10 Best James Bond Movies Of All Time

8. For Your Eyes Only

MGM

Killing off Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the corny Bond villain of old, in the opening credits of For Your Eyes Only almost feels like a statement of intent (it wasn't - it was actually a dig at the fact that Bond producers had lost the rights to the character): doing away with much of the series' hamminess For Your Eyes Only gets back to basics with a murky tale of Cold War espionage.

Roger Moore is still awful as Bond, obviously, but the film around him is more early Connery than Moonraker (For Yours Eyes Only's predecessor, and arguably the franchise's nadir). Which is to say it's a more grounded kind of Bond film, wherein it actually feels like there's some weight to 007's actions.

The plot revolves around the reclamation of a simple MacGuffin - the ATAC machine, wanted by both British and Soviet intelligence - and Bond's single-minded determination to get it. Herein lies one of the most undersung Bond movie climaxes: knowing he must either hand the ATAC over to the Soviets or destroy it, Bond chooses to smash the priceless machine. 007's Soviet rival simply smiles and walks away, recognition that this espionage business is to both men just a game.

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Contributor

Lover of film, writer of words, pretentious beyond belief. Thinks Scorsese and Kubrick are the kings of cinema, but PT Anderson and David Fincher are the dashing young princes. Follow Brogan on twitter if you can take shameless self-promotion: @BroganMorris1