Bond: Goldfinger

Quantum of Solace debuts this month and to prepare for the occasion, and thanks to the help of Comcast Cable On Demand (note: I will NEVER thank Comcast for anything else EVER) I am planning on running the gauntlet on the Bond films. Since I haven't seen an embarrassingly large number of the non-Brosnan 21 films, I'm starting from the first one and working my way through history. These Bond flicks in HD, along with more James Bond fun (here and here) will be my study prep for QOS. The following are the reports on each film, for those who don't have the time or those who liked SparkNotes in high school.

Goldfinger (1964) watched 10/28/08

PREMISE: In maybe the most classic Goldfinger, we join Bond on a trip to the good ole U-S of A, on a mission to prevent a break in at Fort Knox. But that is getting a bit ahead of ourselves. The film opens with Bond being Bond, a scene in which he blows up an enemy's silo, has a spotlight stealing entrance to the nearby bar, brings a bar hottie home, is attacked just before the big kiss, and ends up electrocuting his attacker (Post-kill line "Shocking, positively shocking"). Quite the renaissance man.

Bond's next stop is Miami where he is sent to gather intel on a potential (foreshadowing!!) enemy, a fat, red-headed, miserly-look fellow named Goldfinger. This must be perhaps the least intimidating bad guy in the history of good versus evil. We meet the obesely sinister gentleman as he is cheating an opponent in a game of Gin; this guy could be most people's Jewish grandfather, so it doesn't even seem fair he has to compete with 007. Then again in one scene Bond actually cant outdrive a group of Asians in a car chase... I find it hard to believe that in 1964, this was the stereotype that didn't exist.

Meanwhile, Goldfinger, like his farcical half-brother Goldmember, is obsessed with all things gold. Whether it be the gold painted woman or the gold bullion Bond offers him before a stellar exhibition of golf hustle that would make Tin Cup proud. Goldfinger marks the first time Bond truly gets his ride pimped. Q and the British Intelligence Agency hook Bond up with a tricked out Aston Martin (smoke screens, oil slicks, ejector seat!!). Bond becomes a prisoner and spends most of the mission working from the inside in preventing the Fort Knox devastation.

THE BOND GIRL:

Two words: Pussy Galore. That's her name and she is a new breed of Bond girl. Pussy, is Goldfinger's personal pilot, and a part of his Knox plans in the form of a golden shower, literally. Pussy is a more modern woman than previous Bond girls and thus harder for Bond to manipulate. In fact, Bond barely gets a roll in hay (again literally) with Pussy before the final shootout.

Bond girl version three has many of the modern upgrades on the second protocol including better looks, stronger personality, and the fact that in the end she ends up saving the day. She kind of even looks like someone who could be a hot friend of your mom. Pussy Galore will probably go down more as a punchline in history than anything else, however, I give her a double-0-seven out of ten.

WHAT TO TAKE AWAY:

Goldfinger is clearly a classic Bond and it lives up to the hype. It comes with a quickly paced plot and a more complex scheme than its predecessors. It also is different from the other two because its the first time James Bond really needs someone else to stop the henchman, as Pussy Galore comes to the rescue. While Bond continues to grow in stature and in legend, Ian Fleming perhaps has begun to suggest that Bond can't always do it alone. If for no other reason, see Goldfinger so that you start to get all of the everyday references to the film that previously flew over your head.