We've come to the template for what future 007 movies would strive to look like. Goldfinger was where the Bond formula was perfected as it had a great blend of action, humor, gadgets, cars, girls, and villainy. For the longest time this movie was my second favorite, but over the last few years I've come to the realization that the sluggish plodding of the third quarter of the film doesn't do the entire film any favors and it has dropped a bit in my overall rankings. Here is why I still consider it to be one of the best.
1. This is what a pre-title sequence should be in a Bond film. I want it to be its own mission unrelated to the primary plot to come. Also, wearing a white tuxedo underneath a wetsuit is brilliant.
2. Like the entirety of the film being the template for the Bond formula, the theme song belted by Shirley Bassey has become the quintessential formula for Bond theme songs. It is what the future songs are measured up to. There is a reason Bassey was brought back for future themes.
3. For the most part Bond movies aren't considered cinematic art and they don't really do a ton of technically proficient shots, but the opening tracking shot following the title sequence that ends on the diver and then cuts to him in the water is great movement of the camera.
4. Hello Jill Masterson!
5. We get our first Q Branch scene and the introduction of one of the most iconic film cars of all time. Throughout the series we are going to see Q's lab so many times and this one is just a great start for what will become a staple scene in the series. The Aston Martin DB5 is one of my favorite vehicles and when asked the question if you have all the money in the world what would you buy this car (with the additional extras from Q included) is always on the list.
6. In the novel Bond playing golf with Goldfinger is overly long and much of it unnecessary. Yet the film's version of Bond cheating the cheater is perfectly executed.
7. Don't think too hard about Oddjob's hat as it isn't very consistent with how it is used throughout the movie, but when he demonstrates his abilities on the statue I immediately see what a formidable adversary he will be. We've already seen Oddjob (or at least we assume its Oddjob based on the silhouette) knock our hero out with one fierce karate chop to the back of the neck, so seeing how deadly he can be from a distance as well shows that he will be a force to be reckoned with.
8. "Do you expect me to talk?" "No, Mr. Bond. I expect you to die."
9. It could make sense that Goldfinger would build miniature models of Fort Knox in order to plan out Operation Grandslam, but to build it beneath the floor and need to move billiard tables around and close blast doors/windows is completely absurd. And I love every minute of the whole thing.
10. There is something so American and endearing about Felix Leiter being at a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant while he waits on 007 to save the day. As a moviegoer in the United States I should probably be offended that the filmmakers just assumed we all eat out at fast food restaurants, but then I actually remind myself that the majority of my meals are eaten out at fast food restaurants.
11. The final battle between Bond and Oddjob inside the vault at Fort Knox, while not as visceral and claustrophobic as the train fight in From Russia with Love, is a suspenseful sequence that truly has the viewer wondering how Bond is going to triumph. We've seen Oddjob's pure strength in karate chops and golf ball crushing and his deadliness with the hat has also been on display in earlier scenes. Now it all comes together in a sequence that ups the stakes with a ticking nuclear time bomb. I even love how the viewer is tricked into thinking how Oddjob will be beaten with Bond grabbing Oddjob's hat but not utilizing it the way we thought he would.
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