovers the joys of male lovers after Bond pins her in a fight. Sean Connery, at 34, was simply irresistible in his third outing as 007!

Director Guy Hamilton, making his first Bond movie, said that the character of 007 only needed a 'push' to become a Superman, and he provided it, by increasing the humor and ever-present gadgets, most memorably the prototype Aston Martin DB5, complete with armor plating, machine-gun turrets, rotating license plates, and an ejector seat.

Unforgettable moments abound, from the "shocking" pre-title sequence, to the golf match between Goldfinger and Bond (introducing Connery to the sport that would become his lifelong passion), to the famous laser torture scene ("Do you expect me to talk?" "No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to DIE!"), to the climactic fight between Bond and Oddjob (during which Connery was actually injured, and Sakata burned his hand, badly).

007 author Ian Fleming passed away during production, after a last visit to the Pinewood set (although the story takes place in Florida, Switzerland, and Kentucky, nearly all of the film was shot in England). He was very pleased at the success his creation had achieved, thus far, thought Connery made an ideal Bond, and was confident in the future of the series, in the hands of producers Albert Broccoli and Harry Saltzman.

And speaking of the future...A few months later, in Ireland, twelve-year old Pierce Brosnan would view GOLDFINGER (the first Bond film he'd ever seen), and decide to become an actor, fantasizing about playing the spy, someday...

Hands down, Goldfinger is the most iconic bond movie of all time. It is the standard by which later Bond films will be judged and it set the bar massively high for the bonds to come. Every, EVERY, E-V-E-R-Y Scene is memorable, unique and legendary in it's own right. The dozen one liners and facials are excellent, all the characters are excellent and all performances are amazing. The story and the plot isn't as deep as we get in movies like Skyfall (2012) or From Russia With Love (1963) but I doubt that this is a flaw. Oddjobb is iconic, Goldfinger is iconic, Pussy Galore is iconic and Sean Connery is at his best! Tied with 2006's Casino Royale as the best Bond Movie of all time.