Moonraker (film)
1979 James Bond film by Lewis Gilbert / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Moonraker is a 1979 spy-fi film, the eleventh in the James Bond series produced by Eon Productions, and the fourth to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The third and final film in the series to be directed by Lewis Gilbert, it co-stars Lois Chiles, Michael Lonsdale, Corinne Cléry, and Richard Kiel. Bond investigates the theft of a Space Shuttle, leading him to Hugo Drax, the owner of the shuttle's manufacturing firm. Along with astronaut Dr. Holly Goodhead, Bond follows the trail from California to Venice, Rio de Janeiro, the Amazon rainforest, and finally into outer space to prevent a plot to wipe out the world population and to recreate humanity with a master race.[3][4]
| Moonraker | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster by Dan Gouzee | |
| Directed by | Lewis Gilbert |
| Screenplay by | Christopher Wood |
| Based on | Moonraker by Ian Fleming |
| Produced by | Albert R. Broccoli |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Jean Tournier |
| Edited by | John Glen |
| Music by | John Barry |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 126 minutes |
| Countries | United Kingdom[1] United States[2] France[2] |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $34 million |
| Box office | $210.3 million |
The story was intended by author Ian Fleming to become a film even before he completed the novel in 1954; he based it on a screenplay manuscript he had devised earlier. The film's producers had originally intended to make For Your Eyes Only, but chose Moonraker owing to the rise of the science fiction genre in the wake of the Star Wars phenomenon. Budgetary issues led to the film being shot primarily in France; other locations included Italy, Brazil, Guatemala and the United States. The soundstages of Pinewood Studios in England, traditionally used for the series, were only used by the special effects team.
Moonraker had a high production cost of $34 million,[5] more than twice as much as The Spy Who Loved Me (1977), and it received mixed reviews. However, the film's visuals were praised, with Derek Meddings being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, and it eventually became the highest-grossing film of the series at the time with $210.3 million worldwide,[5] a record that stood until 1995's GoldenEye.
This was Bernard Lee's final outing as M. Lee was scheduled to reprise his role in For Your Eyes Only, but was admitted to hospital in November 1980, diagnosed with stomach cancer. He then died in January 1981 before any of M's scenes could be filmed.[6]