The Greatest Bond Film, Period.

Today's beautiful weather was largely ignored as the best of the 22 James Bond films showed up on the tube -- the one, the only, the singularly wonderful "Goldfinger".

Of course, I have a predisposition to liking this film, as it was the first Bond flick I saw as a young lad of ten, and it's impact was enormous. Like the rest of the world, I was captivated by the scope of the movie, the terrific music, and of course, the greatest movie car of all time, Bond's Aston-Martin DB-5.

None of the later movies with the exception of Thunderball seemed to have any possible connection with the real world. Somehow, the ten year old in me then, as well as the 55 year old in me now, feels that, yes, there could be a nutcase like Oric Goldfinger mad enough to attempt the destruction of America's gold depository. A guy like Goldfinger could have a Korean bodyguard with a steel hat, or a flying circus composed of beautiful women. And, a guy like Goldfinger could get an A-bomb from the Chinese (at least in 1965), and the money for the whole scheme from The Mob.

Sure, why not?

It seems all the later films are just to preposterous for me. Pick any of the Roger Moore Bond films, and tell me just, for example, how James Bond is going to find himself floating around in space with Barbara Bach? Gimme Pussy Galore flying a Piper Cherokee (one of only two Bond girls older than Bond himself!) any day.

What later film has anything to compare to my beloved DB-5? That Aston that supposedly turns into a submarine? Yeah, right. (OK, so they really did build an Aston Martin submarine, but they had to wear SCUBA gear to run it. Not Bond enough in my book.) We won't even discuss Bond's BMW era.

Watching the end of the film, I'm reminded that, thanks to the Mythbusters, I now know that shooting out the window of an airplane won't cause you to be sucked out, nor cause the plane to go into a death spiral. Bummer. Some things you just shouldn't know about. I will continue to fight disbelief so to think that yes, someday, I might unzip my wetsuit, and reveal my white dinner jacket. (Not that I own either.) Now that would be cool. Seriously Cool. Bond, James Bond Cool.

Dave's list of the Greatest Bond Films Ever.

1) Goldfinger

2) From Russia With Love

3) Thunderball

4) Dr. No

5) On Her Majesty's Secret Service

6) Casino Royale (the remake.)

7 through 22 -- who cares?

After doing my list, I once again consulted the web for similar lists. Apparently, I'm not alone in liking the Connery films best, but happily there are many who enjoyed the much-maligned On Her Majesty's Secret Service, the film that featured the only appearance of George Lazenby as Bond. Remember this -- the lovely Diana Rigg (now 71 years old!) was in that film.