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The Man With The Golden Gun Blu-ray Disc Review

The Man With the Golden Gun Blu-rayYou know, this movie is really not as bad as I remember it.

Roger Moore returns as Bond in The Man With The Golden Gun, his second outing as British super-spy, 007. I’ve never been a big fan of Moore’s wimpy, jocular characterization but his sense of suave doesn’t seem to get in the way here. This isn’t one of the “great” Bond’s but it far out-performs Moore’s later, geriatric efforts in Octopussy and A View to a Kill. He’s on point. Ready for business. And up against one of the coolest villains in Bond history - Dracula!

All right, I’ll fess up. Any affection I have for this movie comes as a result of being a Dracula fanatic. Christopher Lee, most famous for his portrayal of the undead Count in Hammer’s series of horror films, cuts a fantastic, villainous figure no matter the film franchise: Evil wizard Saruman in Lord of the Rings, Sith Lord Count Dooku in Star Wars or tri-nippled hitman Francisco Scaramanga in The Man With The Golden Gun. The man is legend.

Britt Ekland and Hervé Villechaize round out a fairly strong cast (strangely, they would re-team on the 80s TV show, Fantasy Island) who manage to keep the pedestrian plot from sinking into complete malaise. The Man With The Golden Gun is not great cinema. The script is lazy, falling back on Bond and action/comedy cliches. But somehow, the dynamic personalities on-screen keep me interested. Keep the film alive!

The disc, like most of the FOX/MGM James Bond efforts on Blu-ray, looks better than ever! This isn’t a revelatory transfer, like Dr. No but crisp and balanced in every way. Colours seem true and and there’s a lot of detail to appreciate up on the screen. I would say, it’s so true to the film elements, in fact, that Scaramanga’s third nipple has never looked more fake than on Blu-ray!

Extras on this disc, like the Licence to Kill Blu-ray, reviewed earlier on The Blu-ray Blog are plentiful and echo the previously released DVD:

• Audio Commentary Featuring Sir Roger Moore

• Audio Commentary Featuring Director Guy Hamilton and members of the cast and crew

• Guy Hamilton: The Director Speaks

• Roger Moore and Herve Villechaize – The Russel Harty Show
On Location with The Man with the Golden Gun

• The Road to Bond: Stunt Coordinator W.J. Milligan, JR.

• Girls Fighting Featurette

• 007 Mission control: Interactive Guide into the World of The Man with the Golden Gun

• American Thrill Show Stunt Film
• Double-0 Stuntment: A Look at the Greatest Stunts and Stunt Performers in the Bond Films

• Inside The Man with the Golden Gun – An Original Documentary

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One comment for “The Man With The Golden Gun Blu-ray Disc Review”

  1. Love Moore! I love it how his interpretation will likely remain unrivaled with seven films, beloved by audiences worldwide, yet anyone who’s seen a Bond film thinks they know what makes Bond, Bond and they haven’t a clue.
    I don’t like this flick because Bond is an asshole. Although you can’t fault him for wanting to break Maude Adams’s arm, he’s still a spiteful prick.

    Posted by Shaddy | August 14, 2009, 8:28 pm

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