The 1970s were an interesting “growing period” for the James Bond franchise, which had expanded rapidly since its debut in 1962. The series had already included a few classics by the end of the prior decade, but it struggled to come up with a new direction after the mixed response to On Her Majesty’s Secret Service ensured that George Lazenby would not be reprising his role as 007. Sean Connery may have returned for one more shot at playing Bond (at least for EON), but it didn’t mean that the series could go back to relying on its old tricks.
The introduction of Roger Moore as Bond proved that the series could be sustainable because it proved that there wasn’t just one right way to play 007. Moore wasn’t doing an impression of Connery, and was willing to add his own sensibilities to a version of the character who was looser, sillier, and often more pleasant to be around. Although Moore would later be mocked for how goofy his films got, it was clear that he was always self-aware, as the tongue-in-cheek humor is what made him such a popular Bond. The ‘70s were also when he was at his best, as his films began to significantly decline in quality once the ‘80s came around. Here is every ‘70s James Bond movie, ranked by rewatchability.
5
‘Diamonds Are Forever’ (1971)
Diamonds Are Forever is one of the biggest letdowns in the franchise because it both felt like a regressive response to the obnoxious fan criticisms of On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and was an unnecessary add-on to Connery’s perfect run as Bond, which had already been wrapped up in a very satisfying way with You Only Live Twice. It was clear that Connery was not engaged with the material, as he turns in what is easily his weakest performance as the character; that being said, Connery can’t be entirely at fault for thinking the material was beneath him, as the film takes many liberties with the novel.
Diamonds Are Forever is one of the few Bond films that feels like “style overt substance,” as none of the gorgeous Las Vegas visuals make it feel like anything but a cover version of the franchise’s greatest hits. That being said, Donald Pleasance still gives a great performance as Blofeld, as the film finds a fun way to reintroduce the character and pair him up against Connery.
4
‘The Man With The Golden Gun’ (1974)
The Man With The Golden Gun was a pretty unusual misfire when considering that Guy Hamilton was in the director’s chair, but seemed to forget all the precedents that he’d already set with Goldfinger. The Man With The Golden Gun should have been an intense thrillride that saw Moore’s Bond going head-to-head with Scaramanga (Christopher Lee), but the film mostly squanders its potential by keeping the two apart for most of the running time. It also features the reappearance of Clifton James, who’d popped up briefly in the previous film, who might be the single most obnoxious character in all 27 films.
The Man With The Golden Gun isn’t nearly as action-packed as its title would suggest, as Bond spends more time sleeping around and exploring exotic locations than he does actual spycraft. Although the now iconic “car flip” stunt has become known as one of the series’ best moments, it’s surrounded by many less interesting action scenes that don’t hold up nearly as well. However, the film can’t be all bad because of Lee, who may have played more all-time great villains than any actor in history. While Scaramanga isn’t quite on the same level as Lord Summervale, Sauraman, Dracula, or Count Dooku, he’s a terrifying villain who seems like he might actually be Bond’s equal. In fact, the final duel between Bond and Scaramanga is so gripping that it’s actually worth sitting through the rest of the film to get to.
3
‘Moonraker’ (1979)
Moonraker is exactly what it was advertised as being; after Star Wars broke out in 1977 to become the highest-grossing film of all-time and ensured that the film industry would become desperate to produce any science fiction projects that they could, it was clear to producer Albert Broccoli that Bond had to go to space. Ironically, Moonraker is actually based on one of the coolest and most clever novel in the original novel series by Ian Fleming, and the film is among the least faithful adaptations; outside of a few very basic narrative similarities, Moonraker is ostensibly 90 minutes of build-up before the moment where Bond goes into lunar orbit. Perhaps Moonraker could be dismissed as a “guilty pleasure,” but it joined Rocky II to top the box office for 1979; whether it was viewed legitimately or with a degree of irony, Moonraker was a smash hit that ‘70s audiences couldn’t get enough of.
It’s actually somewhat admirable that Moonraker is so shameless, and that it does not take itself too seriously at all; while the later Moore films that got very silly suffered from the fact that he was much too old to be realistically playing a secret agent, he is still at the prime of his movie stardom in Moonraker. The film also made a fun choice to bring back Richard Kiel as Jaws, a villain who by popular demand now had to become a hero. If nothing else, Moonraker is indicative of just how flexible the Bond series is, and why it’s unlike any other; the same franchise that featured Moore firing space lasers and fighting in zero-gravity also featured a gritty, grounded look at contemporary terrorism in Casino Royale, and that’s just remarkable.
2
‘Live and Let Die’ (1973)
Live and Let Die kept up with the tradition that every Bond actor had a great inaugural film, as it does everything possible to expand the series in a wildly new direction. Bond is essentially placed in the midst of a blacksploitation adventure filled with voodoo, mysticism, and pulpy criminal threats, and it’s great to see the saga play things differently after Diamonds Are Forever got too pompous for its own good. Moore would quickly start amping up the eccentricity as his Bond films got sillier, but Live and Let Die actually felt like a slightly more grounded, gritty take on the character, as the film ditched the nuclear paranoia and SPECTRE plots to tell a more intimate story. It’s easy to rewatch Live and Let Die today and understand why every 12-year-old at the time thought he was the coolest actor in the world.
Live and Let Die has real personality and has a great supporting cast, including Jane Seymour in one of her earliest roles. Yaphet Kotto isn’t only one of the best actors to ever join the franchise, but responsible for a unique villain who (unfortunately) remains the only Black antagonist in the series. Moore succeeded in playing an older Bond, and aspects of the film’s cultural depictions some may lambast for being “outdated” are simply what make Live and Let Die such an authentic product of its time. It’s also hard to deny the cultural impact of Paul McCartney and “Live and Let Die,” a smash hit that has become so popular that it expands beyond Bond; remember when it showed up in Shrek the Third?
1
‘The Spy Who Loved Me’ (1977)
The Spy Who Loved Me is a flat-out masterpiece that both fulfills everything that Bond fans had wanted to see and serves as a great way to introduce those unfamiliar with the series to what makes the character so special. It’s a slick, energetic film that soaks up some of the coolest production design of the ‘70s, and actually gets into the nitty-gritty of spycraft and the double-edged sword of having a license to kill. Bond has had few romantic partners as compelling as XXX (Barbara Bach), a Russian agent who he must reluctantly team up with in order to prevent SPECTRE from initiating a nuclear weapon. The final set piece is not only one of the best in Bond history, but showed how the series could reach a new level of spectacle without sacrificing its ingenuity.
It goes without saying that The Spy Who Loved Me is the best film of Moore’s career, but it also showed what he could do that none of the other actors could. The film interrogates Bond’s womanizing and willingness to wreak havoc without facing consequences in a very personal way through his relationship with XXX, who realizes that he is responsible for the death of her former lover. Moore brings a sense of sadness and impenetrability to the role that suggests Bond has given into his indulgences because he knows that he’s been denied the chance to live a normal life. In some ways, The Spy Who Loved Me might now have become underrated because it’s easy to forget how much smarter, sexier, and streamlined it is when compared to the other Bond offerings in the ‘70s; it’s not just a great 007 film, but an outright classic.
