Thunderball
Rent & Buy
A criminal organization has obtained two nuclear bombs and are asking for a 100 million pound ransom in the form of diamonds in seven days or they will use the weapons. The secret service sends James Bond to the Bahamas to once again save the world.
What critics thought
Thunderball landed as a mostly crowd-pleasing entry in the Bond series, with its Bahamas scenery and underwater action sequences drawing the most consistent admiration. Critics split over whether the film's sheer excess was part of the fun or a sign the formula was already wearing thin — some found the spectacle dazzling, others found it numbing and repetitive. Connery himself was a point of contention, with at least one critic arguing he looked visibly less sharp in the role than in earlier installments.
“It's not just that Sean Connery looks a lot more haggard and less heroic than he did two or three years ago, but there is much less effort to establish him as connoisseur playboy. Apart from the off-handed order for Beluga, there is little of that comic display of bon viveur-manship that was one of the charms of Connery's almost-a-gentleman 007.”
David Robinson·Financial Times
“It is the same as its predecessors, only more–too much of everything, from sudden desire to sudden desire.”
Philip K. Scheuer·Los Angeles Times
“script hasn't a morsel of genuine wit, but Bond fans, who are preconditioned to roll in the aisles when their hero merely asks a waiter to bring some beluga caviar and Dom Pérignon '55, will probably never notice. They are switched on by a legend that plays straight to the senses, and its colors are primary.”
Time
“Thunderball is pretty, too, and it is filled with such underwater action as would delight Capt. Jacques-Yves Cousteau.”
Bosley Crowther·The New York Times
“tight, exciting melodrama in which novelty of action figures importantly”
Variety
Accolades
Genres
Action, Adventure, Thriller
Cast & Crew
Terence YoungDirector
Sean ConneryJames Bond
Claudine AugerDominique 'Domino' Derval
Adolfo CeliEmilio Largo
Luciana PaluzziFiona Volpe
Rik Van NutterFelix Leiter
Guy DolemanCount Lippe
Molly PetersPatricia Fearing
Martine BeswickPaula Caplan
Bernard LeeM
Desmond LlewelynQ
Lois MaxwellMiss Moneypenny
Roland CulverForeign Secretary
John BarryComposer
Richard MaibaumWriter
Jack WhittinghamWriter
Kevin McCloryWriter
Ted MooreCinematographyThunderball
A criminal organization has obtained two nuclear bombs and are asking for a 100 million pound ransom in the form of diamonds in seven days or they will use the weapons. The secret service sends James Bond to the Bahamas to once again save the world.
What critics thought
Thunderball landed as a mostly crowd-pleasing entry in the Bond series, with its Bahamas scenery and underwater action sequences drawing the most consistent admiration. Critics split over whether the film's sheer excess was part of the fun or a sign the formula was already wearing thin — some found the spectacle dazzling, others found it numbing and repetitive. Connery himself was a point of contention, with at least one critic arguing he looked visibly less sharp in the role than in earlier installments.
“It's not just that Sean Connery looks a lot more haggard and less heroic than he did two or three years ago, but there is much less effort to establish him as connoisseur playboy. Apart from the off-handed order for Beluga, there is little of that comic display of bon viveur-manship that was one of the charms of Connery's almost-a-gentleman 007.”
David Robinson·Financial Times
“It is the same as its predecessors, only more–too much of everything, from sudden desire to sudden desire.”
Philip K. Scheuer·Los Angeles Times
“script hasn't a morsel of genuine wit, but Bond fans, who are preconditioned to roll in the aisles when their hero merely asks a waiter to bring some beluga caviar and Dom Pérignon '55, will probably never notice. They are switched on by a legend that plays straight to the senses, and its colors are primary.”
Time
“Thunderball is pretty, too, and it is filled with such underwater action as would delight Capt. Jacques-Yves Cousteau.”
Bosley Crowther·The New York Times
“tight, exciting melodrama in which novelty of action figures importantly”
Variety
Accolades
Genres
Action, Adventure, Thriller
Cast & Crew
Terence YoungDirectorSean ConneryJames BondClaudine AugerDominique 'Domino' DervalAdolfo CeliEmilio LargoLuciana PaluzziFiona VolpeRik Van NutterFelix LeiterGuy DolemanCount LippeMolly PetersPatricia FearingMartine BeswickPaula CaplanBernard LeeMDesmond LlewelynQLois MaxwellMiss MoneypennyRoland CulverForeign SecretaryJohn BarryComposerRichard MaibaumWriterJack WhittinghamWriterKevin McCloryWriterTed MooreCinematographyRent & Buy