Bond Secret File #12 - For Your Eyes Only

Introduction: 4/10
The introduction scene to this film attempts to put a close to a rather long and terrible chapter in the Bond franchise, ultimately it ends up being a bad reminder of what most fans would like to forget. The film opens with Bond standing in a cemetery visiting the grave of his wife. He is suddenly called on away and a helicopter is sent to pick him up. As it turns out it’s all a trap set by none other than Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the evil villain who has been portrayed by about four different actors in the franchise so far. In my opinion Bond getting married was part of the franchise I would like to forget, and Blofeld is one of those villains the writers insisted on continually pushing on the audience as he only grew cornier with each film. Frankly this introduction is a total waste, it has nothing to do with the rest of the film and only gives a horrible ending to a section in the franchise I wish never happened.

Title Song: 8/10
At least a horrible introduction leads into a good credit sequence with a very good title song, probably one of the best aspects of film. For Your Eyes Only is sung by Sheena Easton:

For your eyes only, can see me through the night. For your eyes only, I never need to hide. You can see so much in me, so much in me that's new. I never felt until I looked at you. For your eyes only, only for you, you'll see what no one else can see, and now I'm breaking free. For your eyes only, only for you. The love I know you need in me, the fantasy you've freed in me. Only for you, only for you.

For your eyes only, the nights are never cold. You really know me, that's all I need to know. Maybe I'm an open book because I know you're mine, but you won't need to read between the lines.

For your eyes only, only for you. You see what no one else can see, and now I'm breaking free. For your eyes only, only for you. The passions that collide in me, the wild, abandoned side of me. Only for you, for your eyes only.

Bond: 7/10
Maybe it was the fact that this was a rather average Bond film but Roger Moore didn't impress me that much. It seemed to me Bond was a little outnumbered in this film as everyone had plenty of opportunities to offer him a beating. And personally I think Moore began to show his age in this film due to the non-stop action scenes which also seemed to cut down his lines significantly. Overall, he didn't seem like Bond in this film to me.

Main Bond Girl:

Melina Havelock: 7/10
The main Bond girl in the film and the better of the other two minor girls, who for the most part were horrible. Melina is half British and half Greek and out to seek revenge on those responsible for the murder of her parents. As it turns out the murderer of her parents and Bond's mission to retrieve the ATAC weapons system end up being intertwined. Melina is a strong woman whose concentration on revenge at times causes her to get into even more trouble, and drags Bond along for the Bond. Ultimately she is a descent character, yet I found her to have an extremely bland personality and actually be a little overly flat and emotionless.

The Villains:

Aristotle Kristatos: 7/10
At first it seems that Kristatos is an ally of the British but as it turns out he's actually working with the Russians, for whom he is planning on recovering the ATAC weapons system and selling it to the soviets. Kristatos is a descent villain but there were some useless parts in the film that bogged him down. The whole story with him sponsoring some ditsy young Olympic ice skater was pointless. And on that note they gave that ice skater girl, Bibi, way too much screen time she was very annoying. In the end, Kristatos is average he didn't impress me, I thought the actor Glover played the villain better in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Emile Leopold Locque: 8/10
Also known as "The Dove", this guy has the evil eye but never says much. Sometimes in the Bond franchise you really don't need to say much if you have that evil look. He gets his kicks murdering people and leaving his calling card, a small dove shaped pin, on his victims. He had a lot more intimidation going for him than Kristatos, plus the villainous look.

Total Rating : 6.8/10

Overall (Including Film Rating) : 6.9/10
7/10