Never Say Never Again

When producer Kevin McClory had first planned the film in 1964, he held initial talks with Richard Burton for the part of Bond,[15] although the project came to nothing because of the legal issues involved. When the Warhead project was launched in the late 1970s, a number of actors were mentioned in the trade press, including Orson Welles for the part of Blofeld, Trevor Howard to play M and Richard Attenborough as director.[8]

In 1978, the working title James Bond of the Secret Service was being used and Connery was in the frame once again, potentially going head-to-head with the next Eon Bond film, Moonraker.[16] By 1980, with legal issues again causing the project to flounder,[17] Connery thought himself unlikely to play the role, as he stated in an interview in the Sunday Express: "when I first worked on the script with Len I had no thought of actually being in the film".[18] When producer Jack Schwartzman became involved, he asked Connery to play Bond; Connery agreed, negotiating a fee of $3 million ($8 million in 2019 dollars[19]), casting and script approval, and a percentage of the profits.[20] Subsequent to Connery reprising the role, the script has several references to Bond's advancing years – playing on Connery being 52 at the time of filming[20] – and academic Jeremy Black has pointed out that there are other aspects of age and disillusionment in the film, such as the Shrubland's porter referring to Bond's car ("They don't make them like that anymore."), the new M having no use for the 00 section and Q with his reduced budgets.[21]

For the main villain in the film, Maximillian Largo, Connery suggested Klaus Maria Brandauer, the lead of the 1981 Academy Award-winning Hungarian film Mephisto.[22] Through the same route came Max von Sydow as Ernst Stavro Blofeld,[23] although he still retained his Eon-originated white cat in the film.[24] For the femme fatale, director Irvin Kershner selected former model and Playboy cover girl Barbara Carrera to play Fatima Blush – the name coming from one of the early scripts of Thunderball.[12] Carrera's performance as Fatima Blush earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress,[25] which she lost to Cher for her role in Silkwood.[26] Micheline Connery, Sean's wife, had met up-and-coming actress Kim Basinger at a hotel in London and suggested her to Connery, which he agreed upon, after Dalila Di Lazzaro refused the Domino role. For the role of Felix Leiter, Connery spoke with Bernie Casey, saying that as the Leiter role was never remembered by audiences, using a black Leiter might make him more memorable.[22] Others cast included comedian Rowan Atkinson, who parodied Bond in his role of Johnny English twenty years later.[27]

Former Eon Productions' editor and director of On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Peter R. Hunt, was approached to direct the film but declined due to his previous work with Eon.[28] Irvin Kershner, who had previously worked with Connery on A Fine Madness (1966), and had achieved success in 1980 with The Empire Strikes Back was then hired. A number of the crew from the 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark were also appointed, including first assistant director David Tomblin, director of photography Douglas Slocombe, second unit director Mickey Moore and production designers Philip Harrison and Stephen Grimes.[22][29]

The Kingdom 5KR which acted as Largo's ship, the Flying Saucer

Filming for Never Say Never Again began on 27 September 1982 on the French Riviera for two months[12] before moving to Nassau, the Bahamas in mid-November[9] where filming took place at Clifton Pier, which was also one of the locations used in Thunderball.[30] Largo's Palmyran fortress was actually historic Fort Carré in Antibes.[31] Largo's ship, the Flying Saucer, was portrayed by the yacht Kingdom 5KR, then owned by Saudi billionaire Adnan Khashoggi and called the Nabila.[32] Principal photography finished at Elstree Studios where interior shots were filmed.[30] Elstree also housed the Tears of Allah underwater cavern, which took three months to construct.[30] Most of the filming was completed in the spring of 1983, although there was some additional shooting during the summer of 1983.[9]

Production on the film was troubled,[33] with Connery taking on many of the production duties with assistant director David Tomblin.[30] Director Irvin Kershner was critical of producer Jack Schwartzman, saying that, while he was a good businessman, "he didn't have the experience of a film producer".[30] After the production ran out of money, Schwartzman had to fund further production out of his own pocket and later admitted he had underestimated the amount the film would cost to make.[33] There was tension on set between Schwartzman and Connery, who at times barely spoke to each other. Connery was unimpressed with the perceived lack of professionalism behind the scenes and was on record as saying that the whole production was a "bloody Mickey Mouse operation!"[34]

Steven Seagal, who was a martial arts instructor for this film, broke Connery's wrist while training. On an episode of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Connery revealed he did not know his wrist was broken until over a decade later.[35]

James Horner was both Kershner's and Schwartzman's first choice to compose the score after being impressed with his work on Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Horner, who worked in London for most of the time, wound up unavailable according to Kershner, though Schwartzman later claimed Sean Connery vetoed the American. Frequent Bond composer John Barry was invited, but declined out of loyalty to Eon.[36] The music for Never Say Never Again was written by Michel Legrand, who composed a score similar to his work as a jazz pianist.[37] The score has been criticised as "anachronistic and misjudged",[30] "bizarrely intermittent"[29] and "the most disappointing feature of the film".[22] Legrand also wrote the main theme "Never Say Never Again", which featured lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman — who had also worked with Legrand on the Academy Award-winning song "The Windmills of Your Mind"[38]—and was performed by Lani Hall[22] after Bonnie Tyler, who disliked the song, had reluctantly declined.[39]

Phyllis Hyman also recorded a potential theme song, written by Stephen Forsyth and Jim Ryan, but the song—an unsolicited submission—was passed over given Legrand's contractual obligations with the music.[40]

This 007 motif takes the place of Eon's gun barrel sequence.

Many of the elements of the Eon-produced Bond films were not present in Never Say Never Again for legal reasons. These included the gun barrel sequence, where a screen full of 007 symbols appeared instead, and similarly there was no "James Bond Theme" to use, although no effort was made to supply another tune.[9] A pre-credits sequence was filmed but not used;[41] instead the film opens with the credits run over the top of the opening sequence of Bond on a training mission.[30]

Never Say Never Again was broadly welcomed and praised by the critics: Ian Christie, writing in the Daily Express, said that Never Say Never Again was "one of the better Bonds",[50] finding the film "superbly witty and entertaining, ... the dialogue is crisp and the fight scenes imaginative."[50] Christie also thought that "Connery has lost none of his charm and, if anything, is more appealing than ever as the stylish resolute hero."[50] David Robinson, writing in The Times also concentrated on Connery, saying that: "Connery ... is back, looking hardly a day older or thicker, and still outclassing every other exponent of the role, in the goodnatured throwaway with which he parries all the sex and violence on the way".[51] For Robinson, the presence of Connery and Klaus Maria Brandauer as Maximillian Largo "very nearly make it all worthwhile."[51] The reviewer for Time Out summed up Never Say Never Again saying "The action's good, the photography excellent, the sets decent; but the real clincher is the fact that Bond is once more played by a man with the right stuff."[52]

Derek Malcolm in The Guardian showed himself to be a fan of Connery's Bond, saying the film contains "the best Bond in the business",[53] but nevertheless did not find Never Say Never Again any more enjoyable than the recently released Octopussy (starring Roger Moore), or "that either of them came very near to matching Dr. No or From Russia with Love."[53] Malcolm's main issue with the film was that he had a "feeling that a constant struggle was going on between a desire to make a huge box-office success and the effort to make character as important as stunts."[53] Malcolm summed up that "the mix remains obstinately the same – up to scratch but not surpassing it."[53] Writing in The Observer, Philip French noted that "this curiously muted film ends up making no contribution of its own and inviting damaging comparisons with the original, hyper-confident Thunderball".[54] French concluded that "like an hour-glass full of damp sand, the picture moves with increasing slowness as it approaches a confused climax in the Persian Gulf."[54]

Writing for Newsweek, critic Jack Kroll thought the early part of the film was handled "with wit and style",[55] although he went on to say that the director was "hamstrung by Lorenzo Semple's script".[55] Richard Schickel, writing in Time magazine praised the film and its cast. He wrote that Klaus Maria Brandauer's character was "played with silky, neurotic charm",[56] while Barbara Carrera, playing Fatima Blush, "deftly parodies all the fatal femmes who have slithered through Bond's career".[56] Schickel's highest praise was saved for the return of Connery, observing "it is good to see Connery's grave stylishness in this role again. It makes Bond's cynicism and opportunism seem the product of genuine worldliness (and world weariness) as opposed to Roger Moore's mere twirpishness."[56]

Janet Maslin, writing in The New York Times, was broadly praising of the film, saying she thought that Never Say Never Again "has noticeably more humor and character than the Bond films usually provide. It has a marvelous villain in Largo."[57] Maslin also thought highly of Connery in the role, observing that "in Never Say Never Again, the formula is broadened to accommodate an older, seasoned man of much greater stature, and Mr. Connery expertly fills the bill."[57] Writing in The Washington Post, Gary Arnold was fulsome in his praise, saying that Never Say Never Again is "one of the best James Bond adventure thrillers ever made",[58] going on to say that "this picture is likely to remain a cherished, savory example of commercial filmmaking at its most astute and accomplished."[58] Arnold went further, saying that "Never Say Never Again is the best acted Bond picture ever made, because it clearly surpasses any predecessors in the area of inventive and clever character delineation".[58]

The critic for The Globe and Mail, Jay Scott, also praised the film, saying that Never Say Never Again "may be the only instalment of the long-running series that has been helmed by a first-rate director".[59] According to Scott, the director, with high-quality support cast, resulted in the "classiest of all the Bonds".[59] Roger Ebert gave the film 3½ out of 4 stars, and wrote that Never Say Never Again, while consisting of a basic "Bond plot", was different from other Bond films: "For one thing, there's more of a human element in the movie, and it comes from Klaus Maria Brandauer, as Largo."[60] Ebert went on to add, "there was never a Beatles reunion ... but here, by God, is Sean Connery as Sir James Bond. Good work, 007."[60]

Colin Greenland reviewed Never Say Never Again for Imagine magazine, and stated that "Never Say Never Again is a complacent male sexist fantasy, where women can be only femmes fatales or passive victims."[61]

Because Never Say Never Again is not an Eon-produced film, it has not been included in a number of subsequent reviews. Norman Wilner of MSN said that 1967's Casino Royale and Never Say Never Again "exist outside the 'official' continuity, [and] are excluded from this list, just as they're absent from MGM's megabox. But take my word for it; they're both pretty awful".[62] Of the more recent reviews, opinion on Never Say Never Again is still positive. The film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes sampled 51 critics and judged 69% of the reviews as positive, with an average rating of 5.53/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "While the rehashed story feels rather uninspired and unnecessary, the return of both Sean Connery and a more understated Bond make Never Say Never Again a watchable retread."[63] The score is still more positive than some of the Eon films, with Rotten Tomatoes ranking Never Say Never Again 16th among all Bond films in 2008.[64] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 68 out of 100 based on 15 critics, indicating generally favourable reviews.[65] Empire gives the film three of a possible five stars, observing that "Connery was perhaps wise to call it quits the first time round".[66] IGN gave Never Say Never Again a score of 5 out of 10, claiming that the film "is more miss than hit".[67] The review also thought that the film was "marred with too many clunky exposition scenes and not enough moments of Bond being Bond".[67]

In 1995 Michael Sauter of Entertainment Weekly rated Never Say Never Again as the ninth best Bond film to that point, after 17 films had been released. Sauter thought the film "is successful only as a portrait of an over-the-hill superhero."[68] He did admit, however, that "even past his prime, Connery proves that nobody does it better".[68] James Berardinelli, in his review of Never Say Never Again, thinks the re-writing of the Thunderball story has led to a film which has "a hokey, jokey feel, [it] is possibly the worst-written Bond script of all".[69] Berardinelli concludes that "it's a major disappointment that, having lured back the original 007, the film makers couldn't offer him something better than this drawn-out, hackneyed story."[69] Critic Danny Peary wrote that "it was great to see Sean Connery return as James Bond after a dozen years".[70] He also thought the supporting cast was good, saying that Klaus Maria Brandauer's Largo was "neurotic, vulnerable ... one of the most complex of Bond's foes"[70] and that Barbara Carrera and Kim Basinger "make lasting impressions."[70] Peary also wrote that the "film is exotic, well acted, and stylishly directed ... It would be one of the best Bond films if the finale weren't disappointing. When will filmmakers realize that underwater fight scenes don't work because viewers usually can't tell the hero and villain apart and they know doubles are being used?"[70]