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After one of the best pre-credit sequences in any Bond film (totally unrelated to the rest of it, but like a mini-film in itself) we jump straight into Shirley Bassey's brassy song, again, one of the best in the series (Gold-FINGAHHHH ! Da da daaaa!) and it's clear that this is confident Bond film, strutting with style.

Bond is assigned to trail self-made millionaire and gold magnate, Auric Goldfinger (Gert Froebe). As an aside, was there ever any question when he was a kid as to what he would grow up to do with a name like that?

The British government suspect Goldfinger (the man with the midas touch, that spiders touch...) of gold smuggling and want Bond to find out how he's doing it. Bond has more personal reasons for going after Goldfinger, as he suspects he killed his personal assistant (Shirley Eaton) after she spent the night with Bond and helped Goldfinger lose a big game of cards. How did she die? Of skin suffocation after she was painted from head to toe in gold paint. This is how cool 'Goldfinger' is, I didn't even know anyone could die like that until I saw it.

Because make no mistake 'Goldfinger' is very, very cool indeed. Guy Hamilton stepped into Terrance Young's shoes to direct here and he brings with him a previously unseen sense of glamour, panache and sex. Whereas the first two Bond films were made to be tough and intelligent, Hamilton makes 'Goldfinger' sexy and colourful. He fills with the screen with bags of charm and humourous winks to the audience that say, yes this is ridiculous, but damn isn't it fun?

Because 'Goldfinger' was the first to introduce truly outlandish plots to the film world of 007. As we realise that Goldfinger has far more on his agenda than simple smuggling as he plans an attack on Fort Knox and the assembling of a dirty nuclear device. It's an utterly silly plot (the attack's led by five blonde bombshell pilots), but Hamilton goes at it with such confidence that you can't help but be dragged along. The car chases are superb, the fight scenes brutal including a bath-tub electrocution ("Shocking. Absolutely shocking"), really inventive deaths and a belter of a showdown at Fort Knox.

He never goes so far as to make it overly stupid however and retains the smaller, more intelligent scenes. One of the most threatening scenes in the film is a simple game of golf, which is weapon free, but still loaded with menace.

The other aspect that 'Goldfinger' introduced was the idea of Q as a much more important character. We get the first tour of his lab and Q's classic line "I never joke about my work 007". Llwellyn strikes up an instant rapport with Connery as the touchy inventor and the reckless student respectively. And we also get the movie car to trash all other movie cars - the Aston Martin DB5 - complete with (yes!) ejector seat. It's arguable that 'Goldfinger' should be criticised because it introduced the trend of gadgets over intelligence and wits, but when they look so cool as they do here who's complaining?

The confidence of the production rubs off on the actors. Connery has never been more comfortable in the role which now fits him like a glove, favouring the more charming aspects of Bond here rather than his ruthless touch in the first two. He's so cock-sure but likeable in the role now that this is the moment that women wanted him while men wanted to be him.

Aptly though, Goldfinger is only the second (and the last) villain to get the film named after him and he utterly dominates the film, coming second only to Blofeld as the best villain of the series. Froebe treads the line between insane genius and gibbering psychopath brilliantly and is a joy to watch whether he's lusting over gold or twitching in delight when he's threatening Bond with castration by laser. He also gets the best line of a Bond villian ever "No Mr. Bond I expect you to die!". It's another sign of the films confidence that for the first time they sent Bond after a self-financed villain and not a SPECTRE member. Of the first 7 Bond films, 'Goldfinger' is the only one not to feature SPECTRE.

Harold Sakata should also get a mention as Blofeld's steel-rimmed bowler hat wearing driver/assassin. Like the film, he's a great concept and great in execution, a constantly smiling menace.

Honour Blackman as Pussy Galore (what a name...) also makes a great impact. She may not have been the best-looking Bond girl but she certainly had the sparkiest chemistry with Bond and manages to to hold her own with Connery, a feat arguably unmatched by any other Bond girl.

The film isn't flawless. M doesn't have much to do in 'Goldfinger' (Q steals much of his thunder) and Cec Linder is a dull Felix Leiter. But these are tiny niggles in an otherwise hugely entertaining and thrilling escapade.

'Goldfinger' is probably the film that cemented Bond's status with a gold stamp. A few years down the line, the theme song of another Bond film was 'Nobody Does It Better'. How true, and he was never done better than in 'Goldfinger'

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originally posted: 07/20/04 00:26:20
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