★ ★ ★1/2 The thirteenth James Bond film produced by Albert R. Broccoli. US release date: June 10, 1983. Budget: $27.5 million. Worldwide box office gross: $187.5 million (Domestic gross: $67.9 million; international gross: $119.6 million).[1] Running time: 131 minutes.

The Setup

There are many ways to initiate World War III. Renegade Soviet General Orlov (Steven Berkoff) wants to make sure the Americans are blamed. His nefarious plan is to detonate a nuclear bomb on a US Air Force base in West Germany. He then predicts that this “accident” will force the West to dismantle its nuclear deterrent, allowing Soviet forces to overrun Europe. To fulfill this dream of Russian conquest, he offers up a fortune in Russian state jewels to renegade Afghan prince Kamal Khan (Louis Jourdan), who convinces a group of female circus performers and acrobats led by Octopussy (Maud Adams) to participate in the scheme. However, when one of the jewels—a Fabergé egg—is stolen by a mortally wounded 009 (Andy Bradford) and delivered to the British ambassador in East Berlin, British intelligence launches into the fray—sending James Bond (Roger Moore) to India on Operation Trove.

Behind the Scenes

Continuing the 007 revival that began with The Spy Who Loved Me three films earlier, Octopussy ranked just behind its predecessor Moonraker at the US box office. Thanks to a risqué title, another inspired marketing campaign, and an interesting blend of Goldfinger glitz and From Russia with Love intrigue, it’s an excellent entry that keeps up the momentum despite its excessive length.

Comfortably directed by John Glen, the film is filled with memorable set pieces that keep the plot moving, such as the mini jet pre-credits teaser, 009’s final, fatal mission in East Germany, and Bond’s attempts to disarm the A-bomb while dressed as a circus clown. Like the previous film, For Your Eyes Only, it’s filled with henchmen and other characters with mystique, including Kamal Khan’s deadly twin assassins, portrayed effectively by twins David and Tony Meyer, and Kabir Bedi’s awesome Gobinda.

Low points: Maud Adams’s Octopussy serves little purpose in the plot and takes a backseat to Kamal Khan’s treachery. Kristina Wayborn’s Magda actually steals the film out from under her. Although the sequences in India are suitably exotic, the chase through the streets of Udaipur is too silly, featuring another double-taking animal—this time, a camel. But once the film gets to Germany, it takes off, building incredible drama inside the circus tent as Bond disarms the nuclear bomb. Other high points include Steven Berkoff’s strutting General Orlov, the John Barry score, and Rita Coolidge’s opening-titles song, “All Time High.”

[1] “Octopussy (1983),” The Numbers, accessed June 18, 2020, https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Octopussy.