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7

marcmyworksJan 27, 2020

One of the more enjoyable of the Roger Moore 007 films. Moonraker combines the right amount of action, camp and story, and seems to really take advantage of the Star Wars-hype of the 1970s.

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8

VidyaBumOct 22, 2021

Having watched 25 Bonds from Dr.No to Skyfall, I place Moonraker at 8/25.

Generally looked down as the epitome of Moore's Bond, an over the top, ultra-comedic, far too silly movie, I found Moonraker to be a great step up from itsHaving watched 25 Bonds from Dr.No to Skyfall, I place Moonraker at 8/25.

Generally looked down as the epitome of Moore's Bond, an over the top, ultra-comedic, far too silly movie, I found Moonraker to be a great step up from its predecessor, The Spy Who Loved Me, from which it takes it main plot.

Moonraker is often chiefly remembered for its space battle where a bunch of plastic dolls fire very fake lasers over a black background.

And it shouldn't.

Moonraker is certainly that, and it is in many ways one of the silliest of the Moores, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't have its own qualities:

- a villain with an actual style and presence, carried by an actor that carried the role beautifully
- an overall solid direction and acting, where the actor scenes and the action scenes are equally well handled
- a plot with proper stages that do not continuously contradict themselves
- the second protagonist of this movie, Richard Kiel, aka Jaws

The plot may be silly, but it is not shy of giving nice twists that do not require brain shutdown to be accepted.

The villain is a particularly strong point, because Bond can only be as good as the man he's trying to beat. Drax may have several quirks and may not look menacing, but he is unquestioningly smart, capable and several times brilliant. He acts odd, but establishes dominance several times and plays a good counterpart to Bond.

Jaws in this movie goes from a strange henchman in the last movie, to an almost protagonist. His little side story grows in importance in such a way that it ends up spilling over into the main plot, and it is both cute and well brought in, to the point that when his part in the movie ended, I said to my friend "well now I've lost 90% of the interest in this movie", but there was less than 10 minutes left.

The interaction, lines, direction, music, action, everything in this movie is at least decent, sometimes very good.

So yes, Moonraker is camp, yes it has people carrying French châteaux from France to the US, yes it has a radar that detects an unknown space shuttle at 12:36 and a shuttle of what I can only call Space Marines taking off in their own shuttle at 13:15 to intercept it, yes it has a giant man with silver teeth that eats cable car cables with the girth of a leg, yes it has Moore riding a gondola in the middle of an Italian plaza with the locals thinking they've gone mad, yes it has ninjas defending museums with wooden swords, yes it has all sorts of silly over the top parts, but that doesn't make it in the least bit bad. I was engaged by the characters and action much more than I thought I'd be, I found the villain interesting to fight, I found the story novel and fun to follow.

Moonraker is almost the campest of the camp, but unless you hate that, it is also a wonderfully engaging, well-made, and entertaining movie.… Expand

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9

Kai82Dec 23, 2020

The eleventh James Bond movie and the most science fiction inspired one even to date. The producers were influenced by Star Wars and its great commercial success. So it was decided to adapt to this and let parts of the story happen in space.The eleventh James Bond movie and the most science fiction inspired one even to date. The producers were influenced by Star Wars and its great commercial success. So it was decided to adapt to this and let parts of the story happen in space. For comparison: The Ian Fleming novel Moonraker has nothing like this in it and some parts were later used for Goldeneye (An in name only adaptation if you need a label). The story starts when a Moonraker type space-shuttle is stolen in midair from a shuttle carrier aircraft (The carriers exist in real life and are modified Boeing 747s). James Bond is set to investigate this and starts by asking billionaire Hugo Drax whose Drax Industries build the shuttle for help. His investigations lead him to a much bigger menace. More I wont spoil. The story is good for franchise standards. It has a lot of good twists and is entertaining. I like the science fiction elements but these are not mandatory for me. The next movies never used these again and I can not say that I missed them nor that I hated them. The concept and ideas for the plot / menace are really good and the climax is well done. The actors are fine for me. Roger Moore delivers as always. Michael Lonsdale as Hugo Drax is an interesting antagonist. He is smart, a clever schemer, awfully rich and gets the things done he wants. He is probably in my top 10 James Bond villain list but not in the higher ranks. However Richard Kiel as Jaws is high on the list. He became a fan favorite in the last movie and returns which is remarkable. He is still intimidating, indestructible and has an engaging smile:-). He gets even some bit of development here and I like also Blanche Ravalec in this regard too. Some of his best moments are in this movie (circus tent, carnival or cable scene). The humor is also quite remarkable as some of my favorite jokes of the franchise are from this movie (The Eiffel tower joke alone is remembered by every James Bond fan). Normally I would not point this out in a James Bond movie but the special effects look really good and have aged well for that time. The soundtrack is O.K for me but not remarkable in comparison. Overall it is an enjoyable James Bond movie with great humor and memorable scenes. Slightly misses my 10/10 rating but I re-watched it quite some time.… Expand

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6

kyle20ellisMar 27, 2022

I personally didn't love or hate Moonraker. It has a lot of flaws, but it does have strengths too. What didn't quite work so well is that the plot is unexceptional on the whole, while apart from Sir Hugo Drax's dialogue the script has a lotI personally didn't love or hate Moonraker. It has a lot of flaws, but it does have strengths too. What didn't quite work so well is that the plot is unexceptional on the whole, while apart from Sir Hugo Drax's dialogue the script has a lot of ups and downs. Also the film does drag quite badly, and the film goes on for too long I think. However, whether in space, in Venice or in Rio Moonraker is visually striking thanks to the decent special effects and lovely cinematography. John Barry's score is also really good, not his best, but one of his better Bond scores I think. The direction is not too bad really, while the acting is better than it is given credit for. Michael Lonsdale steals the show, while Lois Chiles is good enough as Holly Goodhead and it was nice to see Richard Kiel as Jaws again. Roger Moore has been better but he wasn't awful either, in fact I liked him and feel he was much more convincing than he was in A View to a Kill, where he was starting to show his age. Overall, not the best Bond or the best of the Roger Moore Bonds(personally I think that goes to Spy Who Loved Me) but Moonraker is better than **** and A View to a Kill, again that is my opinion. 6/10 Bethany Cox… Expand

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8

alejandro970Jun 25, 2022

Now, a mission on the dark side of the moon; but without Pink Floyd. The fact that creative liberties have been taken is easy to forgive for the typical action sequences of the long-running series. And if you pay attention you will see nodsNow, a mission on the dark side of the moon; but without Pink Floyd. The fact that creative liberties have been taken is easy to forgive for the typical action sequences of the long-running series. And if you pay attention you will see nods to more than one "space" movie.… Expand

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6

FilipeNetoFeb 18, 2018

Directed by Lewis Gilbert and produced by Albert Broccoli, has script by Christopher Wood and is the eleventh film in the franchise. Its definitely the great Bond film about the conquest of space, topic that other films had approached. ForDirected by Lewis Gilbert and produced by Albert Broccoli, has script by Christopher Wood and is the eleventh film in the franchise. Its definitely the great Bond film about the conquest of space, topic that other films had approached. For Brazilians, its a special film because it was partially filmed in Brazil.

In this film, James Bond investigates the disappearance of a space shuttle belonging to Drax Industries, which largely finance the aerospace project. He begins with a visit to the headquarters of the firm, in United States, staying at the château of Mr. Drax, a man fascinated with the conquest of space. After several dangers, the trail leads Bond to Venice and Brazil, where he discovers the frightening plans of the villain.

To some extent, Drax is like Stromberg, the villain of the film that preceded it. Both feel a fascination for environments that aren't naturally theirs, and both despise humanity and are ready to make it disappear. However, the decision to make the film an authentic space odyssey was, probably, a response to the increasing popularity of science fiction films due to the Star Wars trilogy. One of the most famous scene in the movie is the approach to the space station built by Stromberg in Earth orbit. Equally famous is the scene where Jaws (who returns in this film and gradually turns into an good guy) finds love after the famous fight scene in the Corcovado's cable car. To date, its the only villain in the franchise that redeems and presumably becomes good. Machines and inventions also continue to be part of the Bond films, which a famous Venetian gondola who turns into an hovercraft.

In this film, apart from central casting inherited from the previous films, Lois Chiles gave life to the bond-girl Holly Goodhead, Corinne Clery played Corinne Dufour, Michael Lonsdale was the villain, Drax, Richard Kiel returned to the role of Jaws and Bernard Lee plays, for the last time, Bond's boss, M. The actor would die shortly after.… Expand

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6

marcmifsudFeb 11, 2019

BREAKDOWN:

Writing (Christopher Wood): I don't even know where to begin with the writing of this film. Either 'Moonraker' is a hilariously bad film or it is the most self-aware James Bond movie that embraces the ridiculousness. I will assumeBREAKDOWN:

Writing (Christopher Wood): I don't even know where to begin with the writing of this film. Either 'Moonraker' is a hilariously bad film or it is the most self-aware James Bond movie that embraces the ridiculousness. I will assume the latter just based on how ridiculous it gets in some points. Fights just happen out of nowhere for no reason and some happen in ridiculous ways, such as the coffin knife-thrower or the glass museum samurai. Jaws also appears out of nowhere in each fight and is hilariously defeated each time. My favorite part of the script is that although James Bond does not change as a character, Jaws changes significantly and so does Bond's relationship with Jaws. Overall, this script is great if it is thought of like a James Bond parody. My only complaint is that the story does not start to develop large stakes until Bond and Goodhead are on the space station and Drax's plan really starts to become the primary subject in the story. But from that point on, it's actually very thrilling. Also, the movie introduces so many characters that we only hear from once and never again or just have no significance to the story overall. 7/10

Performances: Roger Moore does a great job as Bond and really brings the hilarious personality to life with his delivery of quips during inappropriate times. The supporting cast, however, is nothing special with exception of Lois Chiles as Goodhead and Richard Kiel as Jaws. 5/10

Cinematography (Jean Tournier): The cinematography is actually fantastic in this flick and one of the more impressive parts. The shots of the space station really come to mind and the scene where the dogs are running after the woman is also well-shot. 8/10

Editing (John Glen): The editing of this film is iffy. There are some scenes where the amount of cuts is clearly to make up for lack of choreography. In addition, most fight scenes have no music to them and seem incredibly awkward most especially the glass museum samurai fight. 4/10

Visual Effects: The VFX in this film are actually very impressive for the most part. The space station looks very cool and the space battle was fun to look at. The only effect I thought needed a lot of work was the space station falling apart. It was clear that PAs were just on the side of the walls pushing them in. 7/10

Enjoyment: Moonraker is an incredibly enjoyable movie that is best watched with friends at a movie night. It's hilarious and action-packed and will bring a good time, especially with some drinks in hand. 9/10

Musical Score (John Barry): The music is just classic James Bond with some calmer tracks thrown in for the space scenes. There isn't much to analyze here because of how little the score was used. 5/10

Sound Mixing (Daniel Brisseau): The sound in this movie is pretty good. There was definitely an overuse of the bullet whoosh sound effects for when bullets fly past bond, but it's decent for the late 70s. It also helps that the film was kind of reliant on the sound design for fights because of the lack of music. 8/10

Production Design (Ken Adam): The production design is beautiful in 'Moonraker,' albeit underused. Some sets are absolutely stunning, but they serve no significance to the plot and we only see them for 2 minutes, but that isn't the fault of the production designer. The best use of production design is the space station by far. 8/10

Overall: 'Moonraker' is a hilariously good time that makes you laugh at James Bond movies as a whole. Unfortunately, if you were expecting to find another Skyfall, you're not gonna find it here due to awkward fight scenes and useless characters and moments. 6/10… Expand

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6

MasadaAug 11, 2019

It's silly but it's Bond. The space thing is ludicrous and riddled with faults that wouldn't fly in this day and age, showing its age. Despite that the action, gags and quips are on point.

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6

Toasty87Jul 11, 2020

It's not amazing but it's not terrible typical 70s action in a strange future kind of way.

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7

MrPajamasFeb 17, 2021

For me, Moonraker didn't beat The Spy Who loved Me, but he wasn't bad. Nice plot with a nice bad guy. I quite enjoyed the end. Location quite nice. Just a good movie that I can recommend.

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7

Kian3000Jul 18, 2021

Moonraker is a pretty good James Bond film. This movie is campy but this is an enjoyable and entertaining movie. Roger More was great as James Bond. The fight choreography is good. The problems that I had in this movie were the main villain'sMoonraker is a pretty good James Bond film. This movie is campy but this is an enjoyable and entertaining movie. Roger More was great as James Bond. The fight choreography is good. The problems that I had in this movie were the main villain's plan had no logic on what he was doing and it felt like a Saturday morning cartoon. The other problems that I had in this film were I didn't like the changes they made to Jaws and there is one fight scene were James Bond is fighting a martial artist and I didn't like the clothing and the weaponry he was holding, I preferred if the Karata guy wore a ninja outfit and was holding a metal bladed Kanata instead. Overall I recommend you seeing this movie.… Expand

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2

kheasMar 18, 2019

This is by far the campiest, most ridiculous Bond movie in the franchise thus far. As I said earlier, it has a horrible case of personality disorder switching from Spy Thriller, to Action film, to western, to sci-fi and never fully embracingThis is by far the campiest, most ridiculous Bond movie in the franchise thus far. As I said earlier, it has a horrible case of personality disorder switching from Spy Thriller, to Action film, to western, to sci-fi and never fully embracing any of single genre. It was almost as if the film makers wanted to corner the market on every genre so that they could fill every fanboys dream while only managing to alienate the very people who kept this franchise alive. To be honest, it is a wonder that the Bond series continued after this ghastly film. http://latetothegame.blog/2019/03/14/key-movies-of-my-life-james-bond-edition-moonraker-1979… Expand

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9

Steven1981Mar 24, 2020

Moonraker is 1979 sci-fi adventure sort of action thriller.. Roger Moore returns as James Bond 007 and actor Richard Kiel makes an appearance as iron or metal teethed nemesis, Jaws... Most of the actresses are beautiful and sexy in MoonrakerMoonraker is 1979 sci-fi adventure sort of action thriller.. Roger Moore returns as James Bond 007 and actor Richard Kiel makes an appearance as iron or metal teethed nemesis, Jaws... Most of the actresses are beautiful and sexy in Moonraker especially Dr. Holly Goodhead played by Lois Chiles and we've some excellent scene involving Roger Moore in some metal arm device that spins round and round but some clown speeds the device up so it spins so fast it can be fatal to a human and kill them so Roger Moore manages to stop it eventually after some device that Q (Desmond Llewellyn) gave him short-circuits it or something. We have some excellent fighting scenes and some encounters with villain, Jaws who tries to bite James Bond (Roger Moore) after he jumps out of a plane at the beginning and is using a parachute. We have a giant snake that tries to kill James Bond (Roger Moore) but fails and beautiful women and scenes in space and laser action scenes. All in all this Bond film is great and certainly one of the best and better ones and Michael Lonsdale as Drax is okay too plus Shirley Bassey's excellent and beautiful musical score at the beginning.… Expand

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0

imthenoobNov 12, 2019

Their attempt to take advantage of the recent sci-fi craze crashed hilariously. Moonraker is Moore's worst film and it is certainly in the running for worst Bond film period. The plot is virtually exactly the same as the Spy Who Loved Me butTheir attempt to take advantage of the recent sci-fi craze crashed hilariously. Moonraker is Moore's worst film and it is certainly in the running for worst Bond film period. The plot is virtually exactly the same as the Spy Who Loved Me but set in space. I don't know what they were thinking but wow, This movie sucked.… Expand

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6

gracjanskiSep 19, 2021

Nice settings and landscapes, especially Venice. But the story, action scenes and effects are not so good.

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4

amheretojudgeMay 8, 2019

You've got to hand it to them, with no motive or a message to spark the battles, their dance is quite engaging.

Moonraker Gilbert's sensational space opera is similar to its visual effects, jaw dropping in some sequences while off puttingYou've got to hand it to them, with no motive or a message to spark the battles, their dance is quite engaging.

Moonraker

Gilbert's sensational space opera is similar to its visual effects, jaw dropping in some sequences while off putting in others. Combining this recipe into one big commercial cinema, Lewis Gilbert, the director, sees this franchise as a gold digger and carves it out accordingly. Fortunately, after a few big fumbles, it is a relief watching these makers finally get what they want, no matter how derailing it might be to its reputation. Almost a continuation to the previous chapter, there is a flow or a familiar thread we can see that help us connect instantly. While the rest of the film, with derivative content and cheap shots convince us, not to invest in it. This tug of war is frankly fun.

Never have I seen any film fluctuate so frequently on screen. And now that I think about it, the good, the entertaining bits are the long action sequences whose ridiculous choreography, against all odds, is enchanting. And as soon as the story is supposed to advance further, the antics and agendas starts sounding like jibber jabber where you get enough time to buy some popcorn and even have some, only to sit back and enjoy as soon as the loud and uncalled-for background score starts drumming.

Personally, I felt for the antagonist more than our alcohol consuming and womanizer Roger Moore. There is innocence in his eyes, as once Javier Bardem, called it out and you sink deep into them and float without gravity and sense watching him survive possibly anything. The Bond girl has her own agency whom she might not work for and the baddie with a world dominating plan, between them lies Moore packed with his boat chase sequence as always, before dropping the curtains with a space fight like it is somehow supposed to justify the title Moonraker.… Expand

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3

HeroicAge616Oct 26, 2021

Moonraker is ludicrously fun to watch, but only to see what a trainwreck it is.

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4

GDsReviewsJun 6, 2022

The most ridiculous of the ridiculous Roger Moore 007 films, and the main reason for it being so fun to watch is the sheer ridiculousness of it.

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7

Onlyclassicvg1Aug 14, 2022

The eleventh James Bond movie and the most science fiction inspired one even to date. The producers were influenced by Star Wars and its great commercial success. So it was decided to adapt to this and let parts of the story happen in space.The eleventh James Bond movie and the most science fiction inspired one even to date. The producers were influenced by Star Wars and its great commercial success. So it was decided to adapt to this and let parts of the story happen in space. For comparison: The Ian Fleming novel… Expand

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6

liamexeNov 25, 2022

While I wouldn't argue Moonraker was flawless, it would be sacrilege to completely dismiss it. Similar to OHMSS, you judge it too harshly in light of other Bond thrillers rather than appreciating it for what it is. Sure, Moonraker has flaws,While I wouldn't argue Moonraker was flawless, it would be sacrilege to completely dismiss it. Similar to OHMSS, you judge it too harshly in light of other Bond thrillers rather than appreciating it for what it is. Sure, Moonraker has flaws, but it also has strengths, such as Michael Lonsdale's portrayal of the megalomaniacal Hugo Drax, who is obsessed with leading a new terrestrial empire. Perhaps if the movie had been made more in accordance with Flemming's specifications, it would not have received as much criticism. However, one thing we all tend to forget is that Moonraker is based on a true story.… Expand

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