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General Info - Thunderball (1965)

Intended originally to be the first James Bond film, Thunderball finally got off the mark in 1965. Claimants to the original story worked alongside Broccoli and Saltzman to produce the first true Bond epic which, despite its high-brow locales and plot, stayed closer to the story Fleming (et al.) had in mind. Yet again our thirst to see the face of "the man with the cat" would not be quenched. Instead, we saw the first signs that all was not well with Bond - Connery looking admittedly older than in Dr. No was finding the add-on publicity rather too much to bear...

The Plot

SPECTRE (who else?), under the auspices of its "Number Two" (Emilio Largo) steals two atomic bombs from NATO during a training exercise using Vulcan aircraft, in the Bahamas. Unless a ransom is paid by Her Majesty's Government within a set time, SPECTRE threatens to use on of these bombs to blow up a major city in either Great Britain or the United States. The usual "race-against-time" begins and Bond, pursuing more his own desires than the demands of the opeation it would seem, is posted to Nassau. Bond meets Largo there (the SPECTRE agent posing as a respectful businessman) and also gets to know his mistress, but rather more intimately... Ultimately 007 discovers that the atomic bombs are being moved to their detonation point - Miami Beach, but when SPECTRE begin, Bond, with the help of U.S. "Aquaparas", beat Largo's men. Trying to escape on his yacht, the "Disco Volante", Largo encounters Bond, and the fight ensues. Bond wins thanks to Domino Derval, who kills Largo for him. The yacht crashes on rocks not long after Bond and Domino escape, ensuring that the atomic bombs are destroyed.

Budget: $5.6m - Gross: $141m - Fastrac007 Rating: 80%