Octopussy

Out of all the Bondfilms with Roger Moore as 007, Octopussy is the one with the most Cold War aspects, and yes, what a great atmosphere I experienced when I saw the scenes in East-Germany, truly magnificent. If you are talking about those Cold War aspects you should not forget to mention Steven Berkoff his performance of an insane Soviet general with a hunger for power. Wonderful. The other villains are memorable as well: Louis Jourdan with style and sophistication; Kabir Bedi as one of those invincible henchmen and David Meyer & Tony Meyer are deadly twin brothers with an advanced skill in the trowing of daggers. As for the girls this one features two Swedish ladies: Maud Adams and Kristina Wayborn. Both of them are very strong and they have both some lovely scenes. Vijay Amritraj is Bond his ally in India: worth watching. This is also the first of four films to feature Robert Brown as Bond his superior M. John Barry is once again present with a truly wonderful soundtrack. The film is really amusing and has a great atmosphere. Despite the claim of many critics, Roger Moore is still in good shape. The only scene that disappointed me was the one where 007 is disguised in a circus clown, that will be painful for Bondfans, but the rest of the film is great. Do not skip this one.

This is by far the best of the Roger Moore Bond films in my opinion. I may be prejudiced since "Octopussy" was the first Bond film I saw theatrically, but I absolutely loved it back then and it still holds up today. The plot is a fine blend of the serious stories of the early Connery films and the humorous touches of the Moore era. Add to that a smooth villain in Louis Jourdan, delicious over-the-top counterpoint from Steven Berkoff, a formidable henchman in Kabir Bedi, two exotic Bond girls in Maud Adams and Kristina Wayborn, beautiful location photography in the rich "travelogue" style (did India ever look as good as it does here?) and a great John Barry score and you can't go wrong with it at all. The tense buildup in the bomb countdown which has Bond donning clown makeup at one point is probably one of the most exciting in any Bond film.

Roger Moore hit his peak playing Bond in this film and the proof is how he seems so much better than Sean Connery does in the inferior "Never Say Never Again" that came out that same year. It's a pity that Moore didn't go out with this one, since "A View To A Kill" was so poor by comparison.

By all means rent this, watch it and have fun!

They didn't know what type of Bond film to make: an overblown action comedy best personified by Moonraker or a down to earth action thriller like they had done in For Your Eyes only, the previous picture. Solution: they gave the audience both! Result: this movie is very uneven. There are some great sequences: the teaser featuring the mini jet, the killing of 009, the auction, the backgammon game and subsequent chase scene, the fight in Octopussy's bedroom and the train sequence all come to mind. But there is just too much misplaced humor in between and the rest of the movie after Bond diffuses the bomb is unnecessary and somewhat silly. Moore really shows his age in this one too, as does Maude Adams. Stephen Berkoff is awful, but Louis Jordan is great. Christina Wayborn deserves top marks as well. While not a bad film, and certainly one of Moore's better outings, this could have been so much better. Some of the best Bond scenes ever are present here, but they are overwhelmed by the shear enormity of it all: the producers just tried to put all of the past elements into this movie to please every Bond fan. So while there is something for everyone and it is entertaining, Octopussy is ultimately a victim of it's own excesses.

This was where my live for the James Bond franchise began. What a great character to follow for decades to come!

"Octopussy" is really peculiar in the series. Because, for example, we see Bond dressed like a clown or keeping a plaster; there's an exotic and romantic atmosphere -which reminds us of some adventure books (like Emilio Salgari's "Sandokan" and "The count of Monte-Cristo"...) Here 007 has to travel between India and Germany for stopping a catastrophic plan of Soviet General Orlov and Afghan prince Khamal Khan.

With a little more parody than in the previous film "For your eyes only", "Octopussy" continues in the line of more down to earth Bond adventures.

Roger Moore's performance is good as usual, the cast is also remarkable -Louis Jourdan is one of the French actors who built a good Hollywood career, starring in films like Hitchcock's "The Paradine case" and Vincente Minnelli's "Gigi". He's Kamal Khan, a very charming and sophisticated villain -he's the criminal equivalent of Bond. Jourdan brings a special touch of glamour -you see he's an actor of the golden years of Hollywood!

Maud Adams is the only actress who played twice a Bond girl -she was Andrea in "The man with the golden gun".

Steven Berkoff is an established English actor, mainly for theater, but he played also in Stanley Kubrick's "Barry Lyndon".

Kabir Bedi is an Indian actor very popular in the second half of the Seventies -he was "Sandokan" in a famous TV film made by RAI, Italian public TV.

John Glen directs the film with a lot of fun and assures a great show. The film doesn't disappoint.

"Octopussy" is the last great Roger Moore movie as Bond, and maybe the last BIG Bond of the series as well -because it's original, lavish, acrobatic, romantic and pompous.

8,5/10