A Reel Retro Review: ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE (1969)

Reel Speak’s Retro Reviews will randomly review a classic film every week, with the intention of introducing some overlooked and perhaps forgotten screen gems from the past to those of us who may be unfamiliar or unawares of their existence. 

 

With the long-awaited 25^th James Bond film ready to hit theatres, the time is right to go back and revisit one of the most-often overlooked entries in the franchise; the George Lazenby-led ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE from 1969. 

 

British secret agent 007 James Bond (Lazenby), travels to a remote outpost in the Swiss Alps. There, he discovers Blofeld (Telly Savalas), the leader of the terrorist organization SPECTRE, planning to brainwash a group of women to act as a sleeper cell, who when activated, will decimate the world through chemical warfare. Along the way, Bond meets and falls in love with Countess Tracy di Vicenzo (Diana Rigg). 

 

Directed by Peter R. Hunt and based on the novel by Bond creator/author Ian Fleming, ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE was the first Bond film without the man who originated the role on the big screen, Sean Connery. With that in mind, the film starts in a non-traditional manner, immediately separating itself from its previous entries and giving itself its own identity. It’s a welcome and fresh start, and sets a precedent that future Bond films would eventually follow. 

 

The film moves at a leisurely pace, and while Blofeld’s plot to take over the world is bonkers, the film is never derailed by this as the focus is on the new Bond. Lazenby plays the part with a vulnerability that was missing from the previous entries, and this carries over into the rest of the film. For better or for worse, much of the film is focused on Bond and Traci, and it takes a good hour before 007 is actually dispatched on his mission. Some plot points don’t make a lot of sense (Bond is attacked by Traci’s father’s henchmen, who then asks him to grant him a favor by marrying his daughter…huh?), and Blofeld is revealed to be seeking a ransom more than global domination…which lowers the stakes. 

 

Director Peter R. Hunt, who worked as an editor in previous Bond films, shoots a gorgeous looking film and executes some of the best fights and chase sequences the franchise has ever seen. Tension is mounted nicely, and John Barry’s score is outstanding. 

 

George Lazenby, in his one and only outing as Bond, plays the character in a fresh way that is welcome. Although his acting experience when filming was very limited (he was a model with only a commercial to this credit at the time), he makes for a formidable Bond with all of the toughness and charm that we’ve come to expect from the character. Diana Rigg is gorgeous and matches Lazenby well, and Telly Savalas gives Blofeld a true calculating menace. 

 

ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE is a 007 film that is mostly recalled for being led by the “forgotten Bond” of Lazenby, and for its tragic ending that the franchise has yet to match or top. The film deserves a bit more credit than that, because despite a few flaws, stands as a thrilling and moving entry into the Bond catalog. 

 

BOTTOM LINE: See it 

 

Reel Facts: George Lazenby was the youngest actor cast as Bond at the age of 29, and as an Australian, the only one born outside of the British Isles. Diana Rigg would gain late-career fame as Olenna Tyrell in TV’s GAME OF THRONES. She passed away in 2020 at the age of 82.