Movie Review: Goldfinger (1964)

Goldfinger (1964) directed by Guy Hamilton

James Bond (Sean Connery) is back for a third outing. This time he's up against Auric Goldfinger (Gert Frobe), an international businessman obsessed with gold. Goldfinger has lots of little-time and big-time schemes to make money, plans that are honest and dishonest. He tends to favor the dishonest. His latest, biggest scheme has drawn the attention of the British Secret Service. Bond pursues Goldfinger from Miami to London to Geneva and back to America. Bond works his way through the typical number of bad guys, beautiful girls, and absurd gadgets before the big finale.

Goldfinger established a lot of the tropes for Bond films. The pre-credits action sequence has almost nothing to do with the plot (other than placing Bond in Miami) but has exciting action and a Bond girl who only appears in the opening. There's a smart main villain with the big evil scheme (Goldfinger here, often Blofeld in other films). The scheme is elaborate (leading to a big action sequence at the end) and more or less over the top (Goldfinger taking out the American gold deposit at Fort Knox fits that bill). The villain has a beefy henchman who does all the fisticuffs with Bond. Maybe the henchman also has a quirky weapon or feature (here, Oddjob is a mute Korean martial arts expert with a razor-rimmed bowler hat he throws to kill people or destroy stuff; my favorite other henchman is probably Jaws (Richard Kiel) who is also mute but because he has metal teeth). Bond's arsenal contains some elaborate, borderline outlandish, gadgets (like the ejector seat on his Aston Martin, which is also kitted out with machine guns, oil slick, smoke screen, bulletproof glass, etc.). Bond always has a humorous quip and fabulous clothes, even when he is sneaking about and messing around with bad guys or beautiful girls.

The movie is very entertaining--it's serious when it needs to be, exciting often, and comic enough not to be taken seriously. Goldfinger is a well-written villain with some memorable lines and speeches ("I expect you to die, Mr. Bond" or after rattling off accomplishments like exploring the ocean floor, splitting the atom, and sending rockets to the moon, he says "Man has achieved miracles in every field of human endeavor...except CRIME!"). Oddjob is menacing and tough, probably tougher than Bond though Bond outmaneuvers him. Honor Blackman is charming as Pussy Galore, pilot for Goldfinger and paramour for Bond. The big finale at Fort Knox is tightly directed and very exciting. This was my favorite Bond film before the Daniel Craig Casino Royale.

Highly recommended.