Director: John Glen
Year of Release: 1983
Should you watch it? Nope
Why?
Man, this one is gets uncomfortably racist even by James Bond standards. Some of the film is filmed in (and most of the film set in) India, and I really do not even need to describe what specifically happened for you to understand why it was racist. But I will describe one moment just really hammer home how bad it was. They managed to doubled down and created a whole new kind of racism where at one point James Bond is racing through a jungle, starts swinging on trees and does the Tarzan howl. It is also the most pro-nuclear bomb James Bond movie. As the scheme involves a rogue Soviet general try to create a false peaceful disarmament in the hopes of leaving Europe vulnerable – thus pushing the idea that nuclear bombs are a necessary deterrent to war. It takes a lot for a James Bond film to be uniquely profoundly evil, but Octupussy is up to the challenge. It is actually kind of a shame too, because there was a lot of ambition with the set pieces and there was a great deal of variety to the various villains at work which made for a nice smorgasbord. In many ways, this felt like the MOST James Bond movie but the queazy feeling far overwhelmed the fun that could have otherwise been had.
How is the Bond?
The ideal Roger Moore Bond would be fully wholesome and getting into lots of fights where he just seems like an everyman trying to survive. He does not look like a superhero, and you struggle to believe him as a sex pest. In this film, the wholesomeness feels nearly impossible to maintain due to the blatant racism at hand, and there is generally a greater feeling of sex pestery at work than some of the Moore films. None of the combat scenes really played to his strengths either, at least in comparison again to some of his previous films. At this point, it rather feels like Moore’s time as Bond had run its course, and that it was time to move on.
How is the Bond Woman?
Octupussy has an intriguing backstory as a character. She is trying to create a haven for women that is free of men and their bullshit, and she skirts the law to fund this lifestyle. They do not do enough with her beyond that setup though. Other women in the story threaten to become interesting, but they seem to disappear before they get a chance to get going. It also sucks the plot was dependent upon her getting very obviously outwitted by the two main villains. That undercut her whole vibe.
How is the Bond Villain?
Kamal Khan contributes to the general racist feeling of the movie and General Orlov contributes to the general pro-nuclear bomb-as-a-deterrent feeling which is a brutal 1-2 combo.
Does the film irresponsibly present the West as the hero of the world and thus promote imperialism and colonialism as inherently positive?
Yes.
The Reel World 