19 Comments

Excellent post, man! Learned so much!! Been a Bond fan forever and always loved this one and you've filled in a lot of holes in my knowledge. Thank you!

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Thanks, Baye. I'm sure you know more about 007 than me. Do you have a Bond movie Top Three?

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Casino Royale, Skyfall, The spy who loved me

runner-ups: For your eyes only, goldfinger

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Oh and damn! License to Kill...the darkest bond, dalton was great!!

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Agreed. Great underrated film.

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Brilliant subject! I saw this film once—rented the videotape from my little shop in Bunkyo ku about 1988 or so. What I love the most is the on-location shooting in the 60s. What a time capsule, particularly for people who live here.

Another old color movie to watch for the same nostalgia is Love Is a Many Splendored Thing with William Holden. Filmed in HK in the late 1950s. What a gem.

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Yeah, not my favorite Bond but I love the locations.

1988?! Do you mean you have been in Japan longer than me???

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Yes. It seems so.

A misspent youth.

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May 29, 2022Liked by Gianni Simone

Great post Gianni! For all its flaws still my favourite Bond film.

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Thanks, Tony. Yes, it's not bad though I must say I still prefer Goldfinger.

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May 28, 2022Liked by Gianni Simone

I remembered it was AppleTV, not Netflix, that I watched Janes Bond on. We had a bit of a movie binge after not owning a TV for several years!

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We have a TV but I rarely watch it. I prefer the internet's endless offer of interesting films, docs, etc. I'm currently watching Father Ted!

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The benefit of watching YouTube, the internet etc on the TV we found was having a bigger screen. In terms of actual TV shows, we hardly watch any. 🙂

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Well done!

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May 27, 2022Liked by Gianni Simone

A fabulous post Gianni. Very well researched and presented. It’s only recently that I’ve watched this movie, when we finally subscribed to Netflix. I had written about in the context of ninja but hadn’t had the opportunity to see the movie. The link to the post follows if you’re interested. 😊

https://elementaljapan.com/2017/12/02/ninja-go-the-elements-in-action/

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Thanks for the link, Jann. I'm currently trying to beat a deadline, but I'll sure to read your piece. Your essays are always interesting and thought-provoking. I didn't know you were into Lego movies!

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I’m into anything that has a connection to the elements. That includes Lego movies. 😄

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Great stuff, Gianni. An enjoyable read. I could never take the Bond franchise seriously but believe that Sean Connery was/is the best James Bond of all time - even with dodgy Japanese garb. Interesting insights into the making of 'You Only Live Twice'.

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Jun 3, 2022·edited Jun 3, 2022Author

Thanks, Astrogirl. Sean Connery was excellent, of course, and I also like Daniel Craig. Timothy Dalton only lasted two films because his dark, gritty stories were ahead of their time, but they are not half bad.

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