After Sean Connery’s iconic initial turn as James Bond, Roger Moore managed to make the role his own with a record-holding seven-movie run. From his acclaimed debut in Live and Let Die to his less-than-acclaimed swansong in A View to a Kill, Moore’s 007 was defined by his wry sense of humor. His movies had plenty of silly slapstick gags, including a breathtaking car stunt underscored by a slide whistle.
The comedy of Moore’s Bond films wasn’t to every critic or fan’s taste, but he gave one of the most memorable performances as the tuxedo-clad gentleman spy. Every Bond actor has nailed the character’s quippy one-liners, but Moore was undeniably the funniest, goofiest, silliest take on 007.
When He Ran Across The Backs Of Crocodiles In Live And Let Die
The Moore era established its focus on physical comedy right off the bat. In the actor’s first Bond movie, Live and Let Die, he’s taken to a crocodile farm and then stranded on an island in the middle of a croc-infested swamp.
In order to escape, he has to run across the backs of the crocodiles. This gag is a pitch-perfect combination of Moore-era slapstick humor and classic Bondian high-stakes thrills.
When The Beach Boys Played Over A Snowboard Chase In A View To A Kill
The cold open of Moore’s final Bond movie, A View to a Kill, has one of the most controversial musical moments in the whole franchise. After recovering the body of a fellow 00 agent, Bond is chased by bad guys on snowboards. During this snowboard chase, a cover version of the Beach Boys’ “California Girls” plays on the soundtrack.
The song draws a hilarious parallel between a dangerous snowboard chase on the side of a mountain and a carefree surf session at the beach. Not every Bond fan enjoyed this moment, but it’s one of the most delightfully zany sequences from Moore’s stint as 007.
When He Was Thrown Out Of A Plane In Moonraker
The best slapstick bits from the Moore-era Bond movies have healthy doses of both edge-of-your-seat spectacle and goofy physicality. This is perfectly exemplified in the opening scene of Moonraker, in which 007 is thrown out of a plane by Jaws.
He manages to survive the ordeal by soaring over to the pilot and stealing his parachute. When he reaches the pilot in mid-air, Bond grabs him in a compromising position, slamming face-first into the pilot’s butt.
When He Stole A Car From Sheriff J.W. Pepper In The Man With The Golden Gun
The loudmouthed Sheriff J.W. Pepper from Live and Let Die proved to be so popular that he was brought back in The Man with the Golden Gun. While he’s vacationing in Thailand, Pepper bumps into 007 a few times.
When Bond steals an AMC Hornet from a showroom to chase after the Scaramanga, Pepper turns out to be test-driving it. As usual, Pepper provides comic relief from the backseat of the car.
When He Drove His Submersible Lotus Into The Ocean In The Spy Who Loved Me
In one of the most thrilling sequences in The Spy Who Loved Me, Bond debuts one of Q’s most impressive gadgets: a submersible Lotus sports car. While being chased by a helicopter, 007 races toward the end of a pier and doesn’t slow down.
He quips, “Can you swim?” before plunging the car into the water. Much to Anya Amasova’s surprise, the car doubles as a submarine. The wheels turn in on themselves and the car cruises swiftly through the sea.
When He Wore A Clown Disguise In Octopussy
After a few movies’ worth of fan complaints that Moore turned Bond into a goofy comedic character, he took a meta jab at his on-screen persona by literally dressing up as a clown in Octopussy.
In order to infiltrate a circus and foil a terrorist plot, 007 disguises himself as a clown. While he’s wearing this disguise, Bond is mocked and ridiculed by a group of local kids.
When He Outran Hector Gonzales’ Goons In A Yellow Citroën 2CV In For Your Eyes Only
After Bond fans complained that the gentleman spy’s trip to the cosmos was too far-fetched in Moonraker, the producers scaled back with the next movie, For Your Eyes Only. For Your Eyes Only is a grounded revenge thriller about 007 helping a woman to exact revenge for the murders of her parents.
When Bond is captured at the villa of the Cuban hitman responsible, Hector Gonzales, he manages to escape in a yellow Citroën 2CV. For the most part, For Your Eyes Only is a gritty spy thriller lacking in Moore’s signature slapstick, but this bright yellow car is ludicrous.
When He Aimed Precisely At Lazar’s Groin In The Man With The Golden Gun
Moore’s comedic moments as Bond were defined more by his slapstick gags than his traditional one-liners, but Moore was just as adept at delivering those snappy one-liners than any of his peers.
In The Man with the Golden Gun, when Lazar tells him, “Mr. Bond, bullets do not kill; it is the finger that pulls the trigger,” Bond quips back, “Exactly. I am now aiming precisely at your groin. So, speak or forever hold your piece.”
When He Inflated Dr. Kananga With A Gas Pellet In Live And Let Die
The blaxploitation-inspired villain of Live and Let Die, Dr. Kananga (a.k.a. Mr. Big), leads a double life as a Harlem drug lord and a Caribbean dictator. It’s unclear how he finds the time to do both of these jobs, but he’s found plenty of success in both fields.
At the end of the movie, after breaking into his lair, 007 shoots Dr. Kananga with a gas pellet and he blows up like a balloon. This is one of the most hilariously unrealistic villain deaths in the whole franchise.
When He Got Stuck In A Space Flight Simulator In Moonraker
Before 007 is sent into outer space in Moonraker, he goes through an expedited version of astronaut training. He’s put into a space flight simulator to see if he can handle the speed at which astronauts are hurtled out of the Earth’s atmosphere.
While he’s in there, a nefarious villain turns up the dial, so Bond goes a lot faster than he’s supposed to and there’s nothing he can do to stop it. The extreme G-force is a great visual gag – it’s a high-stakes, dangerous situation that also looks really funny.