Thunderball

After the first three films that saw James Bond establish himself with the gunbarrel opening shot, the pre-credits sequences, the title song and returning characters, director Terrence Young had a firm blueprint that would set the course for future films in the franchise to follow. With Young resuming control after Guy Hamilton's highly successful Goldfinger the year before, 1965 took audiences back to the Caribbean for another adventure with Thunderball. Sean Connery was back once again as 007 for the fourth consecutive film and sure enough this was another fine success at the time but today the film divides fans; is this the first dent in the series that had proven so popular until this point or an overlooked gem in the series?

Following Fleming's novel closely again, Thunderball raises the stakes as the villainous SPECTRE organisation obtains two nuclear weapons and plans to hold the world hostage unless their demands are met. Fortunately, Bond has a run-in with one of their henchmen which conveniently leads him to the sunny Bahamas for another mission in the sun to thwart the baddies who are led by Adolfo Celi's Largo. 

Golfinger is a great Bond film and features much of what fans have come to love about the series but the one thing missing was the location; it was bland and not what audiences today come to expect from the series. The Bahamas on the other hand form a stunning backdrop and makes Thunderball probably the best looking of all of Connery's films as Bond. We also get plenty of entertaining gadgets, a villainous lair with a shark pool, a number of exciting action sequences, several memorable characters and a genuinely good, if not all that original, story that offered an exciting experience. We're even welcomed to Tom Jones singing title song that perfectly sets the tone for what's to follow.

But Thunderball isn't quite as good as the first three that came before. The story is entertaining and played a strong influence in the various spoofs and imitators that would eventually follow but plays out largely as you might expect. The first act post the opening song has also aged poorly in terms of pacing and the expected bit of sexism, plus there's wider issues with how animals are treated later on. It's once the story moves to the Bahamas where (most of those) things thankfully improve and Thunderball becomes a whole lot more entertaining. 

Connery was still at the top of his game in terms of looks and charisma before the one year hiatus where he questioned how long he wanted to remain involved as Bond. Largo's villain while not exactly memorable is still a worthy opponent to Bond as the physically opposing leader carrying out SPECTRE's grand plan, and all three Bond girls rank among the best. Sure we get the simple love interest (Claudine Auger), the assistant (an underused Martine Beswick) and the femme fatale (a brilliant Luciana Paluzzi) but all add to the great cast and keep the fourth film feeling fresh and exciting.

Thunderball is a great film for many Bond fans and I think newcomers will find a lot to love here. It's an easy one to watch and enjoy even if it doesn't outshine the films that came before. There are moments where the pacing slows a little but for the most-part Young's direction is on point and delivers what is largely considered as Connery's last really good Bond film before things take a turn.