Octopussy

(John Glen, UK/US 1983, 131 min., 35mm)

Celebrating James Bond. Taking a cue from the excellent Ian Fleming short story “The Property of a Lady” (and ironically taking almost none from the short story titled “Octopussy”), the plot is kicked into motion when a Fabergé egg for which an MI6 agent was killed hits auction and British Intelligence suspects the egg’s owner of being caught up with the Soviets. The ensuing action leads to the discovery that the international smuggling of jewels is a front for something much more sinister. 007, accompanied by a jewel smuggler named Octopussy, sets out to prevent the Cold War from erupting into nuclear violence. Octopussy premiered only months apart from Sean Connery’s return to Bond in the non-Eon film Never Say Never Again.