Product Details

• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Format: NTSC
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish, German, French, Italian
• Running time: 134 minutes

Amazon.com
After years of enduring Roger Moore in the role of James Bond, it was good to have Sean Connery back in this 1983 film for a one-time-only trip down 007's memory lane. Connery's Bond, a bit of a dinosaur in the British secret service at (then) 52, is still in demand during times of crisis. Sadly, the film is not very good. In this rehash of Thunderball, Bond is pitted against a worthy underwater villain (Klaus Maria Brandauer); and while the requisite Bond Girls include beauties Kim Basinger and Barbara Carrera, they can't save the movie. The script has several truly dumb passages, among them a (gasp) video-game duel between 007 and his nemesis that now looks utterly anachronistic. For Connery fans, however, this widescreen print of the Irvin Kershner (The Empire Strikes Back) film is a chance to say a final goodbye to a perfect marriage of actor and character. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Missing Footage? You Can Get it Replaced.
As some of the reviews here note, there is a large piece of missing footage on this DVD between chapters 19 & 20 (when the disc changes layers). Is yours missing footage? Here's how to check. Start at chapter 19 and follow Bond as he gate crashes the Casino and sticks the bouncer in the closet. If your DVD jumps from Bond leaving the bouncer in the closet with the "bomb" in his hand (Bond says,"Good boy"), to a scene inside the casino where Bond, Domino, and Largo enter the private game room (Largo saying, "These are my friends..."), then you've got a dud. What you should have seen is Bond going from the bouncer in the closet -- to a shot of Bond through the casino door peep hole -- he enters casino -- sticks gun in ice bucket -- enters video game room -- meets Domino ("My name is Bond, James Bond") -- meets Largo, etc. If yours is defective (and many of them where) the good news is you can return it and get a replacement DVD by calling MGMÕs customer service dept at 1-877-MGM-4YOU (or emailing them at 4you@mgm.com) and following their instructions. I did this and I now have a new, complete NSNA DVD.

An Entire Scene Is MISSING from this DVD
Did anyone out there who bought this DVD or reviewed it take the time to watch it? There is an entire scene missing from it!

After James Bond crashes the formal gala affair and leaves the doorman in the coatroom, the film jumps directly to the video duel between Largo and Bond. The scene in between is missing. That scene is where Bond surprises Domino. She had previously seen him at the health spa where he gave her a rub down, she thinking he was a member of the staff. The scene that is missing is where Bond introduces himself to her and she stumbles over her lines ordering a "Bloody Mary with plenty of Worchester sauce."

For that significant omission I can not recommend this DVD. Also, other than the trailer there are no extras on this DVD. The aesthetic qualities of this film speak for themselves.

Sean Connery's Last Bond Film Is A Flawed Winner
Holding the rights to Thunderball, Kevin McClory decided to make a new Bond Film in 1975. Amazingly enough, Sean Connery was interested in playing Bond again if he had script approval. The film originally was going to only loosely based on Thunderball, but after a few years of legal battles with EON it became simply a remake of that earlier film. Still, it is a good Bond film, even though it does have its flaws. The most obvious strength that Never Say Never Again has is Connery, Sean Connery. Even though he looked his age, he looked fit and ready for the usual Bond action. In fact, he looked like he was in better shape than he was for his last Bond film, Diamonds Are Forever, in 1971. The plot of the film very closely follows that of Thunderball, with some updating of the details and technology for 1983. Director Irvin Kershner (The Empire Strikes Back) does a fine job with the movie, and the cast gives some excellent performances (including Klaus Maria Brandauer as Largo, Barbara Carerra as Fatima Blush - her performance and character seems to be the blueprint for Xenia Onatopp from Goldeneye, Kim Basinger as Domino, Bernie Casey as Felix Leiter, and the great Max Von Sydow as Blofeld). The weaknesses of the film? It doesn't quite LOOK as spectacular as the official Bond films - it has a lower budget look to it than the EON films. Another flaw: the characters of "M" and Nigel Small-Fawcett, both of whom seem like they belong in a Bond spoof rather than the real thing. Both of them ruin their respective scenes due to the attempts at comedy by Edward Fox and Rowan Atkinson. The music is often great (some really good Jazz), but at other times seems inappropriate for particular scenes. The lack of the "James Bond Theme," also detracts a little from the film (but not much). But when you've got Sean Connery, a solid plot, and a good (overall) supporting cast, you've got a winner. NSNA could have been better, but for a Bond film outside of the official EON Productions banner Never Say Never Again acquits itself quite nicely. It's a shame that the DVD wasn't given the Bond Special Edition treatment, but it is still worth buying anyway.