Review: Diamonds are Forever (1971)

'Exceptionally fine shot.'

★★★

It's no secret that Sean Conney began to grow bored and upset with the franchise and the producers, Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli. That explained his absence in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service." He was afraid of being "typecasted" and was uspet with the producers secretly looking for a replacement. However, after George Lazenby declined to return after "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," producers Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli tested other actors, but studio United Artists wanted Connery back, so they asked Connery to return. He agreed, only to recieve a higher salary.

Before Lazenby declined to returned, the original script had Bond seeking revenge for the death of his wife Tracy Bond. Tracy's death would have been part of the pre-titles sequence. However, since Lazenby declined to return, the script had to be rewritten, removing any mention of Tracy. However, it did keep the "Diamonds" subplot.

In the final script of "Diamonds Are Forever (1971)," the plot follows James Bond (Sean Connery) as he investigates a diamond smuggling ring that leads him to a plot involving his old nemesis, Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Charles Gray). Bond's mission takes him from Amsterdam to Las Vegas, where he uncovers Blofeld's plan to use diamonds to power a space laser capable of mass destruction. Along the way, Bond teams up with Tiffany Case (Jill St. John), a smuggler, and faces off against the menacing duo of Mr. Wint (Bruce Glover) and Mr. Kidd (Putter Smith).

This film works as a sequel to "You Only Live Twice," not to "On Her Majesty's Secret Service." And in my opinion, a better film than "You Only Live Twice." Mostly cause of the story and Connery's performance. Connery seems to have broughten back some of his energy from the previous films, however, you can still catch some moments where he appears bored. Connery also has aged in the four year span. He works well with Jill St. John, the first ever American Bond girl and a great addition to the franchise. Charles Grey as Blofeld was a strange decision. I never understood why Blofeld always changed actors. I understand why Telly Savalas was brought in for the last film. Donald Pleasence was old to do the stunts. But for this film, I never understood why he was recast, again. Maybe because it was most of the payment was going to Connery, or maybe Grey was friends with the producers after his last notable role in "You Only Live Twice." It's unknown, but it was still a strange casting decision.

I still enjoy this film, despite how many do not. We go to the movies for different reasons. I go into Bond films for a sense of entertainment and excitement. Others may go in for other reasons. This film is great at doing the things we see a James Bond movie for and still has a lot of great elements and stuff that I didn't particularly cared for. It's also worth noting how much the producers tried so hard to make this the next Goldfinger. With came back Guy Hamilton, the director, Shirley Bassey, the singer of the theme song, and other minor things. There are worse and better Bond films in the franchise. This falls in the "good" section. There are worse and better Bond films in the franchise. This falls in the "good" section. In this, final performance, Connery exits as James Bond in fine fashion.