Sean Connery as Bond.
Honor Blackman as Pussy Galore.
Our 007 lookbacks arrive at the iconic Goldfinger…
For many this istheBond film.
The quintessential Bond facing the ultimate villain who utters the greatest line midway through the most iconic scene.
Plus Honor Blackman could easily lay a claim to being the premier leading lady.
The Villain:Monumental.
A hugely charismatic figure and the most jovial of baddies, the Big Man utterly dominates the film.
Utters the best comeback of the franchise.
Also employs the best manservant this side of Jeeves.
He casts a huge shadow few of his successors can escape from.
The Girl:Legendary.
Judo expert, gun-toting, damn good pilot: Pussy Galore is the first kick-ass Bond girl.
Actually girl is horribly misleading Pussy is a woman and by far the better for it.
Appears relatively late yet slots into the mix seamlessly.
She plays a vital role in foiling Goldfinger: indeed without her Bond fails.
Makes most of her counterparts look wet by comparison.
Laugh at her name and shell break your nose.
Lets start with the duck essentially the opening shot of the film.
The duck quite possibly takes the highly competitive title of most significant duck in cinematic history.
For the duck is attached to James Bonds head as he swims underwater.
It wont be coming out for a while.
Therefore this particular retrospective is a little different.
I hope this approach proves fruitful.
If not, serves me right for trying something new.
A big bad song about a big bad man sung by a woman with a big bad voice.
Confession: Im not a great fan.
I find the song bombastic, overbearing and the lyrics are pretty terrible.
The two other Bassey numbers Diamonds are ForeverandMoonraker are far superior.
And I admit the tune was stuck in my head for a couple of days after writing this.
But how often will you walk into a bar and hearGoldfingerplaying?
After the song we see Bond at his most embarrassing.
This breaks the structure somewhat but I cant resist.
So were outside a Miami hotel.
Felix Leiter finds Bond enjoying a poolside massage from a young lady named Dink.
So far so civil.
Bond then dismisses Dink with the words man talk and slaps her arse as she leaves.
I present this without comment because really, what is there to say?
Worse is to follow.
Within minutes Bond spouts the least cool line of the entire series.
Thats just as bad as listening to the Beatles without earmuffs.
Its quite an achievement to be sexist, snobbish and terribly out of touch all at once.
Truly what women want and men want to be.
Shirley Eaton received more publicity for under five minutes of screen time than Honor Blackman did as Pussy Galore.
But, as with the duck, the gilded body of Jill Masterson carries a larger significance.
Hers is the first truly OTT death of the Bond franchise.
Noyoull have to take my word on the dragon).
The moment where someone is painted to death is usually a bad one for plausibility.
Run over by a steam train.
Falls into Hadron Collider (need scene in Brussels?)
But no death can ever match the impact of Jill Mastersons.
A macabre legacy but a significant one.
After the duck, and the corpse, we now meet The Most Famous Car in Cinema.
The Bond-Q dynamic is established instantly: I love Connerys pained expression when Q begins elaborating on the features.
Here Bond doesnt escape and thus the gadgets are ultimately redundant.
And even that gets crushed in poor Mr Solos pressing engagement.
The Aston marked the first major victory for the latter camp.
The only surprise is it took them so long.
Oddjob is the first henchman and by far the most famous.
He certainly ticks the henchman boxes.
He has a weird name.
So far, so par for the course.
Nor does he look particularly threatening: a stocky little man dressed in a butlers outfit and bowler hat.
Yet Oddjob is a nasty piece of work, murdering the Masterson sisters without a second thought.
Such is the power of a good idea.
This scene is regularly voted the Greatest Ever Bond Moment or some such variation.
And realistically it wont ever be topped.
It is poetic in its simplicity.
Just Bond, Goldfinger, and a laser moving toward a place no laser should go.
Of all the agonising deaths Bond faces this remains the most squirm-inducing.
But the true tension of the scene comes from Bonds helplessness.
No gadgets, no back-up, no escape route.
This is rare with Bond there is always an out.
Usually Q has provided a handy little gizmo that conveniently suits the perilous situation.
Often the situation isnt quite as perilous as it appears.
The plane will still fly; the cords can be cut.
Within the Greatest Scene is the Greatest Line: No Mr Bond, I expect you to die!
It tells Bond this isnt an interrogation but a horribly protracted execution.
Incidentally, the smouldering table was produced by a man with a blowtorch hiding underneath.
No wonder Connery looks petrified.
Not exactly iconic but an early incarnation of the classic Bond climax.
Also the battle-within-a-battle taking place between Bond and the villain/henchman.
(Bye Oddjob.)
And a bomb/missile ticking towards detonation/launch.
TheGoldfingeroffering isnt particularly tense but contains some nice touches.
I love Bonds panicked expression when confronted with the bomb mechanism.
And kudos for the 007 joke a neat final flourish.
I cant finish this article without discussing two very special people.
Auric Goldfinger is one of the great characters of the franchise.
He remains irrepressibly cheerful throughout the film.
He writes Bond a cheque for golf despite knowing Bond has bested him twice already.
He shows no strong animosity towards Bond over his numerous escape attempts.
Whereas Bond normally reacts with contempt to the villains master-plan, here he appears genuinely impressed.
The only blight is the ridiculously amateur mistake aboard the plane.
Then there is the great Pussy Galore.
It is very unfair that Pussy is famed as the apotheosis of the silly female moniker.
Tough, hard-bitten and smart, she is one of the most capable of Bonds leading ladies.
(I suppose the name might help.)
However, I cant be the only person who finds Bonds seduction of Pussy a little troubling.
IfSpectrecontains a similar scene expect an outcry.
Normally I conclude these retrospectives by examining the films broader significance.
(Assuming it has any.)
How does this particular film interact with the franchise?
What influences are there?
Has the perception of what a Bond film is evolved or solidified?
Yet such is the legacy ofGoldfingerthis entire piece has tackled these questions.
Ive been writing the conclusion since the very first sentence and Im miles away from satisfactorily concluding.
The only James Bond film that will prove more significant is the one that finishes him for good.
Best Bit:A certain line regarding death and expectations.
Its obvious for a reason.
