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By
NICK ZEGARAC
"The Man With The Golden
Gun" (1974) is Roger Moore's second outing as 007,
and something of a letdown after his meteoric
introduction in Live & Let Die. After receiving a
golden bullet marked with his double-o number,
Bond is relieved of all duties and asked by his
superior, M (Bernard Lee) to disappear for a
while. Instead, Bond plots to stake out Francisco
Scaramanga (Christopher Lee) -- the man with the
golden gun. Unbeknownst to Bond, Scaramanga
doesn't really want him dead. The bullet was
actually sent to Bond by Scaramanga's girlfriend,
Andrea Anders (Maude Adams, in her first
appearance in a Bond movie). Unfortunately, Bond
realizes that Scaramanga's intentions to
annihilate the world through harnessing a
destructive solar device have brought him full
circle in his original mission; that of recovering
an experimental Solex converter that was stolen
from British intelligence.
The film is justly famous for several fantastic
set pieces, including a three sixty mid-air roll
over car stunt, another featuring a car that turns
into a plane, the novel staging of two funhouse
sequences, and, the climactic showdown on
Scaramanga's island, in which a miniature model of
the doomsday device appears remarkably full size
-- even under today's scrutiny in special effects.
The film is also notable for pintsize Bond
villain, Nick Nack (Herve Villechaize, of Tattoo
fame on television's Fantasy Island). The Bond
girl on this occasion is the largely forgettable,
Mary Goodnight (Britt Ekland), a vapid
flaxen-haired bubblehead to whom the concept of
zero refrigeration goes unnoticed until a complete
thermal meltdown of the island is imminent.
MGM/UA's DVD is disappointing. Colors are dated
and faded. Contrast levels appear a tad low. Fine
details are lost in a barrage of age-related
artifacts and digital anomalies including edge
enhancement and pixelization. Blacks are rarely
deep or solid. Whites are more of a pasty pale
yellow. The audio is mono and strident. There's
not much to recommend either the picture or sound
elements. Extras include two documentaries, an
audio commentary, some promotional junkets, stills
gallery and theatrical trailer. |
