My Movie Review on Goldfinger · 4:15pm Aug 20th, 2021
Greetings and salutations, my friends.
This is your top-of-the-line film, TV show, and episode reporter here with another review.
Today, for my 3rd analysis on a member of the James Bond franchise, I'm gonna give you guys my take on Sean Connery's third outing as the title character: "Goldfinger".
Here's the rundown of it:
After being notified of severe gold smuggling, MI6 agent James Bond takes on the mission of figuring out how it's been happening. Especially as to how the smugglers manage to get past the country borders.
The prime suspect of who's been heading the smuggling operations is a wealthy businessman named Auric Goldfinger, who ironically has a fondness and obsession for gold. Along with the agency's suspicions being correct, Bond also discovers that Goldfinger plans to commit one of the biggest heists in history: To rob Fort Knox.
Can Bond stop this felony before Goldfinger even lays a finger on the bank's gold? Or will Goldfinger succeed and become the wealthiest man in the world?
After I did my review of "From Russia with Love", I knew right away that I wanted to analyze "Goldfinger" as soon as possible. I've pretty much been having a Bond craving for weeks now, so that was a large motivator for seeing this movie again after all these years.
So, what do I think of this movie in words?
Well, as with the previous James Bond movies I reviewed, I found this movie to be absolutely delightful! An improvement over "From Russia with Love" too, mainly since I rated that movie 4½ out of 5 stars.
For instance, the direction by Guy Hamilton, and the screenplay by Richard Maibaum and Paul Dehn, were fantastic.
Hamilton is definitely no Terence Young, but MGM's willingness to change things up on who'd take the director's chair was very beneficial for the film. Hamilton not only captured the overall spirit and feel of a 007 movie, but he enhanced it to something of his own too. He gave "Goldfinger" a vast sense of unpredictability and thrills, and there was a great amount of wit and emotion that aided "Goldfinger" in being something more. The action sequences were fun to watch as well, and the film's overall pacing was extremely well-worked.
One thing I also enjoyed was that Hamilton and the writers didn't go overboard with the womanizing aspect of Bond's character. Unlike "From Russia with Love" there weren't as many scenes featuring Bond making out with multiple women so much, and he's not purposely leaving any girl in the dark on the matter.
The acting, characters, and character development were astonishing, if I may add.
As with the previous two movies, Sean Connery played the character of James Bond with brilliant personality and charisma. The interesting thing about his work in this movie, though, was that he added onto his portrayal by incorporating something incredibly human. In the moments where the characters of Jill and Tilly died, Connery conveyed into Bond a vulnerability that was strong enough to penetrate his usual persona and show a side to the character that was caring and emotional. It clearly wasn't everyday that someone he cared for or was trying to protect died in his presence, and the impacts of those revelations can even be seen in the aftermaths. Bond himself had awesome development throughout the film.
Likewise, the character of Auric Goldfinger was an awesome antagonist. As a nemesis to James Bond, he was a formidable force to be reckoned with and showed that he could go toe-to-toe with Bond when he wanted to. His intentions were solid, and his personality and intelligence helped Goldfinger instantly stand apart from previous 007 antagonists. The screen presence of Gert Frobe was also deeply enrapturing, and the voice redubbing by Michael Collins matched perfectly with his lip movements. The character himself hardly ceased from developing as a villain.
I would also like to add that Honor Blackman did a splendid job portraying Pussy Galore, and the character herself was definitely one of the most unique female characters in the 007 series thanks to her personality and development. In addition to this, the character of Oddjob was one of the most formidable villain henchman I ever saw, and Harold Sakata portrayed the character perfectly.
Finally, the music by John Barry was as magnificent as ever.
Similar to "From Russia with Love", Barry created a score that was deeply enticing. His music aided the film in not only being true to its predecessors as a spy story, but it hit all the right notes to capture everything on an emotional level. The way Barry managed to help "Goldfinger" to instantly feel like that of an adventure-thriller was fun too.
And I really can't lie, the film's title song is one of my absolute favorite James Bond themes. I enjoyed it so much that, long before I decided to review this movie, I bought it on iTunes and uploaded it to my music app. It has a catchy beat and rhythm, and the lyrics flowed together so well that I don't think anyone could forget how the song went anytime soon. Shirley Bassey was the perfect choice for singing the song, because her voice was like pure gold breathing from the soul. She even showcased an amazing singing that matched flawlessly with every lyric and beat.
In conclusion, "Goldfinger" is a James Bond film that I found to be fun every step of the way. It not only improved over "From Russia with Love", but it carried all the qualifications to make it one of the best 007 movies ever made.
So, I rate "Goldfinger" five out of five stars.
Goldfinger was the film that demonstrated the franchise's remarkable ability to innovate and evolve whilst staying true to Fleming's original concept for the character.
Auric Goldfinger was a very unique take on what being motivated by greed could be. He wasn’t trying to get more gold, he was trying to make his current holdings of gold more valuable.
Here’s fun detail about his character:
His last name is an obvious nod to his love of gold, but did you notice that the first two letters of his first name (Au) is Gold on the Periodic Table of Elements? :P
5571619 The very word 'auric' means 'gold-containing' in chemistry terminology.
And the word 'pussy' in Pussy Galore's name means 'cat'! And 'galore' is a synonym of 'many'.
Soooo, her name means she has lots of cute little kitties!
(Alondro's attempt at innocence deceives no one...)
5571911
Especially during the Sean Connery era. Back than, he was the original James Bond, Agent 007.
And the James Bond movies between 1962 and 1983 their intros were iconic in movie pop culture.
5571933
Oh, there's no argument there, friend.
5571972
Thanks!
5572027
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I appreciated it as a movie and it is to this day nod of my favorite Sean Connery bond films.
Wow. There's a lot I'd like to say about Goldfinger as its the earliest one I remember, but you and some of the fine commentors have pretty much got things covered.
What I can offer is that this was also the first outing of the Aston Martin DB5, with modifications, which is considered by many to be THE quintessential "bond car".