Let's be realistic.

Brilliant and touching

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

After the last slow James Bond entry in 1981 ("For Your Eyes Only"), it was a pleasant surprise to find out that Agent 007 wasn't dying. Roger Moore in the Bond role in "Octopussy" comes back to life in grand style. This film has all of the trademark aspects of the Bond franchise, and then some. It has a new main playwright since the last outing. Usually there's one specific hair-raising scenario when Bond might fall to his death, become chopped liver, or float off into space. Here, Bond has three harrowing and nail biting escapades. The first is dodging a missile in a special jet plane made for him by Q's shop back at MI6 labs. The second is clinging to the side and then roof of a rail car on a fast moving train. And, the third is holding onto the top of a prop plane as the pilot tries to shake him off. In between these, Bond has some scrapes with assassins, other bad guys and is hunted and has encounters with tigers and crocodiles. This is one fast-paced thriller, and Bond returns to form, winning all of his fights but one. Of course, that one leads to his next escape. Bond gets some new gadgets from Q, besides the compact jet plane that doubles as a car. And, a double plot adds more intrigue and interest. Part of this story involves the Soviet Union, and a rebel general within the Soviet military who has a dastardly plan to cause a nuclear explosion in West Germany. Even though it's a far-out piece of the story, I enjoy the Bond thrillers more when they take place within the aspects of the Cold War. That was a very real time in the lives of people around the world after World War II and until 1990. This film has more unique and hair-raising scenes than usual, to the point that the plot bounces around a great deal. But, it is interesting and keeps one awake and glued to his or her seat. The story is set mostly in India and Germany, which at that time was divided into East and West. In a scene where M sends Bond into East Berlin, Bond goes from the American zone to East Berlin through Checkpoint Charlie. That probably was the most famous and well known of all the Berlin crossings during the Cold War. This film is somewhat different in that it doesn't have a woman agent as a nemesis to Bond. Instead, a network of women have been trained by the daughter of a former Secret Agent in physical skills as well as business and professional fields. Toward the end, Octopussy, played by Maud Adams, leads her ladies in a raid on the evil Kamal. It's a far-fetched battle, but it's a fun spectacle to see how it was staged. Louis Jordan plays Kamal. This is a very enjoyable Bond thriller with lots of action and far-out scenes. It's the best Bond played by Roger Moore, and one of the best of the entire series. Not only does it have trains, planes and automobiles, but it also has boats, horses, elephants, and a hot air balloon toward the end. There's much fun in this film. One very strange thing occurs in the opening scenario. Two armed guards are watching Bond in the back of a moving truck. When a woman agent distracts them, Bond hits releases on their chests and parachutes open and they float out of the truck. These were freefall chutes used in sky diving, not regular Army parachutes. But, even then, no one would ever be wearing a parachute until just before they boarded a plane for a jump. Here are some favorite lines from this film. Bond and an MI6 art expert attend an art auction in London at which an original Faberge egg from the Russian royalty is put on the auction block. Bond, "How much should it fetch?" Jim Fanning, "Oh, 250,000... 300,000 pounds. Anything more would be crazy."When Bond arrives in India, he finds his contact to be snake charmer. Vijay, "This was the wrong cover. I hate snakes." Vijay tells Bond that he plays cricket. Vijay, "As a matter of fact, I've got a part time job as a pro at Kamal's club." James Bond, "What have you learned so far?" Vijay, "Well, my backhand's improving."

Growing up in the late seventies and early eighties, it's fair to say that (despite the numerous amounts of evidence to the contrary supporting Connery) Roger Moore is my favourite Bond. I watched (the absurdly-titled) 'Octopussy' when it came out in 1983. I was six at the time and I loved it. However, now many decades later I can saw that there are Bond films that stand the test of time and will be enjoyed by future generations just as much and there are Bond films that only appeal to you as a child. Now, I can see that Octopussy is probably the latter. Even as a cynical adult I still watch it and enjoy it for what it is (plus the nostalgia it induces in me), however, it's probably the (first) best example that those who like to criticise Moore's interpretation of Bond use when they say how much better Connery was as the superspy.Many liked Connery because of his darker take on Bond. People felt that Moore was often too silly and self-knowing to be taken seriously. As I said, I personally liked Moore best and he probably peaked during 'The Spy Who Loved Me,' after that it was a slow descent into a little too much reliance on glib one-liners and parodies that would make Austin Powers blush. It focuses on a Soviet General who is trying to finance a new European war via purchasing rare jewellery. Naturally, Bond must stop a few bombs going off along the way.Along with the obligatory car chases and punch-ups we see the first ever instance of a Bond girl returning for a new film. Maud Adams plays a different role than the one in 'The Man With the Golden Gun,' but I'm not really sure why she was chosen as she's hardly the most memorable Bond girl of the franchise. Plus the villain is kind of weak, too. Gone are the days of 'Jaws' or 'Blofeld' and in their place are a forgettable Indian bad guy and the generic Russian general who's always out to crush the decadent West.Overall, I enjoy the film because I pretty much will watch anything Bond-related and I have a soft spot for the campiness of the Roger Moore era (even when it does come across more like a Flash Gordon movie during some of the climactic fight scenes!). However, I do appreciate that 'Octopussy' will not be for everyone. If you lean towards liking 'dark and gritty' Bond then you're really going to have a hard time taking Bond seriously when he's swinging through the jungle while they overlay a 'Tarzan-like' noise over him.Perhaps the most pertinent thing to point out is that Bond has to infiltrate a circus and, in doing so, decides to (perfectly) disguise himself as a clown. He then flaps and waddles in his oversize shoes past all manner of guards in order to stop mass genocide. It's a daft sight, but then it's a pretty daft film. If you're okay with that, then you'll hopefully get some enjoyment in this over-the-top spy film (and not think that it's a complete horse's a$$ - as depicted in the opening stunt!)

Watching all 24 Bond films, some stand out more than others, and some just blend into the background. Octopussy, the 6th Roger Moore Bond film, just blends into the background. Just to get it out of the way, I'll just highlight the stupid moments Bond fans know: 56-year-old Moore as Bond dressed up as a clown, Bond fighting a bunch of bad guys through (offensive) stereotypical Indian displays like the sword in the mouth, and Bond yelling like Tarzan while swinging through the trees. Yeah, the goofiness of Moore's previous films just couldn't go away after For Your Eyes Only, which was supposed to be a more serious film, despite having a stupid beginning and ending. Besides that, there is nothing really horrendously bad about this film other than the stupid highlights I mentioned earlier; it's just not remarkable. The plot is that a Russian general who just wants power (Steven Berkoff, who was also a Russian bad guy in Rambo: First Blood Part II) hatches a secret plan that involves working with Kamal Khan and the vengeful Octopussy, who later switches sides to help Bond. The MacGuffin in this story is a piece of jewelry shaped like an egg that is recovered by another double-0 agent who is killed...and wears a clown suit. Oh boy. Bond goes to India to track down Kamal Khan, who buys a replica of the egg, unknowingly, and gets caught up in the Russian general's plot to blow up part of India. That is all I could remember from the plot because the film is not memorable in any way. Maude Adams' Octopussy (Really?) isn't as memorable a Bond girl as I thought she'd be; her character in The Man With the Golden Gun (1974) who gets killed stood out more and that was a smaller part. The main villain has one of the most basic archetypes ever in a movie and turns out to be so insignificant, he gets killed quite some time before Bond stops his scheme and the movie ends. Kamal Khan isn't an interesting bad guy either. Moore is alright here as Bond, but one trait of his that I always find annoying is that he knows EVERYTHING about the MacGuffins in his movies, whether it be the ATAC system in For Your Eyes Only or the egg jewelry in this film.I do like the concept of a whole battalion of sensual women fighters who serve Octopussy, but it ends up feeling like the numerous other battle scenes with large forces that have been in previous films.I guess my point here is that this film does nothing new or exciting for the Bond series at that point and is just another basic plot. I actually had trouble remembering some of the details right after I had finished it. If you're looking for high-quality Bond, you won't find it here.

This film came out in 1983, the same year as the unofficial Bond film, "Never Say Never Again" starring Sean Connery. They had a box-office battle called "The Battle of the Bonds," and this film grossed a lot more and was, by a long shot, the better film as well. This is another fun Bond adventure with plenty to like.Roger Moore is starting to show his age a little bit in this film, but he's still has his charm and can still seduce women and deliver the one-liners. Maud Adams, who was previously in "The Man With The Golden Gun," once again is pretty much wasted, which is a shame since she's the title character.Louis Jordan as Kamal Khan is a very smooth and cool villain, and Steven Berkoff isn't as bad as most people say. The plot may be convoluted for some, but it's actually another fairly down-to-earth spy story.The locales in India are very beautiful and the film doesn't disappoint as far as action goes. It has a brilliant plane chase in the pre-credit sequence, a chase through the streets of India, a struggle on top a train, and a nerve-racking climax with Bond hanging on to Khan's areoplane.There are some incredibly silly elements that this film is infamous for. Bond dressing in a clown costume is one thing, but the Tarzan yell is a bit much. You'll enjoy the film if you just ignore those.By no means is this Bond's "All-Time High" like Rita Coolidge's theme song says, but this is still a fun, suspenseful, action-packed entry in the Bond series. Well worth a look.RATING: B