For Your Eyes Only is directed by John Glen and adapted to screenplay by Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson from source stories by Ian Fleming. It stars Roger Moore, Carole Bouquet, Julian Glover, Topol, Michael Gothard and Jill Bennett. Music is scored by Bill Conti and cinematography by Alan Hume.

Bond 12 and 007 is assigned to locate the whereabouts of the ATAC, a secret device that transmits orders to Polaris carrying submarines. He must do so quickly because the Soviets are also in pursuit, and they appear to be aided by a wealthy shipping magnate.

In spite of the gargantuan box office garnered by Moonraker, Albert Broccoli was hurt by criticism that it had strayed too far from the basic 007 formula. Making good on his word to get Bond back to reality, he mostly succeeded in making For Your Eyes Only a stripped back thriller. Gone is the over reliance on hi-tech wizardry, Moore (in his best performance as Bond) is back to being down to earth, being a Bond using his wits and toughness to get out of tricky situations, and the film goes for short sharp shock action scenes instead of giant battles enveloped by even bigger sets. There's much tension as well, none more so than with the finale, where again the big bang pyrotechnics have been replaced by a mountain peak accent and assault; where Bond uses a boot lace to save his skin! Now that's the Bond we love and admire. We even get the return of a bit of flirting between Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell) and Bond, while Q (Desmond Llewelyn) is on witty form.

Characters are strong, a major plus point in the film. Topol (charismatic and on scene stealing form) and Glover offer up fascinating characters, with Glover excellent as Kristatos, providing the franchise with a cultured and believable villain. Melina Havelock (Bouquet convincing) is tough and driven by revenge for her murdered parents, adept with a crossbow she makes a sturdy accomplice for Bond, and thankfully their union isn't bogged down mid mission by the "between the sheets" angle. Elsewhere, 007 editor John Glenn directs the first of his 5 Bond movies, impressive first outing with the underwater scenes particularly striking. Hume brings Corfu to life via his colour lenses and Conti oversees one of the series' best title theme songs, song with deep emotional beauty by Sheena Easton. His overall score is merely adequate, with decent nationalistic flavours, but the theme song is so strong it lingers to this day in the memory of all Bond fans.

It's not all great in this stripped back Bond world, though. The pre-credits sequence makes the terrible mistake of negating Bond's visit to the grave of his late wife, Tracy, by then having him jostle and jape with a bald villain in a wheelchair (is it meant to be Blofeld?): with unconvincing lines and delivery in the mix as well. Lynn-Holly Johnson's Bibi Dahl character is as pointless as it gets, out of place and superfluous to the plot. While some chase sequences, as fun and pulse raising as they are, are over extended and stretch the running time to longer than required. No mind, though, with Bond back to being a man again instead of a button pusher, and brilliant scenes like the keel-hauling peril, For Your Eyes Only was a major hit that raked in over $195 million at the World box office. James Bond's appeal, and that of the man playing him, was very much in vogue. 8/10

After 1979's sci-fi cartoon called Moonraker, Albert Broccoli and the rest of the James Bond producers decided to change the pace for Roger Moore's fifth adventure. This included firing incumbent director Lewis Gilbert and writing a more believable plot, to begin with. The second item on the agenda was to write a script which curbed Roger Moore's obsessive tendencies to pile on the jokes. Add a few good villains and allies, and voila! a classic James Bond adventure there is. All right, maybe it was not that simple.

This time around, Bond is sent to investigate the murder of one Timothy Havelock, who was working to salvage the wreckage of a spy boat carrying a vital command system called A.T.A.C. Bond's investigation leads him to believe that the Russians are also trying to recover the system, and may be using one Aris Kristatos (Julian Glover) to carry out their dirty work. Aiding Bond is the beautiful sharpshooter Melina Havelock (Carole Bouquet) and an old acquaintance of Kristatos's named Milos Columbo (Topol).

As good as it is, 'For Your Eyes Only' starts out terribly. The pre-title sequence involves an attempt on James Bond's life by a bald guy in a wheelchair with a white cat (I wonder who that could be?). The scene is campy and don't get me started on the remark about the delicatessen in stainless steel (obviously put in there at the request of some actor). I understand why the sequence was filmed, but that does not make it good. Thankfully it would not be a barometer on the rest of the movie!

It may not be among the very best in the series, but believe me when I say that the difference in tone between this and the goofy 'Moonraker' is like day compared to night. It is easily the preeminent Roger Moore Bond film, and is well worth watching in every area. The villain is not trying to kill a majority of the human race for some outlandish purpose. There are no extravagant weapons or billionaire lunatics, no silly motives or doomsday schemes. Instead, we have a lean adventure that a Bond fan can actually enjoy. There are many outstanding qualities about this film, mixed in with a few notable negatives.

Any list of what went right with this film has to begin with Roger Moore. After two mediocre performances, he really nails down the part here. He is courageous, commanding, tough, and, most importantly, serious, thanks to new director John Glen (who apparently had to do some prying to slow down Moore's humor blitz).

Another BIG breath of fresh air is provided by the villains and allies, who are also treated seriously and given unusual depth of character. Julian Glover is exceptional as the ruthless and deceptive Kristatos. It is villains like this that help make the Bond series so great, and Glover is excellent indeed. No wonder Steven Spielberg cast him for Indiana Jones! In Topol, most famous for his work in 'Fiddler on the Roof', we get a terrific ally who has a great chemistry with Bond. I imagine I am not the only person who found him to be much like Kerim Bey in the great 'From Russia With Love'.

Then there is the matter of the women, who both bring good and bad qualities to the table. Carole Bouquet is somewhat wooden as female lead, Melina, but can also hold her own when the heat is on, which makes her the best Bond girl in some time. Lynn-Holly Johnson provides a lovable portrayal as Bibi Dahl, a figure skater who gets the hots for Bond (don't get me started on the age difference). Her bubble headed character makes for some humorous moments and is used to make the character of Kristatos stronger. Dahl is also enrapturing to look at, but I find her ditzy part a little too over the top, but not to the point of weakening the final product.

Unfortunately, there are a few items that bug me about this film. The first is Bill Conti's soundtrack. While it would be terrific literature for an up-tempo jazz band, it really clashes with the action more than anything. Another weakness is Roger Moore's lack of talent for fight choreography, which detracts from the action slightly. The last is Eric Kriegler (John Wyman), another invincible Oddjob rip-off that at one point picks up a motorcycle and hurls it at a fleeing Bond (!).

This is all forgivable, however, because the action, from the mountainside ski chase to the climax atop a rock cliff, is of very high standards. The absurdity of the previous chapter is shed, and we get a highly entertaining adventure that appeals to fans and non-fans alike. I can certainly live with all of the flaws any day. So grab a bag of popcorn and enjoy another great 007 adventure.

'For Your Eyes Only' starts the tenure of John Glen at the helm of the Bond series. He had worked previously on many of the Bond movies but during the eighties he directed all 5 Bond movies, and with the exception of 'A View To A Kill', they are up there with the best of the whole series. Certainly 'For Your Eyes Only' and the follow up, 'Octopussy' are the best of the Moore years, and I don't think it would be overstating it to say that Glen may have single handedly saved the franchise.

By the end of the 1970s Bond had turned from Ian Fleming's masterspy into an entirely comic book creation, culminating in the preposterous shenanigans of 'Moonraker' in 1979. At the start of a new decade a new style is clearly apparent, with a back to basics story that actually involves some spying, and a genuine threat to world peace. It's pushing it to say that the story is believable, but it is realistically told and is certainly a more adult affair than the previous efforts.

The film starts with the final nail in the coffin for Blofeld. After years of legal wrangling over who had the rights to the character the filmmakers decided to show that they didn't need him anyway and unceremoniously dumped him once and for all. We are also immediately put in the mood for a far more serious Bond when he visits his late wife's grave, an unusual moment, not least because the movies rarely referenced previous actors in the role. Here we are reminded that Moore wasn't playing Bond at the time of his marriage. That serious tone pervades throughout the movie, with less wisecracking than usual, and a subdued villain, at odds with the expected megalomaniac we are used to. But the film is all the better for it. There are some fantastic action set-pieces including a chase in a Citroen 2CV, and a ski chase that tops even that of 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service', along with a tense finale that is literally a cliffhanger. Bond is actually forced to use his wits, and much of the action and escapes are less contrived than one would expect. It's also good to see (after 'The Spy Who Loved Me' and 'Moonraker') that the filmmakers have tried to get back to Fleming's Bond, with many ideas lifted from the original stories. The scene with Bond and Melina dragged behind the speedboat, for example, is taken directly from the novel of 'Live And Let Die', and many characters appear in Fleming's short story of the same name.

Add to the mix a fine cast, notably Carole Bouquet as another strong character in the list of 'Bond women', and you have a satisfying and thrilling entry in the series.

Roger Moore returns as Bond and takes down Blofeld once again in the first 10 minutes after visiting his late wife's grave. It's a good start, but it doesn't get any better after that.

A British spy ship is accidentally sunk by a mine. Its valuable communication equipment is a top prize for the Soviets. Meanwhile, a Greek tycoon is killed for unknown reasons, and Bond is assigned to investigate. He tracks down the assassin, but is killed in revenge by the tycoon's daughter Melina (Carole Bouquet).

Bond goes to Cortina in the Italian Alpes. And that's where he battles the bad guys in a Bond Olympics. He skis, he ski jumps, he skis on the bobsled track, and to top it off, he fights a hockey team. It's a bit of fun action. But it makes the mistake of dropping Carole Bouquet for much of the middle. I rather have a pretty face get in on the action. And Greek hilltop villain hideout just doesn't have the explosive action needed for the climax. All in all, it's an acceptable Bond escapist adventure.

Likable Roger Moore in an amazing adventure set on wonderful outdoors located mostly on Greece and Greek islands . This is a Bond's good entry in which faces dangerous adventures around the world . Moore's outing with overwhelming action and spectacular scenarios , the film teams Bond with an archaeologist as endearing ally ( a beautiful Carole Bouquet) in an effort to stop an industrialist from selling a mechanical artifact . After his first introduction in ¨Live and let die¨ as tough and attractive James Bond of the Ian Fleming's famous creation , Roger Moore went on playing various 007 , and ¨ For your eyes only ¨ is one of the best . The picture starts with an overblown opening , the best part of this film in which James Bond reckoning to Blofield (in previous entries played by Donald Plesance and Charles Gray , but here doesn't appear his face) . This thrilling film deals about seductive James Bond as the ultimate spy hero who is assigned by MI6 a dangerous mission to recover an important device that control over British Polaris nuclear subs . As Bond joins the search, he suspects the tough Colombo (Topol as a gregarious smuggler) and the suave Kristatos (Julian Glover) of seizing the powerful system. Bond finds an ally in the gorgeous Melina Havelock (Carol Bouquet) , who blames Colombo for the death of her parents (Jack Hedley) . Meanwhile , Bond goes to a ski station , there happens a high-octane race and Bond discovers some clues and confronting hoodlums (Michael Gothard ,Charles Dance). James is double-crossed and continues to follow the lead , deciding to investigate on the Egean sea . Following the tracks all lead a nasty billionaire , a maniacal villain who schemes the selling of the powerful machine to a Russian general (Walter Goetell).

This solid , slick thriller with magic mix of action-packed , dazzling stunts, gadgetry, and romance provided by sexy company as Carol Bouquet, Lynn Holly Johnson and Cassandra Harris (first wife of Pierce Brosnan until her death) . Roger Moore as James Bond is fine , he does remarkably well , he earns in irony, humor ,suavity and sympathy, however also has coldness ,cunning , intelligence and toughness . Here Bond is an efficient , relentless agent trying to chase obstinately the criminals , traveling around the world as always , as this globe-trotting story is set in Spain , Veneto ,Italia and Greece at Meteoro mountains and Corfu islands . Bond to achieve his aims , along the way uses violent means even pulling off brutal killings against enemies who wreak all sorts of havoc . As always Bond will use fantastic gadgets and spectacular cars (here a Lotus) provided by ¨Q¨ (Desmond Llewelyn) . In addition , there appears the usual as Lois Maxwell, ¨MoneyPenny¨ , Minister of Defense as Geoffrey Keen and Walter Goetell as Russian general .

The picture contains comic-strip adventure , sensational pursuits , silly set pieces, great stunts, tongue-in check humor, automovile chase, frantic unstopped action , an impressive tour over razor-sharp coral reefs, amazing gimmicks and stimulating images like are the happenings on the spectacular pursuits on the snow, the overwhelming underwater scenes, and the breathtaking battles . As is like a roller-coaster , as is fast-paced, light, excitement, funny and entertaining ; it's a winner for oo7 fans and non-fans alike . The chase and suspense formula wears strong in this entry .The action-packed includes , exciting underwater fights, and cliffhanging assault of a rousing mountaintop fortress filmed in Meteoro monastery .Enjoyable title song by Sheena Easton and stirring musical score fitting to action by Bill Conti (Rocky saga's composer) ,following the John Barry's classic style . Riveting and fancy main titles by habitual Maurice Binder , furthermore eye-popping production design by Peter Lamont. It's brimming with colorful and fascinating cinematography by cameraman Alan Hume . The motion picture produced by habitual producers, Albert R Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson , being professionally made by John Glenn who filmed various outings and previously directed 2nd unit and edition on some early Bond movies . He directed several entries as ¨Licence to kill, A view to kill , For your eyes only and Octopussy¨ though with no much originality . Debuting John Glenn keeps this moving at an incredibly fast pace and this story about every's favorite super-spy falling in love with an archaeologist is one of author Ian Fleming's best . The film will appeal to James Bond series's buffs but good for fans only ; because this one goes on far too long and has provoked so much debate among 007 followers . Rating : 6'5 , well worth watching .

Undeniably one of Roger Moore's best outings as 007, For Your Eyes Only was an attempt by Cubby Broccoli to bring Bond down to earth after the over the top, but brilliant, Moonraker. Surprisingly this works very well, with the action sequences being more realistic (what with a car chase, ski chase and a small scale assault on the villain's residence instead), but brilliant too. For Roger Moore the film offers his best performance as James Bond. The puns are played down more here and while he does still have a little twinkle in his eye at times, his performance reflects more an older 007, a man who has lost his wife and is still fighting to save the world and right wrongs. This is demonstrated in the superb pre-title sequence in which after visiting his wife's grave, he is kidnapped by Blofeld (unofficially Blofeld however) and taken on a wild helicopter ride. The moment were he visits Tracy's grave sees Roger convey so much in one scene, he shows that he is not just the comedic 007, but he can be a serious one too. We see how the character has come to view revenge on Blofeld as he tells the dream like Melina (a beautiful and enchanting performance from Carole Bouquet) that before setting out on revenge as she hopes to do, she must first dig two graves. Some would see this as hypocrisy, whereas it is the words of a Bond who has come to analyse the hardship of a licence to kill.

With Julian Glover portraying a more down to earth villain and the plot centering around the Cold War, For Your Eyes Only is a great 80's Bond film, with scatterings of what would be developed into the Timothy Dalton years, such as the serious Bond and the more down to earth story telling. Following on the heels of two of the biggest Bond films in terms of scope and financial success, For Your Eyes Only was a risk, but it worked. While it did not outgross Moonraker, it's financial intake was close and while it does possess the entertainment factor that both Moonraker and The Spy Who Loved Me did, it is an artistic success, with great performances, an engrossing storyline, wonderful characterization and superb direction from John Glen in his directorial debut for a Bond film. He stages the abundance of chase scenes well and is helped by the fact that he has a good script to go with. On top of that Sheena Easton delivers a great theme tune.

A great film and one deserving of classic status.

This is definitely the #2 Bond film second only to THUNDERBALL. This one has some of the best action sequences, Skiing, rock climbing, and an underwater fight sequence. Also has another very sexy Bond Girl, Melina. The only thing the film is missing which pretty much all of the Bond films are, is Sean Connery. The theme song for this one very good as well as a matter of fact the singer sings live during the credits sequence.

In my eyes, the decision to tone down the extravagance of the previous films clearly doesn't work. But even when compared to the more down-to-earth Bond films, say, The Man With The Golden Gun, this one pales significantly. New director and 80's mainstay John Glen is also pretty mediocre in this first effort by him. The worst has to be watching Roger Moore trying to look serious and lethal super-spy, in scenes that would be more at home in a spy b-movie. Even the occasional goofy humour is of dubious quality. James Bond was always about the glamour and the excess. When you remove these elements all you're left with is the average formula of a standard adventure.

Released in 1981, this was Roger Moore's fifth outing as James Bond, Agent 007. In my opinion, he started out with two reasonable installments in the franchise, "Live and Let Die" and "The Man with the Golden Gun", and then the franchise improved with "The Spy Who Loved Me". Sadly, however, the James Bond movie franchise had a hard fall after that with "Moonraker". I would say "For Your Eyes Only", the first one made after that highly criticised sci-fi Bond film, turned out to be an improvement, but not as much of an improvement as I hoped for when I watched it recently.

A British military spy ship sinks near a Warsaw Pact country after hitting a mine, and the ATAC, a communications system, goes down with it. Whoever gets their hands on this device will have control over all Polaris nuclear missiles! So, a marine archaeologist named Sir Timothy Havelock is asked by the British government to locate the wreck of the ship, but before he can send in his report, he and his Greek wife are killed by a Cuban hit-man named Hector Gonzales, leaving their daughter, Melina, who survives the attack! James Bond is then assigned to recover the ATAC, before it ends up in the wrong hands! On his mission, he meets Melina Havelock, who is seeking to avenge the murder of her parents, and the two team up for the investigation. Obviously, a number of life-threatening challenges await, with enemies sometimes nearby!

The opening sequence, before the theme song, shows Bond leaving flowers at his late wife's grave, and going from there to a battle against a familiar foe. This opening sequence is promising, and ends rather humorously. However, from there, the film goes into the theme song, a soft ballad performed by Sheena Easton, which seems out of place in a spy thriller, especially coming right after that opening sequence, which doesn't quite leave the viewer in the mood for a song like that. Through the rest of the 2 hr.+ film, I can't say there aren't any thrilling moments. In fact, there are quite a few of those, such as more than one memorable chase scene. As you would probably expect from a Bond film starring Moore, there's also humour, especially at the end, I would say. Unfortunately, with the thrills and the laughs, there are also some flaws. Bibi Dahl, the teenage ice-skater who appears frequently in the film, I found a tad annoying, not funny (like she's apparently supposed to be), and I know I'm not alone. Also, the scene where Bond and Melina meet underwater with romantic music put to it is just ridiculous!

Clearly, "For Your Eyes Only" is more popular than the widely lambasted "Moonraker", and I'm sure many consider it a vast improvement after that film, but not me, I can only consider it a slight improvement, not quite enough to put the franchise back on track. The three flaws I've mentioned aren't quite enough to describe why I'm not too impressed with this 1981 spy thriller, but I'm not exactly sure how to fully explain the rest. Well, as usual, this Bond film is rather long at over two hours, and this is one of the cases where they just couldn't quite keep it consistent enough throughout its long run. I don't know what else to say about this particular installment in the long official James Bond movie franchise, except that if you like spy thrillers, this one might do, but you also just might find that certain flaws really get in the way at times.

One of Roger Moore's Bond movies. With all the action, drama, suspense, and a bit of romance from 2 heroines. Worth watching again& again. Because the action is so engrossing.

So, according to skeptical fans and critics, the previous James Bond installment – "Moonraker" – was too grotesque in terms of plotting, too absurd in terms of set pieces and gadgetry and too cartoonesque in terms of villainous characters. I'm a skeptical fan myself and thus agree with all of the above. "No problem, we can fix this…" is what producer Albert R. Broccoli must have thought, and he promptly hired John Glen to be the next episode's new director. Glen already was second unit director and editor for several of the previous 007- movies, so he definitely had the experience, and yet his fresh new style is immediately noticeable. This in combination with a return towards a more old-fashioned story lines and down-to-earth action sequences (literally, when compared to "Moonraker") results in "For Your Eyes Only" being one of the most relaxingly enjoyable and adrenalin-rushing Bond adventures in the entire series. The link with the bombastic old style is symbolically cut through during the fabulous pre-credits opening sequence where Bond's legendary nemesis Ernst Stavro Blofeld (although a faceless version this time) gets wiped off the face of the earth for good. But, contrary to many other Bond movies, the pacing and suspense level doesn't decrease after the title sequences and the plot that unfolds is quite an absorbing one. When a British spying vessel, cleverly disguised as a primitive fishing boat, sinks before the coast of Albania, the hi- tech onboard communication device – the ATAC – threatens to fall into the wrong hands. The government already sent out an experienced salver, but he and his wife are brutally murdered in front of his beautiful daughter's eyes by a hired killer. The search for whoever commanded this vile murder brings 007, as well as the ravishing avenging angel Melina, to exotic Greek islands and fancy Italian skiing resorts. The principal villain, a Greek smuggler/double- agent, has evil henchmen everywhere and intends to sell the ATAC- device to the KGB at a tremendously high price. The action highlights are numerous, notably several types of extended chases whether in awesome Citroën 2CV cars, on skis off the tracks and even on the bobsled track. Other memorable stunts include Bond and his love-interest tied behind a yacht and serving as shark bait, a battle with a trio of hockey hoodlums and an anti-vertigo climb towards a monastery hideout lair. The villains in this film are less flamboyant, as mentioned earlier already, but they are utmost menacing and relentless, like for example the stoic psychopath Locque (Michael Gothard) and the beefcake East-German athlete Erich Kriegler. Cult experts will probably even recognize Charles Dance in a (sadly too brief) supportive role as Locque's accomplice. Furthermore "For Your Eyes Only" benefices from a phenomenal title song, courtesy of Sheena Easton, and some of the most breathtaking Bond girls. Carol Bouquet and Cassandra Harris are unforgettably cool chicks, although the role of the latter is ridiculously small. Lynn-Holly Johnson theoretically also counts as a Bond girl, although luckily the writers realized that the age difference between her and Roger Moore was a bit much

My Take: An improvement for Roger Moore performance as Bond. Much closer in tradition to Fleming's Bond stories.

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY is Roger Moore's 6th Bond appearance, and he finally has grown into it. After appearing in five other films, one of which is THE SPY WHO LOVED ME which remains one of my favorite Bond films to date, Moore has known the secret ingredient that makes the suave secret agent 007 tick. He has mastered the wit, although not much on the seriousness, but he still manages to be the Bond we hoped for. I practically like Moore's previous Bond attempts, except THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN which is my least favorite Bond film, and I did like FOR YOUR EYES ONLY.

In 007's 12th mission, he is sent to retrieve a encryption device called the ATAC which is lost beneath the Ionian Sea. He must retrieve the machine before it falls in the hands of Russians, or a profit-hungry dealer who wants to gain profit by selling it to the Russians. Bond is once again aided by a beautiful femme, this time is the vengeful Melina (Carole Bouquet), who vows to avenge the death of her parents. Chases and exciting action scenes abound.

The film has its share of flaws. The score by Oscar-winner Bill Conti is not quite as good as its predecessor, composed by John Barry. The title song is great however. The film lags in some parts. But the overall film is still a compellingly watchable spy thriller. The plot and its delivery is much closer to the Ian Fleming spirit, and Moore is getting to be a great Bond. He's often very funny when delivering some witty lines, and often very good in action scenes. He's a bit jokey, but he works. John Glen, regularly known as the worst Bond director, has done quite a good job in his 007 movies, and he has done a fine job here. The photography, stunts and chases are well executed.

Rating: ***1/2 out of 5.

Thank you, Carol Bouquet. I love her in this film & Ms. Hammerlock is the reason I could watch this film over & over. The sequences in this range from great & scenic at St Cyrils, to ridiculous at the ice rink. But thanks to Carol, & a plot which holds together in spite of today's lack of a Cold War, this film is good.

The films opening has nothing to do with the actual plot, just brings closure to HIS MAJESTIES SECRET SERVICE which was already pretty much closed anyhow. It does give the film an interesting few minutes to the credits. Then the real plot begins.

If this film did not have Lynn-Holly Johnson, it would be perfect. If it replaced Carol Bouquet with Tanya Roberts, it would be dreadful as then the 2 worst Bond women would have been together & this film would then fall apart. This film does a good job of setting the stage for smaller plotted Bond films. It does not have a "save the entire world from catastrophe that other 007 films have.

This film is a solid entry in the 007 series.

I first saw this in the early 90s on a vhs.

Revisited it recently.

Inspite of being on a Bond marathon, its more than a month gap between this n the last one.

This is the twelfth in the Bond series and the fifth to star Roger Moore as James Bond.

Apart from the climatic rock climbing scene, few amazing gliding onces, some amazing photography n location (the mountain top monastery is top notch), this one is a bit boring.

Once again there is no threatening henchman or any super cool villain in this part.

This time Bond is ordered by the Minister of Defence and MI6 Chief of Staff to retrieve the Automatic Targeting Attack Communicator before the Soviets.

This time Bond faces Belgian underworld enforcer Emile Leopold Locque (who never utters a single word in the entire movie), a biathlete KGB agent Eric Kriegler (who doesn't smoke, only eats health foods, and won't even talk to girls), a cunning Kristatos n few sharks along with lots of snow bikers n ice hockey players.

This time Bond gets to cool off with Carole Bouquet n Cassandra Harris.

As a gentleman, Bond avoids the teen Lynn-Holly Johnson.

(She was the first and only Bond girl that the 007 agent rejected cos of age).

Bond Review.

Title: Evokes a sense of mystery and is quite an inviting title.

Pre-Titles: Bond leaves the grave of his wife in a helicopter which is then taken control of by a bald man (who appears to be Blofeld). After a struggle in mid-air, Bond regains control and dumps the man in a chimney shaft. This opening is both exciting and poignant, with Tracy's grave and the Blofeld reference both being used to great effect. Bond trying to regain the helicopter contains some excellent stunt work and it is just an entertaining opening.

Theme Song: Sheena Easton's title track is truly fantastic and one of the series best. It has such a beautiful melody which is romantic without feeling out of place and when it reaches the chorus it really soars. Easton delivers the vocals perfectly and even the seductive lyrics are catchy.

Plot: Bond is sent to locate a missing device called an ATAC that sank with a British ship, with the Russians also after it. Along the way he suspects that two notorious smugglers are involved and attempts to help Melina Havelock who believes one of the smugglers killed them. This is a fantastic story and feels like something for the early Connery days. The plot is played out much more seriously than in the previous Moore films and there a sense of realism throughout that is very welcome. I also think that the story flows smoothly with very few scenes feeling out of place or unnecessary, everything feels like it has a purpose compared to the excess we saw in the likes of Moonraker.

James Bond: Moore gives his most serious and probably best portrayal here. Of course he still gets plenty of one liners and is enjoyably suave, but he acts more ruthless and even a bit weary which are interesting additions. Some might think he looks a bit old at this point , but he still pulls it off here.

Bond Girls: Carole Bouquet does a solid job as Melina. It's nice to have a tougher leading lady and she handles the more emotional scenes very well. However she isn't given a great deal to do and she doesn't really have great chemistry with Moore. Lynn-Holly Johnson is dreadful as ice skater Bibi. The character is just incredibly annoying and Johnson's wooden delivery doesn't help matters.

Villains: Julian Glover is perfectly fine as Kristatos given the serious tone, but he just isn't memorable. The issue is that he just isn't given anything that interesting to say or do. But he plays the role with a ruthless nature that fits and he certainly looks the part as his scenes with Moore are always engaging. Michael Gothard does a great job as the assassin Locque. Despite not having a line, his intense expressions and quiet presence definitely leave an impact.

Support: Chaim Topol is great deal of fun as Bond's charismatic ally Columbo. He just has a really likable presence and his introduction makes the film even more engaging. Cassandra Harris, wife of Pierce Brosnan, shows up in a small but memorable role as an apparent countess. Desmond Llewelyn is excellent once again as Q with much more involvement this time round.

Action: The action here is more realistic than the other Moore entries. There is an enjoyable car chase in a Citroën in the Greek countryside that is light-hearted without feeling silly. There are a number of shootouts that are filmed well. The scene where Bond and Melina are dragged through the reef is simply a brilliant idea and executed just as well. The climax is truly spectacular, with Bond having to scale Kristatos' mountaintop monastery and the resulting fight for the ATAC being packed with tension and shot brilliantly.

Score: Bill Conti composes a suitably energetic score. It has a funk influence that makes it different and a lot of the compositions are filled with the drive that is needed for such a film, while there are also some really pleasant soft tracks that give the score a good sense of balance.

Production Values: This is the first of John Glen's five films and he shows himself to be a very capable director. He doesn't really do any overly impressive shots, but his grounded style is effective and a welcome call back to Terence Young. The film is paced almost perfectly, it knows exactly when to speed things up or slow them down and at no points does it become boring despite some dialogue heavy parts. I also think this is the best writing of the Moore period. There isn't anything iconic being said, but it all feels very believable and the conversations the characters have here are always engaging. Moore's slightly more ruthless Bond is great, the scene of him kicking Locque's car off a cliff is brilliant and he handles it perfectly. The locations are all great and they look beautiful on screen, with the use of Greek islands giving the film another unique twist.

Conclusion: For Your Eyes Only is an enjoyable return to the more grounded early Bond films. The gadgets and absurd plot lines are dropped in favour of a realistic approach and more believable characters. It doesn't always work, but it must be commended for taking the series back to its roots. Roger Moore showed that he could be serious and the action is exciting without being outlandish. Some of the characters aren't fully realised, but I can forgive that because of what it tries. John Glen made a great start to his run as Bond director and Moore would have ended on a high if he'd have stepped down after this.

The title of this James Bond film should have been FOR YOUR UNDERWHELMED EYES ONLY.

After the box office smash that were THE SPY WHO LOVED ME and MOONRAKER, the producers decided to tone down the huge sets, effects and explosions after some thought the outer space extravaganza of the latter was too un-Bond like. They attempted to bring 007 series back to its roots and they stripped down/away everything to a point where very little of the over-the-top action I usually enjoy in James Bond movies was left: in the end, the film plays more like a TV movie or, in my humble opinion, an After School Special than a cinematic adventure. I saw this film countless of times when it was released. I was a teen then and bored out of my mind and went to see it during the summer of 1981 with my high school buddies to kill time. Needless to say, I know this film by heart. And it always made me and still makes me giggle every time I watch it. From the chintzy opening helicopter scene (with the "action-packed" disco music) to the car chase scene in Spain (more "action-packed" disco music) to the overdone ski chase scene in Italy (the penultimate use of "action-packed" disco music here), FYEO always felt like a catalog of James Bond moments seen in countless other 007 epics but this time set to disco music.

The music is hilarious. It's probably the funniest Bond score ever. From the opening (and closing) credits when we see Sheena Easton's "Deer caught in the headlights" face, to the disco song heard during the pool scene, which was so dated back in 1981 and even more so today. The music during the ski chase scene makes me giggle nonstop whenever I hear it. The violins, the guitars, the trumpets. The brilliant John Barry is sorely missed here. The whole set up for the ski chase scene always struck me as being utterly ridiculous: Bond is forced to go on a ski ramp, which starts off the whole elaborate chase which culminates at a bobsled track. Spectacular? Yes but it's very contrived. Speaking of contrived, there's the fight scene between Bond and the hockey players. Like so many action scenes in FYEO, it doesn't make any sense. Why not just shoot 007 instead coming up with colorful but corny ways of dispensing of the British secret agent? And they said back then (and still now) FOR YOUR EYES ONLY was supposed to be more down to earth and realistic? Hardly.

Then there's Lynn Holly Johnson, who's the most annoying Bond girl ever. At one point, Kristatos slaps her not once but twice. God, that felt so good when he did that. The bimbo deserved it in spades. Because of her presence and her totally useless character, the film felt like the aforementioned After School Special.

After the ski chase scene, the film moves to a crawl and almost becomes inert. Like THUNDERBALL, the underwater sequences are slow and dull, filled with endless scenes of stand-ins for Moore and Bouquet. We are then introduced to Topol, who overacts shamelessly. There is one great scene in the second half, when Bond and Melina are dragged through the ocean and coral reef. But as well made as it is, it begs the usual question the other action scenes in FYEO illicit: why not just shoot 007 and Melina on the spot?

As for the ending it can only be described as underwhelming. Probably the limpest ending in any Bond film! The best thing about FOR YOUR EYES ONLY is Roger Moore. He actually gives a performance worth noting. He's really fun and seems to know that the whole thing is silly and goes along for the ride. It's a shame the rest is so forgettable.