[Quick Summary: After a fellow agent dies carrying a Fabrege egg, Bond's search uncovers a plot to unleash nuclear weapons.]
I started reading Bond scripts after reading an interview with writer Richard Maibaum.* How did he deliver what were fans looking for?
One key is keeping the audience surprised and off guard, which is quite a feat.
I am amazed how much Octopussy still stands out amongst the Roger Moore era films,** which tend to be more fantastical and campy than the others.***
I watched the film before reading the script, and this opening scene (below) caught me off guard because it is quite tense and ramps up quickly.
Upon reading the script, I was particularly impressed how the writers did this all with a discreet time jump + clown's POV shot.
It "shows, not tell" and relies on the audience to put 1 + 1 together.
NOTE:
- A clown (yes, a clown) is running from twin knife throwers in East Berlin at night.
- One twin threw a knife, which hit the clown in the back. He fell into the river.
- Notice how efficiently the writers move us from man in the river --> out of river --> embassy. It is all POV and what we think we've seen.
- Weir = small dam in a stream or river.
TWINS ON CONCRETE PLATFORM
Looking O.S.
THEIR POV
Between PILLARS. CLOWN, apparently dead, being carried away by the current on the other side of the weir. His clown's coat, ballooning out, keeps him afloat.
TWINS
VOPOS above and beyond them on SPAN OF WEIR. TWINS whisper, turn, scramble from platform to riverbank, scurry up it and out of scene.
EAST BERLIN - IMPRESSIVE BUILDING - NIGHT
MUSIC from within. Cars with formally dressed GUESTS arriving for reception at brightly lit main entrance. CAMERA MOVES IN CLOSE ON PILLARED GATE POST, PLAQUE identifies BRITISH EMBASSY.
NEW ANGLE - MAIN ENTRANCE
CAMERA SHOOTING FROM LANDSCAPED GARDEN. SOUND of heavy gasping, then a moan. CAMERA, lurching, weaving, is now someone moving labouredly toward FRENCH DOORS in building wing.
INSIDE EMBASSY ANTE-ROOM
CAMERA CLOSE ON AMBASSADOR'S REFLECTION IN MIRROR as he straightens Order on shirtfront. ANGLE WIDENS when he turns for approval to HIS WIFE who smiles and adjusts his white tie. O.S. MUSIC AND CONVERSATION HUM, suddenly louder as door opens and ATTACHE enters, then stands beside it. AMBASSADOR offers arm to his wife. She takes it. They start toward the door to greet guests. She stops suddenly, her eyes widening apprehensively. She gasps.
HER POV ACROSS THE ROOM
FRENCH DOORS. Pressed against it outside is the ghastly face of THE CLOWN. ZOOM TO GLASS DOOR which smashes as he falls through it, still drenched and bloody, into the room.
GROUP
AMBASSADOR, WIFE, and ATTACHE, stunned and horriifed, stare down at CLOWN lying with one arm outflung toward them. CAMERA IN CLOSE ON HIS HAND. As he dies it opens and a glittering FABERGE EGG rolls out. CAMERA PANS WITH IT until it comes to rest against the Ambassador's foot.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: Really think outside the box of how to show, not tell.
Here, the writers sped up the boring parts (ex. clown getting out of river --> finding way into embassy) with a clean time jump (embassy exterior --> clown POV).
Octopussy (1983)(rev. 8/19/82)
by George MacDonald Fraser and Richard Maibaum & Michael G. Wilson
*Maibaum wrote on the first 13 (of 26) Bond films.
**This film is the 6th of 7 films with Roger Moore as James Bond (13th of 26 films).
***Tangentially, I've quickly learned that Bond fans: 1) love, love, love to rank the films in a bazillion different way; and 2) generally categorize the films by the actor era (Connery, Lazenby, Moore, Dalton, Bronan, Craig).
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