by David Lowbridge-Ellis MBE (Agent 004)
Separated by twenty years, Thunderball and A View to a Kill both epitomise their respective decades. If Thunderball can be said to be ‘peak 60s’ then surely A View to a Kill is the most 80s of Bond films. What better 007 adventures to feature on 2025’s membership card, which includes silhouettes of a skier and a snowboarding Bond on the front (from the pre-titles sequence of A View to a Kill) and divers on the reverse (which feature throughout Thunderball).
But which of the two films do 007GB members prefer?
When everyone join 007GB, they specify their favourite Bond film. We went through this data and discovered that Thunderball was ranked 7th overall out of all Bond films! Lots of you really, really like this one. But 007GB’s membership is very diverse. One person even specified Die Another Day as their favourite Bond film. We’re a very broad church…
A View to a Kill does not rank as highly, appearing 22nd in the list. Admittedly, this ranking is based on only members’ choices of their top film, so A View to a Kill may appear higher if we were to have everyone send us their complete rankings. But based on this data alone, Thunderball is nine times more popular than A View to a Kill!
I always subscribe to the idea that there is no such things as ‘bad’ Bond. There are just some Bond adventures – whether they be on film, in books or games – which are preferred over others. Even the ‘worst’ Bond story has redeeming qualities. And for the record, I am one of the outliers, preferring A View to a Kill over Thunderball. I’m not alone: a third of us Board members are Team A View to a Kill. The rest prefer Thunderball. But we all agree that there’s a lot to love about both.
I asked my fellow Board members to pick out what they thought were the highlights of both films. Here is what they told me…
Our President Phil chose sees Thunderball as “a spectacle movie”, commenting that “it packs a punch”. Echoing Phil, Membership Manager Ciaran says the film “packs a punch of which Colonel Jacques Bouvar would be immensely proud!”. While our Vice President Miles observes that “Thunderball ups the ante on its iconic predecessor Goldfinger”, Mark admires how “the film feels effortlessly grand yet is also sharply focused.”
Many concur with Phil that Connery “oozes cool” in this film. Our General Counsel Safira highlights his “unique swagger”. Operations Director Fletcher finds him “effortlessly cool, ruthlessly tough and with a killer instinct dialled up to 11. He’s self-assured, sharp-witted, and even humourously manipulative when dealing with the villains, yet there are fleeting glimpses of vulnerability that make his Bond all the more compelling.” Our Film and Media Director Mark also finds Connery to be the most balanced here: “he delivers his most confident performance as Bond, blending charm, menace, and wit in perfect measure.” Natasha, in charge of Membership Experience, casts admiring glances at “Sean Connery in his sartorial prime oozing 007 charm amongst a bevy of beautiful ladies.”
For Miles, Thunderball has “the most iconic group of Bond Girls of any film in the franchise’s 60+ years.” The Board are in complete agreement about this. For Phil, the film has “the best villainess of the series by far”. VIP Manager Victoria too finds Volpe to be “the best femme fatale in the franchise”. Kathryn, responsible for Event Experience, says “the inimitable Luciana Paluzzi dazzles in every scene.” Safira finds Domino, played by “the delectable Claudine Auger”, to be the “Best Bond girl ever”. Safira adds that, whenever she watches Thunderball, she “can’t wait to put on my wetsuit and go snorkelling”, while being mindful of any nearby sharks of course!
Fletcher can’t help but get grandiloquent when he so much as thinks of Thunderball’s beautiful girls: “Surrounded by a catalogue of captivating, curvaceous, concupiscent [I had to look that one up – David] and cunning Bond girls, Connery’s Bond has his hands full. Whether it’s a playful moment with a mink glove at Shrublands Health Clinic, a flirtation poolside over conch chowder, or being quite literally taken for a ride. Despite his claims of not enjoying “sleeping with the enemy,” one look at Luciana Paluzzi’s fiery femme fatale and you know he’s fibbing to high Heaven.”
Director of Experiences David Zaritsky had a bash(o) at putting his thoughts about Thunderball into the form of a haiku:
Underwater depths,
Silent shadow chases bomb,
Vacation Bonding.
Similarly to David Z, I have always thought of Thunderball as ‘Bond goes on holiday and serendipitously saves the world from nuclear Armageddon’. I mean this as a compliment of course. Ciaran agrees: “The sun shines as brightly as Connery’s attire! This film is the true definition of escapism, as one feels totally transported into a world of danger and excitement! In other words, if you wish to go on a ‘Bond holiday’, look no further…”
Yet for all the film’s comforting qualities it still, observes Kathyrn “takes risks”. She goes on to say “I especially love the underwater fight sequence, something truly revolutionary for cinema in the 1960s.”
Fast forward twenty years to the middle of the 1980s…
For a film which often languishes low in fan rankings, A View to a Kill certainly receives a lot of love from the Board.
In the limited number of syllables he has disciplined himself to use, David Z’s A View to a Kill haiku highlights the California locations and suspenseful quality that permeates the film:
Golden Gate aglow,
Silent steps, a Bond betrayed—
Silicon Death power struggle
Victoria says: “More larger-than-life than Zorin’s blimp and on more steroids than Pegasus, this fun romp always proves to be entertaining.” The villains stand out for many, including Fletcher who spotlights the “brilliantly deranged Max Zorin, brought to life by Christopher Walken, and Grace Jones’ imposing and iconic May Day”. Kathryn comments that “this film has some sartorial highlights from the villains. Check out the outfits in the garden party! Every single look is iconic.”
The film also contains some very memorable allies. Miles says: “It cannot go unmentioned how much Moore and Macnee bounce off each other perfectly on screen, too.” I couldn’t agree more.
Echoing one of the film’s best lines of dialogue, Ciaran says the film leaves him “almost speechless with admiration”, going on to observe that 57 year old Moore is “aging like a fine wine” on screen: “The more that I view this instalment, the more I appreciate and respect his portrayal as an ‘older’, weathered secret agent.” Phil finds Roger “as smooth as silk”. I would argue even smoother.
John Barry’s score often gets overlooked, but not by Ciaran, who finds it “nothing short of spectacular” and Mark who gestures a “chef’s kiss” in its direction. For my money, it contains both some of the most exciting action writing of the franchise but also the most lush romantic themes. ‘Wine with Stacey’ is the ultimate romantic dinner-for-two music, surely?
The consensus is that A View to a Kill fits squarely into the ‘comfort film’ category while acknowledging that it’s also something of a square peg in a round hole, having some surprisingly ‘rough edges’ which linger in the mind afterwards. Mark finds it “the perfect balance between thrilling action and nostalgic comfort.” I would agree with this assessment, although the scene where Zorin churns up the captured KGB agent in the propellers terrified me as a child and I still have to fight the urge to look away. Fortunately, John Glen pre-empts this reaction, masterfully cutting away – just in time! – to the scale on the pressure valve dipping for a second as agent becomes too-intimately aquatinted with the propeller.
John Glen himself has his reservations the way A View to a Kill turned out. I’ve told him on multiple occasions that many of us Bond fans do not share the criticisms he levels at his film! Natasha rightly praises John’s “superb direction”. Does anyone do action set pieces better than Glen? We think not. Fletcher says: “The action and stunts are on point, taking us from high-speed chases on Russian ski slopes to a thrilling shootout at the Eiffel Tower and culminating in a deadly game of bridge atop the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. It’s an exhilarating ride from start to finish, and Moore ensures his Bond bows out on a high note.”
What do you think?
We look forward to badinaging about the films’ respective merits with members, both online and at our 2025 events!
2026 Membership A View to a Kill Thunderball
Last modified: 13 January 2026
