Review of Diamonds Are Forever (1971) by Sgt. C — 02 Mar 2014

So Connery came back for a swan song in the "official" Bond franchise and while he plays the role comfortably, he is let down by the plot and an air of silliness that was to become the hallmark of the series in the 1970s.

This really feels like a Roger Moore film and certainly set the tone for his era. Our hero gets caught up in a diamond smuggling operation which leads to arch villain Blofeld (this time played by Charles Gray) who is masquerading as an American millionaire working for the US Government.

Blofeld's plan is to use the diamonds as part of a focusing mechanism for a satellite that blows up US missiles and Soviet subs and just about anything else, in order to hold the world to ransom. It nearly works but not quite.

There's some clunky characterisation, notably in the form of assassins Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd and Jill St. John (in what looks like a dreadful nylon wig) as Tiffany Case. The plot doesn't really flow but rather lurches from scene to scene and leaves a lot underdeveloped or lacking explanation.

There is, however, some fun dialogue and one or two nice action scenes that save it from becoming a total travesty. Whilst this is far from being the worst of the series, things got a lot better a couple of years later for the debut of Moore in Live and Let Die.