MoonrakerGenre: Action |Adventure | Sci-Fi

Running Time: 126 minutes

Directed By: Lewis Gilbert

Written By: Christopher Wood

Cast: Roger Moore, Lois Chiles and Michael Lonsdale

Movie Release Date: 29 June, 1979


Review:

Moonraker has undoubtedly been one of the better Bond movies starring Roger Moore. This movie in the Bond series was the first to delve into the sci-fi generation, probably inspired by the then released Star Trek movie.

The main plot of the movie is the hijacking of a United States space shuttle, Moonraker. The shuttle, loaned out to the British at the time, causes the British Intelligence to send in their best agent to investigate – 007 of course! The producer of the shuttle is Drax industries, where Bond begins his investigation, and meets the beautiful scientist Dr. Holly Goodhead (Lois Chiles) – the Bond Girl of the movie. Though the last bits of the movie take place outer space, they only emphasize the use of special effects and don’t create the magnificence of Star Trek.

The recurring cast of the Bond movies is present in this one as well, including M, Q and a one time enemy of Bond – Jaws (Richard Kiel). He turns goodfella in this movie, thanks to the soul changing emotion called love. Yes, he gets himself a girlfriend!

The total “Bond” package is well preserved in the movie, with an extra dose of special effects and the usual action sequences. John Barry’s musical score too adds to the movie’s appeal. The target audience just expanded with this Bond expedition, with a journey into the vast realms of outer space – Bond style!