Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Sean Connery is back for his final performance as super agent James Bond in this high-velocity action thriller. When two atomic warheads are hijacked by the evil SPECTRE organization, Agent 007 is hurled into an explosive, pulse-pounding race to save the world from nuclear terrorists.

This was not an official Bond film and it actually came out the same year as one of the more uninspiring Bond films with Roger Moore, Octopussy. This one brought Connery back to the screen as Bond in a semi-remake of the Bond classic Thunderball. Some of the plot points were changed here and there but it is pretty close overall. This is still a great addition to the series, even if it isn’t officially one of the lineup.

Like the rest of the Bond Blu-rays, this one has been fully restored and it looks terrific. The print seems to be in excellent shape and I didn’t notice any nicks or scratches in the presentation at all. Some of the stock footage could look better but the principal photography has plenty of detail and dimensionality. Colors don’t looked too aged and contrast levels were better than I expected for an older film. The photography takes away some of the fine object detail but I was rarely disappointed with this one.

The DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack was better than I was expecting for an older film like this but it still doesn’t quite hold up to the dynamics of the more recent entries in the series. Sound effects are pretty canned and a bit thin in the low end. The sound effects come off as gimmicky but they did their best to open up the soundstage and deliver some compelling panning effects. Dialogue sounds natural enough and I didn’t notice any strain.

Extras include a feature commentary with the film’s director along with some production features that look at bringing Connery back to the role he made famous and taking a chance with a off the ranch Bond film. A photo gallery and the trailer are also included.

I was overjoyed to see Fox bring this one out alongside the other Bond releases this last week. I thought it would be a long wait to see this popular remake. The presentation has been given the same great treatment as the other Bond films making it a must own for collectors of the series.