Thunderball

April 13, 2020 · Watch the trailer

Movies can feel of the moment for a variety of reasons.

They can be released at the perfect time, coinciding with current events for political or social commentary. They can be constricting, made during a certain point in time with technological or societal limitations that make the final product less universal.

The fourth entry in the James Bond film franchise, “Thunderball,” is a film very much grounded in the time of its release in the mid 1960s, where nuclear warfare on a global front was present of mind for every audience member.

Coming off the heels of movies like “Dr. Strangelove” and “Fail-Safe,” “Thunderball” puts James Bond right in the center of the atomic fray with a screenplay emitting tones of the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis three years earlier despite the fact that Ian Fleming wrote the novel this film was based on a year prior to that U.S. standoff with Russia.

It’s ironic that EON Productions tried to make “Thunderball” the first feature film in their series after the book’s release, which would have framed the nuclear thriller directly in the middle of current political events at the time. However, legal issues with the screenplay rights led to three other Bond films being made in the meantime and, later, the return of Sean Connery to the role of Bond in the 1980s with the non-canonical adaptation of “Thunderball” entitled “Never Say Never Again,” co-starring Kim Basinger.

The fourth entry in the Bond saga finds the MI6 agent hot on the trail of two atomic bombs stolen off a British Vulcan bomber and exploited for ransom by the terrorist organization S.P.E.C.T.R.E.

Connery is at his most playful as Bond in “Thunderball,” fully relishing in the sexual gamesmanship and flirtations while maintaining an effortlessly cavalier casualness to his demeanor. His Bond knows and doesn’t care how his words and actions affect those around him, especially with women, and Connery aggressively plays the upper hand on nearly everyone Bond comes into contact with.

The film’s primary antagonist, Emil Largo, wears an eye patch and has an affinity for sharks and life on the ocean, yet Italian actor Adolfo Celi and vocal double Robert Rietty portray Largo as if those defining characteristics are all there is to the villain aside from a general evil demeanor. Nothing about the performance feels malicious nor threatening, especially when paired next to characters like the femme fatale assassin Fiona Volpe’s treachery or even Bond’s underhanded anti-hero tactics.

Former Miss France Claudine Auger – along with frequent Bond series voice double Nikki Van Der Zyl – offers up a serviceable, yet underwhelming performance as the naïve ingenue in Bond’s professional and romantic crosshairs. Her Domino exudes a meek exterior in spite of overwhelming beauty, although an occasionally biting line delivery from Van Der Zyl does challenge Bond more than Largo.

More so than most Connery films in the franchise, “Thunderball” is fraught with problematic sexual aggression towards women. Although Bond frequently seduces women throughout the series, the manner in which he achieves his goal is especially troublesome, trapping women in bearhugs and forcing himself into their mouths, ruthlessly blackmailing them into bed with him.

His relationship with Domino is far more verbally aggressive than with other Bond girls in the franchise, pushing his way into a relationship curtly and matter-of-factly as if his conquest of her was inevitable and for her own good.

On land, the action in “Thunderball” is limited in scale and relatively mundane hand-to-hand combat, save for a physical brawl between Bond and a S.P.E.C.T.R.E. operative that opens the film and ends with a memorable jet pack ride to safety.

In the water, however, the dramatic tension and scope of the film widens considerably as director Terence Young soaks up all the extravagance for numerous underwater adventures that see Bond outmaneuver frogmen with harpoon guns and a variety of sharks culminating in a languishingly elongated sea battle that highlights Boren’s expert camerawork and intricately coordinated fight choreography of expert divers.

Where “Thunderball” truly stands out is in its exceptional aquatic cinematography, shot by celebrated underwater photographer Lamar Boren, whose talent behind the camera to create vivid and clear shots continued in several future Bond films including “You Only Live Twice,” “The Spy Who Loved Me” and “Moonraker.”

Camerawork is surprisingly steady and clear given all the quick maneuvering actors have to do in such close proximity to the frame and it’s a wonder that the final battle doesn’t have any of the shaky-cam movements prevalent in modern action films like director Paul Greengrass’ work in the Jason Bourne franchise.

Young and his team create a color palette of oranges, blacks and aqua blues to offset the depths of the dark ocean floor and help to tell a visual story identifying good from evil, simplifying a cluttered mass of bodies writhing around underwater into an endlessly entertaining spectacle.

Production designer Ken Adam’s striking set work continues to be among the highlights in any early Bond film as his ability to create iconic locales for villains to play in is unrivaled even by modern standards.

The S.P.E.C.T.R.E. lair hidden inside a Parisian domestic aid office reveals the inner workings of the organization from the secrecy and intricacy of their operations to the power structure laid out as numbered lieutenants sit in isolating office chairs in the center of an empty steel hall turned conference room as the leader towers over them, his face obscured and haunting voice pouring into the room via speaker system.

Coming off of Shirley Bassey’s sheering vocals in “Goldfinger,” Tom Jones’ booming tones overlaying the opening title credits of “Thunderball” mimic the pulsating horns and crashing drums that prelude a return showdown between Bond and the looming S.P.E.C.T.R.E. organization. Mixed on top of silhouetted women swimming underwater, the titles are an ideal way to foreshadow the events to come while providing audiences with a classic Bond theme song.

The last of four Bond films to come out in successive years, “Thunderball” marks the closing of the opening chapter in the history of the franchise before Connery’s waning interest in the role begins to seep in.

This is the fourth in a series of retrospective reviews of the James Bond film franchise as made by EON Productions in anticipation of the release of the 25th entry in the series, “No Time To Die,” which arrives in American theaters on November 25.