James Bond Worst To Best

Britain's superspy has taken the world by storm with his latest adventure. The suave sophisticated secret agent has had some high moments in his career. He also has had some terrible lows. I am a long time fan of the James Bond franchise. To say I'm a geek hardly puts it into perspective. I went to the last few 007 movies in my tuxedo. I've seen so many trivia videos, top tens, and "things you missed" topics...and none of them gave me any information that I wasn't already aware of. I'm a Bond enthusiast...teetering on expert. So how would I rank all of the Bond movies from worst to best? Well take a look. But first a couple of stipulations: 1) "Never Say Never Again" does not apply. It is not an official EON production. 2) "Casino Royale" 1967 does not apply. It is not an official EON production. 3) Spoilers ahead. Let's begin with the bottom of the gun barrel...

#24 Die Another Day

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Bond celebrated his 40th anniversary with this rather ridiculous adventure. Being the Bond fan I am, I can appreciate this film for all of the nods to the history of Bond. However, this movie was heavy on the CGI, way too heavy with the punch lines, campy enough to rival Roger Moore's era of 007, a far fetched plot even for Bond, and dialogue that just hurts to listen too. This is the "Batman & Robin" of James Bond movies.

#23 Moonraker

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The Roger Moore ear of Bond was filled with camp, cheese, and fun (mostly.) "Moonraker" was a little too heavy with the camp and a very far fetched plot. Bond is space is one of the most if not THE most ridiculous plots ever for 007. It did however have some good things going for it. The pre-title sequence of Bond freefalling to Earth without a parachute, the boat chase, and the return of Jaws were all welcome additions. The rest was either boring or silly.

#22 Diamonds Are Forever

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Sean Connery has returned to the series for the final time, and it is painfully obvious that he is only there to collect the check. The very beginning of the movie started off cool as Bond was on the war path to find Blofeld for the murder of his wife, but then quickly gets silly and dismissed. The opening song is forgetful, Tiffany Case played by Jill St. John is useless, Felix Leiter is overlooked, even Blofeld seems bored with the script. Oh...and Blofeld in drag is a terrifying site. There isn't MUCH silly with this movie, it's just overall boring. The best thing about this movie are Mr. Wint & Mr. Kidd and Bambi & Thumper. When the henchman are the best part of a Bond movie...something is wrong.

#21 You Only Live Twice

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We have begun to dig into the movies that are less silly and more boring. Now, let me get this straight...007 movies are not "boring." Even the most boring Bond movie is filled with action, espionage, sex, and punchlines. However, when compared to ALL that Bond has to offer, some of these movies pale in comparison. "You Only Live Twice" is one of those instances. It is a little slower paced than other Bond movies, even ones that had preceded it. It does however boast an incredible gyrocopter vs helicopter fight and the most epic villains secret hideouts in history. But, then again, it has some dumb ideas in it too. Bond disguised to look Japanese? A ninja training school that has nothing to do with ninjas? Bond having to get married to a character that no one has seen until the final third which happens to be planned before the main Bond girl is killed? A plot that is very similar to "Dr. No"?

#20 Octopussy

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Having the strangest and most suggestive title in the franchise, "Octopussy" has a great opening number, a few good fight sequences, and an intense climax. However, the plot is so confusing and has so much going on that it become difficult to know who is good, who is bad, and what they want. Plus...Bond dressed as a clown, a gorilla, and is reduced to hitchhiking.

#19 A View to a Kill

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Becoming less and less silly, (despite the Beach Boys song during the pre-title sequence) this one suffers more from mediocrity. It certainly isn't boring, from the opening chase scene, fire truck car chase, escaping a burning building, a fight on the golden gate bridge, the opening song by Duran Duran, and Christopher Walken there is certainly a lot of fun to be had. However, when compared to other Bond movies, this one is not quite as good as others.

#18 Quantum of Solace

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Craig's second Bond adventure suffered most from script and Marc Forster's direction. When this movie was made there was a writer's strike on Hollywood, so the actors and directors were pretty much handling the rewrites and making things up as they went. Fairly simplistic in the nature of Bond movies, the editing was a little too close and choppy for audiences to fully enjoy the grand scope. Also, there was a little too much artistic flair taken that didn't feel like a Bond film and more of Marc's vision. All that said, it's not bad...just fairly bland.

#17 The Man with the Golden Gun

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The end result for this is roughly the same here as the last entry, it's fairly bland. The writers had Moore do things the Connery would do, and it just wasn't quite right. Moore still had to become his own Bond. The Bond girls were forgettable, the title song was just downright bad, and overall the pace was slow and tedious. The best thing about this was the barrel roll car jump and Francisco Scaramanga.

#16 Dr. No

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It seems a little blasphemous to have the original entry so far down in the list. However, much like the last few entry, it's just boring. This movie does introduce many of the traditions of Bond, but to anyone that sees this movie after seeing some of the other 007 adventure (such as what happened to me) this doesn't offer much in terms of excitement. It's not bad, but it's boring. Oh, and it needs to be said...as beautiful as Ursula Andress was as Honey Ryder...her character was pointless and unneeded.

#15 The Living Daylights

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Now we transition from boring Bond to good Bond. Yes, I think "The Living Daylights" is good. Not great, but it was a lot of fun. The filmmakers were trying to get back to Bond have a rough edge, something not scene since the Connery era. Audiences weren't quite ready for that. Dalton was...decent to put it nicely. However, decent compared the other Bonds is not all that good. The main villain was mediocre at best. However audiences did receive some top notch action sequences with the opening training, the siege on MI6, the car/cello chase, and the climax on horseback and plane. This was a slower pace than previous Bond adventures, but it was not as boring as others.

#14 For Your Eyes Only

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There was hardly anything boring about "For Your Eyes Only." Nearly the whole film was jam packed with some of the most fun. Not every moment was filled witch action and humor. In fact, there were two major sequences that focused more on building suspense, rather effectively too.

#13 Tomorrow Never Dies

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The Brosnan era of Bond focused more on action as opposed to espionage. Look no further than "Tomorrow Never Dies." The writers were having a hard time trying to find a place for Bond post Cold War. This can be viewed more as Bond vs Fox News. However this was a fast paced fun action adventure. Not great, not bad, and certainly not boring. A decent entry in the Bond franchise.

#12 License to Kill

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This one receives a lot of flack from fans and audiences alike, and I disagree. I feel this is a very solid entry in the Bond canon. Some of the best Bond adventures are when he operates on his own. Especially since this film is all about revenge against the man who attacked Bond's best friend Felix Leiter by having Leiter's wife killed and turning Leiter himself into a cripple. Ouch. Get him James!! Plus, some of the best action sequences in the franchise are in this film.

#11 The World Is Not Enough

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Audiences finally received something they haven't had in a long time with Bond movies...a surprise. What seemed to be the main villain of the movie turned out to be the lead henchman as the main villain was one of the Bond girls. An argument can be made this she is the first female main villain. This movie also began to explore the relationship between Bond and M more closely. A tradition that would continue through to "Skyfall."

#10 Thunderball

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This is considered one of the best Bond adventures, and for good reason. It does have a fairly simple plot and explores more into the world of S.P.E.C.T.R.E. Also, with all of the underwater sequences that take place, those sequences were masterfully executed and never matched by any other movie since. There are however some strong coincidences and an ending that makes my blood boil for all the wrong reasons. Still, one of the best the franchise has to offer though.

#9 Live and Let Die

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Moore started on a high note with the Blaxploitation Bond adventure. With some of the best villains in the franchise, a memorable Bond girl, some consistently awesome action scenes, the first time we see Bond's home, and that now iconic title song this is a must for Bond fans.

#8 From Russia With Love

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A vast improvement from it's predecessor, "From Russia" is epic in scope with such a simple plot. The Bond girl is forgettable, but the villain is easily one of the best in the franchise. May not have the best action in the franchise because this one truly delves into espionage. It does however have one of the best hand to hand combat scenes in history.

#7 The Spy Who Loved Me

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With both of the previous Moore movies being fairly lackluster, the filmmakers needed this Bond film to be something special, and they did just that. I have only one complaint with this movie and that is the disco musical score. Everything else was top notch from the Bond girl, villain, henchman, humor, action, lair, gadgets, cars, title song, and camp. This is Bond at one of his best.

#6 On Her Majesty's Secret Service

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Before you hit me over the head with your martini glass, no I don't think George Lazenby was a great Bond. However, I also don't think he was a bad Bond. No, he didn't really appear tough and his delivery of jokes was appalling, he did appear to be human and genuinely loving. How is this good? Because this is the movie that humanizes Bond and he falls in love. It's a major plot point to the movie. The story was great, the action pieces were awesome, the title song is one of the best and often overlooked, and the best Bond girl in the series. Although fairly long, this is absolutely a crowning achievement for the filmmakers for more than one reason. If anything, because they proved they can have a good and successful Bond film without Connery.

#5 Goldfinger

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Now we are getting to the best of the best! It may also seem sinful to put "Goldfinger" at number five instead of number one, but I have my reason. This is the definitive James Bond movie. The is (as are the rest from here on out in my opinion) is shear perfection. I just prefer the other ones that are about to be covered better.

#4 GoldenEye

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Pierce's first Bond adventure was truly his best. Once more centered more on action, nearly everything in this movie got a reboot. A new M, a new American contact, a new musical direction (which was a little off), a villain that came from MI6, an insane evil Bond girl, and more importantly a James Bond that you just simply don't mess with or he may drop you to your death. Plus....Bond in a friggin tank! MUST MUST MUST WATCH!!

#3 Casino Royale

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Well, that leave the top 3 to all be Craig movies, starting with his first outing. This brought Bond back in a big way after the abysmal "Die Another Day." After getting the rights back to this film, the filmmakers wanted to do this story right, and man did they. This became more of a "what makes Bond...Bond" story. Le Chiffe is one of the most memorable Bond villains in recent history.

#2 Skyfall

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"Skyfall" was everything "Die Another Day" should have been. An opportunity to celebrate Bond. This film addressed how Bond used to be important and why do we need him now? Isn't he old and tired and has nothing to offer? This explores the relationship of Bond and M unlike before. It also gives what I believe to be the best Bond villain in Bond history (that will be explained why in another list). Also audiences were finally given a new Moneypenny, a new Q, and a new M. This marked the end of an era and started a new.

#1 SPECTRE

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This Bond adventure borrows from what made the others great. The M, Q, Moneypenny and Bond scenes were some of the most fun. There was a dose of comedy in this one that was lacking in the other Craig movies. The locations were grand in scale that felt like a Bond movie again. The return of SPECTRE especially the Bond villain and how he is tied in to Bond is a nice twist on an old tradition. The action is some of the best. Overall, this film is great, great fun and more of a celebration of the history of the Bond franchise instead of exploring Bond himself.