You Only Live Twice (The James Bond Classic Library)

Rating:
Summary: ..Kill Bond,Now...!!!
Review: That line pretty much sums up You Only Live Twice.As delivered by Donald Plesance as Ernst Stavro Blofeld (and the inspiration to Austin Powers' Dr. Evil)It has menace, but once it's over it seems a bit hollow.
Screenplay written by Willy Wonka author, Roald Dahl(!!!),YOLT starts with the phony demise of 007 in the pre-credits, then takes him to Japan to investigate the disappearence of American and Soviet spacecrafts before both powers declare war.
A bit weaker than the monster combination of Goldfinger/Thunderball,YOLT boast many great moments (the unnessesary arial dogfight with Little Nelly, the finale in Blofeld's awesome volcanic lair), but one can't help but feel a tinge of disappointment as it seemed made on auto pilot.YOLT does feature the best ever 007 theme song.A haunting melodic ballad sung by Nancy Sinatra.
YOLT was to be the last Sean Connery Bond movie(though he would return in Diamonds Are Forever and Never Say Never Again).It also marked the end of an era in the golden age of 007 movies as the latter films of the 70's and early 80's become more tongue and cheek.It was only 20 years later in The Living Daylights that the ruthless, yet suave Bond of the novels and earlier movies would return.

Rating:
Summary: Not as magnificent as the earlier movies, but good fun!
Review: You Only Live Twice is the most POTENTIALLY magnificent adventure movie ever made. It truly had the credentials of one of the best actions ever, although it ended up as one of the worst Connerys of the series (not as bad as Diamonds are Forever). It had incredible action sequences, fantastic Bond women and a good looking screenplay opportunity, however, somewhere along the line, the movie was slightly fouled up! Pleasence is one of the reasons for the disappointment of this film, as he gives a bland, unsatisfying appearance as Blofeld, and the central plot is the other main reason. I think the creator of such characters as Willa Wonka and the Grand High witch along with many others could have created a more satisfying SPECTRE scheme than the hijacking of space capsules. However, I still insist that YOLT is a fantastic action film and the acting, for the most part, is not bad. The film truly deserves 4.5 stars, but it is just fair to round up a Connery film to 5 stars! Buy it and you will not be unsatisfied!