New to James Bond? Sphinx's Viewer Guide!
Hello everyone! We here at The Last Action Podcast have hoped that you have enjoyed our James Bond month, which culminated this past Monday with guests “Hovercraft” Joe and Craig W.K. sharing our 5 favorite James Bond movies. You can listen to the episode here.
Maybe this month of James Bond has left you wanting more. Have you seen all 24 Bond movies? Have you seen only a few? Never seen any? Never fear - Sphinx is here! As a self-proclaimed expert in the world of James Bond, here is my recommended viewing order of the James Bond franchise, based on getting the most out of your experience while mixing in all the different eras of Bond.
Where you should start your James Bond viewing is with the film that started the craze of James Bond globally - Goldfinger. While it is the third movie in the franchise, the Bond movies for the most part are not related to each other, and this movie has it all. So many pop culture references come from this film. It’s fun, action packed, and has a great villain and henchman. Please listen to our episode on this movie if you want to know more - but we have spoilers. So maybe watch the film first.
“Be careful Mr. Bond, your next words may be your last”
After Goldfinger, I recommend digging into the rest of the early Sean Connery films, going in this order:
Goldfinger, Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice
These are the first five Bond films - I simply pushed Goldfinger to the front, as officially it was released between From Russia With Love and Thunderball.
After watching the classics, I recommend movie into modern day Bond. Time to introduce you to Daniel Craig. I recommend watching in chronological order his movies - Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, Skyfall, Spectre. If you want to shorten your time here, you can remove Quantum and Spectre. These four movies are related (with some controversy among fans), so you may be a little lost if you skip them. But most people who saw these movies in chronological order were still lost…..
You’re now all done with Daniel Craig
When you finish with the Daniel Craig films, I recommend giving On Her Majesty’s Secret Service a watch. It is the most unique Bond film of all time in my opinion, for good and bad reasons. George Lazenby is Bond, the only is Aussie to be named 007. Also Bond falls in love for the first time, even though it would be the second you witness this (with Casino Royale being the other film). I don’t want to say much more on this film besides that it’s worth watching.
Ahem….I did one movie don’t forget about me.
From here, I’m going to throw you all around the franchise. Enter Roger Moore, who was in more Bond films than any other actor playing 007. Hit his best two films (in my opinion) first, which are The Spy Who Loved Me and For Your Eyes Only. Enjoy the awesome disco music in both films. Then jump forward into the world of Timothy Dalton as Bond in The Living Daylights and License to Kill, and then see campy Pierce Brosnan in Goldeneye.
At this point, you have some pretty lackluster remaining Bond films. Many of the remaining films are certainly entertaining, but some are pretty brutal too. But if you’ve made it this far, I’m assuming you now love Bond, so here is my full order list of watching Bond movies.
Goldfinger
Dr. No
From Russia With Love
Thunderball
You Only Live Twice
Casino Royale
Quantum of Solace
Skyfall
Spectre
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
The Spy Who Loved Me
For Your Eyes Only
The Living Daylights
License to Kill
Goldeneye
Live and Let Die
The Man With the Golden Gun
Octopussy
A View to a Kill
Tomorrow Never Dies
The World is Not Enough
Diamonds Are Forever
Moonraker
Die Another Day
So, what do you think of my list? Agree or disagree? Let me know on social media (Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter), on our Discord, or in the comments below!
Sphinx
