Review of Live and Let Die (1973) by Roger T — 06 May 2009

(No. 8).

After a decade of civil rights clashes, white America settles into a new status quo - 'blaxploitation', with Bond jumping on the bandwagon. With much of African culture being feared and misunderstood, this next Bond installment is laden with voodoo and other supernatural elements. It's therefore ironic that Mr. Big, who believes so strongly in the occult, has the most down to earth objective of any other Bond baddy so far; rather than wanting to rule the world, he simply wants to rule the drug world. Roger Moore is introduced for the first time and he delivers a softer, more charming title character (though still a cad). Visually, this is definitely the freakiest Bond we've seen so far, especially with the voodoo ritual sequences, while Paul McCartney's title song sets the mood with a rocking audio experience. The '60s are over and Bond is dead. Long live Bond.