48300

1965 (Copyright)
1966-03-14 (Release)

United Kingdom

Danjaq S.A., Eon Productions, United Artists

Spy action thriller. British secret agent James Bond has been sent to improve his wellbeing at a health farm, Shrublands. There he chances upon Count Lippe whose unusual arm tattoo intrigues Bond. Lippe is really there to oversee a fellow patient's severe facial surgery, which is secretly part of a plot by terrorism group S.P.E.C.T.R.E. to blackmail the West by hijacking a N.A.T.O. flight, stealing the plane's two atomic warheads and keeping them under the sea in the Bahamas. Bond travels to Nassau where, aided by fellow agent Paula and the C.I.A.'s Felix Leiter, he encounters the S.P.E.C.T.R.E. operatives Emilio Largo and Fiona Volpe. Largo owns the Disco Volante hydrofoil (which has been used in the hiding of the bombs) and lives at the exotic villa Palmyra, with sharks in his pool. Largo's female companion Domino is the sister of a pilot who was murdered as part of the warhead robbery. Bond faces danger from assassins, sharks and high-speed cars and boats in his bid to find the stolen nuclear arms before time is up and Miami is destroyed. (Synopsis)

Film series note: The fourth film in Albert R. Broccoli's James Bond series (starting with 1962's 'Dr. No'), and the first in widescreen. Credit note: Additional credit: 'The producers are grateful to the Ministry of Tourism of the Bahamas for their co-operation' Production design note: For the 'Disco Volante' hydrofoil, the crew modified a former Caribbean Sea ferry found in Puerto Rico called The Flying Fish. Dialogue note: When Bond leaves Shrublands, he bids goodbye to Patricia with the words, "Another time, another place." Sean Connery had previously appeared in the film 'Another Time, Another Place' (1958). Writing note: Before the novel 'Thunderball' was published, the material had been proposed as the first James Bond film, with initial plot ideas devised and elaborated on by Ernest Cuneo, Kevin McClory, Jack Whittingham, Ivar Bryce and Ian Fleming. In 1959, Whittingham completed a screenplay (for which Fleming suggested the title 'Thunderball'), but the project did not come to fruition and 'Dr. No' (1962), produced by another team, later became the first Bond film. In 1961, Fleming published the novel 'Thunderball' without crediting any of the writing to others. McClory took legal action and, settling out of court, won the right to produce a film based on the material, and also the right for him and Whittingham to be cited as contributors in subsequent editions of the novel. When 'Thunderball' was finally made, Whittingham was not approached to adapt the novel, but was given a screen credit for his work on the earlier screenplay. McClory and Fleming received credits for contributing to the story. Cuneo and Bryce received no credit.

Directed by: Terence Young
©: Danjaq S.A.
an Eon production: Eon Productions
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Sean Connery (James Bond)
Claudine Auger (Dominique Derval, 'Domino')
Adolfo Celi (Emilio Largo)
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