Blu-ray Review: James Bond on Blu-ray

Oct. 21 marks the release of the first six James Bond films to come to Blu-ray (other than Casino Royale.) The selection of the films is rather random, but considering the fact that all the Bond films will come to Blu-ray sooner or later, it’s as good a place to start as any.

Ultimate Edition DVDs of all the Bond films were released a couple of years ago, and the special features from those DVDs have simply been carried over to their Blu-ray counterparts. As far as I can tell, there are no new features. True Bond fans will no doubt want to make the format upgrade, but it really will depend on how deep your love for 007 runs to determine whether or not any or all of the Blu-ray releases are for you.

The first two Bond films to be produced, Dr. No and From Russia With Love are no-brainers to get the early Blu-ray treatment – they’re widely considered to be among the best Bond films and it just makes sense to release the films chronologically, but for reasons unknown to me, the other four films to be released are: Thunderball, Live and Let Die, For Your Eyes Only and Die Another Day. Here’s a closer look at each.

Thunderball (1965)

The Film:

The fourth Bond film, Thunderball really ramps up the campiness that seems to plague the series from time to time. There’s the unintentionally hilarious jetpack scene at the beginning of the film, the ridiculously large maps MI-6 feels compelled to use and the Tom Jones theme song that defines cheesiness. Does anyone actually know what “strikes like thunderball” means?

Still, the film has its moments. Already with three films under his belt, Sean Connery is in his prime as Bond – both suave and droll. There are extensive underwater battle scenes that admittedly tax the viewer’s patience, but you have to admire the creativity. A few more cuts, and these scenes would have been the most entertaining portion of the film. Plus, Claudine Auger has to be considered one of the quintessential Bond girls as Domino.

Thunderball falls somewhere in the middle among all Bond films – it’s one of the weaker Connery-era ones, but not a total disaster.

The Blu-ray Disc:

I can’t for the life of me figure out why Goldfinger was skipped over for Thunderball on these initial Blu-ray releases. It’s a much better film, certainly more iconic and produced before Thunderball.

Anyway, the picture on Thunderball is nothing astounding – there are no game-changing elements that would set it apart from the Ultimate DVD remastered picture. But compared with the original print, either the new DVD or the Blu-ray is a radical difference. Nearly all traces of grain have been removed, and colors and flesh tones remain true. But for someone who owns the Ultimate DVD, the Blu-ray is not significant enough of an improvement to warrant an upgrade – and that goes for every one of these films.

Article Author: Dusty Somers

Dusty Somers hails from Seattle, and is a journalism student at the University of Oklahoma. He enjoys spending time and watching films with his wife, and looks forward to their imminent return to the great Northwest.

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