The Seventh Art

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)
Peter R. Hunt
Bond, James Bond: George Lazenby
Arch Rival: Ernst Blofeld (Telly Savalas)
Bond Girl: Tracy di Vicenzo (Diana Rigg)

On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)

It is time for a change in Bond as Connery steps down from the prestigious pedestal to make way for George Lazenby. As Bond is enjoying his stay in Portugal he is kidnapped by Draco’s men. Marc-Ange Draco, is the chief of European organization Unione Corse and has a daughter Tracy Teresa, with whom Bond is already acquainted with. Draco asks Bond to marry his daughter in exchange for valuable information about the whereabouts of Ernst Blofeld. Bond agrees and subsequently travels to Bern with Teresa where He learns that Blofeld has set up a research laboratory on the hills of the Alps. He also comes to know that Blofeld is holding about a dozen women and brainwashing them into spreading his bio-chemical weapons all over the world.  Bond disguises as a professor and enters the institute and tires to bust Blofeld’s plans. He succeeds in destroying the lab and marrying Teresa, but Blofeld’s still alive.

Most atypical Bond so far, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is chattier and mellower than all the other films in the series. Though his only film as Bond, George Lazenby does well to be remembered by fans. Bond manages to even get involved in a conjugal relationship taking the “unBondness” of the film to the maximum. Sandwiched between two typically Bond Connery films, Lazenby’s quiet venture is a much needed hiatus from the monotony and also a refreshing point for the films to follow.