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The 007 film with the most provocative and controversial name, and the penultimate outing for Roger Moore is weirdly so bizarre that it immediately entertains. Indeed, in terms of narrative, Moore's legacy has given two factors for the Bond viewer to consider. Firstly, his seven films introduced a comic edge which was unprecedented to such a large degree before his twelve-year tenure. Consequently, when the producers change direction and venture into more serious dialogue and plot, the experienced Bond watcher occasionally has difficulties when it comes to believability with the new material. Such examples include Timothy Dalton's two efforts and Casino Royale (2006) which maybe did not hit home to particular fans due to the serious subject matters and performances which are in stark contrast to the familiar almost biannual films that Moore starred in. The Englishman isn't solely concerned with comedy however as his Bond appearances range from the serious - Live and Let Die (1973) and For Your Eyes Only (1981) - to the fantastical - Moonraker (1979). Octopussy lies somewhere in the middle of this hit or miss spectrum with John Glen presenting us with a decent Bond yarn mixing the outlandishness of Vijay Amritraj fighting of villains with a tennis racquet to the severity of a smuggling operation across different continents.
It must be said that the five-time 007 director probably does one of his best jobs here in maintaining tension throughout. Bond inadvertently participates in a jungle hunt with him as the prey, diffuses a bomb dressed as a clown, fights on top of a plane, gets stabbed in the busy Indian streets, brawls atop a moving train, encounters a remarkable array of yo-yo buzz saws, and even bids in a Sotheby's auction, all with the perfect dose of apprehension and anxiety. Obviously we don't get away completely free from the silly "humorous" touches, as Bond lets out a Tarzan heckle, tells a tiger to "Sit!", and even breaks the fourth wall when he first meets Vijay.
However, the ensemble cast is first-rate and is mostly underrated by Bond aficionados. Kamal Khan (Louis Jordan) and General Orlov (Steven Berkoff) do well, even if they do overact a tad. Kabir Bedi's Gobinda is excellently portrayed as a vocal Oddjob, and Mischka and Grischka set up thrilling chases against 007 and 009 with their knife-throwing ability. Maud Adams plays a Bond girl for the second time (the Swedish actress also played Andrea Anders in The Man with the Golden Gun [1974]) as Octopussy, and it is her, Moore and Octopussy's assistant, Magda (Kristina Wayborn), who steal the show. Adams makes her laughably-titled character as real as possible, and Moore, even though straying from Fleming's James Bond once again, illustrates a passable mix of light-heartedness and intensity. Meanwhile, Wayborn has to be one of the most attractive women to grace the franchise, and the character of Magda is one of the most in-depth of secondary female leads Bond has associated himself with.
Also, it's very pleasing to see how, even though Moore's sixth outing was up against the Connery-led James Bond vehicle Never Say Never Again in 1983, the EON production still reigned supreme in both a commercial and critical manner.
The extras
Like all the 'Ultimate Editions', Octopussy is presented in a good anamorphic transfer (2.35:1), and it looks and sounds better than ever with Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, and original Dolby 2.0 Surround audio. The first disc contains two commentaries, one by John Glen and another very good contribution by Roger Moore. "James Bond in India" is an original half hour contemporary documentary with a very good look behind the scenes of production. Most of the general public fail to realise how James Brolin was ready to don the tuxedo for Octopussy before Moore had a change of heart, and seeing the American participate in three tests is very surreal. The first involves Maud Adams of all people in a memorable scene from From Russia with Love (1963) in which Brolin's Bond seduces Adams's Tatiana Romanova. The second is a short scene with Vijay Amritraj, and the third is a brawl with a stuntman. Brolin's introductions are also fascinating. The seven minutes of Ken Burns' personal footage of the Nene Valley Railway near Peterborough is a good inclusion as the same piece of track was also used in GoldenEye (1995), mainly because the preservation of continental trains at the site make it an ideal doubling location. "Location Scouting with Peter Lamont", the two "Shooting Stunts" and the "Testing the Limits" featurettes are nice four minute specific looks at certain places and stunts used in the film with John Glen talking through the aerobatics. The cheekily titled "Inside Octopussy" is the standard half hour focus on the whole film which made me aware of a very funny piece of trivia. The chase at the start of the film through the Indian streets contains footage of a local man riding a bike through the gap between Bond's vehicle and that of the villains. It worked so perfectly that one assumes the individual was just a stuntman because the timing was exquisite! The man simply thought everything was operating as normal! "Designing Bond - Peter Lamont" is a great 20 minute look at the designer's work on the franchise, and Disc Two also contains the normal theatrical archive, images, "All Time High" music video, and storyboards.
The summary
Unnecessary tongue-in-cheek humour aside, Octopussy is a rarity in the Bond franchise in that the viewer is presented with a villainous idea that connotes realism and has a possibility of success. With good assistance from the supporting players, Moore and Glen produce a very worthwhile 007 outing.
