159: Bondography – You Only Live Twice

Our James Bond retrospective, as part of our series Rediscovering The Classics With Elijah, continues with You Only Live Twice. Which can be subtitled The Destruction Of Jeff’s Childhood. This was the first James Bond film Jeff saw in the cinema. He recounts in incredible starry eyed detail the circumstances of where he saw it and its impact on him. Coming back to it all these years later for this podcast and he realises he is no longer the optimistic youngster he once was. Elijah is sympathetic to this realisation, while Graham and Neil just mock. Yet oddly, while You Only Live Twice may not have stood the test of time, it is the Bond film of the 1960’s which has the most influence today. Why? Listen in and find out. Also check out this podcast to learn the following - Why Sean Connery was unhappy filming in Japan - What Little Nellie shouldn’t have done - Why a cat wrangler sued the producers - Why living in the shadow of a fake volcano can be upsetting As always, the most important aspect of the show is, what did Elijah think of it, coming to the movie for the first time? Did he have Jeff’s initial optimism or was he more measured in his approach? For an added bonus to this episode, check out the opening section of the show where the battle of the older Bonds begin. Jeff, Graham and Neil pit their wits against one another, and discover three half (wits) do not make a whole! The reason for this? Who should be the next Bond. Graham Hills joins us to judge or perhaps finally give up on the pointlessness of this competition. What do you think – who should go forward to the next round and eventually replace Daniel Craig. Please let us know your thoughts. Enjoy and stay safe.