With For Your Eyes Only (1981) producer Albert R. Broccoli made every attempt to return Bond to his more ‘realistic’ Ian Fleming based roots. In everything from the film’s opening sequence (that has Bond placing flowers on the grave of his late wife, Tracy - (whom he married in On Her Majesty's Secret Service) to the staging of its action sequences, (right up to and including the climactic near drowning of James and his Bond girl, Melina Havelok (Carole Bouquet), there is a sense that the events occurring in this film, above all other Bonds, are quite plausible.The fact that Bond does not save the world but merely aids in the preservation of its currency, in retrospect foreshadows the present downgrading in Bond’s status from super human, to just an action guy with really cool gadgets.
Bond is deployed to recover the A-Tac; a decoding device from the British sea vessel, St. Georges, that has sunk somewhere off the coast of Greece. At the same time, Melina Havelok (Carole Bouquet) is on a mission to avenge the murders of her mother and father who were attempting to salvage the wreck. Inevitably these two destinies collide when it is discovered that a man named Aris Kristatos (Julian Glover) is responsible for both the sinking and the killings.
At first, Kristatos presents himself as an ally to Bond. He is a cultured patron of the arts and devoted sponsor to Olympic hopeful, Bibi Dahl (Lynn-Holly Johnson in a camp performance as an underaged/oversexed skater, setting her cap for Bond, and Kristatos stooge, Erich Kriegler – John Wyman). However, very shortly these alliances shift as Bond learns that his true compatriot in Greek smuggler, Milos Columbo (Topol).
In retrospect, the film is notable for the appearance of the late first wife of future Bond alumni, Pierce Brosnon; Cassandra Harris as the Countess Lisl. Aesthetically, For Your Eyes Only also marks a 'first' in Bond films by featuring the transparent ghost of Sheena Easton singing against the main title sequence; the only musical artist to be showcased in person during a main title sequence.
At $195 million, the receipts on For Your Eyes Only may not have been as impressive as those accrued by the previous Moore/Bond flick, Moonraker, but they were respectable enough to convince Broccoli that his revised interpretation of Bond had been the correct one all along.
MGM/Fox Blu-Ray transfer is state-of-the-art, thanks to the technological wizardry of Lowry Digital Restorations. Bond has never looked better. Image quality takes a quantum leap forward in all departments - most noticeably in achieving more consistent and accurate color fidelity and a fine details throughout. Stunning new frame-by-frame digital clean ups from Lowry – a cutting edge leader in film preservation – have yielded exception image clarity and fidelity faithful to the original theatrical presentation.
Better still, For Your Eyes Only has received a stunning new DTS sound mix. Extras include all of the documentaries MGM/UA Home Video previously produced and released on their lacklustre single disc incarnation back in the late 1990s early 2000s but with an added kick. Virtually all of that previously issued footage (which ranged from moderate to poor in image quality) has been given a serious upgrade. While source materials in these docs varies, their enhanced presentation herein makes them at long last worthy viewable addendums. This is Bond done right!
There are also audio commentary tracks, a wealth of vintage stock footage, tests, trailers and television spots and stills to wade through. Highly recommended!
FILM RATING (out of 5 - 5 being the best)
5
VIDEO/AUDIO
5
EXTRAS
5
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