Live and Let Die is the first of four movies to star Roger Moore as James Bond. I like Roger Moore. He has a different personality to him than Sean Connery did. Sean Connery was a ladies man. A real player kind of guy. Roger Moore’s James Bond was more of a sardonic, witty, side-eye kind of smile sort of James Bond. It’s a different type of secret agent. Both are good. They’re just different.
I do think that Roger Moore’s James Bond was more in line with the type of media that was coming into style in the 70s when this and his other Bond movies came out. This in particular was very reminiscent of all of the “blacksploitation” films that were out and about in the early 70s. Movies like Shaft and Foxy Brown that were very popular back in those days more than likely played a big part in the writing of this script.
And let’s not forget the speedboat chase scene. That was straight out of the Dukes of Hazard, except on water. Potbelly, hillbilly sheriff and all. Why were chase scenes so popular in the 70s? You don’t see chase scenes in modern days like you did in the 70s and 80s. They were always jumping stuff and crashing for no reason. And there were always piles of things that they could drive through stacked on the side of the road for no inexplicable reason. Directors don’t do a whole lot of cheesy chase scenes anymore.
But I digress. Back to Bond. The story isn’t your typical Bond villain kind of scheme. Dr. Kananga is trying to smuggle drugs into Harlem to put the other drug dealers out of business and become the only drug dealer in town, therefore, creating a monopoly, and a whole new load of addicts to sell his drugs to. And, while it is an evil scheme, the only reason Bond got involved is because they killed 3 MI6 agents for no reason. So, the plot only holds up if you want it to hold up. Aside from that, there’s really no reason for Bond to be doing this.
Don’t get me wrong though, I like this movie. It’s still a good movie. Better than On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, that’s for sure. But, what Bond movie isn’t? It’s just not one of the better Bond films. And even though Roger Moore is a fun James Bond, he’ll never be Sean Connery. So, do yourself a favor, and give it a look. And as always, keep on watching, with a smile on your face…
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