A glossy, overstuffed Bond adventure with big spectacle, iconic Connery swagger, and impressive underwater set pieces, but also a famously sluggish middle stretch that can drain the momentum. Worth it if you enjoy classic 1960s spy cinema, extravagant production design, and the series at its most opulent; less so… Read more
36% ★★☆☆☆ (248,834)
Thunderball
Where to watch: Buy
Movie · Adventure · Action · PG
1965 · 2h 10m · ★ 36% (248.8K)
Look up! Look down! Look out! Here comes the biggest Bond of all!
Director: Terence Young
Starring: Sean Connery, Claudine Auger, Adolfo Celi
Overview
A criminal organization has obtained two nuclear bombs and are asking for a 100 million pound ransom in the form of diamonds in seven days or they will use the weapons. The secret service sends James Bond to the Bahamas to once again save the world.
Director
Terence Young
Production
EON Productions
Cast
Sean Connery, Claudine Auger, Adolfo Celi, Luciana Paluzzi, Rik Van Nutter, Guy Doleman, Molly Peters, Martine Beswick, Bernard Lee, Desmond Llewelyn, Lois Maxwell, Roland Culver, Earl Cameron, Paul Stassino, Rose Alba, Philip Locke, George Pravda, Michael Brennan, Leonard Sachs, Edward Underdown
Curator Review
Verdict
A glossy, overstuffed Bond adventure with big spectacle, iconic Connery swagger, and impressive underwater set pieces, but also a famously sluggish middle stretch that can drain the momentum. Worth it if you enjoy classic 1960s spy cinema, extravagant production design, and the series at its most opulent; less so if you want tight pacing or modern action rhythm.
Best for
classic Bond fans
viewers who love lavish 1960s production design
spy-movie completists
fans of underwater action and practical spectacle
Skip if
you need brisk pacing
you dislike dated gender politics
you prefer character-driven thrillers
slow middle acts make you impatient
Overview
Thunderball is one of the great examples of Bond as pure spectacle: sunlit Bahamas locations, enormous villain lairs, and a sense of scale that makes the whole enterprise feel expensive and self-satisfied in the best way. Sean Connery is at his most effortlessly commanding, and the movie keeps finding new ways to turn espionage into lifestyle fantasy.
Worth noting
What holds it back is rhythm. The underwater action is technically impressive and visually distinctive, but it also slows the film to a crawl, especially once the plot settles into repeated dives and prolonged tactical maneuvering. The result is a movie that can feel thrilling in bursts and oddly airless in between.
Bottom line
Still, as a mid-60s spy blockbuster, it’s a key entry: glamorous, absurd, and full of the franchise’s defining pleasures. If you’re in the mood for Bond as a lavish production rather than a lean thriller, it delivers enough style to outweigh its drag.
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" Do you mind if my friend sits this one out? She's just dead." - James Bond
Quintin (2★) · 442 likes
Writer: I have a third James Bond movie for you. CEO: Perfect, people love these movies Writer: Exactly, I was thinking of making James Bond even hornier CEO: Hmmm will this age well in 55 years? Writer: Not at all! We will even have the villain try to rape one of the women. CEO: OH MY GOD! How is that not going to be the biggest talking point of the film? Writer: Well there will be sharks in the movie.
1963 · Comedy, Mystery, Romance · 1h 53m · NR · ★ 85% (289K) · Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Philo, Pure Flix, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Bloodstream
A chic, globe-trotting thriller with romance, deception, and a light but sophisticated tone.
1994 · Action, Thriller · 2h 21m · R · ★ 52% (488.9K) · Where to watch: fuboTV, AMC+, AMC, Philo
A glossy, high-energy spy-action film that matches Bond’s blend of spectacle and romance.
Themes
espionage, nuclear blackmail, international intrigue, luxury and excess, underwater action, Cold War paranoia, villain lair spectacle, seduction and danger
Topics
spy thriller, 1960s, Cold War, underwater action, glossy spectacle, luxury, international intrigue, practical effects, adventure, camp