Search - Live and Let Die on DVD

MPAA Rating: PG Content Advisory: Violence, Adult Situations, Questionable for Children, Adult Language Movie Release: 1973 DVD Release: 10/19/1999 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Edition: Special Collection Audio Tracks: English, French Subtitles: English, French SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 2 hrs 1 mins Studio: MGM Members Wishing: 11 Genres: Spy Film, Action, Action Thriller, Glamorized Spy Film See Also: Live and Let Die, Live and Let Die [Widescreen] [Ultimate Edition], Live and Let Die [Widescreen] [Ultimate Edition] [Blu-ray]

Roger Moore makes his first appearance as "Bond...James Bond" in 1973's Live and Let Die. Bond is dispatched to the States to stem the activities of Mr. Big (Yaphet Kotto), who plans to take over the Western Hemisphere by converting everyone into heroin addicts. The woman in the case is Solitaire (Jane Seymour in her movie debut), an enigmatic interpreter of tarot cards. The obligatory destructive-chase sequence occurs at the film's midpoint, with Bond being chased in a motorboat by Mr. Big's henchmen, slashing his way through the marshlands and smashing up a wedding party. Clifton James makes the first of several Bond appearances as redneck sheriff Pepper, while Geoffrey Holder is an enthusiastic secondary villain. The title song, written by Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney, provides the frosting on this 007 confection. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Roger Moore - James Bond
Yaphet Kotto - Kananga/Mr. Big
Jane Seymour - Solitaire
Clifton James - Sheriff
Julius Harris - Tee

With =Live and Let Die, MGM has delivered a DVD that isn't as technically polished as one might hope, but makes up for this flaw with a wealth of extras. The letterboxed, anamorphically enhanced video transfer is sharp and colorful, but unfortunately uses a print that suffers from some dust speckling and other occasional age-based defects. Despite this annoyance, the DVD offers a more detailed image than previous video versions of this film. In terms of audio, =Live and Let Die sports an unexceptional but solid mono mix that cleanly delivers the dialogue and forceful musical cues with a reasonable amount of punch. However, this disc truly shines in the area of features. First up is a pair of commentaries, the first featuring director Guy Hamilton and a variety of cast and crew members and the second done exclusively by screenwriter Tom Mankiewicz. The Hamilton-led commentary devotes itself primarily to fun making-of stories (a highlight is Yaphet Kotto's anecdote about how he became addicted to the cushy lifestyle of being on a Bond production) while the Mankiewicz commentary deals with the film from a writing perspective, including interesting observations on how he dealt with the story's sensitive racial angle and the challenges involved in writing the character of James Bond to fit a new actor. Other noteworthy extras include the usual stylish trailers, a nice making-of documentary narrated by Patrick Macnee, location home-movie footage of Roger Moore, and an unusual but funny television ad about milk that was shot on the film's set. All in all, MGM has delivered =Live and Let Die in a fan-friendly package that is likely to please the series' enthusiasts despite its lack of technical pizzazz. ~ Donald Guarisco, All Movie Guide