The Big Picture
- Sean Connery transformed James Bond into an action hero with humor, stakes, & self-awareness that defined the franchise.
- The opening of Thunderball showcases a new side to Bond, an exciting gadget introduction, and thrilling action ahead.
- Thunderball's opening scene set a standard for Bond films with action-packed intensity and inventive moments.
It’s hard to overstate how significantly Sean Connery changed the character of James Bond when he was first cast as 007 in Dr. No. While the original character in Ian Fleming’s series of espionage novels was a dark, brooding loner, Connery added a whimsical sense of humor and touch of self-awareness that turned him into the first major action hero. The Bond films were frequently ridiculous, often pushing the boundaries of feasibility with their madcap plots and over-the-top villains. However, Connery’s performance always ensured that there were legitimate stakes to the adventures viewers were watching on screen. No scene in Connery’s tenure as James Bond better represents his contributions to the franchise than the climactic opening sequence of Thunderball.
Thunderball is widely remembered as one of Connery’s best Bond films, especially in comparison to its three predecessors. Dr. No was a sexy romance that introduced audiences to the character, From Russia With Love was an action-packed Cold War adventure, and Goldfinger was a culturally redefining classic that introduced recurring elements that would appear within subsequent entries in the series. By comparison, Thunderball was based on a lesser novel that felt like a repetition of the franchise’s previous highlights. However, the thrilling opening sequence of Thunderball set the standard for what the James Bond franchise’s action could look like going forward.
Thunderball
PG
Action
Adventure
Crime
Thriller
James Bond heads to the Bahamas to recover two nuclear warheads stolen by S.P.E.C.T.R.E. Agent Emilio Largo in an international extortion scheme.
- Release Date
- December 11, 1965
- Director
- Terence Young
- Cast
- Sean Connery , Claudine Auger , Adolfo Celi , Luciana Paluzzi , Rik Van Nutter , Guy Doleman
- Runtime
- 130 minutes
- Main Genre
- Action
- Writers
- Richard Maibaum , John Hopkins , Jack Whittingham , Kevin McClory , Ian Fleming
- Studio
- United Artists
‘Thunderball’ Has an Exciting Opening Scene
Thunderball primarily focuses on the SPECTRE agent Emilio Largo (Adolfo Celi) and his attempts to use a powerful weapon launched from an underwater base to cause seismic damage to the surface. However, the opening sequence of Thunderball seeks to remind viewers of Bond’s capabilities by showing all the chaos and confusion that he experiences in just one day. Bond attends the funeral of the enemy agent Jacques Bouvar (Bob Simmons), only to be caught in a trap by his "widow," Madame Boitier (Rose Alba). In actuality, Bouvar has disguised himself as his widow in order to attack Bond and get his revenge. He brandishes his knife, leading to a thrilling hand-to-hand combat sequence.
Thunderball succeeds in showing a more vulnerable side of Bond. While previous adventures had shown Connery venturing off on a mission that he was well-equipped to handle, Thunderball placed him in an entirely spontaneous scenario. Even though viewers understood that he couldn’t die within the opening sequence, seeing Bond almost caught off guard and the elaborate tricks created to ensnare bond set up the tone of the movie. While Goldfinger had introduced some self-aware jokes that suggested the franchise wasn’t keen on taking itself too seriously, Thunderball marked a return to a slightly grittier version of the character.
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While his charisma was unmatched, Connery wasn’t necessarily as physically imposing in the same way that Daniel Craig or Pierce Brosnan were in later iterations of the franchise. However, Thunderball’s opening sequence showed why Connery was a great action star. Bond can certainly handle himself in a fight, but it's his confidence that defines him; even when it appears that Bouvar will overpower him, Connery still manages to gain the upperhand reminding audiences that he knows what he is doing.
‘Thunderball’ Showed Why James Bond Was a Phenomenon
One of the key elements of the Bond franchise is gadgets. While Bond first got introduced to some of MI6’s latest technologies in Goldfinger, Thunderball introduced a high-powered jetpack to the series. After killing Bouvar and fleeing the chateau, Bond uses a jetpack to soar away from his pursuers and land in his signature Aston Martin. It was a delightful sequence that introduced an element of wonder to the series. In 1965, the notion of Bond using an experimental piece of technology was quite exciting. It also served as a reminder that while Bond may be put in compromising situations, he always had a plan in mind of how to escape from his enemies. It’s clear that while the technology is an advantage, it’s Bond strategic planning that makes him so elusive.
Thunderball also addressed the pertinent theme of Bond eluding death. Having Bond attend the funeral of a man he killed, only to share a close brush with death himself, indicated why he has managed to survive throughout the series; while he has been shot at thousands of time over the course of the film saga, it took until No Time To Die for Bond to actually die on screen. There’s an almost playful nature to the use of funeral imagery within the opening of Thunderball, particularly since Connery makes so many dark jokes. Sure, it may be logical for Bond to die, but who would want to see that?
‘Thunderball’ Couldn’t Live up to Its Opening Sequence
Thunderball is the rare case in which the film itself couldn’t live up to the opening sequence. Thunderball is one of the more turgid Bond films, as the emphasis on aquatic action sequences isn’t nearly as exciting as it could have been. As fun as Largo is, he feels like a pale imitation of previous villains in the series. Nonetheless, the boost of energy that Connery gave the film in its opening moments helped ensure that the pacing wasn’t completely thrown off. The generally strong responses the film has received within franchise rankings may be based on the high note that it starts out with.
The success of Thunderball’s opening scene emphasized the importance of pre-title credit sequences in future Bond films. Moments like the climactic origin story of 006 (Sean Bean) in GoldenEye or the parkour action sequence in Casino Royale were based upon the template that Thunderball set. Connery’s films remain so rewatchable because of inventive moments like these.
Thunderball is available to rent or buy on Prime Video in the U.S.
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