Five Famous Bond Movie Locations
There are a few things in life that are guaranteed to come around once every other year or so. A sporting tournament that whips everyone up into a state of nationalistic frenzy, for example, or a largely disappointing Oasis album.
And then, of course, there’s James Bond. This sleek, sexy, and occasionally Scottish super-spy is about to return to our big screens in the much anticipated, and ludicrously titled, Quantum of Solace. (Having thought about it for some time, we’re fairly sure this basically means ‘A Little Bit of Comfort’, which sounds a whole lot less Bond-like…)
Anyway, Quantum already has Bond fans salivating, not least at the caveat that the film will end with a chase set to the backdrop of the spectacular - if precarious - Il Palio di Siena. (Unsurprisingly, the same warning has left animal rights activists spitting poison at the movie.) Whatever your stance on the moralistic quandary, the scene promises to be another memorable set-piece in a long line of famous Bond locations…
1. Piz Gloria, Switzerland; On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
In Bond circles, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is the one that got away. The film has everything to make a great addition to the Bond franchise - wicked action sequences, a great plot, and some arm’s length anti-authoritarian sentiment, too. Everything, that is, apart from any real semblance of Bond.
George Lazenby just doesn’t cut the mustard in the role, and as a result the film is as famous for his wooden acting as it is for the thrilling ski chase down the Schilthorn Mountain. Still, there’s some great scenery throughout to distract you from Lazenby’s ineptitude - not least the magnificent Piz Gloria establishment. Sitting atop the Scholthorn, today it’s a swanky restaurant where you can take in the view over a ‘James Bond Breakfast’.
2. James Bond Island, Thailand; The Man with the Golden Gun
Camp and perversely comic, The Man with the Golden Gun marks Roger Moore’s second ‘outing’ as Bond. Christopher Lee aside, the film isn’t very interesting until its closing moments, when the famed Hall of Mirrors combine with the breathtaking scenery of James Bond Island to produce a real cinematic highpoint.
James Bond Island is perhaps the exotic Bond movie location. Formally titled Ko Tapu, the island changed its name after The Man with the Golden Gun used its shores as Scaramanga’s iconic lair. Settled in Pha Ngang Bay, James Bond Island is about two hours’ boat ride from Phuket, and is now heavily inscribed on the tourist map.
3. London, UK; The World is Not Enough
Pierce Brosnan’s third Bond film is basically a winner, though you only really have to watch the opening 15 
minute sequence to experience the film’s fundamental thrills. Set on the banks of the River Thames, The World is Not Enough wastes no time throwing Bond into the heat of the action. First he’s launching out of the MI6 building in a souped-up stealth boat, then he’s sliding down the Millennium Dome’s vast tarpaulin - all in chase of a typically attractive vixen, and all without so much as fraying one dyed black hair.
London looks awesome during these moments, and (whisper it quietly) makes a bit of a mockery of Brosnan’s peacock-like sense of self-regard.
4. Sugarloaf Mountain, Rio; Moonraker
For a film that was supposed to jump on the 70s sci-fi bandwagon, Moonraker actually boasts some of the most consistently jaw-dropping (and defiantly Earth-based) locations of any Bond film. From the gorgeous canals of Venice to the mighty Iguazu Falls, Moonraker is surely a testament to one location scout’s eagerness to blag an open ticket around the world’s headlining sites!
One moment of location splendor stands out, however, and that’s Sugarloaf Mountain. Perched on the edge of Guanabara Bay, this oddly-shaped mountain is the awesome backdrop to a monumental fight between Bond and his indestructible adversary, Jaws. They grapple along the lines of a cable car, suspended hundreds of meters up, before Jaws finally falls to his death. Or does he?
5. Cadiz, Spain; Die Another Day
Die Another day is straight-up stupid. While watching its desperately outlandish attempts to keep up with modern-day blockbusters - from a man with a ‘dream mask’ to a disappearing car - it’s pretty easy to see why producers decided to totally reinvent the formula for the following Bond installment, Casino Royale.
And yet, Die Another Day did pretty well at the box office. Why? Could it be something to do with Halle Berry - and especially her emerging, bikini-clad, from the Cuban ocean? Probably, although the informed Bond fan will know she was nowhere near Cuba at the time. Rather, she was in Cadiz, where the scene was actually shot.
Presumably, the Spanish government were a little easier to persuade than their Cuban counterparts when it came to the filming of a Western spy flick. Still, Cadiz’s beaches are wonderful, and the scene loses none of its undoubted power…
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Any other locations that should have made my list? Feel free to leave any comments or suggestions below…
JBC
