THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN (1974) // James Bond Review and Whisky Pairing
"The Man With The Golden Gun" Plot
A madman (Christopher Lee) becomes interested in creating a monopoly in solar power during an energy crisis.
Whiskey Lore Review
Some movies are just hard to love. As much as I love Bond movies, the Roger Moore era had some clunkers and this one gets the lowest marks for taking a great potential villain like Christopher Lee and a potentially great Bond girl Maud Adams and missing the mark completely. Scaramanga was supposed to be an equal in intellect to Bond, his alter-ego. In the end, he just ends up being a lame wanna-be.
Best of this movie: The filming locations are the star of the show: Macaw, Bangkok, Phang Nga Bay Thailand, Hong Kong, and Hai Fat's home. I also love the Queen Elizabeth MI6 hideout, build sideways.
Memorable: While I can't stand Sheriff J.W. Pepper, the scene with the red AMC Hornet jumping the rickety washed out bridge is pure Roger Moore.
Where it goes wrong: The music! The brilliant John Barry at his worst - and he would agree with you. He was only given 3 weeks to score the film. And they chose the wrong theme (see below), the Alice Cooper theme is pure Bond with an edge. It also scores low on the opening scene, opening titles, villain, gadgets, and car (AMC Hornet, really?)
Paired Whisky: Kilchoman Machir Bay Islay Single Malt Whisky
That beautiful scenery is the reason I pair this with Kilchoman's Machir Bay, because Phang Nga Bay Thailand is the jewel of the film. The Kilchoman is a fine fine whisky with a nice bit of smoke, vanilla from ex-bourbon casks and some fruity notes from the Oloroso Sherry butts. It will take your mind off of the wasted effort on your screen.
Whiskey Lore Rank: #26 (Score 4.35) > Next Movie
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Go Back: Introduction
I seriously have no idea why this Alice Cooper song wasn't used. Great melody and lyrics. Maybe they thought it was too American rock for a British spy movie. But that didn't stop them years later working with Chris Cornell (thankfully)!