Never Say Never Again (1983)

Director:

Irvin Kershner

Writers:

Kevin McClory (story) &
Jack Whittingham (story) ...

Release Date:

7 October 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

If you haven't seen Sean Connery in 'Never Say Never Again' then you haven't seen James Bond 007!

Plot:

A SPECTRE agent has stolen two American nuclear warheads, and James Bond must find their targets before they are detonated.

Plot Keywords:

Motor Bike | Spy Hero | Massage | U Boat | Under Sea

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Sean Connery	...	James Bond
Klaus Maria Brandauer	...	Maximilian Largo
Max von Sydow	...	Ernst Stavro Blofeld (as Max Von Sydow)
Barbara Carrera	...	Fatima Blush
Kim Basinger	...	Domino Petachi
Bernie Casey	...	Felix Leiter
Alec McCowen	...	Q 'Algy' Algernon
Edward Fox	...	'M'
Pamela Salem	...	Miss Moneypenny
Rowan Atkinson	...	Nigel Small-Fawcett
Valerie Leon	...	Lady in Bahamas
Milos Kirek	...	Kovacs (as Milow Kirek)
Pat Roach	...	Lippe
Anthony Sharp	...	Lord Ambrose
Prunella Gee	...	Patricia Fearing

Also Known As:

James Bond 007 - Sag niemals nie (West Germany)
James Bond of the Secret Service (UK) (working title)
James Bond, Secret Agent (UK) (working title)
Warhead (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

134 min | Germany:121 min (cut version)

Country:

UK | USA | West Germany

Language:

English | French | German

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | South Korea:15 | Netherlands:12 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | West Germany:12 (f) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Iceland:12 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | USA:PG | Australia:M | Singapore:PG | UK:PG (cut)

Filming Locations:

Alpes-Maritimes, France

Company:

PSO International

Trivia:

James Bond's Bahamian romantic interlude in this movie and credited as the Lady in Bahamas was played by Valerie Leon. She also appeared in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) as the Hotel Receptionist at the Cala Di Volpe Hotel in Sardinia.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the underwater fight in the cave at the Tears of Allah, the diver fighting with Bond has his knife gripped with the blade downwards; in the next shot it is gripped with the blade upwards, but there hasn't been enough time for him to change grips.

Quotes:

Largo: Do you lose as gracefully as you win?
James Bond: I don't know, I've never lost.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Lucky Number Slevin (2006)

Soundtrack:

Une Chanson D'amour

Inferior Remake

The only thing "Never Say Never Again" proved in my mind, is that in 1983 Roger Moore knew how to play 007 better than Sean Connery. Moore's Bond film of that year, "Octopussy" is the best of his six as 007, while Connery's one shot return for a rival company is a tedious affair indeed.

Most of it really isn't Connery's fault. He's handicapped by the fact that he's working for a second-rate production company that has absolutely no flair for the sense of style and fun that have always been the distinctive mark of the Broccoli produced Bonds, be they Connery or Moore. Irvin Kershner shows no sense of showing off the glamor and exotic aspects of the locales in his direction, while Lorenzo Semple's script, despite being free of the camp he put into "King Kong" and "Batman" has way too many plot holes that can't be dismissed lightly (how in the world does SPECTRE get Bomb #1 underneath the White House?) Michel Legrand's score is a disaster and goes to show once again (as the Broccoli Bonds discovered) that if you don't have John Barry or emulate his style, you might as well forget it.

And the rest of the cast? Klaus Maria Brandauer is a bore, lacking all the formidable presence that Adolfo Celi had in the same role in "Thunderball" (a far superior film). And on top of that, the final payoff between Bond and Largo ends very unmemorably since both are concealed in diving suits and we don't even see their faces at the moment of climax.

NSNA is for Bond completists only. If you just want one title to watch on a rainy afternoon, don't pick this one.