Released (US): August 3, 1977
Genre: Action/Adventure
Length: 125 Min.
Director: Lewis Gilbert
Writer: Christopher Wood & Richard Maibaum
Major Cast Members:
Roger Moore – James Bond
Barbara Bach – Major Anya Amasova
Curd Jürgens – Karl Stromberg
Richard Kiel – Jaws
Bernard Lee – M
Awards:
ASCAP Award – Most Performed Feature Film Standards
Golden Screen Award (Germany)
Budget: $14,000,000
Box Office: $185,400,000
Plot Overview: Several nuclear submarines disappeared and James Bond, along with Russian secret agent Major Anya Amasova, is sent to find them. Frequent encounters with villain Karl Stromberg and his henchman Jaws almost trip the two up, but they persevere. However, can they stop the nuclear subs in time before they destroy New York and Moscow? Bond must escape captivity and rescue Anya before it’s all over.
Did you know?: The Spy Who Loved Me is the only one of the Bond films to be produced in the same order as the book series. The tenth movie is also the tenth novel.
Review: Roger Moore returns for a third stint as James Bond 007, and, as always, third time’s a charm. The Spy Who Loved Me is the best of Moore’s first three Bond flicks. This still doesn’t mean that Moore has reached Connery level, but it at least indicates that the Bond series is not totally lost after a couple sub-par installations of the Bond series.
Thankfully, the world is threatened once again in a Bond movie. Specifically New York and Moscow, but that’s better than having personal revenge vendettas against Bond or a heroin dealer threatening to flood the market with drugs. Nuclear subs with an evil mastermind seems much more fitting for a Bond flick.
As far as the rest of the plot, it was definitely the best since the beginning of the Moore era. Enough action to keep it interesting, and the action scenes were good. The climactic ending on the ship was particularly well done. While not the most gripping or suspensful movie ever made, there was some tension throughout the movie that made it exciting. Jaws vs. Bond was great and prevalent throughout the movie, it almost seemed like Jaws was the real enemy at some points.
Absent from the previous film, some of the exciting stunts were back as well. Additionally, some of the funky gadgets started to insert themselves into the plotline. Most notably were the jet ski in a bag and the underwater car. They are without a doubt cool, and, although they are certainly more prevalent than some of the more recent Bond movies, they are not absorbing and controlling of the plot.
As far as the cast is concerned, this was probably the strongest of the first three Moore films. Moore himself was solid this time around. He still seems a little looser and more comical than Connery, but he was able to control that slightly better in The Spy Who Loved Me. He is improving a little with each film, and one can only hope that this trend continues in his coming films.
The supporting cast, featuring Barbara Bach as Major Anya Amasova and Curd Jürgens as Karl Stromberg, was strong as well. Bach was one of the better Bond Girls to date. She looked good, was strong, and could hold her own. Compared to Mary Goodnight in The Man With the Golden Gun, Major Anya is terrific. She just seems like the prototypical Bond Girl. Stromberg was a good villain, as his plot to destroy major cities was solid and he appeared to be a genuine villain. Not as good as Scaramanga, but still a solid overall contributor to the movie.
While not the best Bond movie, it is definitely a step forward when compared to the other Bond films featuring Roger Moore. Hopefully, Moore improves on the solid performance.
Final Grade: B
Other Reviews:
DVDTown: “…pulled Roger Moore from the shadow of his predecessor and established him as a bone fide Bond who had not yet fallen into self-parody.”
DVD Verdict: “What the movie does do, is move quickly with a great deal of style and panache. It contains all the action, wit, beautiful women, high quality special effects and exotic locations audiences have come to expect for almost 40 years. Along with For Your Eyes Only, The Spy Who Loved Me is Roger Moore’s best work as 007 and as such belongs on any serious action fan’s movie shelf.”
Filmcritic.com: “James Bond had his 10th outing in this epic affair, which ushered in the new era of Bond as not just over the top but rather way, way, way over it.”
Movie Vault: “The Roger Moore Bond series reached its pinnacle with The Spy Who Loved Me.”
EFilm Critic: “It may not be as gritty as From Russia With Love or as grand as Goldfinger but The Spy Who Loved Me remains the definitive Moore Bond. Cocky, big and thrilling (oo-er!), Bond was back on firm ground and having the timeof his life.”
TVGuide: “As the Bond series moved deeper into the 1970s, the emphasis moved away from the inventive scripts that made the best Sean Connery films fine examples of the spy genre and toward the kind of feats of daring and visual spectacle that abound in The Spy Who Loved Me.”
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