Octopussy (1983)

So Bond is captured, escapes promptly and tricks the Cubans into sending a missile into their own hangar, before landing at a rural gas station to refill gas. Cool start! That the next part has 009 dressed as a clown killed by circus-artists adds a bit more tension and intrigue. And the squeaky sound of his shoes as he lands after a jump is a delightful detail.

I most enjoy the Bond-movies with a good political background. Steven Berkoff's Russian general, looking to invade Eastern Europe, is a most welcome angle. Berkoff does suffer a bit under a well of semi-villains though. Khamal Khan and Octopussy distract from him. From his opening scene, it takes almost 50 minutes until he appears again. In addition, there is no shortage of villains either, leaving all of them with too little screentime to make any real impact.

Only the Brits can make an art-auction entertaining and tense, and Moore is the perfect culprit to raise gasps and shock amongst old aristocrats by the sheer wink of his eye. The follow-up gambling with Khan is also a great treat, adding to a fine first hour. Generally, the dialogues are on the better side of the franchise, and Moore has a wide range of quips for all situations. Smirk-factor sky-high.

As usual, director John Glen makes excellent use of the exotic location, though there are stereotypes galore, bordering on outright racism in today's world. Every thing you ever heard about Indian culture, whether true or not, is here in spades. Glen also dispenses of the fast-forward action, and does a nice job with his fight scenes and vehicle chases.

The title-song however, is so bad it begs belief, and Rita Coolidge hardly carries the tunes. Only the eighties could like this. Barry's score is very good on the other hand.

So there are a bit too many bad-guys here, and a shocking lack of cars and drinks, as well as an untraditional Bond-woman that appears late and has very few scenes with Bond. The plot from the intro utterly loses itself in some diamond smuggling and the story seems to have been muddled up at several points. But it excels at dialogue, action, tension and stunts (driving in particular), and should not be overlooked by the fans

6/10

Best car used: Mercedes Benz 250SE
Most memorable drink served: No named drinks
Henchmen: Gobinda. A huge, mute Indian. Like an exotic and dull Jaws. Also Khamal Khan, who takes many of the scenes usually reserved for the main villain, and two douchy twins from the circus.
Villain: General Orlov. A very good, though underused character.
Best one-liner: "Having trouble keeping it up, Q?"
Song: "All Time High" by Rita Coolidge. Bad, even for this decade
Bond-girl: Octopussy - Maud Adams. Resourceful, but with an undercommunicated role.