Thomas’s review published on Letterboxd:
When I think of James Bond, I think of “Goldfinger”. It´s by far the Bond film I´ve rewatched the most in my life, and therefore it has a special place in my heart. For me, it´s still the benchmark for the franchise, at least for the pre-Craig movies. “Casino Royal” and “Skyfall” are fantastic at what they do, but they are a different kind of movies, so I find it hard to compare them with this film.
In my opinion, “Goldfinger” perfected the formular of the early Bond movies, and it´s fully aware of what it is and what the strengths of the franchise are. It features so many elements that I love. It has my favorite title song, my favorite villain, my favorite quote (“Do you expect me to talk?” “No, Mr. Bond. I expect you to die”), the most iconic Bond car, the most extra and therefore memorable way to kill someone (being covered in gold paint), the equally extra way to threaten Bond´s life with a laser (in general, Goldfinger is so extra, I love him), my favorite henchmen, and a female henchmen turned Bond girl named Pussy Galore. It doesn´t get much better. I was always fascinated by the gold leitmotif and especially Goldfinger´s Fort Knox plan. It´s not quite as outlandish as “world domination” but still so comic book villain-like that I find it equally exciting and charming. And the climax with the Oddjob fight and the bomb is still a highlight. In general, I would say that “charm” is the biggest strength of the movie, which is further accentuated by Connery´s phenomenal charisma, the tongue in cheek humor, and the whole laidback vibe of the movie. I forgot that a substantial part of the film is just Bond trolling Goldfinger.
My only complaint is how quickly and easily Bond seduces Pussy and makes her switch sides. And in quite a rapey scene. That´s both implausible and problematic. I swear, early Bond has to be some kind of male version of DC´s Poison Ivy, because only seductive pheromone powers would make his effect on women plausible.
But criticism aside, “Goldfinger” is top-notch campy spy entertainment. Lots of nostalgia with this one but the film still lives up to the picture of it I had in my mind.
