Live and Let Die Reviews
The greatest 02 hours: and 01 minute ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In memory of Roger Moore!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
One of the better Moore films. Moore gives one of his best performances as Bond here. The rest of the cast isn't bad either but not exactly super memorable. The cinematography is decent in this. The settings aren't as memorable as other entries though the ascetics of Voodoo and Blaxploitation give this a very unique identity in the franchise. The music is decent as well though outside of the title track I wouldn't say any of the rest is memorable. The editing and pacing are ok in this. the Boat chase while thrilling goes on way too long, Solitaire & Moore don't have the best chemistry in the world so you never really feel invested in their relationship and there are some dumb scenes in this that come across as stupid rather than humorous. Though Moore's performance, the Blaxploitation tone and entertaining action make up for the faults here most of the time. This is really when the franchise started to not only try to chase its best entries but also started to chase other trends that were hot at the time (Sci-Fi, 80's Action, etc). If your a big Moore Fan, want a very unique 007 film or like Blaxploitation films than give this a watch. Otherwise you can skip this.
Roger Moore made his James Bond debut in "Live and Let Die." I was astounded by Roger Moore's portrayal of James Bond and how at ease he seemed in it. The way the director introduces him—on the bed with his sweetheart at home rather than in the middle of an action scene—is also pretty original. This time, M and Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell) visited James Bond at his home rather than James Bond seeing M (Bernard Lee) in his office. Observing the interactions between James Bond, M, and Moneypenny in this film is a lot of fun.
There is no question for me that this is the best Bond film under the Roger Moore era. The film is a very different look and feel from Sean Connery's reign; however, it does work. From the Paul McCartney theme song, to the NYC setting the film is just cool. The settings and the characters in Live Anb Let Die are visually exciting. The violence and action are palpable. Moore does not try to be Connery. He carves out a more polished and more humorous approach to Bond circles around the key elements that still make this a Bond film. Jane Seymour is stunning in this one. Yaphet Koto is a great, almost 60's style Goldfinger, as the villain. Unfortunately after this one the reliance on humor and gadgets started to become primary, as opposed to enhancing the plot, and it was not until Daniel Craig's era that this ship was righted again.
Best of Movies/TV Series Collection
That's my ranking #2 Moore film this definitely my favorite films that was greatest movie in the franchise. Rip Sir Roger Moore legends never die.
Bringing his own version of James Bond to the screen. Live and Let Die is Roger Moore's first debut that prove to be a worthy successor to Sean Connery.
In memory of Roger Moore!!!!!! The greatest 02 hours: and 01 minute ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Roger Moore takes over as a hilarious and charming campy version of James Bond. Director Guy Hamilton's James Bond spy thriller Live and Let Die (1973) is outrageous blacksploitation and creative spy action. From a high speed boat chase sequence through a swamp to the shark and crocodile finale, Live and Let Die is a fascinating experiment in hilarious jokes and crafty visual gags. Hamilton's playful direction is exactly the kind of subversive insanity James Bond needed at the time to stay fresh. Writer Tom Makiewicz's screenplay deftly adapts James Bond author Ian Fleming's novels for a roaring ride of a spy thriller. The combination of Baron Samedi's voodoo and Mr. Big's poppy fields make for a unique storyline for Bond to uncover. I love Samedi rising from the grave and being the man who cannot die. Roger Moore is pretty charming and debonair. He can pull off the spy action, but it's his expressive use of his raised eyebrows and easy smile that is so playful as James Bond. His 007 still lets a Bond girl die and sleeps around, but he doesn't feel so mean spirited as Sean Connery's sexist James Bond. He is certainly horny taking advantage of any woman he can manage to bed, but Moore feels lighthearted and silly as Bond. He plays 007 with a gleeful camp self-awareness. He is quite similar to Adam West's Bruce Wayne style performance. Yaphet Kotto is menacing and intimidating as a sinister Prime Minister named Dr. Kananga. His acting gets increasingly unhinged as Bond unravels his plans. There's a fun whimsy to some of his moments with Bond. His speech about getting citizens addicted to heroin is entertaining like his final absurd ballooning into an explosion. Jane Seymour is gorgeous with an ethereal aura as Solitaire. Her tarot card reading psychic is surely one of the more outlandish Bond girls. She's a pretty love interest for Bond, while you also feel sympathy for her as she's essentially Kananga's captive. They make a weird mention that she's a virgin and that Bond deflowers her with his clever tarot card replacement of The Lovers that's manipulative. Clifton James steals his scenes as redneck Southern Sheriff J.W. Pepper with his outrageous exclamations and bumbling police officer buffoonery. He's a real scream as I was roaring with laughter at his idiotic dumbfoundedness. Julius W. Harris is scary and funny as Tee Hee, who loves to crush things with his metallic arm. His crocodile feeding speech is a real highlight besides his sudden train appearance at the end fight. Geoffrey Holder truly is the overall highlight of Live and Let Die as spooky voodoo villain Baron Samedi. I love that he appears in the last frame to imply that Baron Samedi was not an occult con artist, but truly immortal. His skeleton dance and echoing bellowing laugh is a riot. He's quite a fun antagonist for Bond to contend with and is completely unique in the 007 franchise. Tommy Lane is great as Dr. Kananga's henchman Adam, who pursues 007 through the bayou in a crazy high speed boat chase sequence that would make Smokey and the Bandit proud. Earl Jolly Brown is very neat as Kananga's toadie that only whispers as he shoots men in a speeding car from the mirror or lounges by awaiting orders. His whisper voice is so funny. David Hedison is fairly likable as Bond's CIA agent friend Felix Leiter. His astoundment at Bond's results and encounters is always a quick laugh. He's useful narratively to get Bond out of trickly legal situations too. Gloria Hendry is very stunning and intriguing as CIA agent Rosie Carver. Her bad track record for protecting agents is funny like her squeaky voice. I think they could have used her more, but it is interesting that she was a double agent for Kananga. He's always a step ahead of Bond here as he observes everything. Bernard Lee is funny as MI6 Chief M, who loathes Bond's insubordination and easy going manner when he visits Bond at his home. I loved seeing Bond's British apartment that would be an ideal place to live. Lois Maxwell is sweet as Miss Moneypenny and gets to flirt with Roger Moore this time! Roy Stewart is funny as Quarrel Jr, Bond's boat captain ally. It's really neat that Stewart is playing Quarrel as the son of Quarrel from Dr. No. Lon Satton is cool as the black CIA agent Harry Strutter, who is assisting Bond in Harlem. Arnold Williams is hilarious as Cab Driver 1, who jokes with Bond and teases him about going to Harlem, when he obviously works for Kananga too. I should mention Madeline Smith's sultry Bond girl Miss Caruso, who is an Italian secret agent Roger Moore is romancing in bed in the start of Live and Let Die. Editors Bert Bates, Raymond Poulton, and John Shirley blast through the absurdity for a brisk pacing that gives Live and Let Die a swift 121 minutes. Cinematographer Ted Moore captures lovely shots of the bayou waters, crocodiles popping out of the water, and gritty shots of Harlem's desolate streets. Live and Let Die certainly has a gritty look and feel like most early 70's pictures. Art direction from Stephen Hendrickson, Robert W. Laing, Peter Lamont, and Syd Cain create haunting graveyards for Baron Samedi and lavish apartments for Bond and Kananga. Composer George Martin's symphonic score is lovely and moody as necessary, then exciting when Paul McCartney's iconic James Bond theme "Live and Let Die" soars above everything. Hearing Monty Norman's James Bond theme is always a treat too. Sound designers John W. Mitchell and Ken Barker account for roaring boat engines, whirring plane blades, and inflating people from oxygen bullets for a playful soundscape for Live and Let Die. Costume designer Julie Harris gives Roger Moore the coolest suit, coat, and gloves any Bond has worn to date. Moore looks stylish and fashionable with a 60's flair in a grittier 70's aesthetic picture. Make-up artist Paul Rabiger makes Jane Seymour look dazzling as Solitaire, Yaphet Kotto creepy as Mr. Big in an uncanny mask, and Geoffrey Holder into a skeleton for Baron Samedi. Roger Moore himself looks as handsome and dashing as he ever was on screen as 007. In conclusion, Live and Let Die is a playful and absurd James Bond film that allows Sean Connery's espionage thrillers turn into Roger Moore's comedic spy thrillers neatly.
I couldn't believe these percentages when I saw them. "Live and Let Die" is possibly the most underrated James Bond film. Okay, the strangeness of changing the James Bond actor again while M and Ms Moneypenny are still the same actors exist, but it wasn't as huge as in George Lazenby's turn, because Roger Moore has all the qualities of a 007: the charm (Lazenby doesn't have), the acid humour (Lazenby's one was often misplaced), the seduction ability, the intelligence, everything is there. Oh, and I said Tereza di Vicenzo ("On Her Majesty's Secret Service") was the best Bond Girl... well, Solitaire surpasses her with a considerable advantage; by the way, I loved how the tarot was incorporated into the narrative. Furthermore, I also liked how Felix Leiter has major participation here, I always thought that he was a great character but without the prestige he deserves, and today was his day. Kananga was the best villain of the franchise until now (with the obvious exception of Mr Blofeld), his plan is as original as Goldfinger's one, and his army is imposing, especially the Captain Hook fella. The story is also fantastic, and the film is one of the most exciting in the franchise. I really don't know why it's so belittled. Let's give it another chance, guys!
Great theme song for Roger Moore's debut as 007. Creepy, action packed and comedic at times. At least it's not as cringey or sleazy as the Sean Connery Bond films.
A Bond movie of highs and lows for me. The representation of the black communities the movie explores isn't very flattering nor do I really like the spiritual elements in the plot. On the other hand, the villain and henchmen are pretty good, as is the music theme. Roger Moore also gets a decently strong start as 007. While its too early to really compare him to Connery he fits the role much better than Lazenby.
This is another movie of the times: 70's blaxploitation. African-Americans had previously been in 007 movies, but in this one they are elevated to the front seat. They are awesome. Mysterious. Villainous. And, the underlying voodoo motif makes this a stand out 007 movie. Definitely entertaining!
Live and Let Die was a comparatively boring Bond movie to me. Nothing in particular stands out or is memorable. It isn't as finely tuned or witty as "The Spy Who Loved Me", but it also doesn't go full camp like say "Moonraker" does. You end up with a middle of the road Bond adventure, that has some fun moments and entertaining sequences- but in the end it gets lost in the mix as a watchable but forgettable entry
Roger Moore in James Bond as he brings his gadgets and secret agent skills to New Orleans. What I love about this one is the voodoo aspect incorporated into the usual Bond adventure. Jane Seymour plays a tarot card reader who's unusually accurate. Yaphet Kotto is Kananga, Bond's adversary for this film. Grew up with Moore being the Bond of my childhood, so always enjoyed those.
The movie's opening has an 'Introducing Jane Seymour' credit and what I'd consider to be the best title song of the Bond series, featuring Paul McCartney and Wings singing "Live and Let Die". "Goldfinger" fans might object, but I actually do like it better than the Shirley Bassey song. With Roger Moore appearing for the first time as James Bond, he's eased into the role by not having to stop some sinister plot for global domination. Moore makes for an effective and eye appealing Bond, perhaps a tad more dashing than Sean Connery. His pairing with Jane Seymour as tarot reader Solitaire treats the viewer to an eye candy couple in every scene they appear together, though I'd have to say Seymour didn't appear particularly comfortable in the role, but did get to wear some stunning outfits. In retrospect, her casting as a card reader for heroin smuggler and all around bad guy Mr. Big Kananga (Yaphet Kotto) didn't seem to make a lot of sense, but then you have the rest of the movie where a whole lot of stuff didn't make any sense. Like Bond shuffling his way across a crocodile littered swamp using their backs for support. I saw that coming as his only way out and still couldn't believe the film makers did it. The other story concession that put the picture into 'over the top' category was the casting of Clifton James as the red neck sheriff Pepper. Gosh if it wasn't embarrassing to sit through the scenes he was in; he made my skin crawl more than any snake or crocodile they could come up with. Speaking of which, I couldn't tell if those snake close-ups featured live ones or the rubber variety. The first time we see one in a scene where a victim gets struck on the neck, there wasn't even a bite mark to show for it. That was almost as bad as the boat chase scene in which one of Kananga's henchmen was forced onto a covered bridge in which it exploded, but as the boat entered, you could see there was no driver in it!
Live And Let Die is a decent Bond adventure and a great introduction to Roger Moore. It is far from perfect but it is still quite enjoyable to watch.
Still enjoyable after all these years. A bit over the top and the original book makes a lot more sense as stories go but still a thoroughly fun to watch