NO TIME TO DIE : Tuesday 16th November 2021.

I saw the M Rated 'NO TIME TO DIE' at my local multiplex this week and finally, the 25th Bond film is released in Australia, as Directed and Co-Written by Cary Joji Fukunaga whose prior film making credits include 'Jane Eyre' in 2011 and 'Beasts of No Nation' in 2015. Phoebe Waller-Bridge also Co-Wrote this film with Neal Purvis and Robert Wade. The film was originally scheduled for release in November 2019, but was postponed to February 2020 and then to April 2020 after Danny Boyle's departure as Director due to creative differences. It was then postponed until a November 2020 release date due to the ongoing severity of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, and was pushed back again to an early April 2021 date. It was then postponed to an October 2021 release date, with the World Premier screening scheduled for London's Royal Albert Hall on 28th September. The film was released in the UK on 8th October, in the US on 15th October and in China on 29th October, with the release postponed until last week in Australia because of national lockdowns which have since been lifted. The film has so far grossed US$710M off the back of a production budget somewhere in the vicinity of US$280M, and has garnered generally positive Reviews for this, Daniel Craig's final outing as the titular British MI6 Agent James Bond.  

The film opens up with a lone gunman traipsing through the snow to an isolated house by a lake surrounded by a forest. Inside the house, a young Madeleine Swann (Coline Defaud) looks after her near comatose mother (Mathilde Bourbin) on the verge of passing out on the sofa under the influence of alcohol, cigarettes and who knows what else. As the gunman approaches and enters the house the mother has passed out, leaving the young girl terrified as the masked gunman approaches. Madeleine runs upstairs and cowers under the bed having retrieved a revolver from under the kitchen sink. The gunman says to the mother that her husband was responsible for the death of his whole family and promptly shoots the mother dead where she lays, and then walks upstairs to Madeleine's bedroom. Seeing the room seemingly empty he turns around to leave, just as the young girl pops her head over the side of the bed and fires off several shots into the gunman, sending him crashing through the wooden balustrade down into the room below, apparently dead. As the girl drags the lifeless body outside through the snow, the gunman comes around and rises up. Madeleine makes a hasty exit across the iced up lake, but once in the middle the ice begins to crack under her weight, and she falls through. The gunman rescues Madeleine. 

We then fast forward to five years ago and a now adult Madeleine Swann (Lea Seydoux) is in the southern Italian city of Matera with James Bond (Daniel Craig) - the pair in love. Bond is there with the intention of paying his final respects to Vesper Lynd as she is entombed there. Upon visiting the tomb he notices in a bunch of flowers a Spectre calling card, at which point the tomb explodes. 

Spectre assassins are soon hot on Bond's heels led by Primo (Dali Benssalah) but he successfully manages to evade being killed off and escapes with Madeleine in the bullet riddled yet gadget heavy Aston Martin DB5. Bond believes that Swann has betrayed him, and despite her pleas to the contrary, he packs her on a train and says that she will never see him again. 

Fast forward to the present day, and MI6 scientist Valdo Obruchev (David Dencik) is kidnapped from an MI6 off-grid laboratory, with the lab destroyed and all working operatives therein shot dead. With M's approval Obruchev had developed the top-secret Project Heracles, an exclusive bioweapon containing nanobots designed to infect like a virus upon touch that are coded to an individual's DNA, rendering it lethal to the target and their relatives, but completely harmless to anyone else. 

Bond meanwhile has retired to Jamaica, where he is enjoying the laid back relaxed lifestyle. He is contacted by his old friend from the CIA, Agent Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) and his colleague Logan Ash (Billy Magnussen), who ask for Bond's help, for old time's sake, in finding Obruchev. Bond declines, but after Nomi (Lashana Lynch), an MI6 agent and his replacement as 007, tells him about Project Heracles, Bond agrees to help Leiter, over Nomi's warnings not to get involved.

Bond sails into Cuba and meets Paloma (Ana de Armis), a CIA agent, with three weeks training allegedly, working with Leiter. They infiltrate a Spectre meeting to celebrate Blofeld's birthday to extract Obruchev. Still locked up inside Belmarsh Prison, Blofeld uses a disembodied 'bionic eye' to lead the meeting and order his members to kill Bond with a 'nanobot mist', but it kills all the Spectre members, as Obruchev had reprogrammed the nanobots to infect them all instead. It turns out that the masked gunman in the opening scene is Lyutsifer Safin (Rami Malek) who had given the orders to Obruchev to wipe out all of Spectre. Bond captures Obruchev and  flies out on Nomi's seaplane to meet with Leiter and Ash on a fishing trawler out at sea. Ash, however, reveals himself to be a double agent who is working for Safin. In a fight between Bond and Ash, Leiter is shot in the stomach. Ash escapes with Obruchev on the seaplane leaving Bond and Leiter locked in the engine room, as the trawler explodes in a ball of flame and gradually begins to sink. As the water rises Leiter bids his final farewell to his old friend and sinks below the water succumbing to his wound. Bond swims through the hole caused by the explosion to the surface, finds a life raft, and is picked up later the next day by a passing container ship. 

Back now in London and Moneypenny (Naomie Harris) and Q (Ben Whishaw) arrange a meeting between Bond and Blofeld (Christoph Waltz) in Belmarsh Prison to try to locate the whereabouts of Obruchev. Meanwhile, Safin visits and coerces the now psychotherapist Dr. Madeleine Swann to infect herself with a nanobot dose to kill Blofeld, as she has been in contact with him for treatment since his imprisonment. 

When Bond encounters Madeleine for the first time in five years at Belmarsh their reception is frosty to say the least. Once inside the confines of Blofeld's high security prison cell, he touches her and unknowingly infects himself before she leaves, unable to go through with Safin's plan. Blofeld confesses to Bond that he staged the explosion at Vesper Lynd's tomb to make it seem as though Madeleine had betrayed him. Bond reacts by grabbing Blofeld by the throat in a strangle hold, but M's Chief of Staff Bill Tanner (Rory Kinnear) intervenes. Moments later when the dust has settled, they both look around to see Blofeld slumped back in his chair dead, as Bond had unintentionally caused the nanobots to infect and kill him.

Bond traces Madeleine back to her childhood home in Norway and learns that she has a five-year-old daughter, Mathilde ((Lisa-Dorah Sonnet), who she claims is not his. After kissing and making-up for lost time in which Bond says his biggest regret is putting Madeleine on that train five years ago, she tells him that when Safin was a boy, his parents were murdered by her father on Blofeld's orders. Having avenged them by killing Blofeld and destroying Spectre, Safin continues his rampage with Ash and their henchmen in pursuit of Bond, Madeleine and Mathilde in a high speed chase through the mountainous Norwegian countryside and forest. Ultimately Bond kills Ash by crushing him under his upturned Range Rover from which he had just crawled out of, and the other thugs, but Safin captures Madeleine and Mathilde and makes off with them in a helicopter, leaving Bond on the ground looking on.

Q enables Bond and Nomi to infiltrate Safin's headquarters in a former WWII missile base, converted to a nanobot factory, on an island located somewhere between Japan and Russia. There Obruchev is mass-producing the Heracles technology so Safin can use it to systematically wipe out millions of people. Bond kills many of Safin's men while Nomi kills Obruchev by shoving him backwards into a huge nanobot vat. 

Madeleine escapes captivity at the hands of Primo, while Safin lets Mathilde go after she bites him on the hand, for which he has no patience. Nomi takes Madeleine and Mathilde away from the island while Bond stays behind to open the island's 1950's Russian era blast-resistant silo doors, and calls in a missile strike from HMS Dragon, as the only Royal Navy vessel in the area, to destroy the installation with M's (Ralph Fiennes) approval despite protestations from the Russian and Japanese governments and the UK's Prime Minister. Bond, while making a sharp exit encounters more of Safin's men whom he kills, including Primo.

Safin ambushes Bond as he is making his way outta there, shooting him twice and infecting him with a vial containing nanobots programmed to kill Madeleine and Mathilde. Despite his injuries, Bond kills Safin after a fight and re-opens the silos which Safin had previously closed. Speaking by radio with Madeleine, Bond tells her he loves her and encourages her to move on without him. Madeleine confirms that Mathilde is his daughter as Bond says his final farewell.

Much has been written about 'No Time To Die' and most of it positive, and as Australia is just about the last country on Earth to see 007 doing what he does best, it will come as no surprise to anyone to learn that James Bond carks it at the end of this film. This of course begs the question of the Producers and the Writers of how do they bring back James Bond for the 26th instalment in this ever popular franchise. Perhaps this episode is all just a dream and Bond will wake up next to Swann and Blofeld, Leiter and Spectre will all still be very much alive and kicking and Safin never existed! Maybe! That said, this film has all the usual touchstones that make Bond such an enjoyable watch - the big action set pieces, the exotic locations, the gadgets, the intrigue, the quips, the megalomaniacal villain and in this one the emotion too that Bond portrays in his love and regret for Swann and for ever doubting her, that ultimately costs him his life. The film has heart and soul as well as a more mature Bond who is still able to handle himself, albeit not quite as bullet proof as he once was, and deliver the one liners with aplomb whilst showing us that he is capable of real care, love and emotion. Craig gives his all in this his final performance as the titular Secret Agent and his demise is a fitting end to his legacy over the last five films. At a run time of 163 minutes it is however, just a tad on the lengthy side, albeit the film never leaves you wanting and it moves along at a swift pace, despite the mid-section dragging its heels a little. 

'No Time To Die' merits four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a potential five claps. 

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 11th November 2021.

The 21st Belfast Film Festival opened its doors on Thursday 4th November and runs through until Saturday 13th November 2021. The Belfast Film Festival began in 1995 and has developed over the years hand in hand with the evolving culture of film patronage and filmmaking in the city, to become Northern Ireland's largest film festival with an annual audience in excess of 25,000. The official website reads that 'we believe that film should be an experience, and so, we present the best in new, short and classic cinema in our spring and summer festivals. Due to our love of film, we are also heavily involved in promoting film education and nurturing practical filmmaking skills throughout the North. That’s why we are currently working on a programme of community outreach projects that we hope will galvanise people’s accessibility to, and awareness and enjoyment of film culture in hard to reach and underprivileged areas. We will be working with community groups to offer writing and filmmaking workshops, industry discussion panels, special screenings and master classes'. This years Opening Night film is Kenneth Branagh's award winning 'Belfast' starring Jude Hill, Jamie Dornan, Judi Dench, Caitriona Balfe and Ciaran Hinds. 

This years feature films showcased are :-

* '100 Years of Happiness' - Northern Ireland and the partition of Ireland are both 100 years old in 2021.This newly commissioned audio visual piece assembles hundreds of clips of people in the north of Ireland investigating and exploring centres of pleasure, nodes of desire, knots of yearning…their capillaries flooded with gratification.

* 'Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn' - from Romania, Luxembourg, Czech Republic and Croatia and Directed and Written by Radu Jude. An amateur porn video lands a teacher in hot water in this deliberately offensive attack on the hypocrisy of modern society. Winner of the Golden Bear at this years Berlin International Film Festival. 

* 'Belfast' - from the UK and Directed, Written and Co-Produced by Kenneth Branagh and set during the tumult of late-1960's Northern Ireland, the film follows young Buddy as he navigates a landscape of working-class struggle, sweeping cultural changes, and sectarian violence.

* 'Billy Boy' - from the UK and Directed by Matt Faris. It’s the 11th July. The sun is splitting the trees. The tarmac is melting on the ground and Aaron and his mates are protecting the biggest bonfire in east Belfast. It’s a complicated situation. Everyone has an opinion, but as everyone knows ‘Compromise Equals Sell-Out’.

* 'Cow' - from the UK and Directed by Andrea Arnold. This film is an endeavour to consider cows. To move us closer to them. To see both their beauty and the challenge of their lives. Not in a romantic way but in a real way. It’s a film about one dairy cow’s reality and acknowledging her great service to us.

* 'Doineann' - from the UK and Directed by Damian McCann. A woman and her baby son go missing on a remote Irish island. Her husband must put his trust in the island’s retired policewoman. But a storm is approaching.....

* 'Fire in the Mountains' - from India and Directed and Written by Ajitpal Singh. A mother toils to save money to build a road in a mountainous Himalayan village to take her son to physiotherapy. Yet her husband, who believes that a shamanic ritual is the remedy, stands in her way.

* 'Here Before' - from the UK and Directed and Written by Stacey Gregg. When a new family moves in next door, their young daughter, Megan, quickly captivates Laura, stirring up painful memories of her own daughter who died several years previously. Before long, Laura’s memories turn to obsession as Megan’s unsettling behaviour begins to convince her of something supernatural.

* 'Hit the Road' - from Iran and Directed, Written and Co-Produced by Panah Panahi. A four-member family is driving through a picturesque, mountainous Iranian landscape. The older brother is at the wheel, his worrisome mother is next to him, and in the rear the father with a broken leg is bickering with a young and impertinent son. But it soon becomes clear that this is no ordinary family outing!

* 'Hope' - from Norway, Sweden and Denmark and Directed and Written by Maria Sodahl. Anja lives with Tomas in a large family of biological children and stepchildren. For a number of years the two adults have grown independent of each other, with creative jobs in parallel worlds. When Anja gets a terminal cancer diagnosis, their modern life breaks down and exposes neglected love.

* 'Hotel Poseidon' - from Belgium and Directed and Written by Stefan Lernous. Dave reluctantly pretends to be the manager of Hotel Poseidon, where fungus covers the walls and comments such as 'faded glory' and 'has seen better times' completely fall short to describe this establishment. He wanders the corridors of his personal Overlook Hotel like a zombie, being a passive spectator to what happens around him. 

* 'Keep It a Secret' - from Ireland and Directed, Written and Co-Produced by Sean Duggan. In 1972, every international sporting event in Ireland was cancelled, except for one. Teams from around the world refused to travel to Ireland amid the height of The Troubles. The only group of athletes bold enough to risk traveling to Ireland at this turbulent time were surfers.

* 'Lyra' - from the UK and Directed by Alison Millar. An emotive, intimate portrait of the life and death of Belfast journalist Lyra Mckee, who was murdered by the New IRA the day before Good Friday, April 2019. As the voice of her ceasefire generation, Lyra represented hope for a future free of conflict. Her killing casts a dark shadow over a land trying to shake off the shackles of its violent past.

* 'The MacCarnysons' - from Ireland and Directed and Written by Ken Fanning. The circus is facing hard times. Sean MacCarnyson has a choice to make, to sell out or to keep the respect of his family. The MacCarnysons features death defying aerialists, hardcore acrobats, mind bending jugglers and loads of craic.

* 'Mandrake' - from the UK and Directed by Lynne Davison. Witchcraft isn’t real and there’s some good in everyone; two things that probation officer Cathy Madden thought were true, until she met Mary Laidlaw, notorious killer known as ‘Bloody Mary’ who is released back into society after thirty years in jail for murdering her abusive husband.

* 'Old Friends and Other Days' - from the UK and Directed, Written and Co-Executive Produced by Cameron Menzies. The viewer is instantly plunged into an atmospheric, decaying, beautiful world where ambiguity reigns supreme and the stream of consciousness is governed by the world of song.

* 'Once Upon a Time in Calcutta' - from India, France and Norway and Directed, Written, Co-Executive Produced and Edited by Aditya Vikram Sengupta. After the loss of her daughter, Ela not only loses her identity as a mother, but also the only reason to be with her husband. When she is refused a home loan by the bank, her boss, owner of a massive Ponzi scheme, makes her an offer she struggles to accept.

* 'Sam and Mattie Make a Zombie Movie' - from the US and Directed and Co-Produced by Jesse Suchmann and Robert Carnevale. Sam and Mattie, best friends who have Down syndrome, rally the entire town of Providence, Rhode Island, to help them make a film.

* 'The Storms of Jeremy Thomas' - from the UK and US and Directed by Mark Cousins. An affectionate and unconventional documentary portrait examining the long and illustrious career of iconic producer Jeremy Thomas. Many film producers make money, some even win Oscars, but few make great art. Jeremy Thomas has done the lot.

For the full slate of films being screened and a whole lot more besides, you can go to the official website at : https://belfastfilmfestival.org/

This week to tease you out to your local Odeon there are three big films that couldn't be more different, and each one helmed by a Director of repute. First up sees everyone's favourite MI6 Secret Agent returning for his final time in the role when a long-term friend from the CIA, asks for help in tracking down a mysterious villain armed with a potentially deadly new technology. Next up is a Western drama about a domineering rancher who responds with mocking cruelty when his brother brings home a new wife and her son, until the unexpected comes to pass. And we close out the week with a promising young theatre composer about to turn thirty years of age who navigates love, friendship and the pressures of life as an artist in New York City in the early nineties.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the three latest release new movies as Previewed below, or those doing the rounds currently on general release or as Reviewed and Previewed in previous Blog Posts here at Odeon Online, you are most welcome to share your movie going thoughts, opinions and observations by leaving your relevant, succinct and appropriate views in the Comments section below this or any other Post. We'd love to hear from you, and in the meantime, enjoy your big screen Odeon outing during the week ahead.

'NO TIME TO DIE' (Rated M) - finally, the 25th Bond film is released in Australia, as Directed and Co-Written by Cary Joji Fukunaga whose prior film making credits include 'Jane Eyre' in 2011 and 'Beasts of No Nation' in 2015. Phoebe Waller-Bridge also Co-Wrote this film with Neal Purvis and Robert Wade. The film was originally scheduled for release in November 2019, but was postponed to February 2020 and then to April 2020 after Danny Boyle's departure as Director due to creative differences. It was then postponed until a November 2020 release date due to the ongoing severity of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, and was then pushed back again to an early April 2021 date. It was then pushed back to an October 2021 release date, with the World Premier screening scheduled for London's Royal Albert Hall on 28th September. The film was released in the UK on 8th October, in the US on 15th October and in China on 29th October, with the release postponed until this week in Australia because of national lockdowns which have since been lifted. The film has so far grossed US$668M off the back of a production budget somewhere in the vicinity of US$280M, and has garnered generally positive Reviews for this, Daniel Craig's final outing as the titular British MI6 Agent James Bond. 

Here then, James Bond (Daniel Craig), has left active service and is enjoying the quiet life in Jamaica. His peace is short-lived however, when his old friend Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) from the CIA turns up asking for help. The mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist, Valdo Obruchev (David Dencik) turns out to be far more treacherous than expected, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain Lyutsifer Safin (Rami Malek) armed with dangerous new technology. Also starring Lea Seydoux, Lashana Lynch, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Christoph Waltz, Ralph Fiennes, Billy Magnussen, Ana de Armis and Rory Kinnear. 

'THE POWER OF THE DOG' (Rated M) - this Australian, UK, US, Canadian and New Zealand co-produced Western drama film is Directed, Written for the screen and Co-Produced by Jane Campion and is based on the 1967 book of the same name by Thomas Savage. The film saw its World Premiere  screening at the Venice International Film Festival in early September where Campion won the Silver Lion for Best Direction, and is released here in Australia this week, and in the US next week prior to streaming on Netflix on 1st December. Set in 1925, charismatic and wealthy Montana rancher Phil Burbank (Benedict Cumberbatch) inspires fear and awe in those around him. When his brother George (Jesse Plemmons) brings home a new wife, Rose (Kirsten Dunst) and her son Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee), Phil torments them until he finds himself exposed to the possibility of love. Also starring Thomasin McKenzie, Keith Carradine and Frances Conroy.

'TICK, TICK . . . BOOM!' (Rated M) - is an American musical drama film Directed by the Actor, singer, songwriter, rapper, producer, and playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda who also created and starred in the Broadway musicals 'In the Heights' and 'Hamilton' both of which have been turned into films. This is the multi-award winning Miranda's feature film making debut, and is based on the semi-autobiographical musical of the same name by Jonathan Larson. Here then Jonathan Larson (Andrew Garfield), the composer and playwright who died aged thirty-five in 1996 from an aortic aneurysm just before his new musical 'Rent' would become a worldwide smash hit, sees Larson struggling to find success on the cusp of his thirtieth birthday as he frets about whether he should pack it in and choose a more conventional career path rather than scripting musical theatre. The film has garnered mostly positive Reviews, sees its World Premier screening at the American Film Institute Fest on 10th November, before going on limited release from the 12th November and before streaming on Netflix on 19th November. Also starring Alexandra Shipp, Robin de Jesus, Joshua Henry, Vanessa Hudgens and Bradley Whitford.

With three new release films this week to tempt you out to your local Odeon, remember to share your movie going thoughts with your other like minded cinephile friends afterwards here at Odeon Online. In the meantime, I'll see you sometime somewhere at your local Odeon in the week ahead.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

ROGER MOORE - dies aged 89 - R.I.P.

Sir Roger George Moore passed away on 23rd May aged 89, following 'a short but brave battle with cancer' it said in an official statement released by his family from Switzerland. Born on 14th October 1927 in Stockwell, London, England he worked in the film and television business for eight decades, securing his first uncredited roles in feature films as early as 1945 and 1946 including 'Vacation from Marriage'  with Robert Donat and Deborah Kerr, to 'Caesar and Cleopatra' with Claude Rains and Vivien Leigh, to 'Piccadilly Incident' with Anna Neagle and Michael Wilding.

Roger was the only child of mother Lillian Pope and father George Alfred Moore, a policeman. He attended Battersea Grammar School, and was evacuated to Holsworthy, Devon during the Second World War, where he attended Launceston College in Cornwall. He was further educated at the boys selective Dr. Challoner's Grammar School in Amersham, Buckinghamshire. He initially took up an apprenticeship in an animation studio but that was short-lived, and then by accident he was introduced to Director Brian Desmond Hurst who cast him as an extra in 'Caesar and Cleopatra'. Hurst later agreed to pay Moore's fees so that he could attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art where he remained for three terms. After the end of the Second World War he was conscripted into two years of compulsory National Service, and in late 1946 was commissioned into the Royal Army Service Corps as a Second Lieutenant. In the early '50's before his acting career really took hold, the young Moore was a paid male model, often appearing in knitwear publications of the day.

His first credited screen role came in made for television film 'The Governess' in 1949 and 'The House in the Square' that same year. More bit parts and uncredited roles followed during the early '50's, and the he signed up with MGM for a seven year deal in 1954, but was released from that contract after just two years because of the critical and commercial failures of those MGM Produced films. He then signed with Warner Bros. and appeared in a number of television shows and took the lead actor role in 'The Miracle' in 1959.

From 1958 onwards Moore played in a host of television series - some more notable than others. These included in the title role of Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe in 'Ivanhoe' which aired across 1958 and 1959 and ran for 39 episodes. This was quickly followed up by Western series 'The Alaskans' from 1959 to 1960 across 37 episodes in which he starred as Silky Harris for ABC/Warner Bros. Popular ABC/WB Western series of the same era 1960-1961 'Maverick' with James Garner in the lead role as frontier gambler Brett Maverick with Moore cast as Beau Maverick, an English-accented cousin. This show ran for sixteen episodes for Moore. Following this up in 1962 for 118 episodes was the hugely popular 'The Saint' television series based on the Leslie Charteris series of novels, with Moore playing the title role of Simon Templar.  The worldwide success of the series, particularly in the US made Moore an international star by 1967. He also went on to Direct several episodes. In 1971 media magnate Lew Grade enticed Moore to star in a television series alongside Tony Curtis as two international multi-millionaire playboys who come together reluctantly to right the wrongs that the police or the courts across Europe cannot. 'The Persuaders' was a success in Europe and Australia especially but failed in the US market. Moore was paid an unprecedented GB£1M per series (back in 1971) making him the highest paid television Actor in the world at the time for his portrayal of Lord Brett Sinclair.

In August 1972 Moore was approached by Albert Broccoli to play James Bond after Sean Connery finally stepped down from playing the Ian Flemming created Secret Service Agent 007. Moore accepted and in 1973 his first outing as James Bond hit the screens in 'Live and Let Die'. Moore continued to reprise his role as  Bond in 'The Man with the Golden Gun' (1974); 'The Spy Who Loved Me' (1977); 'Moonraker' (1979); 'For Your Eyes Only' (1981); 'Octopussy' (1983); and 'A View to a Kill' (1985).

In the intervening period Moore starred in 'Gold' in 1974 with Susannah York; 'Street People' in 1976 with Stacy Keach; 'Shout at the Devil' also in 1976 with Lee Marvin;'The Wild Geese' in 1978 with Richard Burton, Richard Harris and Hardy Kruger; 'Escape to Athena' in 1979 with Telly Savalas, David Niven and Elliott Gould; 'ffolkes' in 1980 with James Mason and Anthony Perkins; 'The Sea Wolves' that same year with Gregory Peck, James Mason and Trevor Howard; 'Cannonball Run' in 1981 with Burt Reynolds, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jnr. and Farah Fawcett; 'Curse of the Pink Panther' in 1983 with David Niven, Robert Wagner, Herbert Lom and Burt Kwouk and 'The Naked Face' in 1984 with Rod Steiger and Elliott Gould before his final outing as Bond, James Bond in 1985.

The late '80's and '90's provided fewer roles that kicked off the new decade with sporty action comedy 'Fire, Ice & Dynamite'; then Michael Winner's comedy crime caper 'Bullseye' with Michael Caine both in 1990; followed by RomCom 'Bed & Breakfast' in 1991, then fantasy crime drama for Director Bill Condon 'The Man Who Wouldn't Die' with Malcolm McDowell in 1994. 'The Quest' came next in 1996 Written, Directed and Starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, and then a cameo as a car radio announcer in Phillip Noyce's 1997 big screen adaptation of 'The Saint' with Val Kilmer portraying the titular Simon Templar. The '90's were seen out with a forgettable turn in 'Spice World'  and then four episodes on the single high fashion action adventure series 'The Dream Team'. 

'The Enemy' opened up the new decade in 2001, then Slovenian comedy in which Roger Moore plays Roger Moore, and then 'Boat Trip' in 2002 with Cuba Gooding Jnr. In between there were singular appearances on television series 'Alias' and 'Tatort' and some voice work as Father Christmas on short film 'The Fly Who Loved Me', 'Here Comes Peter Cottontail : The Movie', 'Foley & McColl : This Way Up', 'Agent Crush', 'Cats & Dogs : The Revenge of Kitty Galore' and short film 'The Lighter'.

Most recently there has been 'A Princess for Christmas' in 2011, 'Incompatibles' in 2013 in which Roger Moore plays Roger Moore, again, and then 'The Carer' in 2016, in which he reprises his role as . . . Roger Moore, and then a turn in Simon West's rebooted 'The Saint' made for television film with Adam Rayner this time playing Simon Templar. In production at the time of Moore's death were animated family adventure film 'Astrid Silverlock' in which Moore narrates, animated 'Troll Hunters' with Moore voicing the role of Leif with both these animated features Written and Directed by Robert Rhodin, and thriller 'Summer Night, Winter Moon' with Stephen Fry in pre-production.

All up Moore had 95 acting credits to his name, thirteen as Producer, two as Director on nine episodes of 'The Saint' and two of 'The Persuaders' and during his lifetime he picked up ten award wins and a further eight nominations. He was married to actress and ice skater Doorn Van Steyn from 1946 to 1953; to Welsh singer Dorothy Squires from 1953 to 1968; to Italian actress Luisa Mattioli form 1969 to 1996 with whom he had three children (Deborah, born 1963, Geoffrey, born 1966 and Christian, born 1973) and to Danish socialite Kristina Tholstrup from 2002.

Moore suffered from ill health throughout much of his life having nearly died at age five from double pneumonia, been a long term sufferer of kidney stones that saw him hospitalised on several occasions, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1993, was fitted with a heart pacemaker in 2003, had been treated for skin cancer several times and in 2013 was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. In 1978 he moved to Switzerland for tax purposes it was reported at the time, and over the subsequent years he split his time between homes in Monte Carlo, Switzerland and the south of France. In 1999 Moore was awarded a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) by HRH Queen Elizabeth II and in 2003 was promoted to a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in recognition for his decade long work supporting charitable organisations, most notably UNICEF. Aside from his film and television appearances Moore also published a number of books - his 2008 autobiography 'My Word is My Bond', in 2012 'Bond on Bond : The Ultimate Book on 50 Years of Bond Movies' and in 2014 'Last Man Standing'.

Roger Moore - played a Secret Agent, a Chief Inspector, a Captain, a Lieutenant, a Major, a Lord, a Duke and a Prince in his time and almost always the archetypal English gentleman; most notably known for his seven times role as James Bond; renowned for his eyebrow acrobatics; and following a career spanning eight decades has left an indelible mark on the world of film and television in which his legacy will live on.

Roger Moore - Rest In Peace
1927 - 2017

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

SPECTRE : Monday 9th November 2015.

I was lucky enough to attend an advance screening of 'SPECTRE' on Monday evening at a local multiplex - surely one of the most highly anticipated eagerly awaited films of the year. Hardly surprising after all the hype this film has had in the build up to its release, and, the monumental success of its predecessor 'Skyfall' which took the Bond franchise to record breaking new heights off the back of a US$150-200M budget. With a worldwide sales haul of US$1.1B it peaked at the seventh highest grossing film of all time, and today sits in thirteenth place.

By comparison, 'Spectre' was made for a budget of somewhere between US$245-300M and since its UK release on 26th October has grossed already US$290M - no wonder Sam Mendes as Director of the former was invited back again! Of course all the characters we have come to know and love from the more recent Bond outings are back again, not the least being Daniel Craig as our favourite secret agent and the shaken but not stirred man himself, Bond, James Bond, for his fourth time. Will he be back for a fifth time seems to be a hot topic of conjecture.

As we have come to expect from a Bond film, the pre-title opening action set piece here is well staged and on a grand scale in the streets of Mexico where the locals celebrate 'The Day of the Dead' and are for the most part appropriately attired. Within a few minutes Bond is taking position on a roof top, armed and ready to take out his assailant through the neighbouring building window, but while listening in on the conversation the building explodes and promptly crashes, nearly taking out Bond and the building he stands on. His target escapes through the amassed crowds and Bond gives chase on foot and in hot pursuit. In no time at all Bond and his quarry, Marco Sciarra are fighting it out together on board a helicopter spiralling largely out of control over the partying masses below. In the fist fight Bond prizes a silver looking ring with a black octopus emblem off Sciarra's finger, before kicking him out of the helicopter to his death below. Dispensing with the pilot, he steers the aircraft to a safe landing - impressive staff and a good start!

Back in London, the new 'M' (Ralph Fiennes) has to deal with a newly merged MI5 and MI6 and Max Denbigh (aka 'C' [Andrew Scott])who heads up the newly formed Joint Intelligence Service and who is keen to abolish the '00' Series because it is outdated and no longer relevant in an age where information and surveillance is key. Instead 'C' is looking to launch 'Nine-Eyes' an intelligence sharing pact between nine super-powers based in London. Meanwhile Bond returns to his nondescript Thames side apartment and takes receipt of a video message from the former Bond telling him to search out Sciarra, kill him and then attend his funeral. Having done the fist two, only the funeral awaits - scheduled for three days time in Rome. But now the '00' section has been closed down and Bond is grounded and ordered to remain in London. He pays a visit to 'Q' (Ben Whishaw) where he picks up a new watch, with the new Aston Martin DB10 awaiting 009 - but of course 007 has different ideas as he needs to get to Rome!

At the funeral he meets with Lucia Sciarra (Monica Belluci) the widow of the man he killed and whom he promptly beds. Of course she confides in him that her late husband belonged to a secret criminal organisation and that this group are meeting in Rome at midnight that night. Off he goes in his DB10 and parks up in a palatial car park festooned with just about every other supercar currently in production. He gains entry using Sciarra's ring and slinks around in the shadows as the proceedings commence. Franz Oberhauser (Christoph Waltz) sits at the head of the table and discusses recent events in Mexico and that James Bond is amongst them. Caught unawares Bond has to get outta there and is given chase by Mr. Hinx (Dave Bautista) with a car chase through the streets of Rome with Bond employing all the tricks that 'Q' has equipped the DB10 with.

The actions takes us next to Austria where Bond is hunting down Mr. White (Jesper Christensen) who is a former senior operative of the Quantum organisation (a subsidiary of Spectre) and who we saw in 'Casino Royale', where Bond shoots him in the leg and is hauled into MI6 imposed captivity, 'Quantum of Solace' where he escapes MI6 captivity, and here again.This meeting leads Bond to Mr. White's estranged daughter Dr. Madeline Swann (Lea Seydoux), and in turn another mountain peak chase sequence involving Bond in a light aircraft, two black 4WD's, a couple of Land Rovers, Mr. Hinx no less and lots of down hill snow action and misadventure where the baddies don't fare too well . . . but then they never do! Bond & Swann however, walked away unblemished!

Next up we are transported to Morocco to a hotel where Swann's parents used to holiday once a year when she was a child. Staying in that same room Bond is expecting further clues that will reveal who Oberhauser really is, who  and what is the organisation that he heads up, and what is the agenda. Bond knows Oberhauser though but can't quite recall how. Eventually within its walls, the hotel room reveals its secret giving Bond & Swann the further information they need, which in turn puts them on a train bound for some unknown place that doesn't even feature on a map it's so remote! On the train settling down for a romantic dinner for two, suited & booted, with Martini's poured, they are attacked by Mr. Hinx once again who after the scuffle gets pulled off the train wearing a necklace of six Heineken kegs!

Arriving at their destination in the middle of the desert, they await a pick-up. Some time later it arrives and takes them to a crater housing a huge industrial and communications facility spread over several acres. They meet Oberhauser who gives them both a guided tour and explains his agenda - information, intelligence, surveillance and the global power that this can bring (sound familiar? Well it should - refer 'C's' agenda with 'Nine Eyes', and yes 'C' works for Oberhauser as a mere puppet!)

Having been knocked unconscious Bond awakens strapped to a chair in a white and stainless steel clinic with Oberhauser and Swann looking on. Oberhauser is intent of dispensing with the meddling Bond but not before inflicting much surgical pain on him as he can by drilling tiny holes through his skull and jaw for starters. Throughout this time Swann begs for mercy but Oberhauser will have none of it, but he does reveal his identity and the connection he has with Bond from their respective childhoods. It seems that after the young Bond was orphaned he was taken in by Oberhauser's father and they became close like brothers for almost two years until the fathers was killed in an avalanche and the son too, although a body was never found - that was 20 years ago. Now  Oberhauser goes by the name of Ernst Stavro Blofeld.

Bond and Swann engineer their escape just before Oberhauser is about to drill out Bond's eyes. Using the watch given to him by 'Q' the room explodes, power goes down, Bond is released from his chair and the two make their escape leaving the injured Blofeld on the floor. Arriving in London Bond reunites with 'M' who is under close surveillance as Bond reveals the truth about 'C', Blofeld and Spectre.  With 'C' taken down by 'M', Swann bids farewell to Bond knowing that she cannot return to his way of life, but she is promptly captured and used as bait to snare Bond. Moving to the old and now derelict MI6 building Bond meets with Blofled whose face is now badly scarred from the blast back at his facility. He has Swann locked up somewhere in the building and has three minutes to find her and make their escape before the building explodes & collapses!

I enjoyed this film - a lot, but is it up there with 'Skyfall', alas no, but it is a respectable and entertaining addition to the series! It is a throw back to Bond of the Connery era where that same villain Blofeld was portrayed either wholly or partially in several early Bond offerings including 'From Russia With Love', 'Thunderball', 'You Only Live Twice', and 'Diamonds Are Forever', and where SPECTRE came to be (Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion). Having disappeared from the EON Produced Bond films since the mid-70's it is good to see that arch enemy back however, and featuring in the story arc linking together Craig's journey through the films so far coming now to the forefront in this 24th instalment of the franchise. Waltz is a convincing Blofeld but I would have liked to see more of him, but, given what we know of the character from those earlier films we know he lives to fight another day - if you know your Bond mythology.

Like all Bond films this has to warrant an outing to your local cinema and you won't be disappointed. It has all the Bond trademarks that you have come to know and love but Craig has made the character his own and has created a side of Bond we have not hitherto seen in those others who have portrayed him. Will Craig be back for a final fifth time - I hope so - but in some scenes I couldn't help thinking that he is beginning to look a little old, and tired around the edges, but perhaps given what he has to go through in saving the world time and again, perhaps that's hardly surprising. Enjoy the film - I know you will!

-Steve, at Odeon Online-