In James Bond's third cinematic adventure, the dangerously suave spy (Sean Connery) must stop the criminal capitalist Auric Goldfinger (Gert Frobe) from contaminating Fort Knox's gold with atomic radiation. Aiding the villain is the alluring Pussy Galore (Honor Blackman) and the imposing Oddjob (Harold Sakata). Bond, on the other hand, is armed with his trademark charm and, of course, a slew of gadgets, courtesy of Q (Desmond Llewelyn). Encountering the usual bevy of beautiful women and perilous traps, 007 sets out for America to foil Goldfinger's financial fiasco.
Based on Ian Fleming's 1959 novel, GOLDFINGER marks the appearance of a more carefree, wisecracking Bond and is widely considered to be one of the best films in the series. In fact, with stylized elements such as the gold-painted girl, the wince-inducing laser beam, Oddjob's razor-sharp bowler hat, and Bond's modified Aston Martin car, the film is quite possibly the most memorable Bond outing, and would be famously parodied decades later in the AUSTIN POWERS series, particularly GOLDMEMBER.
Theatrical release: December 25, 1964.
Shot in Technicolor.
GOLDFINGER is the third installment in the James Bond series. DR. NO and FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE were its predecessors.
All of Bond's scenes in America were actually shot at Pinewood Studios in London.
Since the actor playing Auric Goldfinger, Gert Frobe, spoke very little English, his voice was dubbed by another actor.
Sean Connery didn't join the shoot until several weeks in, as he was filming MARNIE with Alfred Hitchcock.
GOLDFINGER's title sequence features scenes from the first two Bond films projected onto the gold-painted model, Margaret Nolan. Nolan also plays the character Dink in the film.
At the time of its release in 1964, GOLDFINGER entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the fastest-grossing film in history.
John Barry's GOLDFINGER theme, sung by Shirley Bassey, broke into the top 10 upon its release in the United States.
Excerpt: "Do you expect me to talk?"--James Bond (Sean Connery)
"No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die."--Goldfinger (Gert Frobe)
DVD Features:
Keep Case
Anamorphic Widescreen - 2.35
Full Frame - 1.33
Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 - English, French
DTS (unspecified) - English
Subtitles - English, French, Spanish - Optional
Sound
Norman Wanstall: Sound/Editor; GOLDFINGER (1964)
Source Writer
Ian Fleming: British Author, JAMES BOND, CASINO ROYALE
Additional Music/Songs
Shirley Bassey: Singer
Review 1:
"...Of all the Bonds, GOLDFINGER is the best.....It is a great entertainment, and contains all the elements of the Bond formula that would work again and again..."
Source: Chicago Sun-Times
p.5 01/31/1999
Review 2:
4 stars out of 5 -- "It doesn't matter which side you take in the eternal Connery vs. Moore debate, everyone can agree that this is where the template was struck for the Bond franchise."
Source: Uncut
p.135 08/01/2007
Review 3:
"...Nearly 40 years later, the formula still cooks..."
Source: Entertainment Weekly
p.32 01/11/2002