Review of For Your Eyes Only (1981) by Nbfc — 09 Jan 2018

After the fantastical gadgets and space spectacle of Moonraker, FYEO goes for a much more gritty and back-to-basics approach in the vein of From Russia with Love where the plot is about Bond and the villains chasing after a MacGuffin.

Moore was always great with the comedy, but I feel he tends to be underrated in terms of how versatile he can be. Moore more than delivers the darker and edgy gravitas, especially during the scene where Bond avenges the death of a friend by kicking a car down the cliff with the assassin still inside.

Where the film may lack in gadgets, it more than makes up for in action. There is a great car chase in a very non-typical Bond vehicle, a ski chase, an intense underwater brawl and a heart-stopping sequence where Bond tries to climb the side of a tall cliff.

Now…even though I said this movie is more “serious”, some camp still remains like the hilarious scene where Bond fights a hockey team. I also really like the funky score provided by Bill Conti (Rocky, The Right Stuff).