'For Your Eyes Only' revisited

With 'Quantum of Solace' due to hit our screens soon, we take a daily look back at the 21 official Bond films. Day 12: ‘For Your Eyes Only’

For Your Eyes Only (1981, John Glen)

Villain: Julian Glover as Aristotle Kristatos
At stake: Forgettable nuclear McGuffin
Candy: Carole Bouquet as Melina Havelock
Gizmo: A Seiko watch
Theme song: ‘For Your Eyes Only’ by Sheena Easton
Quote: ‘Mr. Bond! We can do a deal! I'll buy you a delicatessen in stainless steel!’

A solid reminder to be careful what you wish for, ‘For Your Eyes Only’ sloughs off the crass excesses of ‘Moonraker’ and aims to give us a more grounded entry, boasting a sound plot, more believable villains and grittier action but, as it turns out, Bond without the bombast is really no fun at all.

It’s admirable in intent, with ill-conceived plans for world domination put on the back burner in favour of a twisty plot in which Bond must track down a nuclear trigger that looks like Speak’n’Spell that’s been spray-painted silver. Unfortunately, divested of the bells and whistles that hallmark the franchise, it all feels a little spare.

Director John Glen had been promoted from editing duties and makes a fair fist of keeping things ticking along in what is basically just one great big long chase, but skimps on the set-pieces and offers up a nebulous, watery baddie in Julian Glover’s accent-neutral Greek businessman Kristatos.

Moore keeps the humour at bay, but doesn’t come up with anything worthwhile to plug the gap. He’s also lumbered with an array of unpleasant female companions that ranges from a wooden French model as his main squeeze with support coming from a bubble-headed Californian snow-bunny and a spent piece of Euro jet-trash (played by Cassandra Harris, then married to struggling Irish thesp Pierce Brosnan).

Topol makes a winning show as an unlikely ally and the downplayed finale is a refreshing change, but there isn’t enough going on to hold the interest and Bill Conti’s score is a constant source of annoyance.

James Bond will return in… ‘Octopussy’

Read our original 'For Your Eyes Only' review

---