Moonraker

Why? Why did I watch this? It was on ITV4 or something last night. I mean, why? It's not like I don't have every single Bond film ever made, including the "non-canon" Never Say Never Again. It's like a compulsion, or something. I was half watching while I explored a Quantum Leap website I'd just found. By the way, I now have a new mobile phone ring tone....

I missed the opening sequence with the shuttle being stolen, but I think I now know where Bryan Singer got the idea for his shuttle sequence for Superman Returns. Hmm....

This film was accused, rather unfairly I believe, with jumping on the Star Wars bandwagon and changing the setting to space. But this isn't really fair. Not that it isn't true, clearly it is. But it's unfair because everyone was jumping on the Star Wars bandwagon. Lucas' creation was responsible for the resurrection of Star Trek, great parodies like Spaceballs and plenty of other films that would never have been made otherwise. Some of them were highly experimental, but they helped push the envelope. Hell, Star Wars is pretty much single handedly responsible for the modern special effects industry, because one man refused to believe that certain effects were "beyond the range of what's currently possible."

Anyway, this film has the best name for a Bond girl in my opinion, but maybe that's just the way my mind works. The usual high jinx, fabulous stunts and locations and the lack of a Bond car made up for by the introduction of the short lived Bond boat. Add in the return of Jaws and you've got one of my favourite Bond films.

This is the Bond film with the best line ever. See the OQ.

Best Bond Bits:
Bond falling out of the airplane without a parachute.
The Bond boat.
The pheasant hunt.
The cable car sequence.
The overly elaborate Bond death traps.

Score: B

OQ: 'I think he's attempting re-entry, sir.'