SummaryJames Bond (Sean Connery) is sent to Japan to team up with their Secret Service to help stop SPECTRE’s Blofeld from starting a third world war by setting America and Russia against each by kidnapping their space crafts.
Directed By:Lewis Gilbert
Written By:Harold Jack Bloom, Roald Dahl, Ian Fleming, Geoffrey Jenkins
You Only Live Twice
Metascore
Generally Favorable
61
User score
Generally Favorable
6.8
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
64% Positive
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
21% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
14% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
100
Director Lewis Gilbert effortlessly marshals the intricacies of the plot (a nutty plan by SMERSH to ignite a world war), the exotic Japanese locations, and the extravagancies of having hundreds of ninja warriors abseiling into a huge enemy base unfathomably constructed in the belly of an extinct volcano (quite the engineering feat!).
88
From the Eastern flavor of the opening theme, hauntingly sung by Nancy Sinatra, to the Japanese setting, the fifth film is the Bond series just gets better and cooler with age. The tasty script by Roald Dahl junks most of the Fleming novel, spinning its own witty Cold War fantasy.
User score
Generally Favorable
57% Positive
56 Ratings
56 Ratings
39% Mixed
38 Ratings
38 Ratings
4% Negative
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
Mar 4, 2021
10
James Bond is awesome!James Bond is awesome!James Bond is awesome!James Bond is awesome!James Bond is awesome!
Dec 11, 2020
10
The fifth movie in the franchise and it is one of my favorite Sean Connery James Bond movies. After a NASA spacecraft is hijacked the USA are suspecting the Soviets as culprits and a mayor conflict is on the horizon. James Bond is tasked with an investigation in Japan as the MI6 had a clue pointing in this direction. Japan as setting is very nice especially for fans of Japanese culture like me (Yes this is also a bias warning). The scenery is amazing as they filmed in Ginza (A district of Tokyo with lots of stores, restaurants and boutiques but also really expensive), used Himeji Castle and the Shinto Shrine in Nachi. As someone who visited Japan I must say it is a beautiful country full of nice people with great sights and so much great food (Less weird than expected however, even Tokyo;-). But back to the movie. The story is immersive from the beginning to the end. You know that failing will lead to a disaster on a scale never seen before. I like the concepts and idea as they make a lot of the setting and have an epic climax. Then there are the actors. Sean Connery has nailed his role a few movies ago and delivers the James Bond we know and cherish. I enjoyed Tiger Tanaka as head of the Japanese secret service. He is skilled, a clever schemer, capable and a man of many talents. I don't know if the praise magnificent bastard for a badass you admire is an insult in some countries or else I would use this description. His special forces are remarkable effective (Bonus point for those who figure out what people in Japan used as elite spies since centuries were called;-). Lets say that females are not well represented in James Bond movies in that time (Especially the names) but this does not mean that Aikko Wakabayashi and Mie Hama do not deliver a really good performance. Again Q becomes my favorite reoccurring character (I like also the banter with Miss Moneypenny and M). This time we got new cool gadgets (Not all are from Q) like an interesting cigarette, a remarkable cracking machine and “Little Nellie”. The “Little Nellie” really exist minus some upgrades in real live. For the soundtrack we have Nancy Sinatra who did a good performance. Overall this is an excellent movie in the franchise. Not as good as Goldfinger but good enough to get a 10/10 rating. It succeed enough for me to justify this rating.
80
The sight of SPECTRE’s alligator-jawed spacecraft, its maw opening like an evil steel bloom, is one of the single most brilliant visuals in the Bond canon.
63
Unfortunately, this is also among the weakest of the early Bond films, although Connery is in peak form.
60
Nancy Sinatra sings the wistful title song, and the action scenes are enhanced by some of composer John Barry's best work for the Bond series.
40
Even Connery seems uncomfortable and fatigued, as if he meant it when he said that this would be his last Bond film. It may just be an off year for 007; it may be that he has received too much ribbing from Casino Royale (TIME, May 12). But it could also be that the monumental Bond issue is at long last beginning to deflate.
30
Tired, poorly paced Bond from 1967, with Sean Connery displaying his discontent. Donald Pleasence's Blofeld has a memorably creepy softness, but that's about it.
Aug 19, 2020
10
A fun movie in the series. Sure it’s turning Japanese plot point has aged terribly but it’s only for about 15-20 of the movie. The rest is really fun and a major improvement over the dull Thunderball.
Aug 30, 2024
6
With four successful pictures already in the bag, You Only Live Twice finds the 007 franchise branching out in new, surprising directions. As a sort of middle ground between the action-suspense romanticism of Goldfinger and the cheesy, over-the-top camp of the Roger Moore era, Bond's 1967 adventure often seems conflicted and goofy, uncertain of its own identity like an adolescent whose voice is changing. Sean Connery remains convincing as the suave ladies' man with a cool head under pressure, but it's hard not to snicker a little when he climbs aboard a tiny yellow toy helicopter and mows down a fleet of full-sized enemy aircraft with ease. Our hero is also beginning to show his age during the second act's infrequent fight scenes, with nameless henchmen constantly going out of their way to stand in the way of his slow, looping haymakers. Bearing an armload of blush-inducing racial stereotypes, a cast so one-dimensional it might envy the depth of a sheet of plywood and an endgame that would rival any Saturday morning cartoon, it should come as no surprise that this episode provides more fuel for the Austin Powers parodies than any of its brethren. That doesn't mean it's a dull ride, but while this is hardly the character's darkest hour it's also a far cry from his finest.
Sep 12, 2021
6
The beginning of the movie is very good, because it takes place in Japan. But the 2nd part is full of outdated action, sometimes it is even ridiculous. The story is also simple. Sean Connery isnt acting very well like in the former movies also.
Nov 10, 2019
3
I tolerate this one slightly more than Thunderball but it's still almost instantly forgettable. Aside from the first onscreen appearance of Blofeld, There is nothing memorable about this movie. It follows the typical Bond formula and features a bland plot and characters. And much like Thunderball, I feel like the second half could have been edited down because it tends to drag a bit, especially towards the end of the film. Also, It was very awkward to see Connery in yellowface.
May 7, 2019
3
Gilbert is not the guy to be invited in such a party, just focus on Connery and who knows you might end up having a good time. You Only Live Twice Gilbert is a guest. He is new to it. But that isn't an excuse. It shouldn't be. He has a rough idea on what or how should Bond be, and it is not only wrong but also is commercially motivated. And yes, there is also the script to be blamed, but also Lewis Gilbert, the director, whose agenda apparently is to go for a kiss or a punch or an explosion whenever you feel the viewers getting disenchanted from the screen. What could have been a gripping gritty adventure of half an hour is stretched to an entire two hours of labor that we, as an audience are told to work upon. They are definitely pushing it, especially if the actual plot starts after the clock ticks to a forty five minute of bell, after which too, they dare to take detours. Shorter than the previous chapter, it still feels like a much longer one. I would presume that time has not been nice to it, but it has lost the flamboyant nature in its narration that made its predecessor what it is now. The antagonist that is kept behind the curtains, lacks a face to be feared upon and is why for the huge chunk of the film, you feel like Sean Connery is shooting in the dark and not in a good way. Also, there is no empathy in the characters for us to connect with them. The rituals and traditions that our sung hero follows and adapts while visiting new places and people is also left blank in here; it's like they are not even trying to be better, somehow they have found peace in the everworking formulaic structure. But that didn't make its book famous, You Only Live Twice and you only film once, so let's make it count.
Production Company:
- Eon Productions
Release Date:Jun 13, 1967
Duration:1 h 57 m
Rating:PG
Tagline:Welcome to Japan, Mr. Bond
Awards
Golden Screen, Germany
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
BAFTA Awards
• 1 Nomination
