For Your Eyes Only (1981)

Review of "For Your Eyes Only" Blu-Ray DVD

Excellent quality for the price paid (it was a used DVD), picture and audio were terrific. Story-line was typical James Bond, lots of action, in this case, mostly underwater. It was a bit dated, but the person I purchased this movie for absolutely loves James Bond films, and requested it on his Amazon gift list. We tried it out on our new Blu-Ray player, and it played perfectly! I am very satisfied with it. December 28, 2008

3 stars out of 4

The Bottom Line:

One of the leaner, meaner Bonds, For Your Eyes Only briefly took the series back from the preposterous Moonraker to its more hard-edged roots; though this was to be only a brief respite before Octopussy returned the series to ridiculousness, it's still a worthy spy thriller. December 28, 2008

Problem with For Your Eyes Only Blu-Ray DVD - won't play

DISC won't play at all? I've bought six, and none work on my Sony, Samsung or LG players - but all the other James Bond titles work. Apparently more than 70% of customers cannot play this DVD Blu-Ray. Read on.

For many but apparently not all, the problems can be fixed by doing a firmware update on one's Blu-ray player. Unfortunately, Fox has not exactly been helpful or, publicly at least, on top of this problem; to date they've made no official statement and are steering angry customers toward hardware manufacturers.

Reportedly the disc is encoded with a corrupt Java file; for this reason, and because so many consumers are running into trouble getting this title to play at all - and the fact that Fox has yet to announce a recall - I can't recommend it, at least not until the problems are properly addressed.

Amazon.com is GREAT because they will refund your money. But FOX needs to recall this disc, that's where the fix is at. December 9, 2008

Solid, But Didn't Live Up to the Hype

I just watched this movie for the first time and didn't see the Moore films as they came out, so my opinion isn't colored by nostalgia or affection for Roger Moore. In fact, I had only started watching the classic Bond films a few years ago.

I've always been a bit lukewarm to Moore's portrayal of 007 as he seemed a bit overly formal and stiff when compared to the graceful yet rugged qualities of Sean Connery and more recently, Daniel Craig. However, most of the reviews from Bond fans I've read seemed to indicate that this film and the Spy Who Loved Me were the two best Moore films; with people citing FYEO as having the "back to basics" approach to the franchise with Ian Fleming style espionage at the forefront.

While it compares favorably to the rest of the Moore films, it's just lacking the qualities that make a good Bond film a great Bond film. The action sequences are quaint by today's standards, although there's some incredible stuntwork done on the skis; while Connery's personality and the superior overall direction of his best films allowed me to forgive some of the ackward-by-today's-standards moments in his action sequences, FYEO doesn't have the charm or charisma to allow for that same leniency. Roger Moore just seems old here, moving slowly with unconvincing edits trying to make him seem at least somewhat athletic. It doesn't work.

The plot itself drags a bit after the first hour of the movie; while this is strictly personal opinion, I was hoping we could just be done with the whole thing at that point. The movie felt pretty light on plot, with the exception of one twist, depending on the action sequences to provide the thrills of a 007 picture. Again, they don't.

All in all, this movie is a solid entry into the 007 library but lacks the qualities that give a Bond movie the timeless rewatchability some of the classics of the series enjoy. There's nothing in this film that you can't find in another Bond film, only done better in the others. As a Bond fan who's discovering the series through DVD, slowly but surely, I'd wager that this film likely only appeals to fans who have nostalgic feelings toward this era of Bond, or the fans who enjoy Moore's take on James Bond. November 7, 2008

For Your Eyes Only

"For Your Eyes Only" marks James Bond's return to down-to-earth espionage after comic book adventures "The Spy Who Loved Me" and "Moonraker". But I must say I find those more entertaining. "For Your Eyes Only" has some very good action scenes, most notably a long car chase, but the story feels like a rather uninspired rehash of "Thunderball" and the villain is forgettable as are the Bond girls (although Lynn Holly Johnson may be remembered for being annoying).

Some think it's Moore's best Bond movie, but in my opinion, "For Your Eyes Only" is one of the weakest Bond movies. November 2, 2008

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