20 Things You Didn't Know About Diamonds Are Forever (1971)
10. “Your Friend Blofeld’s Controlling It Now.”
As a result of Sir Sean Connery’s then-unprecedented fee for returning as James Bond, certain other parts of the production had to be scaled down.
The film’s special effects budget took a significant hit, so much so that Blofeld’s laser satellite left some viewers unimpressed. Built by Mastermodels Ltd in Slough, the miniature satellite used an old-fashioned camera flash reflector for its diamond-encrusted light refractor and looks suitably like a weapon of mass destruction.
However, fans and critics alike have consistently found fault with the effects displayed in the sequence, particularly the destruction that unfolds onscreen. Nevertheless, John Barry’s soundtrack certainly supports the scene in a bombastic manner befitting a Bond villain’s masterplan.
Additionally, a special effects dilemma arose whilst filming the attack on Blofeld’s oil rig lair in Baja California (which was actually a temporary oil rig that was towed into position off the coast of Oceanside, California at a cost of $40,000 per day of filming) when an assistant director set off the explosions too early. Fortunately, several cameras managed to capture the action without the additional cost of resetting the expensive effects.