10 Sean Connery James Bond Moments That Don’t Hold Up Today

Sean Connery James Bond Films may be iconic pieces of cinematic history, but there are many elements in them that would never fly in a modern-day James Bond Movie. As the character in six films, Connery’s version of Bond remains a pop-culture touchstone that has inspired over half a century of film, television, novels, comics, video games and beyond. However, the early stories are dated in their views on many subjects, with offensive depictions of some communities.

Instead of bucking the trends, the harsh realities of Connery’s James Bond Movies are just as offensive from a modern perspective. Sometimes it’s character specific, with the acceptable flirtations of 1964 recognized as aggressive assaults in 2024. Other times, the films take harsh perspectives against entire cultures, casually insulting communities or dropping ethnic slips. There is even a habit of Caucasian men disguising themselves as other races, both in the film and during production. Here are the biggest elements of Sean Connery James Bond Movies that don’t hold up.

10

The Yellowface in Dr

The first James Bond film featured a lot of Caucasian actors for Asian roles

The Yellowface in Dr. No is emblematic of the dated elements of Sean Connery’s James Bond films And highlights the harsh reality of returning to them. Dr. No was the first entry in the series, with several of the film’s characters implicitly of East Asian descent. For many of the roles, the film cast Caucasian actors in heavy make-up. This was a common practice at the time (as seen in other infamous examples like Breakfast at Tiffany’s), but remains a controversial decision lingering over the film decades later. Joseph Weissman played Dr. No, and was given a biracial background.

In contrast, the English-Irish-French Zina Marshall and Jamaican-born Marguerite Lwars played Miss Taro and Annabel Chung. Both non-Asian actors in East Asian roles. This is something that would become more overtly objective in later years. In the 21st century, films like Game Ghost in the Shell Garnered a much more negative response for casting American actors like Scarlett Johansson. This wouldn’t even be the only example of Yellowface from the series, as Bond himself would later enter Disguise as a Japanese man in one of the most infamous moments of You only live twice.

9

Bond slapping Tanya from Russia with love

Classic James Bond has a rough edge

From Russia with love Remains a classic for the series, but there are some gender politics in the film that wouldn’t fly today. This includes the relationship between Bond and Tanya, which is the central romance of the film. However, Bond’s treatment of her in the aftermath of Kerim’s death. Suspicious that Tanya has been working against him all along, Bond ends up confronting her and slapping her.

This is one of the clearest examples of the interpretation that Connery’s incarnation of Bond was a brute instead of a gentleman. Similar to the use of Yellowface in Dr. NoIt was considered acceptable practice by some at the time to beat women and expect little consequence. however, Modern versions of Bond would never be allowed to act so callously to women and then be treated as the hero of the film.

8

The Romani in from Russia with love

The Romany of From Russia with love are based on many stereotypes

The Romani are featured at a critical point in From Russia with love. Bond and Kerim Bay find a shelter with a group of them, and one of the many gunfights in the film occurs in the middle of the camp. In the context of the film’s narrative, the group performed positively. however, The way From Russia with love Depicts the group is very regressive and relies heavily on longstanding stereotypes About the community.

The female members of the tribe are highly sexualized, with an unnecessary fight between two women having little real bearing on the plot. The community is portrayed as rough travelers, conforming to outdated ideas of the community. They are even referred to with An outdated slurry instead of the preferred term for the community. The portrayal is one-note and relies on stereotypes about an entire community, and it doesn’t age well at all.

7

Oddjob’s role in Goldfinger

There is some problematic subtext to the role of Oddjob

Played by Harold Sakata in GoldfingerOddjob remains one of the most memorable minor villains James Bond has ever faced. A towering figure who works for Auric Goldfinger and can easily knock out Bond in the first act of the film, Oddjob has been a fan favorite since his debut. However, there are some elements of the character that would likely have to be changed if Oddjob debuted today. The character is described by Auric as a loyal “Kant,” A title and role that has largely fallen by the wayside in traditional modern society.

The character is also effectively mute, with his only speech being screams of pain and distress during his fight scenes. Auric even makes a foray into Koreans, an ethnicity that Oddjob identified with in the original book. This subservient character plays into the problematic racial politics of the era when Goldfinger is formed. Later, James Bond villains like Jaws built off the unique edges that make Oddjob memorable, but typically without the senseless elements that can be associated with the image of the character.

6

Bond & Hole Galore’s relationship in Goldfinger

Bond is really aggressive with his love interest

The James Bond played by Sean Connery was very close to the version seen in Ian Fleming’s books, both of which were taken to work over the years for their portrayal of women. The aggressive approach to flirting in these stories can look criminal By today’s standards, something that is particularly prevalent in Bond’s relationship with Pussy Galore in Goldfinger. Initially implied to be “immune” to Bond because of being coded as a lesbian, Bond’s attempts to seduce her end up pretty aggressive.

Describing his actions as “soft loving care” makes Bond particularly creepyEspecially from a 21st century perspective on consent. The act even leads Galore to fall for Bond and turn against Goldfinger, perpetuating dangerous stereotypes that women who aren’t attracted to men just “haven’t met a real one yet.” The relationship between Bond and Pussy Galore is problematic on a number of levels, and is a far cry from the way women have been portrayed in the series in recent years.

5

“People Talk” in Goldfinger

James Bond highlights the inappropriate attitude of the time

Even beyond the problematic elements of Bond and Pussy Galore’s relationship in GoldfingerThe movie also underscores the problematic approach to women even in more casual settings. One of the film’s quick but infamous moments is the “man talk” scene. While at a hotel getting a massage from Dink, Bond is greeted by his American ally, Felix Leiter. After introducing Dink to Felix, he tells her to excuse them while they have some “people talk”.

As she leaves, he slaps her behind and sends her on her way. It is a small moment, however An indication of how James Bond films (and large portions of society) treated women in the era. The casual nature of the moment makes it especially frightening from a modern perspective, where such an action would typically be used in a film to highlight a creepy or villainous character.

4

Spectre’s undercover agent’s exposure in Thunderball

Opening a car door is so unlikely, it could only be a person

Due to the evolving popular perception on feminism, some elements of James Bond films would not be included if the movie were hypothetically made today. This includes a plot significant hit from ThunderballConnery’s fourth outing as the character. In the film’s opening sequence, Bond attends the funeral of Specter agent Jacques Bouvar. however, Bouvar faked his death and even attended the funeral disguised as a woman.

The way Bond tells that Bouvard is human is by noticing how “she” opens a car door for herself. This reflects a time when men wanted to keep the door open for women, and that otherwise they would be considered “inanimate”. In the 21st century, the view on gender norms has fallen by the wayside. A modern Bond would probably not see the act of a woman stepping out of a car as a clue to their hidden identityWith female characters in films like No time to die took a great deal of agency on their own.

3

The Unsafe Shark Pool in Thunderball

The Shark Pool was unsafe on several occasions

In modern film, safe care for animals are taken in every production. It is highly controversial for any movie to not be careful with the animals that are featured in their productions. however, Emilio Largo’s Shark Tank in Thunderball Proved to be uniquely unsafeAs the production faced repeated difficulties because it used real sharks for the sequence. Canary was in a pool when one of the sharks broke free and rushed towards him, the star in danger.

Special effects coordinator John Stears got into the pool at one point with what he believed was a dead shark, and was nearly caught in an ensuing feeding frenzy. One of the sharks even seems to take a harpoon to the head in the film. The situation was so bad, stuntman Bill Cummings would only complete his scene standing in for Largo’s sidekick Quist in the shark pool after he got caught. In a modern film, That kind of approach to animal and crew safety would be widely condemned.

2

The circus act in diamonds are forever

The gorilla transformation is a very bad image

The latest Sean Connery James Bond film, Diamonds are foreverFollows the example of the previous films in terms of their treatment of female characters. However, there is also a minor moment in the film Adds a very questionable racial layer to the movie. During a mission, Bond and his allies end up at the Circus Circus Hotel in Las Vegas. Various acts and sideshow games were included in the scene, including one that definitely would not be produced today.

One of the sideshows that Tiffany Case features a scientist revealing his latest experiment, which involves a black zambora performer transformed into a gorilla. It’s a very bad moment that didn’t turn out well at all. The moment brings to mind long-standing offensive images often associated with black people of various nationalities comparing humans to apes. Have such a hit in a modern James Bond Movie would definitely spark protests if it were included today.

1

Mr. Wind & Mr. Kid in Diamonds are forever

Mr. Wind and Mr. Kid are the two primary threats of Diamonds are forever. Two assassins working for Blofeld and the Spangs, the pair are heavily implied in the film to be a gay couple. Coming at a time when LGBTQ+ characters are typically portrayed as villains if they appear at all, Mr. Wind and Mr. Kid were some of the most distinctive of this unfortunate archetype. The pair are also notoriously stupid in their attempts to kill Bond, repeatedly failing to actually kill him.

Mr. Wind and Mr. Kid also meet an unfortunate end, befitting the villains in A James Bond Movie. however, Their deaths are almost comical compared to the other villains in the seriesMr. Kidd even gave a comical high-pitched scream after being hit in the groin. While the James Bond Movies are far from the only films of this era using this negative stereotype, it remains the kind of hit that would probably need to be altered if it were made today.