THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN
Guy Hamilton • 1974
Screenplay: Richard Maibaum, Tom Mankiewicz; Based on The Man with the Golden Gun by Ian Fleming
Producers: Harry Saltzman, Albert R. Broccoli
Cast: Roger Moore, Christopher Lee, Britt Ekland, Maud Adams, Hervé Villechaize
Cinematography: Ted Moore, Oswald Morris
Music: John Barry
United Artists
- A duel between titans… my golden gun against your Walther PPK.
- One bullet against my six?
- I only need one, Mr. Bond.
James Bond investigates a notorious assassin, Francisco Scaramanga… or, the Man with the Golden Gun. I’m assuming most Gen X and Millenial readers have played the legendary Goldeneye for the Nintendo 64, one of the best video games of all time. And what makes it so damn fun is the player vs player mode where you can run around military bases and match wits against your friends. One of the modes in the game is “Golden Gun.” In this mode, you have to find the Golden Gun and when you shoot your opponent, one shot is all it takes and you win.
Well, they got that concept from this movie. The golden gun in question belongs to Francisco Scaramanga, an international hitman with an island full of gadgets, half-naked women, and a little person. Scaramanga uses said golden gun to kill his targets, and he NEVER misses. One shot is all it takes. So, this makes him already one of the coolest James Bond villains ever, right? Well, it gets better, because the Man with the Golden Gun is played by none other than Christopher Lee.
It’s not a perfect Bond movie, by any stretch of the imagination. The plot is nonsensical, as a lot of Roger Moore Bonds were. Expect lots of goofy campy fun. But really you’re watching this movie for Christopher Lee playing the heavy. Can’t get much better than that. The final face-off between Bond and Scaramanga is one of the best in the history of Bond films.
