Let’s take a look at the IMDB plot description for You Only Live Twice. It’s incredible.
“Agent 007 and the Japanese Secret Service ninja force must find and stop the true culprit of a series of spacejackings before nuclear war is provoked.”
Secret Service ninja force. Spacejackings. Are you kidding me? While that might be a little out there even for James Bond, I’m still all the way in. But when you have a plot like this, the movie needs to be well put-together, which thankfully You Only Live Twice is.
Bond: Sean Connery M: Bernard Lee Q: Desmond Llewelyn Moneypenny: Lois Maxwell Director: Lewis Gilbert Song: “You Only Live Twice” by Nancy Sinatra
But even with all that ridiculousness, You Only Live Twice is less memorable than you might imagine. It’s solid if unspectacular. It’s solidly put together, but it’s just missing something.
Opening scene
It starts off well enough. It’s not action packed, but come on, a space jacking?! I’m here for that today, tomorrow, and every day.
Bond’s fake death, though, is interesting.
I like the idea of it; it just feels like vintage old school Bond. But there are so many things that could have gone wrong here. I get the intention behind it, but it feels a bit reckless, no?
Sake
Classic Bond, specifically classic Connery. The man knows his alcohol. He can pinpoint the vintage of every wine, and apparently he can even determine the exact – down to the decimal – temperature of sake. I love these little moments, where Bond has the chance to show off other supreme skills. He’s not just a super-spy. It only takes up a couple seconds of screen time, but it adds some appreciated levity to the situation.
Little Nellie
I mean. Little Nellie is incredible. The gadgets are often some of the most fun parts of the Bond movies. And the gadget vehicles are always a winner. A mini helicopter with next to no protection while still being fully loaded? You Only Live Twice brought its A game here.
Blofeld reveal
Anything with a Blofeld reveal is going to be included. There’s never anything especially iconic about the reveal itself. But Blofeld himself is so iconic and legendary that the reveal is always a big moment.
Ninjas!
Yes yes yes to all of this. Ninjas are definitely something that don’t need to be a regular occurrence in the Bond lore. But for a one time thing? Absolutely. It’s been over 50 years since You Only Live Twice, perhaps it’s about time to reintroduce them…
So that’s it, a bit of a shorter one today, folks. But as I said, there isn’t too much about You Only Live Twice that’s particularly memorable, on the good or bad side. It has an absurd plot set up that it didn’t quite do enough with. It could have used the ninjas more traditionally. But all in all, a perfectly adequate addition to the Bond library.
