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"The Chinese have a saying: 'Before setting off on revenge, you first dig two graves.'"
James Bond to Melina Havelock

The One With… The Alleged Car chase.

For Your Eyes Only is the twelfth film in the Eon Productions James Bond series, the first to be directed by John Glen and the fifth to star Roger Moore. It was released on June 24, 1981. The Title Theme Tune was performed by Sheena Easton.

James Bond, after visiting Tracy's grave and dropping someone who strongly resembles Blofeld down a chimney, is sent to find a British ship that accidentally fished out a mine and sank in the Mediterranean Sea. Unfortunately, it contains a secret device that sends orders to British nuclear missile submarines. To make matters worse, the two people who were charged with searching for the ship were murdered. While shadowing his target, he is captured and then saved via a crossbow bolt, after which he meets Melina Havelock, the Girl of the Week and an Action Girl with a crossbow who wants to get revenge for her murdered parents.

This film is somewhat of a mish-mash of two Ian Fleming's short stories, "For Your Eyes Only" (Melina's plot) and "Risico" (the smugglers plot), with the climax from Live and Let Die thrown in and and the MacGuffin subplot created to put all these plots together.

This was originally intended to be the follow-up to The Spy Who Loved Me, until the runaway success of Star Wars prompted Moonraker to be made instead. After seeing the reactions to the Denser and Wackier adventure in that movie, the producers chose to bring James Bond back to reality, to more seriousness, and to the Cold War climate. John Glen, who was the editor and second unit director of three of the previous films, was promoted to director. Michael G. Wilson, Albert R. Broccoli's stepson, would also write the screenplays along with veteran Richard Maibaum, helping with this transition of Bond to the 1980s. Under the command of Broccoli, Wilson, Glen and Maibaum, the James Bond franchise would return to a more serious and realistic atmosphere, with Bond surviving thanks to his courage and intelligence rather than gadgets.

Preceded by Moonraker and followed by Octopussy.


For Your Eyes Only provides examples of:

  • 1-Dimensional Thinking: Countess Lisl is killed when she tries to run away from a car in a straight line.
  • Accidental Aiming Skills: Subverted. As Bond emerges from a bush while fleeing from a Mook, he encounters another one aiming a crossbow directly at him. He fires... and the bolt hits the mook coming out of the bush to chase Bond. What seems baffling about this is that Bond doesn't even dodge the bolt. It just completely misses him. That's because this other "Mook" actually turns out to be Melina.
  • Action Girl: Melina Havelock, the vengeful crossbow-toting daughter of murdered marine archeologists.
  • Actor Allusion: A minor example; Sir Timothy Havock (Melina's father), a man familiar with both boats and Greece, is played by Jack Hedley, an actor best known for playing the lead in the British TV series Who Pays the Ferryman? which is set in Greece (in addition to which, Hedley's character in that show has a strong nautical background).
  • Actually Pretty Funny: After Bond destroys the ATAC he quips that it's "détente" for neither side to have it, causing Gogol to chuckle with amusement.
  • Adaptational Jerkass: In the books, Bill Tanner is said to be one of Bond's few friends in the service and they often enjoy rounds of golf together. It's hard to imagine that kind of closeness with this Tanner, who's blunt, impatient, humourless and condescending towards 007. It makes more sense when you realise that his part was meant for M. When he later reappears in the Brosnan and Craig films, it's with a characterization more like in the books.
  • Adaptational Location Change:
    • In "For Your Eyes Only", Bond was sent to Vermont to find the killers of M's friends. In the film, the relevant scene takes place in Madrid.
    • "Ricisco" takes place in Italy. Like much of the latter half of the film, this part takes place in Greece.
  • Adaptational Name Change: Melina Havelock was named Judy in the original short story. The name change was likely to highlight her character's partial Greek ancestry in the film, another change from the short story.
  • Adaptation Amalgamation: Many scenes and other story elements were lifted from Ian Fleming's short stories or unused sequences in previously adapted novels, however the overall story arc that links them together was created for the film. The Havelocks and the sequence at the villa were adapted from the eponymous "For Your Eyes Only" short story; Kristatos, Columbo, Lisl, and much of the midsection of the film were taken from "Risico"; the identigraph was taken from Goldfinger; and the scene in which Bond and Melina were dragged underwater as shark bait was originally the climax from Live and Let Dienote . The sunken spy ship and the quest to recover its top secret ATAC transmitter were original creations.
  • Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: In the short story "For Your Eyes Only", the Havelocks were close friends of M (who was best man at their wedding), hence why he gives Bond an off-the-record assignment to find their killer. In the film, they have no connection to M, who doesn't even appear due to Bernard Lee's illness and passing.
  • Ain't Too Proud to Beg: The pre-title scene has Bond tangle with a Lawyer-Friendly Cameo version of Blofeld. Once Bond hooks Blofeld's wheelchair with the helicopter's landing skid, Blofeld goes from cackling villain to a pathetically screaming wreck asking Bond to be spared, going so far to even famously offering to buy 007 a delicatessen - "In stainless steel!" But Bond ignores his offers and obliges his request of "put me down!" by putting him down a smokestack, killing him for good.
  • The Alleged Car: Bond's Lotus Esprit Turbo self-destructs when a mook tries to open it, forcing Bond and Melina to go through a car chase in the latter's beat-up Citroën 2CV. That said, it holds it own against two late-model Peugeot 504's. And that includes getting shot up and rolling down the side of a mountain. Roger Moore himself has stated that, of all the cars he ever drove in (including the legendary Lotus Esprit/submarine), this was his favourite.
  • All There in the Manual: According to the original script, Melina is 27 years old.
  • Ambiguous Situation:
    • Is the vicar in on Blofeld's plot to kill Bond?
    • Near the beginning, the ship carrying the ATAC accidentally pulls in an underwater mine, which causes massive damage and ends up sinking the ship. While this seems to just be a tragic accident, we later see that Kristatos' warehouse has a bunch of the same kind of mine, raising the question of whether it really was just a random event, or if he actually planted the mine and sank the ship himself.
  • And This Is for...: Bond takes the dove-shaped brooch pin that Locque left on Ferrara's body after murdering him, and drops it in Locque's car before kicking the car to make it tumble down a cliff, killing Locque.
    Bond: You left this with Ferrara, I believe.
  • Animal Reaction Shot: A farmer and his cow both turn their heads to look at Bond as he skis onto the roof of their barn.
  • Anti-Climax: In previous films, Blofeld was established as Bond's arch nemesis, responsible for the death of his wife and master of disguise. So how does the final confrontation between him and Bond play out? He plays RC with Bond's helicopter before Bond gets back control and promptly drops Blofeld down a smoke stack. End of rivalry. This was necessary after Blofeld became off-limits due to the legal dispute between Kevin McClory and Eon Productions over the Thunderball copyrights. Also note that the bald villain is never named in the movie or credits.
  • Apologetic Attacker: Columbo flippantly apologizes to a wounded mook, whom he knocks out with his pistol in order to keep him quiet while he joins the others for the main attack.
  • Armed Legs: One of the mooks disguised as an ice hockey player attempts to kill Bond by aiming a kick at his head with his razor sharp ice skate. Bond dodges but the skate staves in part of the ice rink fence.
  • Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking:
    Columbo: Yes, I smuggle. I smuggle gold, diamonds, cigarettes, pistachio nuts...
  • Artistic Licence – Biology: Given that the crew of the St. George's had been dead for several days, if not weeks—and underwater, no less—their bodies would be gruesomely decomposed by the time Bond and Melina reached the ship on top of partially consumed by sea creatures, not looking as pristine as if they'd only just perished.
  • Award-Bait Song: "For Your Eyes Only", sung by Sheena Easton.
  • Back for the Dead: The opening features Bond visiting his wife's grave and then being captured by a bald man in a wheelchair who has a white cat (obviously meant to be Blofeld, who couldn't be named as shuch for legal reasons). Bond eventually gains control of the helicopter, picks up the wheelchair man and throws him down an industrial smokestack.
  • Badass Bystander: Bibi launches herself at Kriegler and knocks his gun aside as he is trying to shoot Bond.
  • Bad Boss:
    • When one of Kristatos' mooks falls overboard and is promptly eaten by sharks, Kristatos simply says "Oh, leave him." Admittedly, he was already being attacked, and there wasn't much they could have done anyway.
    • Blofeld in the teaser, who kills his own henchman flying the helicopter.
  • Bad Habits: Q dresses as an Orthodox priest to provide information to Bond, complete with false beard.
  • Bait-and-Switch Gunshot: Bond is being chased by mooks when he's suddenly confronted by a veiled figure pointing a crossbow... who shoots the mook running up behind him. She removes the veil to reveal herself as Melina Havelock, the female protagonist.
  • Bald of Evil: The unnamed Blofeld in the opening sequence.
  • Batman Cold Open: The opening sequence has nothing to do with the actual plot, but there was a possibility Moore wouldn't return after Moonraker. The opening was designed in case a new actor had to play Bond, and they wanted to establish the backstory with Bond's wife. It also plays into a theme within the movie: do we have a right to avenge our lost loved ones?
  • Bat Scare: When Bond is climbing the mountain and a dove comes out of a hole.
  • Be Careful What You Wish For: Blofeld learns this lesson the painful way. When hanging by the skids of your own helicopter high over the ground, it's a dumb idea to say, "Put me down." 007 is only too happy to oblige, as he drops his opponent down the smokestack, wheelchair and all.
  • Berserk Button: Melina's parents get gunned down. She gets pissed. Then she grabs her crossbow.
  • Between My Legs: Famously on the movie's poster. Incidentally, to get the right amount of gluteal coverage, the model wore the swimsuit backwards. The two principal actresses argued over the poster, saying "those are MY legs". In fact, they were an artist's rendering of a third woman. Weirdly inverted in the DVD cover, with the Bond Girl between 007's legs!
  • Bigger on the Inside: The facility in the St. George is much to large to fit in that little trawler.
  • Bitch Slap: Happens to Bibi twice during the climax. First time comes from Kristatos as he is getting fed up with her whining and then later on, Kriegler gives her one when she tries to save Bond while he and Kriegler are fighting.
  • Bloodless Carnage: Apostis falls from a cliff after receiving a throwing knife to the chest. He lands face down and isn't a mess of blood, flesh and bones when the people below turn his corpse over, with only subtle black and red marks on his face and a lot of grass on his body. The throwing knife didn't even get pushed further into his body, despite him falling from that height and landing on his chest, which is where the throwing knife hit him.
  • Bloodstained Glass Windows: The final confrontation takes place in a mountaintop church. Bonus points for having literally bloodstained glass windows.
  • Bond One-Liner: "He had no head for heights."
  • Bond Villain Stupidity:
    • In The Teaser, "Blofeld" opts to toy Bond around in the helicopter, instead of just crashing it as soon as he takes control. Justified in this case by the fact that "Blofeld" had looked forward to killing Bond for a long time and had been crippled by him - he wanted Bond to suffer.
    • Kristatos is guilty of it as well, choosing to kill Bond and Melina by dragging them behind his boat and assuming sharks ate them when they finally disappeared as opposed to just shooting them when he had the chance.
  • Break Out the Museum Piece: One of Gonzales' henchmen triggers the explosive anti-theft device on 007's gadget-laden Lotus Esprit, causing it (and the henchman) to blow up. 007 is then forced to rely on his wits — with Melina's Citroën 2CV.
  • Briefcase Full of Money: Bond witnesses Locque paying off Gonzales, who casually tosses a wad of bills to a girl from his Paid Harem. After Gonzales is killed and his guards are busy chasing Bond, Locque takes the briefcase back, even snatching the wad of bills off the girl, much to her disappointment.
  • British Stuffiness: Chief of Staff Bill Tanner in this film seems to have gone to the same Public School or sixthform as Terry-Thomas in terms of accent. His pronunciation of "perforate" is worth the price of admission all by itself.
  • Broken Bird: Melina joins Bond to avenge her parents' deaths with her trusty crossbow.
  • The Cameo: Margaret Thatcher! Not really...
  • Casual Danger Dialogue: As standard for a Bond film, but a moment stands out during the car chase when Bond quips (while driving The Alleged Car offroad down the mountain) that he enjoys a drive in the country. Despite the fact they're in the middle of a life and death chase, Melina provides her bona fides as an Action Girl by finding the comment hilarious.
  • Cat Scare: A shark swims out of the St Georges wreck. Bond encounters the 'ole bird flying out of the cliff face cliche while climbing.
  • Chekhov's Gun:
    • The mine that sunk the St. Georges, similar mines are found in Kristatos' warehouse suggesting that the sinking was not an accident.
    • Bond comes across the JIM diving equipment in Kristatos' warehouse. Naturally, a goon attacks him with it and Melina in the St George's wreck.
    • The air tank that Melina leaves at the submerged ruins later comes in handy when she and Bond escape Kristatos. Heck, there's even a Chekhov's Parrot in this movie.
  • Chekhov's Parrot: ...who happenned to memorize the location of Kristatos' final hiding place.
  • The Chessmaster: Kristatos is likely to be this. Given that there are mines in his warehouse that are similar to the one that sunk the St. Georges, the implication is clear that he was the one who initiated the sinking, expected the British to investigate, and send them to knock off Columbo, all the while expecting a call from Gogol to obtain the ATAC. He nearly succeeds.
  • Chivalrous Pervert: Bond deliberately ignores Bibi Dahl's attempts to seduce him. Then again, she was young enough to be Bond's granddaughter, she's just 16.
  • Christianity Is Catholic: Bond and his associates disguise themselves as Catholic monks (complete with brown cloaks, hoods and sandals) trying to fit in ... at Meteora, a region in Greece with six Christian Orthodox monasteries built on rock pillars. Orthodox monks wear black robes, trousers and normal shoes, have no hoods and sport glorious beards and long hair. Hardly an inconspicuous disguise. Exchange monks perhaps?...Q "does it better", although meeting with 007 in a confession booth is a very "Catholic" touch...
    "Forgive me Father for I have sinned."
    "That's putting it mildly, 007!"
  • Chummy Commies: The Soviets are antagonists, but Friendly Enemy antagonists and ultimately never come to blows with Bond.
  • *Click* Hello: During the assault on St. Cyril's, one of his lackeys is about to shoot Bond, only to have Melina point her crossbow at his back and disarm him.
  • Climb, Slip, Hang, Climb: At the climax, though that version did involve a rope. In this case, Apostis has seen the rope and is hammering out the pitons so Bond will fall to his death. Despite falling as each piton goes, Bond climbs high enough to kill him Just in Time.
  • Climbing Climax: Bond prepares to scale a mountain to reach the monastery located at its summit (there's no other way to reach it without being detected by the bad guys). Unfortunately, the bad guys ARE guarding the cliff, and one of them nearly sends Bond plummeting to his death.
  • Climbing the Cliffs of Insanity: James Bond climbs a mountain in order to reach St. Cyril's monastery at the top.
  • Color-Coded for Your Convenience: The assault on Kristatos' warehouse helpfully has all of Columbo's men wearing black while Kristatos' men are wearing light blue.
  • Comic-Book Adaptation: Marvel Comics published a two-issue adaptation of the film, the first US appearance of Bond in comics since Dr. No was adapted by DC Comics some 17 years earlier.
  • Condensation Clue: Luigi Ferrara leaves a message for Bond in his hotel room using this method.
  • Confess in Confidence: Subverted: After Kristatos has taken the ATAC from Bond, Bond goes into a confessional at a Greek Orthodox church and says "Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned...", and it turns out the Priest is actually Q, who says "That's putting it mildly, 007."
  • Confessional: When James Bond goes into a confessional.
    James Bond: Forgive me Father for I have sinned.
    Q: (removing his false beard) That's putting it mildly, 007.
  • Continuity Nod:
    • Bond visits his wife's grave in the opening, which was intended as a way to ease a new actor into the role, before Moore decided to come back.
    • The musical lock to the Identograph room is opened with the tune of "Nobody Does It Better," the theme song from The Spy Who Loved Me.
    • The cat seen in The Teaser is wearing the same diamond-studded collar from Diamonds Are Forever.
  • Continuity Snarl: Blofeld appears bald and in a neck brace as he was at the end of On Her Majesty's Secret Service due to a Low Clearance incident with a bobsled, even though he had subsequently appeared in Diamonds Are Forever with no neck brace as well as looking and sounding completely different (then again, he could've also been injured after the events of Diamonds Are Forever).
  • Contrived Coincidence: Of all things Melina could leave to mark the spot in the ruins she'd been studying, she chose her oxygen tank. It comes in handy saving their lives later on.
  • Conveniently Timed Attack from Behind: Kristatos dies from a thrown knife In the Back from Columbo, just as he's either about to stab Bond or catch a quarrel from Melina's crossbow.
  • Cool Boat: The St. Georges — an ugly Maltese fishing trawler on the outside, but on the inside a sophisticated spy ship capable of launching Britain's nuclear arsenal.
  • Cool Car: Subverted; Bond's usual gadget-laden car — a white Lotus Esprit, implied but not outright stated to be the one from The Spy Who Loved Me, blows up when the bad guys try to break into it, forcing him and Melina to go through the resulting car chase in her yellow beat-up Citroën 2CV. Later on, Bond gets another Lotus Esprit (a red one, this time) that has ski racks fitted.
  • Couldn't Find a Pen: A message for Bond is left on his hotel room's bathroom mirror, exposed via condensation from the sink.
  • Creepy Old-Fashioned Diving Suit: The JIM suit henchman of Kristatos who attacks Bond and Melina in the wreckage of the St. George. While the JIM suit wasn't old-fashioned back then (though it might be by now), the scare factor of the attack is very much played up with the suit's pincers and Vader Breath.
  • Cruel and Unusual Death: In the raid on Kristatos Warehouse several mooks end up crushed by a giant, opium filled drums.
  • Curse Cut Short: The guy in the JIM diving suit clearly starts to say "Oh, shit!" when he realizes the bomb attached to him is about to go off. But because the explosion cuts him off, and because we can't actually hear him, all we see is him mouth "Oh, SH—"
  • Cutting the Electronic Leash: Bond leaves his communicator watch on a perch with a parrot, who then drops it into the ocean. Not that Bond was quitting; it's just that having a Two-Person Pool Party was a damn sight more interesting than talking to the Prime Minister.
  • Cycle of Revenge: Referenced By Bond when he tries to convince Melina Havelock not to let her desire for revenge against her parents' killer destroy her.
    "The Chinese have a saying: 'Before setting off on revenge, you first dig two graves.'"
  • Darker and Edgier: Especially in the Moore era, and it wouldn't be the last attempt at this.
  • Decomposite Character: Emile Locque and Eric Krieger divide the qualities of Donald "Red" Grant from From Russia with Love. Locque is the psychotic murderer that escaped from prison, Krieger is the muscular blond henchman.
  • Defrosting Ice Queen: Melina Havelock is arguably the iciest Bond girl. She initially thinks only of her revenge, and treats Bond harshly, seeing him only as a government agent that she doesn't know whether or not to trust. Throughout the movie, getting to know Bond better, she begins to feel romantic feelings for him. He makes her laugh and smile at a tragic time in her life, and a deleted scene shows her failing to hide her jealousy when she learns that Bond spent the night with the Countess. In the final scene of the movie, Melina becomes the happy and optimistic woman she was before her parents' murder, and makes love to Bond.
  • Destination Defenestration: Bond goes flying through a stained-glass window while fighting a mook. A moment later, he also knocks Kriegler out a window.
  • Diegetic Soundtrack Usage: The code to the room containing the identigraph is part of "Nobody Does It Better".
  • Dies Differently in Adaptation: In the short story Risico, Bond shoots Kristatos. In the film, Columbo kills him via knife to the back.
  • Digital Bikini: The poster and print ad for showed a leggy woman in a rear shot, from the waist down, wearing boy-short type panties that are tight enough to draw attention to the butt (the model for the photograph is rumoured to have worn a pair of conventional women's panties backwards to achieve that look). The newspapers in some communities, such as Arizona's Republic, carefully drew in a pair of more modest shorts.
  • Disney Villain Death: The villain Bond dumps down a chimney, the hitman Locque, and the murderous biathlon skier Eric Kriegler.
    • Kristatos' main henchman at St. Cyril's, Apostis, outdoes them all. He falls to his death after Bond stabs him with a throwing knife while he's attempting to dislodge Bond's final piton. He certainly falls the longest out of all the villains. Subverted in that we actually see him hit bottom.
    • Averted with Locque when we see his lifeless body fall out of the car as it comes to a rest at the bottom of the cliff.
  • Disposable Pilot: In The Teaser, the pilot of the helicopter Bond is in gets electrocuted mid-flight. Lampshaded by Blofeld.
    Blofeld: Don't concern yourself with the pilot. One of my less useful people.
  • Distracted by the Sexy: Bond is able to sneak into Gonzales' villa because one of his guards is secretly making out with one of his Paid Harem girls.
  • Disturbed Doves: As Bond climbs the mountain, he's startled by pigeons. Unfortunately, this also alerts the guard.
  • Dodge by Braking: Bond finds himself driving an underpowered Citroën 2CV against two hostile pursuers. He uses a clever brake dodge to make them collide with each other, eliminating one from the chase.
  • The Dragon: Emile Leopold Locque for Kristatos and Eric Kriegler for General Gogol.
  • Dropped a Bridge on Him: "Blofeld" returns as an unnamed, wheelchair-bound old man... and is comically killed in the opening sequence. By being dropped down a chimney. While pleading for his life.
    • Kevin McClory, who owned the copyright to Blofeld, was trying to use it to wrestle for control of the series proper. Knocking off a Lawyer-Friendly Cameo of Blofeld was basically the owners' declaration of independence and burning of bridges to assert that Bond did not depend upon Blofeld as an antagonist. Which is all well and good until you realize it doesn't make much sense to do it at that time in Roger Moore's fifth outing and several more films since Blofeld's last appearance.
  • Drugs Are Bad: Columbo smuggles "Gold, diamonds, pistachio nuts... but no heroin."
  • Dull Surprise: Carole Bouquet averts this trope and justifies it: She's on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge and is one of the most badass, cold Bond girls, but one who shows quite a lot of emotion during scenes with Bond.
  • The '80s: Already in full swing, on the very first 80s Bond, no less. ESPECIALLY the theme song.
    • The chase scene with all the Winter Sports was in direct response to the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid sparking a lot of interest in winter sports. Having Bibi, a world class figure skater, in the film was likely due to British men John Curry and Robin Cousins having won the previous two Gold Medals.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: When Bond offers to double what the Soviets are paying him in exchange for releasing Melina, Kristatos replies that he never goes back on a deal, as it would be bad for his reputation.
  • Every Car Is a Pinto: When Locque's car is kicked over the cliff by Bond, it gets totalled but doesn't explode. Surprisingly, only one car explodes in the whole film: 007's gadget-laden Lotus Esprit. It blows up after one of Gonzales' henchmen triggers the car's anti-theft mechanism. It also symbolised a parting of the ways with the gadget fetishes of earlier 007 films.
  • Everyone Has Standards: Even James Bond won't stoop so low as to sleep with an underage girl.
  • Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Blofeld pathetically tries to offer Bond a delicatessen in stainless steel in an attempt to be let go, but 007 won't have any and drops him down a smokestack, killing him for good.
  • Evil Cripple: "Blofeld" is in a wheelchair and a neck brace, the former possibly being from the injuries he suffered in Diamonds Are Forever and the latter probably coming from when he crashed into a tree while speeding down a mountain in a bobsled in On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
  • Evil Laugh: Blofeld gives constant evil chuckles as he watches Bond struggle to escape his "inescapable" Death Trap.
  • Evil Plan: Kristatos wants to recover the ATAC for the KGB, and to manipulate Bond into assassinating his rival as a bonus.
  • Exact Words: In the starter, Blofeld asks 007 to put him down after his wheelchair was hooked up to the chopper's skids. How does Bond oblige? By "putting" him down a chimney. While begging for his life like a Dirty Coward.
  • External Combustion: The Lotus Esprit self-destructs when one of the bad guys tries to use the butt of his gun to break into the car.
  • Eyedscreen: We get a gorgeous zoom in on Melina's eyes after her parents are killed. In fact, this was even going to lead into the credits sequence at one point.
  • Fake Shemp: Blofeld returns, with his face never shown, just for Bond to kill him off for real (so the producers wouldn't need to reuse him considering the legal disputes for the creation of Blofeld and SPECTRE at the time).
  • False Flag Operation: Locque pretends to be working for Columbo when he is really working for Kristatos.
  • Fatal Flaw: Kristatos' disloyalty. He was a member of the Greek Resistance in WWII, but was secretly working for the Nazis. When the Nazis lost anyway, he switched his allegiance to the Soviets, despite the Nazis and Soviets being enemies, simply because they paid good money. And while in the Resistance, he made contacts with MI6 and through them, uses Bond to try and kill his rival Colombo, another ex-Resistance fighter who found out about his treachery. When MI6 and Bond found out about his treacherous nature, they were just as displeased as Columbo was when they discovered the truth and realized he intended to turn the ATAC over to Gogol. Ultimately, it bites him in the ass as he gets stabbed in the back from the man he betrayed, Columbo, who ended the feud with his death and adopted Bibi as her new sponsor.
  • Fictional Province: The "St. Cyril" monastery in Greece is actually called Meteora in real life.
  • Fille Fatale: Oh, Bibi. James Bond even turns down the chance to sleep with her after she strips off and lies naked in his bed. Then, he offers to buy her an ice cream cone.
  • Fingertip Drug Analysis: During the raid on Kristatos' warehouse, Bond is able to identify raw opium this way. He does this again in The Living Daylights.
  • Foreshadowing: Before being taken on a ride by Blofeld, a priest informs Bond that a helicopter from Universal Exports is coming to pick Bond up. He then makes the sign of the cross toward Bond as the helicopter takes off.
  • Four Eyes, Zero Soul: Emil Leopold Locque is Kristatos' quiet, cruel, ruthless enforcer who wears a distinctive pair of octagonal glasses.
  • Friendly Enemy: General Gogol just shrugs after Bond destroys the MacGuffin he flew in from Moscow to purchase. It helps that Gogol already met Bond and that a stalemate was an acceptable deal; Gogol was just being a good sport, as he didn't need to have Bond killed for anything.
  • From Camouflage to Criminal: Kristatos and Colombo fought together in the Greek Resistance during World War II and later against the Communists. They both became smugglers.
  • Good Guns, Bad Guns: When Bond and Melina are captured after retrieving the ATAC, Kristatos and his mooks all carry P38 or Luger pistols, both weapons heavily associated with Nazi Germany.
  • Gorgeous Greek: Melina Havelock is the half-Greek, half-British Bond girl of the movie, with her mother Iona counting as an full example due to looking extremely good for her age.
  • Go to Your Room!: Kristatos says this to Bibi right before he slaps her.
  • Graceful Loser: Gogol just shrugs and chuckles after Bond destroys the MacGuffin he wanted to purchase.
  • Grave-Marking Scene: The film opens with James Bond visiting the grave of his deceased wife.
  • Groin Attack:
    • Arguably happens to Melina Havelock during the under water excavation when she and Bond are attacked by a thug in an underwater excavation suit. While making a go at her his suit's claw hits her roughly in the groin area while she whimpers in fear. May not have been intentional on the part of the filmmakers and could have simply been a result of slow movement underwater.
    • When one of Kristatos' men is attacked by sharks, the first one goes straight for the groin.
  • The Guards Must Be Crazy: If any of the guards at St Cyril's had gone for help instead of trying to take on Bond's small attack force themselves, they would have been wiped out.
  • Gunman with Three Names: Emile Leopold Locque.
  • Handcuffed Briefcase: Played With. The duty officer on the St. George's is handcuffed to a console used to send nuclear launch commands in the event of war. When the vessel is holed by a Sea Mine he drowns, unable to escape from the torrent of water flooding through the breech.
  • Handshake Refusal: In a bit of foreshadowing, Kristatos rebuffs Ferrara when he offers his hand. Ferrara winds up dead not too long afterwards.
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: If "Blofeld" hadn't flown the helicopter by his own location, Bond would never have known where he was.
  • Hope Spot: Bond gets on the ski lift, evading his pursuers. . .then the elevator door reopens and they get on.
  • Hot Sub-on-Sub Action: Melina and Bond's minisub is attacked by an enemy minisub.
    • The bad guy's sub was actually piloted by the man who designed it, Graham Hawkes, who, amusingly, tried so hard to make the fight scene realistic (having been ordered to by the director, despite his earlier protests it was unsafe) that he almost killed Roger Moore's stunt double.
  • How the Mighty Have Fallen: In the beginning of the film, Blofeld suddenly resurfaces years after laying low with a plan to exact revenge on 007 for foiling his numerous Evil Plans and causing the downfall of his criminal organization. By now, he's not only lost a lot of money, he's also permanently crippled, presumably from the injuries he sustained from the exploding oil rig at the end of Diamonds Are Forever or his collision with a tree in On Her Majesty's Secret Service, judging by the neck brace. In a few minutes of screentime, he tries to kill Bond while the latter is visiting the grave of his dead wife, kills one of his own men, and sadistically toys with Bond by attempting to kill him via a remote-controlled helicopter. But when Bond naturally manages to gain control of the chopper by disconnecting the wire which allowed Blofeld to control the helicopter, Blofeld goes into Villainous Breakdown mode, pathetically pleading with 007 to spare him.
  • Hypocrite: Bond repeatedly tries to talk Melina out of avenging her parents because she might end up getting herself killed. This comes from a guy who, at the beginning of the movie, killed the person who had murdered his wife and who later proceeds to kill Locque to avenge a fellow agent. Now, this could have been understood as Bond talking Melina out of it because he himself didn't feel any satisfaction from it, but the problem with that is that there is another film in the series where Bond once again isn't exactly opposed to the idea of a Roaring Rampage of Revenge. Although an argument can be made that Bond knows what he's talking about and doesn't want Melina going down that path.
  • I Gave My Word:
    Bond: Let the girl go, Kristatos, and we'll double whatever it is you're getting.
    Kristatos: I never go back on a deal. It would be bad for my reputation.
  • Ignore the Fanservice: James turns down Bibi after she shows up naked in his bed, offering herself to him. Apparently she's supposed to be too young.
  • Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Cuban assassin Hector Gonzales takes a dive into his pool and gets an arrow in the back on the way down. Downplayed as he was not stabbed all the way through.
  • Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy: Kriegler is a biathlon champion who manages to shoot a ski pole in half (when Bond is trying to retrieve his lost handgun with it), but is unable to shoot Bond every time. Though to be fair, biathletes train to hit stationary targets, not moving ones.
  • Improvised Parachute: James Bond uses a poolside umbrella to slow his fall when jumping off a wall. It's also useful as a momentary visual shield to avoid bullets.
  • In-Series Nickname: For some reason, Colombo's nickname in the Greek underworld is "The Dove". A very sick joke according to Kristatos.
  • Instant Death Bullet: Melina's crossbow kills two people instantly, although it only wounds a third, who isn't hit in a less severe area.
  • In the Back:
    • Columbo kills Kristatos by throwing a knife to his back before he can attack Bond with a switchblade.
    • Claus, the henchman played by Charles Dance, is killed via harpoon to the back courtesy of Columbo's men, who rescue Bond.
  • Ironic Echo: An in-franchise example. Melina's line "Greek women like Electra always avenge their loved ones" becomes incredibly eery considering that just eighteen years later, a Femme Fatale named Elektra attempts to commit mass-murder a la Blofeld-style due to this very sentiment (for her mother)
  • It's All About Me: Bibi comes to the conclusion that Kristatos announcing that he's moving his household to Cuba (to avoid any possible heat about being exposed as a Russian agent) is somehow a plot to get into her pants. The way she says it indicates that it's just part of her general immaturity rather than the arrogance or egotism that usually brings about this trope.
  • It's for a Book: James Bond claims to Countess Lisl that he's writing a novel about Greek smugglers.
  • Jailbait Taboo: Double Subverted The age of consent in Greece is 15. Meaning that legally speaking it would be fine for Bond to sleep with Bibi. That said, he still turns her down despite her being quite eager, likely figuring that having sex with a girl 40 years his junior is a bit much even for him
  • Karma Houdini Warranty Blofeld, after getting away scot free for five movies (as well as disappearing for a decade due to legal reasons) he is finally Killed Off for Real in the prologue.
  • Kick the Dog:
    • In the opening scene, Blofeld's attempt to have Bond assassinated, who was just coming back from visiting his deceased wife Tracy's grave.
    • Kristatos slapping Bibi.
    • A minor but amusing one; Locque is paying off Cuban assassin Hector Gonzales with a Briefcase Full of Money. Gonzales takes out a wad of cash and throws it to one of his Paid Harem. When Gonzales gets killed, Locque just picks up the briefcase and leaves, with his henchman snatching the wad from the girl as he walks past.
    • Another minor example that foreshadows Kristatos' reveal as the bad guy: when Bond and Ferrara are leaving their meeting with him at the ice rink, he snubs Ferrara's offered hand after shaking Bond's.
  • Kidnapped by an Ally: Bond is kidnapped by Columbo's men. This is also before The Reveal that Kristatos is the Big Bad, at this point we believe that it's Columbo. It's after Bond meets him that it is cleared out.
  • Kill Steal: Subverted. Columbo demonstrates his knife-throwing skills on Kristatos (who's getting ready to demonstrate his own with a stiletto), lodging his blade in Kristatos' spine as Melina and Bond argue over whether or not it's right for her to put a crossbow bolt through the man's heart. One might think Melina would be angry at Columbo, but she seems happy enough to let it go (either because she realizes he may have saved both her and Bond's lives, or because she's just satisfied that Kristatos is dead).
  • The Last Straw: Car with baddie who killed Bond's buddy is poised on edge of cliff; Bond walks up and tosses the baddie's own calling card at the car. Expected results, but the car doesn't fall. Bond gives the car a kick for good measure.
  • Lawyer-Friendly Cameo: Blofeld, who is never named as such or fully shown. But his baldness, his similar outfit, and the white cat in his lap pretty much tells the audience who he is. The explosion at the end of Diamonds Are Forever must have left him alive but paralysed, hence the wheelchair.
  • Leg Focus: Bibi’s legs get a lot of focus in the scene where she is training in St Cyril.
  • Letting the Air out of the Band: Once Melinda shows her car to Bond, the soundtrack quickly dials down and stops.
  • MacGuffin: The ATAC device that went to the bottom of the sea. In true fashion of the trope, it even ends up destroyed in one of the final scenes.
  • MacGuffin Delivery Service:
    Kristatos: Thank you, Mr. Bond. You have saved us the trouble of disarming it.
  • Make It Look Like an Accident: When the St. Georges is sunk, the British MI6 call this an accident with an old World War II mine. But with the discovery of similar mines at Kristatos' warehouse comes the suggestion that it was not. Given that General Gogol hears about the loss of the St. Georges and decides to pursue it, it's very likely that Kristatos' himself hatched the plot to sink the St. Georges in order to sell the ATAC to Gogol.
  • May–December Romance: Roger Moore is 30 years older than Carole Bouquet. It is revealing that Bond and Melina, while having their romance built throughout the movie, only have one sex scene at the end.
  • Meaningful Name: Bibi Dahl, a play on the Tennessee Williams play Baby Doll.
  • Minor Crime Reveals Major Plot: British spy ship containing Automatic Targeting Attack Communicator (ATAC), which controls nuclear subs gets sunk → plot to steal ATAC for the Soviets.
  • Mood Whiplash: Bond has Locque trapped in a car slowly sliding off a cliff. Bond takes out a pin and says "You left this with Ferrara, I believe", tossing it over to him. He can only stare at the pin as the car starts sliding off some more before Bond kicks the car off himself. This badass moment is immediately ruined by Bond noting "He had no head for heights...".
  • Mook Horror Show: The way Bond kills Blofeld could trigger this trope in anyone with claustrophobia (or acrophobia).
  • Ms. Fanservice: Bibi. Not only does she end up naked in Bond's bed at some point, There's the multiple shots of her training in leotards.
    • Averted with Melina, surprisingly enough. While she's quite beautiful, Melina is never particularly sexualized during the film. The closest she comes is wearing a shirt and bikini bottoms during the keelhauling scene.
  • Murder by Remote Control Vehicle: In The Teaser, Blofeld (although he is never named as such) fakes a message from Bond's office and sends a helicopter to pick him up. He then kills the pilot and assumes remote control of the chopper. Taunting Bond, he causes the chopper to make several near misses on high buildings before steering it into a disused factory where it will inevitably crash. Bond (naturally) manages to disable the remote control and regain control of the helicopter before the crash.
  • Music Video Credits Sequence: This is the only James Bond film where the singer of the theme (Sheena Easton) actually sings onscreen during the credit sequence.
  • Mythology Gag: The device Bond and Q use to identify Locque derives from an earlier, lower-tech device in Goldfinger.
  • Needle in a Stack of Needles: Q gripes that they've found 439 St. Cyril's in Greece.
  • Nipple and Dimed: We get a very brief glimpse of Lisl's right nipple as her nightie slips off. Melina, however, spends a couple scenes in a cut-off wet t-shirt with nothing visible around or through. You can only see Melina's nipple during the closing credits, though only while she's swimming in silhouette, if you look for it.
  • No MacGuffin, No Winner: Bond decides to destroy the ATAC in front of General Gogol and says "That's détente, comrade. You don't have it, I don't have it." Although this was actually more a case of We Win, Because You Didn't; by destroying the ATAC, Bond has prevented the Russians from gaining control of Britain's nuclear missile supply. For Britain, the loss of the ATAC is merely an inconvenience. Had the Russians gained the ATAC, the consequences for Britain would have been FAR worse. In fact, several times the film makes clear that destruction of the ATAC was acceptable to the British. The ATAC has a destruct mechanism that the operator was unable to trigger before drowning and the British officials made it clear that if the St. Georges had sunk in deeper water, it would have been preferable since recovery would have been impossible.
  • No More for Me: A Running Gag character - appeared in the two previous films - after a skier slides through his table. On all three occasions, the character looks shocked at his drinking glass.
  • Non Violent Initial Confrontation: Played with. We don't realize it's happening, because we don't know the bad guy (Kristatos) is the bad guy yet.
  • Not in Front of the Parrot!: A parrot repeating what the villain said provides the vital clue to allow Bond to track down the villain's whereabouts. Then the parrot asks Margaret Thatcher for a kiss.
    • Also used more seriously: Bond would have been screwed if it wasn't for Kristatos telling his men where to take the ATAC in front of Max. Well, the parrot and Columbo especially since he was quite familiar with the location and would have known, parrot or no parrot.
  • Not My Driver: Blofeld sends a phony helicopter to pick Bond up. Blofeld then kills the pilot and takes radio control so he can finish 007 off personally. Well, try to, anyway.
  • Not This One, That One: A slightly extended version plays out when Bond and Melina are escaping Gonzales's hacienda. At first, they head for Bond's Lotus Esprit, but arrive just in time to see some henchmen trigger the self destruct, so they end up taking Melina's car... a Citroën 2CV.
  • Oddball in the Series: The film is notable for three distinct differences between all other Bond films: 1.) M does not appear in the film. However this was out of respect to Bernard Lee who had passed away during production. 2.) The performer, Sheena Easton, appears singing the song during the credits sequence. 3.) A Prime Minister appears on screen.
    • This is also the oddball of the Roger Moore era in that it’s the only one with a grounded spy plot against a villain not seeking world domination. The light-hearted tone that defined the Roger Moore era is also notably absent and Bond is portrayed as a rather ruthless assassin in this film.
  • Oh, Crap!: The JIM equipment mook's reaction when the ticking stops. You can even see him beginning to mouth "Oh shit!" before the explosion cuts him off.
  • Only I Can Kill Him: Melina does it with Gonzales, but fails with Kristatos.
  • Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping: Trope Namer, sort of.
    Lisl: Oh, me nightie's slipping!
    Bond: So's your accent, Countess.
  • Oop North: Countess Lisl von Schlaf passes herself off as an Austrian noblewoman, until she and James Bond get alone together; as her nightie starts slipping, so does her Germanic accent. Bond guesses she's from Manchester. She answers, "Close, Liverpool."
  • Outside Ride: Bond takes an outside ride on a helicopter.
  • Overt Rendezvous: Bond meets Luigi Ferrara in line for a ski-lift.
  • Paid Harem: Subverted. Bond is able to sneak into Gonzales' villa because one of his harem is having a secret affair with one of his bodyguards. With all these beautiful woman sitting around all day getting bored waiting for Gonzales to make use of them, what do you think is going to happen?
  • Parasol of Pain: We see a booby-trapped umbrella demonstrated by Q. When it rains, the umbrella closes and sticks spikes into the victim's neck. In another scene Bond and the girl jump off a wall using a large beach umbrella to slow their fall, as well as temporarily block them from the view of a mook shooting at them.
  • Parasol Parachute: Played straight when Bond uses a poolside umbrella to slow his fall when jumping off a wall. It's also useful as a momentary visual shield to avoid bullets.
  • Pay Evil unto Evil: Bond has shot the villain Locque through his windscreen and caused him to veer onto the edge of a cliff, where he dangles precariously and helplessly. What does he do next, for the man that killed Bond's contact and the countess who bedded him? Mercilessly kick his car down the cliff, to his death.
  • Pistol Whip: Columbo ushers Melina out of the winchroom, then knocks out the Bound and Gagged mook who's groaning from the quarrel stuck in his shoulder.
  • Player Tic: Columbo is always seen chewing on some pistachios. It comes in handy during the warehouse scene where he tosses some pistachio shells for some mooks to step on to distract them and give away their location.
  • Please Put Some Clothes On: When Bibi Dahl (i.e., "Baby Doll") tries to seduce Bond, he tells her that if she puts her clothes on, he'll buy her an ice cream. He does have a good reason for this: she is only 16.
  • Pool Scene: Gonzales is killed by Melina at his personal pool. The scene became notorious when one of the women in it turned out to be trans.
  • Pop The Tyres: Bond takes at a dune buggy on the beach by shooting one of the tyres.
  • Powered Armour: The mook in the deep-sea JIM suit (played by the movie's stunt coordinator) Bond and Melina must fight off underwater.
  • Pre-Mortem One-Liner: "You left this with Ferrara, I believe."
  • Pretty in Mink: A few worn during the scenes in the Alps, including a coat Melina wears.
  • Psycho for Hire: Locque is said to have been sentenced to life imprisonment in Belgium for several particularly brutal murders, where he had a psychiatrist which he later strangled to escape from prison.
  • Punch! Punch! Punch! Uh Oh...: Bond's final battle with Kreiger.
  • Put on a Bus: M is absent from the film (in the movie, he's said to be on leave) because Bernard Lee, the original M, was suffering from stomach cancer and too ill to film his scenes (he died during production). He would return played by Robert Brown in Octopussy. Possibly subverted in that Brown had already played the character of Admiral Hargreaves in The Spy Who Loved Me, so this could be seen more as a major promotion.
  • Race Lift:
    • The Jamaican-born Judy Havelock of the short story became the Anglo-Greek Melina Havelock.
    • The Italian Enrico Columbo became the Greek Milos Columbo.
  • Ready for Lovemaking: Bibi Dahl does, but Bond declines the offer for a due to her being underaged.
  • Real Men Wear Pink: Kriegler wears a pink shirt in the climax.
  • Recycled In Space: The whole film is strongly reminiscent of On Her Majesty's Secret Service. In both films Bond is with a Countess, on a beach, threatened by mooks, kicks a gun out of a mook's hand, and he's wearing a tuxedo sans jacket. Both films show Bond at a casino with the aforementioned Countess. Both times the women are losing at baccarat. The opening teaser sequence shows Tracy Bond's grave and Blofeld in a neck-brace. Also the fact in this film Melina is Half-English, Half-Greek. In OHMSS Tracy was Half-English, Half-Italian. Both films have Bond allied with a crime syndicate figure who doesn't sell drugs. Bond also escapes in both films by riding in the car of the female lead who does the majority of the driving. Both films have a wedding scene and Bond riding in a helicopter piloted by someone else. Both films have Bond speaking with a "priest" at some point. Both films are set in the Alps at one point, show a Bond Girl on ice, have Bond on skis getting shot at, and have a bobsled track fight/battle sequence. Mountain climbers are shown in both at some point. Both films have a Germanic female character who is in charge of a girl/girls. Finally, in both films Bond and his crime syndicate ally assault a mountaintop lair.
  • Renegade Russian: Averted. This is the only Bond movie in which the villain is an agent of a communist government whose goal is actually authorized by his government.
  • Revisiting the Roots: Due to Moonraker veering into the realms of science fiction, For Your Eyes Only was deliberately designed to strip James Bond back to his spy thriller roots.
  • Riddle for the Ages: It's never explained how Blofeld (if it's really him in the Action Prologue) broke his neck and ended up in a wheelchair in the years between this film and Diamonds Are Forever.
  • Right-Hand Cat: In the Action Prologue, the wheelchair-bound character implied to Blofeld has one. Fortunately, the cat ends up getting away just before Bond's helicopter scoops up the wheelchair and drops the villain down a smokestack.
  • Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Melina, hunting down Gonzalez and whoever hired him.
  • Ruins for Ruins' Sake: At one point, Bond and Melina scuba dive past a sunken Greek Temple. In a deleted scene, Bond mentions it was once dedicated to Apollo.
  • Safety in Muggles: Bond is stalked through a ski resort by the bad guys, but they are deterred from harming him because of the crowd.
  • Sea Mine: The St George's (disguised as a fishing trawler) pulls up a WWII sea mine in its net, setting up the events of the film. Later, Locque blows up a sea mine in Kristatos' warehouse to cover his escape and (unsuccessfully) destroy an attacking force. Its presence raises the possibility that the sinking of the St George's may not have been an accident.
  • Self-Destructing Security: Bond's Lotus has an anti-theft measure which blows it up if it's broken into. Considering all the high tech gear in every car Bond drives, it's probably more to protect those things than the car itself.
    • This was also the intended fate of the A.T.A.C., but the guy drowned before he could actually finish inputting the destruct sequence.
  • Sequel Escalation: Inverted. Moonraker featured a space station and a plot to wipe out humanity, For Your Eyes Only is about a stolen MacGuffin.
  • Sexy Secretary: Gogol has one.
  • Show Some Leg: The villains provide one for Bond as he's infiltrating Gonzales' hangout, and a member of his Paid Harem starts smooching with one of the guards, enabling Bond to sneak past. Unfortunately he's then captured by a couple of guards who are doing their job properly.
  • Sky Heist: In The Teaser, Bond uses the helicopter he usurped control of to scoop up the wheelchair of the Evil Cripple and carry him into the sky before dumping him down a smokestack.
  • Slashed Throat: After the fight in the ice rink, Bond finds Ferrara with his throat slit and a dove pin placed on his body.
  • Smoke Out: During the car chase, Bond deliberately drives through some aggregate to create a smoke screen.
  • Smokestack Drop: In The Teaser, Bond uses a helicopter to drop the bald Evil Cripple (implied to be Blofeld) and his wheelchair down a smokestack.
  • Songs in the Key of Lock: The Identigraph room in Q's lab has a musical lock. The 7-note key is the title passage of "Nobody Does It Better"; it is less obvious, though, because Q stops after 5 notes and James Bond fills in the final 2 a few seconds later.
  • Spy Drama: Probably the only Roger Moore Bond film that comes close to "Stale Beer".
  • Spy Ship: The St. George's accidentally fishes up a Sea Mine and sinks.
  • Spy Speak: While meeting a contact at a ski resort, Bond and Ferarra apparently comment on the quality of the piste in comparison to other resorts.
  • Stab the Scorpion: Melina is hunting the men chasing Bond, with a crossbow.
  • Steal the Surroundings: When a spy ship goes missing, it turns out that to steal machinery onboard worth millions on the black market, the bad guys sunk the ship, killing everyone on board, so they could retrieve the equipment later by submarine.
  • Sticky Bomb: Bond uses the A.T.A.C.'s self destruct device (which has a magnetic back plate) as one, slapping it on a henchman in a diving exosuit when he and Melina are escaping from the wreck of the St. Georges.
  • The Straight and Arrow Path: Melina Havelock uses a crossbow as a way of demonstrating just how badass she is.
  • Stuka Scream: On the helicopter in the Cold Open and Gonzales' machine gun-equipped seaplane.
  • Super Identikit: Bond and Q use an "Identi-graph" computer to construct the face of someone Bond saw pay off a hitman. Despite some Rule of Funny moments, they're able to identify their suspect.
    Bond: A nose, not a banana, Q.
  • Sweeping the Table: The Russian sweeps stuff off a desk to make room for the MacGuffin.
  • Tactical Suicide Boss: Blofeld at the beginning. Had he hid inside a building instead of sitting out in the open where Bond could see him he probably would have escaped even if Bond regained control of the helicopter.
  • Take a Third Option: At the end Melina insists on killing Kristatos, but Bond tells her that killing simply for revenge is wrong, and that they should bring Kristatos in alive to answer for his crimes. While they're arguing, Kristatos goes to stab Bond in the back with a hidden knife, only to get a knife in his own back courtesy of Columbo.
  • Take That!:
    • Blofeld's appearance was a swipe at Kevin McClory, whose unofficial Bond movie Never Say Never Again and legal issues surrounding it are the reason Blofeld only makes a Lawyer-Friendly Cameo here.
    • The destruction of Bond's Cool Car while fleeing Gonzalez's compound was a swipe at the overuse of gadget-laden vehicles during the Seventies. Bond and Melina are forced to flee in a beat-up clunker instead, resulting in one of the more memorable car chases in the franchise.
  • Tantrum Throwing: Kriegler finds his rifle's barrel is bent, and throws both it and an entire motorbike at Bond.
  • Teetering on the Edge: Following a Chase Scene, hitman Locque's car is badly damaged and perched precariously on the edge of a cliff. Bond exchanges a few words with Locque, who is trying desperately to stay still as any movement on his part causes the car to shift worryingly. Bond then gives the car a hefty shove with his foot, sending it and Locque tumbling to their doom.
  • Temporary Substitute: Due to Bernard Lee's passing, this is the only Bond film where M doesn't appear. He's said to be on leave and his role is given to Bill Tanner.
  • This Is a Drill: The Mantis minisub has a drill mounted on one of its arms that the pilot attempts to use to puncture the windscreen of the Neptune with Bond and Melina inside.
  • Threatening Shark: There are a few tiger sharks around when Kristatos throws Bond and Melina overboard. However, when one of Kristatos' henchmen falls in, they go for him instead.
  • Title Drop:
    • A very subtle and rather unique variation. During his assignment briefing, Bond is handed a document marked "Classified" and secured with a seal marked "For Your Eyes Only".
    • Significantly less subtle, "For your eyes only, darling" at the end.
  • Token Romance: A common trope in Bond films, but this one has a particulously obvious example of it. There are almost no romantic moments at all between Bond and Melina Havelock (aside from one slightly flirtatious moment when Bond and Melina are touring Greece, and a deleted scene where Melina is clearly jealous that Bond had spent the night before with the Countess) before they wind up kissing in the last scene, almost as an afterthought. Made more egregious by the fact that Bond rejects the advances of Bibi Dahl, played by Lynn-Holly Johnson, as she is clearly too young for him, yet Carole Bouquet (the actress who plays Melina) is only a year older than Johnson. It may be true but Lynn-Holly Johnson (who was 23/24 at the time) was playing a 15 year old and to look her in the film you would think she’s only 15 (unlike most examples where is it is obvious that the actress is older than the character), possibly explaining why their relationship seems far more father/daughter like rather than romantic.
  • Took a Level in Badass: Bibi spends much of the movie being far less interesting and much more annoying than Melina. But during the final confrontation at the Monastery she sure steps up when it matters by boldly looking Kristatos in the eye and telling him to go to hell. Then actually saves James' life by knocking Kriegler's arm away when he's about to shoot him. For both of these acts she gets smacked so hard she gets knocked across the room.
  • Two-Person Pool Party: Although it takes place in the sea.
  • Underwater Ruins: Not much, the "underwater" set isn't particularly elaborate, but it was implied.
  • Unhand Them, Villain!: The end of Blofeld in the opening:
    Blofeld: Put me down! Put me down!
    Bond: Oh, do you want to get off? [pushes Blofeld to his death]
  • Unusual Euphemism: Bond's superiors tell him to "apply the necessary pressure" to make Gonzales talk.
  • Vader Breath: When Bond is about to be attacked by an enemy diver in a JIM diving suit, all we see is a POV shot accompanied by the sound of the air regulator. And Ticking.
  • Villainous Breakdown: Once 007 regains control of the remote-controlled chopper, Blofeld cries uncle and begs Bond to "put him down", even offering him a "steel delicatessen" as an odd concession. Bond happily drops off Blofeld by dumping him and his wheelchair down an industrial chimney for good. Considering the only thing Blofeld could offer was a lunch wrap, it's implied he was a far cry from the criminal kingpin he used to be.
  • Villain Opening Scene: The film opens with a murder, following a sequence where a spy ship accidentally collides with a mine.
  • The Voiceless: Locque again. We know he can speak, because we see him do it in one scene, but we never hear it. Fittingly, the only time he makes a sound is screaming as Bond shoves him to his doom.
  • We Have Reserves: During the boat scene a mook falls in the water and gets attacked by sharks. Kristatos responds by saying "ah, leave him".
  • We Used to Be Friends: Colombo and Kristatos served together in the Greek resistance, but later took divergent paths after one of them turned out to be a Soviet double agent.
  • We Win, Because You Didn't: Bond's destruction of the ATAC at the end of the film. Retrieving and returning the ATAC would have been preferable for the British, but denying the Russians the ability to turn Britain's missiles against Britain was more important.
  • What Happened to the Mouse?: Bond defeats the Mantis sub henchman by forcefully entangling him in the St. Georges' wreckage, gaining time to escape. However, the mook is clearly seen dislodging itself right after and watching Bond's Neptune escape, and yet he doesn't give chase, even although the Mantis has proved to be much faster and still has its drill arm presumably functional. The henchman and his sub are never seen again.
  • What the Hell Is That Accent?: Blofeld speaks with a vaguely Greek accent, as a nod to Greek-American actor Telly Savalas, who played Blofeld in On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
  • What Measure Is a Mook?: When Melina shoots one of Kristatos' men at St. Cyril's, the guy doesn't die. Rather than finish him off, Bond drags him into the winch house, where Melina actually removes the arrow and bandages the guy's wound, after which they tie him up and knock him out, showing that at this point, Melina only wants to kill Kristatos himself, not any of his men.
  • Why Am I Ticking?: The JIM suit henchman is defeated when Bond attaches the demo charge from the ATAC (as a bonus, it's actually ticking) to his diving suit, and it explodes without the henchman being able to remove it as the suit severely limits his movements.
  • Why Don't You Just Shoot Him?:
    • Blofeld enjoys Bond's apparently futile attempt to escape his remote-controlled helicopter, deliberately flying it near buildings to frighten him. This gives Bond time to work his way into the cockpit where he can disconnect the cables to the remote system.
    • Also later, when Kristatos has Bond and Melina hostage, he drags them behind his boat to be eaten by sharks (except he patches up Bond's open wound) for no apparent reason.
  • Wire Dilemma: Needed to detach the ATAC from its self-destruct device. Subverted in that Bond and Melina have the wire guide with them (and it's simply cutting them from left to right) and the explosive and detonator remain intact (merely detached from the failsafe), allowing Bond to use it as a limpet mine later.
  • Written-In Absence: Bernard Lee, the original M actor, was suffering from stomach cancer as was too ill to film any scenes (he died shortly before filming wrapped). Out of respect, the producers and filmmakers chose not to recast the role of M right then and there, so they established early in the film by way of Ms. Moneypenny that M was "on leave" to explain his absence, and the scenes that would have normally featured him were rewritten with other government official characters acting in his place carrying out his usual tasks. M would return in Octopussy played by Robert Brown, but it's never established if Brown is meant to be the same character simply played by a different actor (as Bond usually is across his many recasts) or if he is meant to be a new character replacing the previous M (possibly even a promoted Admiral Hargreaves, Brown's character from The Spy Who Loved Me).
  • You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Blofeld fatally electrocutes the helicopter pilot who delivered Bond into his trap. Blofeld tells Bond, "Don't concern yourself with the pilot... one of my less useful people."
  • You Killed My Father:
    • Melina's motivation to join Bond's quest is to avenge the death of her parents.
    • Also Bond's rationale to have Blofeld killed off in revenge for murdering his wife Tracy way back in On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

 
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Blofeld gets the Drop

In the beginning of For Your Eyes Only, due to EON Productions losing the rights to Blofeld and Spectre to Kevin McClory, the producer of Thunderball, the prologue of the movie opens with Bond dropping a wheelchair-bound Blofeld down a chimney to his doom just to give McClory the figurative middle finger.

How well does it match the trope?

4.88 (16 votes)

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Main / DroppedABridgeOnHim

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