Ranking Every James Bond Film - From Worst To Best

4. Goldfinger

The apex of Bond iconography, Goldfinger marks the point where the franchise went from recognisable spy thriller to full-blown phenomenon, with much of what makes Bond Bond on display here for the first time. Most obviously, Goldfinger marks the first appearance of the Aston Martin DB5, 007's most famous mode of transport and something nearly as iconic as the character himself. Goldfinger also sees the first truly great madman and henchman one-two, with Gert Fröbe's Auric Goldfinger and Harold Sakata's hat-throwing Oddjob serving as the series' best ever evil duo. Elsewhere, there's Shirley Eaton - still the most outright stunning Bond girl ever - as the female immortalised in gold paint, Pussy Galore, which will never not be funny, the DB5's ejector seat, much parodied since, Shirley Bassey's thumping title song, and the laser-beam sequence, which gave birth to that classic of franchise lexicon "No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die!". A stupid remark about The Beatles - which shows Bond as a bit of a relic - is Goldfinger's only real misstep, ensuring that the film is as close to perfect as a Bond can get.