Goldfinger (1964)
Synopsis
Titular villain and aptly named gold magnate Auric Goldfinger plans to fuck up Fort Knox (where the US keeps its bullion), thus inflating the value of his own. Bond must stop him, but not before playing a round of golf and fraternising with Goldfinger’s hysterically named pilot.
Particulars
Director: Guy Hamilton
Writer/s: Richard Maibaum and Paul Dehn
Producers: Harry Saltzman & Albert R. “Cubby” Broccoli
Stars: Sean Connery as James Bond, Honor Blackman as Pussy Galore, Gert Fröbe as Auric Goldfinger, Harold Sakata as Oddjob, Cec Linder as Felix Leiter, Bernard Lee as M and Lois Maxwell as Moneypenny
Budget: $3 million
Shot: Miami, Kentucky, Switzerland, the UK and Pinewood Studios
Based on: Goldfinger, the seventh book in Ian Fleming’s James Bond series
All that glitters (aka everything awesome about Goldfinger)
From everything I’d heard, Goldfinger is the one, the best, the epitome of a Bond film. I’d seen the beginning a few times, specifically the scene where Bond slaps Dink on the arse in a bid to get her the fuck out of there and make space for Man Talk. It’s a scene as hilarious today as it was in the 60s but it’s that shocked laughter you get when you can’t believe the audacity of someone. Hey, at least it’s not a smack in the face.
Having now finally seen all of the film, I understand the hype. Goldfinger’s strengths are many and it's not just iconic as a Bond film, it’s iconic as a 60s blockbuster. Here are some highlights.
A detour from SPECTRE
Where Dr. No played the game of anticipation in introducing its villain, we meet Goldfinger within the first ten minutes and he’s kind of a bulbous idiot. He’s got nothing to do with SPECTRE and his aspirations are so refreshingly transparent: he loves gooooooooold. In this sense, Goldfinger is the Prisoner of Azkaban of the Bond franchise and is regarded with the same critical enthusiasm.
Shirley Bassey and gold ladies
This is the first Bond film to have a dedicated, sung theme in its opening sequence and while it’s neither my favourite Bond nor Bassey song (I think ‘Diamonds Are Forever’ is stronger), it’s a plot descriptor with an infectious tune and it’s probably the most famous Bond song there is. The projections onto women’s bodies in the opening sequence is innovative and relevant to the song, which isn’t always the case.
The power of Pussy
Any complaints about underdeveloped, weak female characters from the previous two films are completely fixed by Honor Blackman’s Pussy Galore, a Bond girl and morally ambiguous antihero who is cool as fuck and has her own flying band of hot girl pilots. Pussy Galore is so strong a character that she makes all of the other Bond girls in the film a bit underwhelming by comparison – and she remains one of the best Bond girls to this day.
A film of action
The budget being the two previous films’ combined means we get a shit tonne more action sequences and cool stunts. Nerve gassing the entire military population guarding Fort Knox from planes is one of them and it is spectacular – Operation Grand Slam indeed.
The template for every Bond that would come
Goldfinger features a number of iconic lines – like “Dink, say goodbye to Felix *slaps bum* “man talk”and “No Mr. Bond, I expect you to die!” – but also gives us lasers, the introduction of the Aston Martin DB5, the striking image of a woman asphyxiated by gold (referenced later in Quantum of Solace), the innovative iris reflection shot and the trope of the henchman with particular skills.
It’s sillier and lighter than its predecessor and while I personally still think I have more personal reverence for From Russia with Love, Goldfinger is beloved by critics and audiences and I include myself among them.
RANKING CATEGORIES (70%)
Bond execution = 9
Villain = 8
Bond girl(s) = 9
Song = 6
Opening titles = 6
Plot/action/gadgets = 8
Franchise identity = 10
PERSONAL ENJOYMENT (30%)
8/10