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Diamonds Are Forever vs. Octopussy vs. Quantum of Solace

PrinceKamalKhanPrinceKamalKhan Monsoon Palace, Udaipur
edited August 2011 in Bond Movies Posts: 3,262
Following in the traditions of the threads started by DoubleOhhSeven and 00Beast, I was thinking of which is the best film made after the "back to basics" Bond film made after the science fiction Bond film?

I would rank them as follows:

001) OP
002) DAF

massive gap

003) QOS

Both DAF and OP are fun filled Bond films. DAF benefits from Tom Mankiewicz's witty dialogue and Jill St. John's delightfully brassy Tiffany Case but I think I like OP the best. General Orlov's Cold War-era plot against the West is my favorite villainous scheme of the series and the 2nd half of OP makes for one of the most exciting and suspenseful hours in the series. QOS brought me no joy at all.
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Comments

  • RogueThunderballRogueThunderball
    Posts: 306
    OP...QoS............infinite gap....the disgrace that is DAF.
  • SharkShark Banned
    Posts: 348
    1. DAF

    2. OP

    Huge gap

    3. QOS
  • DoubleOhhSevenDoubleOhhSeven
    Posts: 1,778
    Thanks for the shout-out PrinceKamalKhan. Well technically I started them but we're all one big happy 007 family right lol. Good idea for a thread. It seems like the producers have trouble capturing lightening in a bottle twice after their "back-to-basics" films, which by the way are all superb Bond films. Octopussy just barely wins for me because of the nostolgia factor. It was the second or third Bond film I ever saw as a kid and really played a part in making the Bond films my fav series. I wasn't born yet to see it in the theaters but I rented the VHS as a kid. QOS comes in at a very close second. I'm I the only one who loved it? After a HUGE gap, DAF comes in third. I'd rank DAF on my botten 3 films along with TMWTGG and DAD.



  • BAIN123BAIN123
    Posts: 11,189
    1. OP

    (big gap)

    2. DAF

    3. QoS
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 23,544
    Evidently,

    1) OP
    2) DAF


    3) QOS
  • BennyBenny In the shadowsAdministrator, Moderator
    Posts: 14,875
    Evidently,

    1) OP
    2) DAF


    3) QOS
    Great minds think alike Dimster. ;-)
    OP is a given for Octobenny, DAF has slipped massively down my rankings. Don't get me wrong, it's hugely enjoyable and a darn fine romp. But it's cheap, poorly made and to be honest a very bad Bond film. A great rewatchability, but this is not a good James Bond film. Weak villains, Connery looking far to fat, a sloppy story, special effects that look like a fan film. It's just a poor entry in the series.

    And then we have QOS. Yes after DAF, a big gap.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,690
    1. DAF

    2. OP

    Huge gap

    3. QOS
    I agree. DAF is my 3rd favorite film, behing MR (2nd) and TMWTGG (1st).

  • SharkBaitSharkBait
    Posts: 2,107
    1. OP
    2. DAF/QoS

    OP is just darn good clean fun. Judging the 2nd place wasn't easy. So it's a tie. DAF is a tongue-in-cheek 70's romp and I also appreciate QoS.
  • actonsteveactonsteve
    Posts: 1,492
    OP/DAF/QoS

    All equally luverly.
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    Posts: 13,894
    1. DAF
    -----
    -----
    -----
    2. OP
    -----
    -----
    -----
    -----
    3. QOS
  • NicNacNicNac Administrator, Moderator
    Posts: 7,570
    1. OP. It's lush and lovely at times, mainly exciting with terrific stunt work. Good acting despite the awful V J Amritraj (as good an actor as he was tennis player ie below average). The most glamorous looking Bond since OHMSS.

    2. QOS. Simply because Craig is so good. The film has its faults but at least it moves forward coherently (the plot, not the editing!)

    3. DAF. The most frustrating thing about DAF is that so much of the film is done well, with fine dialogue and acting. The problem is the film shows the first signs of the complacency of a series that has no obvious rivals in the action/adventure genre. The action lacks punch and excitment, the script and plotting is clumsy in places, and the film as a whole is unforgiveably dull for long stretches.

    Not much between 2 and 3 for me.
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    edited August 2011 Posts: 13,350
    1. Octopussy
    2. Diamonds Are Forever
    3. Quantum Of Solace
  • JBFan626JBFan626
    Posts: 1,497
    1. DAF - Undisputed champion

    2. OP - Probably the best of the "middle-grade" Bonds

    3. QOS - Probably the best of the worst of Bonds
  • WillardWhyteWillardWhyte Midnight Society #ProjectMoon
    Posts: 784
    DAF
    OP
    QOS
  • CoH_GHOST_007CoH_GHOST_007
    Posts: 303
    Octopussy (It's different, in a good way)
    Quantum of Solace (Is also different, and i really enjoy it)
    ...
    Diamonds are forever (It's too much for me)
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    Posts: 13,350
    An interesting fact to note is the not one of these three films wanted to continue the "back-to-basics" feel of the previous film. They all took us up a different path.
  • barryt007barryt007
    Posts: 19,339
    1) OP
    2) QOS
    3) DAF

  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    Octopussy - quintessential Roger Moore as 007, nobody will ever better him in his version of 007. Good spytale, good fun, great music and loads of women.

    DAF- Connery in his EON farewell, some great setpieces the tale overall fails to deliver.

    QoS - Best forgotten and ignored as quickly as possible
  • 002002
    Posts: 581
    Octopussy- very entertaining and almost like Indiana Jones in certain scenes
    Diamonds are Forever: its okay not a classic but still i pefer Never Say never agian
    Qantum of Solace- Hunt down craig and the producers and kill them for sport
  • do_me_nicelydo_me_nicely Banned
    edited August 2011 Posts: 106


    Qantum of Solace- Hunt down craig and the producers and kill them for sport
    Agreed ,:-bd it is bad \:D/
  • royale65royale65 Caustic misanthrope reporting for duty.
    Posts: 4,421
    In first place:

    OCTOPUSSY!

    2) QoS
    3) DAF
  • 00Beast00Beast
    Posts: 4,762
    Well, my contest would only be between OP and DAF. When I rank them, here's how it'd go:

    (1) Diamonds Are Forever
    (2) Octopussy

    (3) Quantum of Solace

    DAF and OP are in my Top Ten, while QoS slips way down around 19 or 20
  • SirHenryLeeChaChingSirHenryLeeChaChing
    Posts: 3,494
    11. QOS
    17. OP
    18. DAF

  • 00Beast00Beast
    Posts: 4,762
    It's interesting to note the distance that these three moved from their former "back-to-basics." DAF easily moved the furthest, what with Blofeld's laser satellite and camp humor. However, that never bothered me, and I hold DAF in high regard. OP had some more outlandish humor, but still retained a since of reality, what with Orlov's Cold War plan, much like FYEO did with Kristatos and the ATAC. QoS moved the least furthest, when you consider the fact that it was a direct follow-up to CR. It was still very real, with very little progress towards the "fun, super 007."
  • timmertimmer
    Posts: 4,622
    1.DAF: High Bond camp but also dark and dangerous making for a potent and highly entertaining mix, rife with the benign bizarre as our friend Khanners might say
    2. OP: one of the best of the Moore Bonds. Great action, great camp, good story and with healthy dose of Bond danger and suspense

    3. QoS. Rubbish as a Bond film, but oddly still quite watchable as a stylized, arthouse Bond-like danger/suspense film.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    Good acting despite the awful V J Amritraj (as good an actor as he was tennis player ie below average).
    Whoa there NicNac. Cnat have you slagging the big V. Fair enough his acting is a bit Tim Henman (do you see what I did there?) but hes one of the most affable Bond allies, hes clearly loving being in a Bond film and his death is one of the most sobering ally deaths - almost up there with Kerim and Mathis. I particularly like it a few minutes later when Karl turns to Bond and says 'no problem', and Bond is reminded of Vijay before being sent over the Berlin Wall on his own.

    The India sections are a bit MR-esque in places with the camels, tarzan gag etc, but from Vijays death onwards OP is absoulte classic Bond and is miles ahead of the other two.

    Neither QOS or DAF are in the same league as OP but I would say QOS shades it for me. I can appreciate what QOS tries to do. That it failed is as much down to the writers strike which left us with an unpolished script as it is Forsters ludicrous insistence on coming in at 90 odd minutes and appalling editing IMHO.

    DAF on the other hand is probably the laziest Bond film of all. You sense that everyone thought 'Seans back so that will be enough to get plenty of bums on seats so why bother?' Apart from the lift fight the action is ploddingly uninspired, along with the direction and the plot. The only kudos goes to Mankiewicz for serving up a gag laden script and Ed Bishop for his indelible contribution to the series.

  • 00Beast00Beast
    Posts: 4,762
    TheWizardOflce said:
    DAF on the other hand is probably the laziest Bond film of all. You sense that everyone thought 'Seans back so that will be enough to get plenty of bums on seats so why bother?' Apart from the lift fight the action is ploddingly uninspired, along with the direction and the plot. The only kudos goes to Mankiewicz for serving up a gag laden script and Ed Bishop for his indelible contribution to the series.


    I don't think the entire movie was lazy. The sets were really awesome, such as The Whyte House, Willard Whyte's summer house, and the Baha California oil rig. All of those showed real constructing talent. Also, the story itself was very strong, what with 007 being sent to track down a diamond smuggling ring that is under suspicion by the British diamond industry, only to find out that it is linked back to SPECTRE and Ernst Stavro Blofeld.
    As for the action, you are partially right. Some scenes weren't very engaging, like the pre-title sequence, the moon buggy chase, and the fight with Wint and Kidd. However, I liked the others. The elevator fight with Peter Franks and the Las Vegas car chase were both outstanding! The fight with Bambi and Thumper and the oil rig clmax were also pretty good, if not lacking a little bit. All in all, the action was just all right, but I wouldn't think it necessarily uninspired.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    edited August 2011 Posts: 9,117
    Well for a start the Whyte House and Whytes villa are both real buildings and I'm pretty sure the oil rig was too (in fact I'm 100% sure - no production company is going to build a full scale oil rig) so even if they are awesome (debatable) as you state Ken Adam seems to have let his creative standards slip somewhat since YOLT by just searching through Tatler to find suitable venues. The only sets worthy of note are the penthouse interiors (both Blofelds and Bonds) and the plastic surgery clinic and none of these are even as good as his work in DN never mind GF and YOLT. We know however that Ken hadnt jumped the shark as he was back with a bang for TSWLM and MR, leading me to conclude he was allowed to put in less than 100% on DAF like quite a few others. The film was made as the EON partnership was starting to break up so its likely Cubby and Harry had other things on their minds.

    Perhaps I'm being a bit harsh on the plot as its no better or worse than a lot of Bond films but the action is seriously substandard.
    The lift fight apart theres nothing anywhere near being on a par with OHMSS which preceded it - and action in Bond should always attempt to outdo the previous film.
    The car chase is just Bond driving round in circles whilst the imbecilic police write off all their cars. The one notable stunt in it is amateurishly bungled (more evidence to back up my charge of laziness - rather than reshoot it or think up some other way to get round a mistake that shouldnt happen in the first place if people are at the top of their game, they put in a hamfisted insert shot and say 'that'll do').
    Bambi and Thumper fight 'pretty good'? Do me a favour. Compare it to Bond v Grant, Bond v Trevelyan or Bond v Obanno - or even Bond v Franks from the same film and you'll see what a ludicrous statement that is. Bond stumbles round like a punch drunk prize fighter just there to pick up a last pay packet and barely lands a blow until he manages to defeat these supervillains with the cunning ruse of putting one hand on each of their heads which is obviously inescapeable.
    The final assault on the oil rig is also a very pedestrian with just bangs and stuntmen flying off trampolines like the Universal Studios live action stunt show. Bond spends half of it imprisoned and the other half inefectually swinging Blofelds bathosub around.

    I dont dislike DAF as its a lot of fun but thats the problem. Everyone involved seems to be having far too much of a good time for their wages rather than putting in some honest graft. You dont get that feeling with FRWL, OHMSS or CR.
  • M_BaljeM_Balje Amsterdam, Netherlands
    Posts: 4,441
    10. Octopussy
    12. Diamonds Are Forever
    14. Quantum Of Solace
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,471
    OP
    QoS
    DAF
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