The Spy Who Loved Me

The Spy Who Loved Me

Following the financial and critical drubbing of Man With the Golden Gun, the James Bond franchise was in dire straits. Many were calling for the franchise to call it a day. After all, nine films wasn't so bad a run, right?  Perhaps now was the time to get out.  Deeply in debt, one of the original partners Harry Saltzman did just that, selling his stake in the series and leaving Cubby Broccoli on his own.   Broccoli had a decision to make, and it is to his great credit that he stayed stubborn in his faith in the character. Instead of ending the series and salvaging what money he could, he doubled down and went out to make the biggest James Bond film ever.

The gamble worked.  The result was The Spy Who Loved Me and it ranks among the best of the franchise, and is easily the best film of the Roger Moore years.  For the director, Broccoli turned back to Lewis Gilbert, who had directed an earlier Bond smash hit, You Only Live Twice.  Personally, I don't think that was a particularly good movie, and I have to wonder if deep down Gilbert agreed.  Perhaps he realized the missed potential of the storyline and set about doing it the right way, because The Spy Who Loved Me has a lot of similarities. The plot is very similar - only this time instead of stealing space shuttles, the villains are stealing nuclear submarines.  The producers even wanted Blofeld back as the villain behind the nefarious plot; alas, that character and his organization SPECTRE were tied up in legal battles with Kevin McClory (see why in my Thunderball review), so instead of Blofeld we are given Karl Stromberg (who I personally think is a much stronger villain than Blofeld, anyway).

Nuclear submarines are disappearing out of the ocean.  Nobody knows what is happening, but both American and Soviet vessels have been targeted so the world's two super powers decide to work together to solve the mystery.  They order their top spies, England's James Bond and Russia's Anya Amasova (Agent Triple X) to work together. Unfortunately, the partnership is destined to be a bit of a rocky one since Bond had killed Amasova's Soviet assassin boyfriend in the film's intro.  Oops. Together, the two must take on Stromberg and his ultimate henchman, Jaws, a near invincible giant with metal teeth.

I'm not going to lie.  The Spy Who Loved Me has its share of problems, but for the most part, it's good.  It's very, very good.  After experimenting with Live and Let Die and Man with the Golden Gun, the production team finally finds the right way to use Roger Moore.  Every actor playing Bond has to walk that delicate balance between humor and danger, and The Spy Who Loved Me finds the formula that works best for Roger Moore.  He will save the day because of his deep sense of duty, but you get the sense that he would much rather charm the ladies or make a bad pun to taunt his enemies than actually throw a punch.  Which is not to say Moore's Bond isn't dangerous.  The ruthlessness with which he pushes one of Stromberg's henchmen off a roof in Cairo might be the most badass thing Moore did during his entire run as the character.  But this Bond doesn't seem to enjoy violence.  It's just a means to an end (which is usually in the lead Bond girl's bedroom!).  Most of the rest of the cast is also quite good, with acclaimed German actor Curd Jurgens starring as the admirably menacing megalomaniacal Stromberg and Richard Kiel's Jaws is a fan favorite for a reason, even if his metal teeth are a bit silly.  Even the crew of the American submarine is full of interesting faces and cool character actors (most of whom you would recognize from other films in the 1970s and 1980s).

The production design is also terrific, from the underwater car (the Lotus Esprit replacing the Aston Martin) to the super tanker to Stromberg's ocean headquarters - the Bond team, led once again by the legendary Ken Adam, really came through for Broccoli on this one, delivering spectacular work. I also have to mention the opening scene, which features an amazing cliff jump which ranks easily as the most famous Bond stunt ever - and possibly one of the most famous stunts in movie history.

All in all, Broccoli set out to make the biggest Bond film of all time, and he succeeded with flying colors.

So what's not to like?

Well, a couple of things.  Despite my earlier praise of the cast, I have to say that Barbara Bach is a bit of a weak link.  She isn't bad (and oh, there are some really bad Bond girls out there) and she certainly looks the part of a glamorous Russian spy, but her presence sort of flatlines whenever she has to speak any dialogue.  I don't know if the script or director let her down or if she was just really tired during the entire production, but she doesn't make the strong impression that a character as tough as Triple X should.

I am also a bit disappointed by the score, by Oscar-winning composer Marvin Hamlisch.  While his title song and love theme are quite good, he also felt the need to update Bond for the new era and litters disco tones throughout the soundtrack.  While not an abomination like Bill Conti's For Your Eyes Only, The Spy Who Loved Me just really disappoints and makes me miss John Barry - especially for a movie this good.  And the real shocker that The Spy Who Loved Me was the first Bond score to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Score!.  Huh?!?

The Spy Who Loved Me also foreshadows some of the silliness to come in future films.  We are far removed from the serious Bond of Dr. No and From Russia With Love.  Here, some of the humor is cartoonish, several puns don't work, and while the balance is struck well, it is clearly a sign of things to come - it is this childish humor that gives the Moore films such a bad reputation today (undeserved, I think).

All in all, this is a terrific film, and a great entry into the franchise.  Broccoli's gamble worked.

Shame he had to follow it up with Moonraker.

RANKINGS:

This is a tough one.  The Spy Who Loved Me earns its spot among the top films, but it is crowded up there with Connery's best.  I think I would put it in the #4 spot, after the Thunderball, From Russia With Love and Goldfinger set.

Here are how the rankings are coming together:

1. Thunderball
2. From Russia With Love
3. Goldfinger
4. The Spy Who Loved Me
5. Dr. No
6. Live and Let Die
7. Man with the Golden Gun
8. Diamonds Are Forever
9. On Her Majesty's Secret Service
10. You Only Live Twice


BEST LINE:

Again, it's all in the delivery.

Stromberg: Well, well, a British agent in love with a Russian agent.  Detente, indeed.


TRIVIA: 

As part of his "spare no expense" philosophy for this film, Cubby Broccoli hired esteemed director of photography Claude Renoir.  Renoir did great work on this film, but unfortunately his eyesight was failing him.  When it came time to work in the massive super tanker set, he was unable to light the film properly.  Desperate, production designer Ken Adam turned to one his best friends, legendary director Stanley Kubrick.  On the condition that his involvement would be kept absolutely secret Kubrick came to the set and supervised the look of those scenes, and the result is pretty remarkable.  The lighting, the use of symmetry...several of these scenes just have the look and feel of a Kubrick film.  That's a pretty cool bit of trivia, I think!  Also, Kubrick's stepdaughter Katherine created the metal dentures that Richard Kiel had to wear as Jaws.  So that's kinda neat, too.

MVP:

Ken Adam.  It's a no brainer.  Many thought he could not top his volcano set in You Only Live Twice, but Ken Adam did it twice in The Spy Who Loved Me.  First, Stromberg's ocean headquarters is a superb set - ranking as one of my favorite secret lairs ever.  And I have to go back to that sprawling super tanker set - the location of one of the most exciting climactic battles of the franchise as the escaped submarine crews and Bond try to defeat Stromberg's army and dismantle the nuclear weapons.  The battle is choreographed to take advantage of carefully placed levels, stairways, ramps, and little eccentricities that fill the set.  It's just a brilliant piece of work, and I actually think it's the best thing about the film. Ken Adam designed a lot of brilliant sets in his Bond career, but this one was the best.  And for that, he gets the MVP.