Down-to-earth Bond and his new mission
The twelfth James Bond film is remembered for the initial shots, where the character of the already well-known and even familiar Roger Moore arrives at the grave of his deceased wife. Thanks to this scene, it seems to dispel the myth that I have heard several times that every new actor (and there were already three of them at that time: Connery, Lazenby, Moore) is a new reincarnation of the hero. After all, Moore's hero did not lose his wife. This role fell to the fate of George Lazenby back in the 1969 film.
However, you quickly forget about the moment when the next battles of James Bond take over the viewer's attention. A new story is a new plot. I would not say that something is new or special, but nevertheless it looks fresh and interesting. I would like to mention the game of Karol Buke, whose heroine Melina is a very strong female character here. She is ready to avenge the bitter loss of her parents and it seems that Bond is even an obstacle for her in this case. The heroine turned out to be colorful, for this special thanks to the screenwriters and the actress, who embodied the image of a girl on the screen.
The painting, like the previous (and future) ones, allows you to see several colorful locations at once, whether it's underwater landscapes or mountain ice ridges. Especially memorable is the ascent of a steep cliff closer to the finale of the picture. This episode is definitely remembered for its claim to suspense, when the main characters of the picture really seem to be in real danger.
The picture appears to be an average and strong action movie. Bond doesn't look like the usual joker here, as if to please the writers of this story. In my opinion, the film benefits greatly from this. The confrontation between the West and the Soviet Union in the struggle for technology will definitely be resolved by the end of the picture, and the epilogue will satisfy everyone.
Bondiana continues to live and successfully move forward thanks to this picture. Almost thirty million dollars of the budget is used wisely, allowing you to see perfectly staged stunts, fights, shootouts and chases. I have a feeling that the director of the painting, John Glen, reduced the absurd scenes that had gained degrees in previous paintings by an order of magnitude and landed the characters in a peculiar way, which gave the picture more realism. This is a positive signal that allowed the film to look much more impressive, provided that it is not some kind of space saga (after all, there is Lucas's Star Wars for this). The tycoons who often in the past decided to create the history of mankind with their own hands are gone, and the threat comes from a very possible and real McGuffin. And thanks to this, Bondiana seems to have returned to its origins, reminding that this is still a saga about secret agents who, in a tangle of spy games, will defend the interests of one or another ideology or group of people.
"For your eyes only" is sure to please fans of the franchise. The film turned out to be strong and memorable. Excellent locations, a beautiful picture, dynamic development of events and charismatic characters — all this is guaranteed thanks to the high-quality work of the entire team of creators of the 007 film.
8 out of 10