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For Your Eyes Only (1981) is the twelfth film in the
EON James Bond series, and is directed by John Glen. The
film stars Roger Moore as James Bond, and co-stars Julian
Glover, Carole Bouquet, Chaim Topol, and Lynn-Holly Johnson.
The musical sco re is performed by Bill Conti and the title
song sung by Sheena Easton. ***
After doing away with an old nemesis (presumably once
and for all), Bond receives his latest assignment from Military
Intelligence – to investigate a Greek smuggler who is trying
to obtain technology to control nuclear submarines. Along
the way he meets up with a beautiful Greek woman who had
her parents murdered by this diabolical mastermind. It’s
up to Bond to infiltrate the operation, and prevent a potential
nuclear war from erupting. ***
This was John Glen’s first James Bond film as a full-blown
director – he previously served as a second-unit director
on On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. He would direct all
five EON James Bond films released in the decade. And while
the ones he would direct that followed this one were mostly
godawful, For Your Eyes Only comes as a pleasant surprise.
Not only is it not a bad film, it’s one of Roger Moore’s
best films in the series. ***
The film (primarily) takes its elements from two short
stories in Ian Fleming’s For Your Eyes Only short story
collection – the title story, which was about a woman seeking
revenge for her parents’ murder, and Risico, a short story
about the Greek smugglers and their operations. And perhaps
most importantly of all, unlike the over-the-top Moonraker
that came before, For Your Eyes Only is a down-to-earth,
often gritty adventure that maintains the spirit of the
Fleming stores. While the main plot itself is a bit cheesy,
it does get downplayed in favor of the characters and their
exploits – a smart decision in this viewer’s opinion. It’s
nice to have another Bond film with a more realistic villain,
not some overdone megalomaniac with an underground lair
and stereotypical henchmen. ***
Roger Moore gives one of his better performances as
James Bond here, though he is showing his age throughout
the movie (but that’s true of most of the films he was in,
particularly the later ones.) The real stand-out performances
in the film come from Chaim Topol and Julian Glover as the
Greek smugglers the film revolves around. Their characters’
history, and the way these actors play these characters,
bring them to life excellently. Definitely some of the most
underrated performances in the series. ***
Like most James Bond films, the musical score here
is excellent, albeit slightly different from other films
in the series. This one was scored by Bill Conti, perhaps
most famous for scoring the Rocky and Karate Kid series
of films. Sheena Easton’s title song is a nice little ballad,
and a terrific change of pace from the traditional opening
Bond themes. ***
As good as For Your Eyes Only may be, the movie isn’t
perfect. Like many entries in the series, it drags on longer
than it needs to – did we really need those scenes with
the blonde skater girl? At times, it puts along at a snail’s
pace – a far cry from the Terence Young films from the days
of old. There are some boring moments here and there, and
while they don’t totally derail the film, they do ensure
that this would not be20a good movie for someone who is
just beginning to explore the franchise. Still, for what
it is, For Your Eyes Only is a very good film. It doesn’t
quite touch the sixties Bonds, but it’s still better than
most of the other post-sixties entries. 4 stars out of 5.
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Image and Sound:
Several years ago, the James Bond movies (which had
seen a ton of home video releases already) underwent an
extensive, frame-by-frame restoration. A good deal of print
damage and dirt were removed in an effort that took several
years to complete. ***
The end result is, to put it simply, well worth it.
***
Lowry Digital Images knows how to restore movies. Their
restoration of the James Bond back ca talogue is, hands
down, the greatest restoration job this reviewer has EVER
seen. This film is no exception. They have taken movies,
that are in some cases, nearly half a century old, and made
them look as good as they day when they premiered in theatres,
if not better. The image is clear throughout, without any
sort of issue. From what I can tell, no DNR was used in
these transfers, and there is a staggering amount of detain
not noticeable in any standard-def release of the movie.
Lowry did one hell of a job restoring this franchise. ***
As if the image restoration wasn’t enough, the films
now have lossless audio tracks. If you’ve got a speaker
set, you’ll be able to experience these films (both audio
and visual-wise) like you never have before. ---
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