Review of On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) by Ken S — 21 Nov 2012

The script is good, and the action is very well directed...this could've worked, but Telly Savalas is boring as Blofield, not as good as Pleasance, and George Lazenby is about as weak as someone stepping into big shoes could be.

Had Roger Moore taken over now, or Connery returned, this might have been better (or hell...if they had even been able to convince the 22 year old Timothy Dalton to take over the role!). Lazenby is just not as strong an actor as Connery or some of the other actors who have taken on the role.

The film, which has a well written script and a good basic storyline, suffers because of it. He may look the part, but he is stiff and delivers lines poorly. Trying to convince the audience that he is still the same man as Connery with little references to the previous films feels forced, and it only serves to remind us all that this is no Connery.

Even today, in which audiences are used to different actors in the Bond role, it still feels as if this major element is just missing. Shame, because it has one of the best character arcs for Bond in the script.