You Only Live Twice (1967)

 

As a child, this was by far my favourite Bond. Growing up, I learned to appreciate others more for the story and less for the spectacle, but this one is still highly enjoyable to this day, even if this is where it starts to get a little silly at times. All in good fun though, which is what one would expect with a script written by the one and only Roald Dahl.

Tensions are rising between the US and Soviet Russia as space capsules are being plucked out of orbit and both countries are pointing the finger at one another because of course. But the British feel that another assailant is the cause of all this distress, as they are obviously smarter than the others. Citation needed on that by the way (yes, I'm looking at you, Brexit!).

I wonder when that joke will become outdated or obsolete. 

James Bond is apparently assassinated and dumped in the ocean, but it is all a ruse to throw his enemies of the scent. Bond is sent to Japan in order to uncover this plot. But this time, he is racing against the clock as both the Americans and the Russians have new launches scheduled within days. Quite a feat, considering most space programs don't fart money, but it's a movie, so there's that. Bond quickly establishes that a massive company run by mr Osato is involved. There is also something fishy about one of the smaller islands, as anyone who comes near it is killed or dies under suspicious circumstances.

Huh, if I were an evil mastermind with a secret island base, I wouldn't want to kill everyone who came close. Seems like the perfect way to draw attention to oneself. However, I am most emphatically not an evil mastermind, so maybe I'm wrong.

Bond teams up with Tiger Tanaka and gets a crash course in ninja skills at his school and is even made to look Japanese. Don't expect that big of a difference: you just get Sean Connery in a Mr Spock hairpiece and surprised eyebrows. Yes, it is akin to blackface. Yes, the 60s didn't care. No, it doesn't detract from the story as most of the other things pertaining to Japanese culture are handled with a lot more respect. 

Bond enters into a fake marriage with a local girl as cover and soon finds out that there is a massive base in a hollowed out volcano. This was also the biggest set ever built up to that point for a Bond feature and possibly any film as yet. But it looks fantastic. Bond is - of course - captured and the big bad revealed: Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the illusive Number One, the head of Spectre, played with glee by the always excellent Donald Pleasence. A massive fight breaks out between Tanaka's ninja's and Blofeld's henchmen as the base is destroyed and Bond saves the day yet again.

I do feel that 'fun' is the keyword here. Roald Dahl always imbues his stories and scripts with that irreverent humour and there are quite a lot of funny quips on display in this one. Connery is great as Bond yet again, even if he was tired of the role. Maybe that detached way of playing it actually adds to the cool. But this film is most enjoyable thanks to the side characters. Desmond Llewellyn as Q nails it out of the park during his short appearance, Tetsuro Tanba is excellent as Bond's partner Tiger Tanaka and I especially like what Akiko Wakabayashi does as Bond's first Japanese love interest Aki. She's a lot better and more interesting than Mie Hama, who plays the Ama Girl Bond has to marry. She truly is bland and expressionless. Maybe it's because she really didn't understand English, who knows? 

But any Bond depends on the villains, and here is where this film shines. Sure, Teru Shimada as Osato is rather clichéd as the corporate liaison to the real big bad, but in her short time on screen, Karin Dor as Helga Brandt steals the show. She even gets the most stupid yet hilarious joke of the film in. Yes, it's a boob joke, how did you guess? But let's not kid ourselves: thé reason to watch this, is Donald Pleasence as Blofeld. Pleasence is by no means imposing as a figure, but his cold, meacing stare and that controlled, icy voice instantly turns him into a villain worth being afraid of. It's not wonder most people instantly think of him as the quintessential Bond villain, as he truly makes an impression. None of the later iterations of this character would ever have the same impact, not even close. 

'You Only Live Twice' is a highly enjoyable entry in the series and is often one that is remembered most fondly by those of us who have seen it at a young age. It is perhaps not the best, but it is one of the most memorable and it nicely balances fun and adventure. So this is probably a good place to start, should you not know where to begin in the massive collection.