007 Film: Diamonds Are Forever (1971)
June 20, 2014
Release year: 1971
Directed by: Guy Hamilton
Produced by: Harry Saltzman, Albert R. Broccoli
The film is based on Ian Fleming’s 1956 novel of the same name, and is the second of four James Bond films directed by Guy Hamilton. The story has Bond impersonating a diamond smuggler to infiltrate a smuggling ring, and soon uncovering a plot by his old nemesis Ernst Stavro Blofeld to use the diamonds to build a giant laser. Bond has to battle his nemesis for one last time, in order to stop the smuggling and stall Blofeld’s plan of destroying Washington DC, and extorting the world with nuclear supremacy.
CAST:
- Sean Connery as James Bond: MI6 agent 007.
- Jill St. John as Tiffany Case: A diamond smuggler.
- Charles Gray as Ernst Stavro Blofeld: The megalomaniac head of SPECTRE. (Gray had previously appeared in the Bond film series when he played Dikko Henderson in 1967’s You Only Live Twice).
- Jimmy Dean as Willard Whyte: An entrepreneur, based on Howard Hughes.
- Bruce Glover as Mr. Wint and Putter Smith as Mr. Kidd: Blofeld’s henchmen.
- Norman Burton as Felix Leiter: CIA agent and Bond’s ally in tracking Blofeld.
- Joseph Furst as Professor Doctor Metz: A brilliant scientist and world’s leading expert on laser refraction.
- Lana Wood as Plenty O’Toole: A beauty Bond meets who comes to an unhappy ending.
- Bruce Cabot as Bert Saxby: Whyte’s casino manager in cahoots with Blofeld.
- Bernard Lee as M: The head of MI6.
- Lois Maxwell as Miss Moneypenny: M’s secretary.
- Desmond Llewelyn as Q: Head of MI6’s technical department.
- Joe Robinson as Peter Franks: Diamond smuggler whose identity is taken by Bond.
- Marc Lawrence as Rodney
- Sid Haig as Slumber Inc. attendant
- Leonard Barr as Shady Tree: A stand-up comedian and smuggler.
- Laurence Naismith as Sir Donald Munger: Diamond expert who brings the case to MI6.
- David Bauer as Morton Slumber: President of Slumber Incorporated, a funeral home.
- Ed Bishop as Klaus Hergerscheimer: Health physicist for WW Techtronics.
- David de Keyser as Doctor
- Lola Larson and Trina Parks as Bambi and Thumper