Goldfinger (1964)

It’s Flashback Friday and I’ve decided to review the 3rd instalment in the oldest and most popular spy franchises - Goldfinger. Back when this film was released, it made its name for several commercial reasons. It recouped its budget within 2 weeks (a record), it was the 2nd highest grossing film of the US and one of the most successful marketing campaigns.

Gentleman secret agent James Bond (Sean Connery) is assigned with following multi-millionaire businessman Auric Goldfinger (Gert Fröbe) on suspicion of him smuggling gold. This mission takes him from Miami to Switzerland, from Jill Masterson to Pussy Galore (yes you heard right!). Now it’s up to Bond to lift the lid on Goldfinger’s plans and stop him before he becomes a threat to Queen and Country. 

Before he gets to meets Auric Goldfinger face to face, Bond knocks a girl unconscious, kisses one and gets one murdered. At one point, you have to ask yourself a question - are women safe around him?

The first half of the movie is great. There’s the iconic gold paint scene which is just perfect on so many levels. The scenes featuring the Aston Martin DB5 is enough to make anyone’s eyes melt. The chase sequence featuring Bond’s DB5 around Goldfinger’s factory was highly enjoyable what with the car’s secret weapons coming to the forefront, an old lady firing an assault rifle - this is camp at its best. The golf match between Bond and Goldfinger was quite tense - making the audience swing their thoughts as to who will win?    

I found the film’s second half wildly entertaining for several reasons. It introduces Goldfinger’s moll and the next Bond girl - Pussy Galore (Honor Blackman) who serves necessary to the plot rather than some sex doll. Plus we get to see her engage in a brief fight with Bond which adds to her aura. Shame we didn’t see more Bond girls like her. We don’t get to see much of the DB5 again- another wasted opportunity. One reason I really like the second half more than the first is because not just the viewers, even Bond is taken for a ride. Bond is a helpless position and just like us, doesn’t know what Goldfinger is up to. How will Goldfinger steal all the gold from Fort Knox? If he’s not stealing gold then what he is planning to do?  

ACTION

At the start of the movie, Bond blows up a drug laboratory that was producing heroin-coated-bananas (something nonsensical like that) and a henchman enters his room like a disrespectful loser to teach him a lesson. This fight sequence was quite engaging and I really liked how it switches between Bond punches once, henchman punches one.

The DB5 chase, as mentioned previously, was enjoyable. Those wondering when the ejector seat will come in handy, believe me it’s a well scripted move. The culmination of the chase broke my heart what with Bond being captured and the DB5 battered to smithereens.

The climax is every action movie buff’s dream. There’s explosions, gunfights and a one-on-one battle between Bond and the indestructible henchman Oddjob. Had Bond been shown as a Schwarzenegger-type-indestructible beefcake, this would have hammered the impact of this fight. I’m glad they showed Oddjob physically superior to Bond because it created an enjoyable fight scene and the culmination of this fight makes me love how the "final kill" weapons are coincidentally placed in front of Bond.

Sean Connery’s acting never disappoints me whatever the outing is. This movie is a testament to the excellence with which he portrays Bond. Towards the second half, he effectively brings out Bond’s helplessness without making him like a coward or an unintelligible fool. He’s convincing in the action scenes and his self-deprecating humour makes it even more obvious why he’s my favourite and arguably the best Bond.

When Gert Fröbe was called in to play Auric Goldfinger, he spoke little English and whatever English he spoke it was very slow. So they decided to get someone redub his voice. This leaves Gert’s acting limited to his facial expressions and body language. Might I say, he does a marvellous job! His expressions during the laser scene were fantastic. He creates a great sense of danger through his performance which is the greatest mark for an actor who couldn’t English very well.

Harold Sakata doesn’t get much speaking lines as Goldfinger’s mute henchman Oddjob. His role is mainly limited to carrying Goldfinger’s bags. Though the spotlight is on him in the climax when Bond needs to stop a ticking bomb and Oddjob is the only obstacle in his way. I liked his facial expressions especially his smiles when Bond’s punches prove ineffective on him.

Honor Blackman’s character Pussy Galore only comes into prominence in the 2nd half of the movie. Plot wise, she is one of the pillars in taking down Goldfinger’s operation and the fact she doesn’t give into his charms gives Bond something to think about. Performance wise, her judo skills aren’t to be missed! She brings out the "playing-hard-to-get" coldness without being a bitch about it. When I saw the movie back in childhood, the name Pussy Galore sort of hit my ear wrong.

Shirley Eaton’s character Jill Masterson isn’t on the screen for a long time so it’s difficult to talk about her character but due to the gold paint scene, she deserves a mention. I found her character quite sweet and adorable and thought she would be a large focus in helping Bond take down Goldfinger but her early demise helps to establish how much of a threat Goldfinger is.

Tania Mallet plays Till Masterson, Jill’s sister. Her character felt quite weak and mostly unnecessary for me. I felt the film could have done better without her. Even the ruthlessness in her character looks forced.

You must have heard this film being praised or mentioned at some point in your life. Goldfinger is worthy of all the praise it deserves for its sheer spectacle, escapism, action and fine performances extracted from Sean Connery and Gert Fröbe. Believe me folks, this is one for the record books.