“Ah! Welcome to Auric Stud, Mr. Bond.”
Goldfinger is not the best Bond film but it’s arguably the quintessential Bond film. If you were only going to recommend one film from this franchise, this would be it. What we now know as the “Bond formula” is finalized here. Guy Hamilton takes over direction from Terence Young and firmly plants his tongue in cheek. Bond is not as serious and Connery’s full charm is on display. The villains’ plots go from Cold War power plays to a more fantastical variety. We get our first great Bond theme song (and quite possibly the best). The Bond films had been stylish from the start but starting with Goldfinger, Bond becomes more than just a secret agent working for England and becomes a signature silver screen hero.
Connery continues to impress in his third outing. One of the most memorable scenes is when he is strapped to a table with a laser inching perilously closer to slicing him in half. The mild panic on Connery’s face truly sells the scene. Is Bond going to die here? Spoiler alert: no. But the scene is wracked with tension as Bond scrambles to save himself as the music crescendoes. Earlier in the film I had noticed Bond smiling almost constantly, a smug self-assurance. That is completely missing here and what helps make the scene so effective.
Guy Hamilton provides a lighter touch to the Bond films. His best possible contribution? His note to Desmond Llewelyn as Q: Bond takes these gadgets that were built with care by his department and thoroughly destroys them in the field. The contempt he has for Bond’s carelessness with his work is what makes the Q scenes a pure delight in any Bond film. That all starts here as well as introducing the incredible Aston Martin DB5. Other than the Batmobile, I could not picture a car from cinema that would be better to have.
The supporting cast is once again filled with great actors. Gert Frobe as Goldfinger and Harold Sakata as Oddjob, the first in a long line of quirky henchmen, are more than a match for 007. In addition we get the lovely Honor Blackman as Pussy Galore, more than just a cheeky name, she’s both a pilot and a judo expert. There’s some question as to her late change of heart especially after cringe-worthy courtship in a barn. This is one the film’s few plot holes that become apparent once the final credits roll.
Hamilton’s direction seemed to be more focused on action and style leaving the film with a litter of continuity errors, the famous “three more ticks” being the most egregious. The script also could have benefited from a polish. Despite these shortcomings, the story tends to suck you in and it is only in reflection that there are several questions raised about the logic of certain events. Does this hurt the film? Possibly. But the film’s adventure provides enough escapism that a lot of the questions are sufficiently glossed over and don’t detract from the viewing experience.
Goldfinger is an 8/10. Elevated an extra point due to a purely personal love and its overall importance to the Bond canon, it’s essential viewing. From the opening teaser and Shirley Bassey’s great, brassy title theme that will have you humming it the rest of the day to the welcome return of set designer Ken Adam and his impressive (if impractical) Fort Knox set where the final battle takes place, this is a thrill ride of the highest caliber. Bond successfully makes the transition from gritty spy thrillers to escapist fantasy, or spy-fi as it would come to be known, launching a number of imitators for decades to come.
Current Rankings:
1) From Russia with Love
2) Goldfinger
3) Dr. No