James Bond Ultimate Edition - Vol. 1 (The Man with the Golden Gun / Goldfinger / The World Is Not Enough / Diamonds Are Forever / The Living Daylights)
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Average customer review:Product Description
Disc 1: *Goldfinger (1964) THE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Guy Hamilton Audio Commentary Featuring Cast and Crew
Disc 2: **Goldfinger Bonus Disc DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT Sean Connery From the Set of Goldfinger Screen Tests On Tour With the Aston Martin DB-5 Honor Blackman Open-Ended Interview 007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of Goldfinger The Making of Goldfinger The Goldfinger Phenomenon Original Publicity Featurette MINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Original Trailers, TV Spots, Photo Gallery & Radio Communications
Disc 3: *The World Is Not Enough (1999) THE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Director Michael Apted Audio Commentary Featuring Peter Lamont, David Arnold and Vic Armstrong
Disc 4: **The World Is Not Enough Bonus Disc DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT Deleted Scenes and Alternate Angles With Introductions by Director Michael Apted Alternate Angle, Expanded Angle Scene: The Thames Boat Chase James Bond Down River - Original 1999 Featurette Creating an Icon: Making the Teaser Trailer Hong Kong Press Conference 007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of The World Is Not Enough The Making of The World Is Not Enough Bond Cocktail Tribute to Desmond Llewelyn Garbage 'The World Is Not Enough' Music Video The Secrets of 007 MINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Original Trailer & Photo Gallery
Disc 5: *Diamonds Are Forever (1971) THE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Director Guy Hamilton and Members of the Cast and Crew
Disc 6: **Diamonds Are Forever Bonus Disc DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT Deleted Scenes Sean Connery 1971: The BBC Interview Lesson # 007: Close Quarter Combat Deleted Footage - Oil Rig Attack Satellite & Explosions Test Reel Alternate & Expanded Angles 007 007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of Diamonds Are Forever Inside Diamonds Are Forever Cubby Broccoli - The Man Behind Bond MINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Original Trailers, TV Spots, Photo Gallery & Radio Communications
Disc 7: *The Man With The Golden Gun (1974) **The Man With The Golden Gun Bonus Disc Newly Recorded Audio Commentary Featuring Sir Roger Moore THE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Director Guy Hamilton and Members of the Cast and Crew
Disc 8: DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT Roger Moore and HervÃ(c) Villechaize - The Russell Harty Show On Location With The Man With the Golden Gun Guy Hamilton: The Director Speaks Girls Fighting American Thrill Show Stunt Film The Road to Bond: Stunt Coordinator W.J. Millian Jr. 007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of The Man With the Golden Gun Inside The Man With the Golden Gun An Original Documentary Double-O Stuntmen: A Look at the Greatest Stunts and Stunt Performers in the Bond Films MINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Original Trailers, TV Spots, Photo Gallery & Radio Communications
Disc 9: *The Living Daylights (1987) THE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Director John Glen and Members of the Cast and Crew
Disc 10: **The Living Daylights Bonus Disc DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT Deleted Scenes With Introduction by John Glen Happy Anniversary, 007 Silver Anniversary Featurettes Timothy Dalton: The New James Bond/Vienna Press Conference Timothy Dalton: On Acting Dalton and d'Abo Interviews The Ice Chase Outtakes - Deleted Footage With Director John Glen Narration 007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of The Living Daylights Inside The Living Daylights Ian Fleming: 007's Creator a-ha 'The Living Daylights' Music Video The Making of 'The Living Daylights' Music Video MINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Original Trailers, TV Spots, Photo Gallery & Radio Communications
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #1888 in DVD
- Released on: 2006-11-07
- Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
- Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
- Formats: Box set, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
- Original language: Arabic, English, French, German, Russian, Thai
- Number of discs: 10
- Running time: 614 minutes
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
The Man with the Golden Gun: The British superspy with a license to kill takes on his dark underworld double, a classy assassin who kills with golden bullets at $1 million a hit. Roger Moore, in his second outing as James Bond, meets Christopher Lee's Scaramanga, one of the most magnetic villains in the entire series, in this entertaining but rather wan entry in the 007 sweepstakes. Bond's globetrotting search takes him to Hong Kong, Bangkok, and finally China, where Scaramanga turns his island retreat into a twisted theme park for a deadly game of wits between the gunmen, moderated by Scaramanga's diminutive man Friday Nick Nack (Fantasy Island's Herv Villechaize). Moore balances the overplayed humor of the film with a steely performance and Lee's charm and enthusiasm makes Scaramanga a cool, deadly, and thoroughly enchanting adversary. --Sean Axmaker
Goldfinger: To own Goldfinger (1964) on DVD is to have at your fingertips the proof that Sean Connery is the definitive James Bond. No one but Connery can believably seduce women so effortlessly, kill with almost as much ease, and then pull another bottle of Dom Perignon '53 out of the fridge. Goldfinger contains many of the most memorable scenes in the Bond series: gorgeous Shirley Eaton (as Jill Masterson) coated in gold paint by evil Auric Goldfinger and deposited in Bond's bed; silent Oddjob, flipping a razor-sharp derby like a Frisbee to sever heads; our hero spread-eagle on a table while a laser beam moves threateningly toward his crotch. Honor Blackman's Pussy Galore is the prototype for the series' rash of man-hating supermodels. And Desmond Llewelyn makes his first appearance as Q, giving Bond what is still his most impressive car, a snazzy little number that fires off smoke screens, punctures the tires of vehicles on the chase, and boasts a handy ejector seat. Go! ldfinger's two climaxes, inside Fort Knox and aboard a private plane, have to be seen to be believed. --Raphael Shargel
The World Is Not Enough:Bond 5.0, Pierce Brosnan, undercuts his usually suave persona with a darker, more brutal edge largely absent since Sean Connery departed. Equally tantalizing are our initial glimpses of Bond's nemesis du jour, Renard (Robert Carlyle), and imminent love interest, Elektra King (Sophie Marceau), both atypically complex characters cast with seemingly shrewd choices, and directed by the capable Michael Apted. The story's focus on post-Soviet geopolitics likewise starts off on a savvy note, before being overtaken by increasingly Byzantine plot twists, hidden motives, and reversals of loyalty superheated by relentless (if intermittently perfunctory) action sequences.--Sam Sutherland
Diamonds Are Forever: Sean Connery retired from the 007 franchise after You Only Live Twice but was lured back for one last official appearance as James Bond in Diamonds Are Forever. He's in fine form--cool but ruthless--in a sharp precredits sequence hunting the unkillable Blofeld (a suavely menacing Charles Gray in this incarnation), but the MacGuffin of a story (involving diamond smuggling, a superlaser on a satellite, and Blofeld's latest plot to rule the world ) is full of the groaning tongue-in-cheek gags that Roger Moore would make his signature. Goldfinger director Guy Hamilton keeps the film zipping along gamely from one entertaining set piece to another, including a terrific car chase in a parking lot, a battle with a pair of bikini-clad killer gymnasts named Bambi and Thumper, and a deadly game with a bizarre pair of fey, sardonic killers who dispatch their victims with elaborate invention. Connery retired again after this one but he returned once more, for Nev! er Say Never Again 15 years later. --Sean Axmaker
The Living Daylights: Timothy Dalton made his 007 debut in the lean, mean mode of Sean Connery, doing away with the pun-filled camp of Roger Moore's final outings. He establishes his persona right from the gritty pre-credits sequence, in which he hangs from a speeding truck as it barrels down narrow cobblestone streets, battles an assassin mano a mano, and lands in the arms of a bikinied babe. This James Bond is ruthless, tough, and romantic. The Living Daylights, set during the thaw of the cold war, begins with the defection of Russian KGB General Koskov (Jeroen Krabb) and his revelation of a Soviet plot to eliminate Britain's secret agent force. Assigned to eliminate Koskov's Soviet boss (John Rhys-Davies), Bond uncovers a conspiracy involving Koskov and an American arms dealer (Joe Don Baker). Maryam d'Abo makes a fine Bond girl as Koskov's beautiful cellist girlfriend, a classy innocent who soon loses her naive blush and shows her pluck. Veteran series director John Glen's action scenes have never been better--especially the show-stopping mid-air battle on the net of a speeding cargo plane--and he returns the series to the smart, rough, high-energy adventures that made the Bond reputation. --Sean Axmaker Beyond James Bond Ultimate Collection - Vol. 1
| James Bond Ultimate Collection - Vol. 2 | James Bond Ultimate Edition - Vol. 3 | James Bond Ultimate Edition - Vol. 4 |
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Customer Reviews
The Ultimate Sets are the way to go! Dump the Special Editions when you can!
After waiting for a very long time to acquire the Bond Ultimate Edition sets at a reasonable price, I finally ditched my Special Editions in favor of the new ones. I, perhaps like many others, was always reluctant to give up my Special Editions because frankly I spent a lot of time and money putting the original, Special Edition set together.
After watching the Special Edition and Ultimate Edition of "Dr.No", I finally realized how "ultimate" the new discs are. Gone are the film scratches, imperfections and faded colors that plagued most of the Bond early films such as the Connery & some of the Moore films. The new Dolby & DTS 5.1 surround sound are fantastic! The 1962 "Dr. No" looks like it was filmed yesterday. The special features on "Dr. No" includes a segment on the outstanding work put into the frame by frame restoration. A truly tremendous effort and much appreciated!
I like the slim-line cases for the new sets. My entire Bond collection now only takes up less than half the space on my shelves than it did before. Although I tend to agree with other reviewers that it's kind of cheesy how the booklets for each film are stored in the box and not the individual cases, the overall quality of the DVD's negate any negatives. I spend more time watching the films than browsing the booklets. Forget buying any of the Ultimate Editions individually which are single discs because the DVD's in the Ultimate Edition box sets are double-disc sets. One disc for the feature film for optimized quality and one disc for the special features.
I'm not bothered in the fact that all films in all four volumes are not packaged chronologically, since I went through the same process when I purchased the Special Edition box sets. I understand the studio's logic for "mixing it up", since a chronological DVD order would mean more popular sales for the Connery sets and lower sales for the Moore/Daulton sets. I'm a fan of all the Bond films as I appreciate all of the different actors from Connery, Lazenby, Moore, Daulton, Bronson to Craig and what each one of them has contributed to the Bond Legacy. Many thanks to Daniel Craig for resurrecting this franchise with his outstanding debut in "Casino Royale". Looking forward to "Quantum of Solace" later this year.
VOLUME 1; This is the volume that will be a safe choice for anyone of some interest for Bond. Perhaps for casual fans that are interested in purchasing only one volume then this is the one to get. "Goldfinger" is clearly one of the most, popular Connery movies with many iconic moments such as Mary Masterson's gold, painted body & the big laser machine that's about to zap Connery's private parts. "The World is Not Enough" is a visual pleasure because it has some of the hottest bond girls, Denise Richards & Sophie Marceau. "Man with the Golden gun" has one of bond's greatest adversaries played by Christopher Lee. "The Living Daylights" has the impressive debut of Timothy Daulton. I thought Daulton was a good Bond as he brought a seriousness back into the role after the sometimes comedic moments of Moore. Although it has some humorous moments, Connery's last film "Diamonds are Forever" is nonetheless satisfying.
No Order to these movies
I don't like these 007 box sets for one reason only. I would love to have seen these movies in the order they were made, not jumping from one actor to another actor playing the same part in the same box set. It makes it MUCH less enjoyable.
Smorgasbord For Bond Fans
While it may be assumed that those looking to buy a box set of James Bond films have already seen them all and formed a favorable opinion of them, that's not necessarily true. For instance, I had previously seen none of these, but had seen enough other Bond films to want to acquire them all and so I started with this set.
Like several other reviewers, I was at first annoyed that they were not presented in chronological order. But then, the rightful profit motive of Eon Productions is immediately transparent. If they had been issued in chronological order, then those who preferred one Bond over another might be likely to buy only the set with their favorite in them. By presenting them in seemingly random order, Bond fans will have to get them all. Beyond thirst for profit, Eon Productions has done the fan a favor. The Ultimate Edition series is truly a smorgasbord for Bond fans. In order for the fan to get his money's worth, he will be forced to reevaluate his original opinion of a Bond film by having to watch it a second time. If the viewer follows the sequence of the random order, he can then usefully compare and contrast the films either to reaffirm his old view or form a new one altogether.
I like all the films in this set to varying degrees. Some of them sometimes rely too much on gadgetry and loads of sexual innuendo to carry them, but they all do what they are supposed to do: entertain. While Goldfinger is often cited by critics as the benchmark by which all other Bond films are to be judged, its not my favorite here. Here's my list of favorites from most to least:
1) The Living Daylights: That surprised me because Timothy Dalton is far less famous as James Bond than any except perhaps George Lazenby. Great action, exotic locales, obligitory evil villains and a luscious Maryam D'Abo as Bond's latest love interest. The scenes in Afghanistan are of topical interest because we are now there instead of the Russians. My favorite action sequence is the thrilling chase of Bond and defecting cellist Kara Milovy (D'Abo) through the snow by Czech troops and their subsequent escape into Austria from Czechoslovakia. Next I enjoyed Bond's thrilling fight with his nemesis while clinging to a cargo net dangling precariously from a plane flying high over the Afghan desert. The fight scene in the truck as it careens down a narrow mountain road on Gibraltar is no slouch, either. This one is an under-rated gem.
2)The Man With the Golden Gun: Good story and acting although the martial arts scenes were somewhat cartoonish. Roger Moore makes an excellent Bond here and Christopher Lee as Francisco Scaramanga is delightfully wicked. I was surprised that to see that Scaramanga is not actually played by an Italian, because in the film his character has very classically Italian features. Britt Ekland as Goodnight is attractive, but her character is ditzy and often "dumb blonde". Even when she does something right, she somehow screws up. My favorite scene is the chase through the canals of Bangkok followed by the frantic effort to escape Scaramanga's disintegrating hideaway before it detonates.
Herve Villechaize adds much to the menace of the film with his cunning portrayal of the not-so-loyal Scaramanga flunkey Nick Nack.
3)Diamonds Are Forever: Sean Connery is back as Bond and in top form. Its another good but improbable story. The film is filled with appropriately evil villains who have the wits to nearly match those of Bond, another beauty in Jill St John, and more silly names to snicker at: Blofeld and Plenty O'Toole. My favorite scene is the moonbuggy chase through the desert followed closely by the scene in the mortuary where Bond was nearly cremated. Plenty of gags, a couple of wise-cracking gay assassins and sly innuendo will keep you laughing.
4)Goldfinger: Here's an early look at Sean Connery as Bond. Suave, debonair, a real ladies man yet ever ready to meet danger. Bond insinuates himself into the affairs of super-tycoon Auric Goldfinger and just happens to overhear the name of his masterplan. What that plan entailed, Bond was soon to find out, and what follows is a non-stop sequence of action-packed thrills. There are plenty of interesting gadgets though fewer here than in some of the later films. There are the silly names Auric (=AU=gold) and Pussy Galore which though likely tittilating at the time of the film's release now sounds lame. My favorite scene is the climax of the film when the battle is on for Fort Knox. Auric Goldfinger's plot comes close to succeeding, but you know it won't.
5)The World Is Not Enough: A very improbable story line, but not impossible. The film has great topical appeal even today considering on-going oil supply worries. There is action aplenty, of course. I like the helicopters that use huge saws to cut through every obstacle. The best scenes are the early ski chase and then the later battle on the ramshackle oil piers of the Caspian Sea. Villains abound and who is friend or foe not always clear. And of course, Bond always gets the girl(s) one way or the other.
The biggest question to ask yourself before buying the set is "will I get my money's worth?". The answer to that is a resounding yes. Even if you don't like one of the films, Eon Productions gives you added incentive to buy the set by adding discs filled with extras for each of the movies. This is one instance when you are better off buying the box set rather than each movie individually. Now that I've thoroughly enjoyed the James Bond Ultimate Edition-Volume 1, its on to Volume 2!










