DVD Corner

007: The Sean Connery 6-Film Collection 4K UHD Review

More James Bond on 4K at last!

Until now, only the Daniel Craig James Bond films have been released on 4K, but now Amazon/MGM is releasing the 007: The Sean Connery 6-Film Collection 4K set containing “Dr. No,” “From Russia With Love,” “Goldfinger,” “Thunderball,” “You Only Live Twice,” and “Diamonds Are Forever.” The only “James Bond” Sean Connery film not included here is “Never Say Never Again” which isn’t even officially a James Bond film. 

“Dr. No” is the film that started it all. Director Terence Young adapted author Ian Fleming’s novel to near perfection. The story finds MI6 agent James Bond venturing to Jamaica to investigate the disappearance of John Strangways which leads him to the villainous SPECTRE member Dr. No who is plotting to stop a space launch. This is a grittier spy story than what came after. There’s murder, mystery, and a lot less action than much of the franchise titles. Frankly, it’s a very underrated Bond movie that doesn’t get the credit it deserves for not only sparking the entire movie franchise, but establishing the roots of its success. Sure, “Goldfinger” laid out the blueprint of the tried and true formula, but “Dr. No” did the heavy lifting. The debut entry also boasts the debut of the iconic score, features gorgeous Jamaica location shooting, and introduces iconic characters like Felix (Jack Lord), Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress), M (Bernard Lee) and Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell). 

“From Russia With Love” is perhaps the most adult and sophisticated Bond movie and is many fan’s favorite installment. ‘Russia’ works well as a companion piece to “Dr. No” in that SPETRE is trying to get revenge against Bond by setting an elaborate trap. This is a very intense Bond film from start to finish and features some of the most exciting action scenes including Bond’s fight with Donald Grant (Robert Shaw) on the Orient Express, a thrilling boat chase, and a climactic attack by Rosa Klebb (spoofed in “Austin Powers”).

Director Guy Hamilton’s “Goldfinger” took the James Franchise to the next level by establishing the movie formula for years to come. The theme song and sexy opening credits, the one-liners, the grand Bond scores, the villain and the henchmen, the Bond girls, M and Moneypenny, Q and the gadgets, the cars (in this case the Aston Martin DB5), it’s all here. This third feature finds Bond coming up against a gold obsessed maniacal villain (Auric Goldfinger) who plans to irradiate Fort Knox thereby making his gold more valuable. Simply put, this is a classic Bond film through and through. It has everything you could want from the series from a deadly henchman (Oddjob) to one of the best Bond girls with Pussy Galore.  

The 4th Bond film (“Thunderball”) finds SPECTRE stealing 2 nuclear weapons and holding the world ransom and threatening an attack. It’s up to Bond to try and stop them. Adjusted for inflation, “Thunderball” was the biggest Bond movie box office wise until “Skyfa;;.” It’s a grand crowd pleasing action-adventure spectacle with a great villain (Emilio Largo) and ahead of its time action (the underwater action sequences and Bond using a jet pack).

“You Only Live Twice” is perhaps one of the most underrated Bond films. Yes, it’s weird (see Bond faking his own death) but what else would you expect from a script by author Roald Dahl after all? In this outing, Bond heads to Japan to investigate missing spacecrafts and encounters SPECTRE mastermind Ernst Stavro Blofeld. There’s so much to admire about this one. The mini Helicopter chase action scene is exquisite, Donald Pleasance’s Blofeld is easily the best take on the iconic villain, and Blodfeld’s base is arguably the best villainous base of operations in a Bond series. Plus, any time a base explodes at the end of the movie, you know it’s been a legit Bond film. 

After George Lazenby’s “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (which has ironically gone on to become one of the most celebrated films in the series), Sean Connery returned for one of the worst Bond films with “Diamonds Are Forever.” The story of this one involves diamonds, a laser, and Blofeld. You can fill in the details pretty easily. So much of this one goes off the rails. You’ve got a Moon Buggy chase scene (which is as goofy as it sounds), arguably the most obnoxious Bond girl (Tiffany Case), and Jimmy Dean being randomly cast (yes, the sausage guy). Of course, even the worst Bond films still have their moments. Mr. Kidd and Mr. Wint are among the most memorable henchmen (and the weirdest), the Shirley Bassey theme song slaps, the Las Vegas location shooting is absolutely first rate, and you can never go wrong with Blofeld as the lead villain. 

If you’re a James Bond aficionado like myself, this set is a must own. Let’s hope we get Roger Moore, George Lazenby, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan’s Bond films on 4K sooner rather than later. 

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 1.75:1 2160p (for “Dr. No,” “From Russia With Love” and “Goldfinger”), 2.35:1 2160p (for “Thunderball”) and 2.39:1 2160p (“You Only Live Twice” and “Diamonds Are Forever”).  How do the films look? The 6 films feature 4K scans from the original camera negatives and are also presented in HDR10 and Dolby Vision. The result? The films have never looked better on home video. The richness of the colors and the image clarity are noticeably superior to the Blu-ray in every respect. Among the highlights here are the Jamaica locals in “Dr. No” and the underwater action scenes in “Thunderball” which look crystal clear and frankly give the sequences new life. It was also nice to see the prints maintain their original grain and look at the same time. 

Audio Track: Dolby Atmos and 2.0 DTS-HD MA. How do the films sound? Fans have the option of playing the new Atmos mixes (which are certainly dynamic in the action and music departments) and the original theatrical Mono tracks which are just as explosive if you don’t have a fancy audio equipment set-up. 

Extras:
* Dr. No- “Exotic Locations” (shooting locations featurette), “Declassified: MI6 Vault” (which contains 2 short vintage extras titled “The Guns Of James Bond” and “Premiere Bond: Opening Nights”), commentary by Terence Young among others, “Ministry Of Propaganda” (trailers, TV spots, photo gallery and radio ads), and “Mission Dossier” (3 archival featurettes including “Inside Dr. No,” “Terence Young: Bond Vivant” and “Dr. No 1963 Featurette”).
* From Russia With Love- Commentary by Terence Young and more, “Exotic Locations” shooting locations featurette, “Ministry Of Propaganda” (trailers, TV spots and radio commercials), “Declassified: MI6 Vault” (4 extra featuring animated storyboards, “Ian Fleming: The CBC Interview,” “Ian Fleming And Raymond Chandler,” and “Ian Fleming On Desert Island Discs””) and “Mission Dossier” (2 archival extras titled “Inside From Russia With Love” and “Harry Saltzman: Showman”).
* Goldfinger- 2 commentary tracks (One featuring director Guy Hamilton and the other a cast and crew track featuring Sean Connery and more), “Exotic Locations” (location featurette), “Ministry Of Propaganda” (trailers, TV spots and radio ads), “Mission Dossier” (2 vintage extras called “The Making Of Goldfinger” and “The Goldfinger Phenomenon”), and “Declassified: MI6 Vault” (5 short vintage pieces titled “Sean Connery From The Set Of Goldfinger,” “Honor Blackman Open-Ended Interview,” “Tito Vandis Screen Test,” “Theodore Bikel Screen Test,” “On Tour With The Aston Martin DB5”).
* Thunderball- “Exotic Locations” (again), “Ministry of Propaganda” (more ads), 2 commentary tracks (one by Terence Young and one by editor Peter Hunt, writer, John Hopkins and more), “Selling Bonds (vintage commercials for merchandise), “Mission Dossier” (3 vintage featurettes titled “The Thunderball Phenomenon,” “The Secret History Of Thunderball” and “The Making Of Thunderball”), and “Declassified: MI6 Vault” (5 extras: “On Location With Ken Adam,” “Thunderball Boat Show Reel,” “The Incredible World Of James Bond- Original 1965 NBC TV Special,” “A Child’s Guide To Blowing Up A Motor Car- 1965 Ford Promotional Film,” and “Bill Suitor: The Rocket Man Movies.”
* You Only Live Twice- “Ministry Of Propaganda” (promo material), commentary by director Lewis Gilbert and more, “MIssion Dossier” (4 old school featurettes include a Plane Crash animated storyboard sequence, “Silhouettes: The James Bond Titles,” “Inside You Only Live Twice,” and “Exotic Locations”), and “Declassified: MI6 Vault” (3 vintage extras “On Location With Ken Adam,” “Welcome To Japan Mr. Bond,” and “Whicker’s World- Highlights From 1967 BBC Documentary.”
* Diamonds Are Forever- 6 deleted scenes, “Ministry Of Propaganda” ads, 5 alternate and expanded angles, commentary by Terence Young and others, “Declassified: MI6 Vault” (“Sean Connery 1971: The BBC Interview,” “Lesson #007: Close Quarters Combat,” “Oil Rig Attack,” “Satellite Test Reel,” and “Explosion Tests”) and “Mission Dossier” (“Exotic Locations,” “Cubby Broccoli: The Man Behind Bond,” and “Inside Diamonds Are Forever”).
* Digital copies of all 6 films.

June 19, 2025 - Posted by nicklyons1 | 4K UHD Review | 007: The Sean Connery 6-Film Collection 4K UHD Review, Blofeld, Diamonds Are Forever, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, James Bond, Sean Connery, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice