The James Bond movies - ranked!

James Bond - girls, guns, action, Martinis... But which of his movies are the best? Here, I rank all 25 films in the official series.
Check out some of my other movie rankings!
The Amicus horror films: • Ranking the Amicus Ant...
Tarkovsky's films: • Tarkovsky - Ranked!
And my top tens for...
Stanley Kubrick: • My Top 10 Stanley Kubr...
Alfred Hitchcock: • My Top 10 Alfred Hitch...
John Carpenter: • My Top 10 John Carpent...
#jamesbond #seanconnery #rogermoore #piercebrosnan #danielcraig

[@joseluisherreralepron9987]

Drax: "James Bond. You appear with the tedious inevitability of an unloved season." Slays me every time!

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Gotta love Michel Lonsdale!

[@bouya642]

Great list! I like almost all James Bond films and even the weakest ones are pretty good.. My favorites Bond films are GoldenEye, Skyfall and Casino Royale. My own list: 1. GoldenEye 2. Skyfall 3. Casino Royale 4. On Her Majesty's Secret Service 5. From Russia With Love 6. Licence To Kill 7. For Your Eyes Only 8. The Living Daylights 9. Live And Let Die 10. The Spy Who Loved Me 11. Goldfinger 12. Octopussy 13. Tomorrow Never Dies 14. The World Is Not Enough 15. Moonraker 16. A View To A Kill 17. Thunderball 18. You Only Live Twice 19. Dr No 20. The Man With The Golden Gun 21. Diamonds Are Forever 22. No Time To Die 23. Spectre 24. Die Another Day 25. Quantum of Solace Unofficials: 26. Never Say Never Again 27. Casino Royale 1967 28. Casino Royale 1954

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Thanks for posting your list! Moonraker made 15th!

[@anythingandeverythingwithjp]

Definitely have to agree with you on Moonraker. It's my favorite Roger Moore James Bond movie. Just sit back and enjoy this great cinematic adventure masterpiece. My top 5 is 1 - Casino Royale (2006) 2- Goldfinger 3 - Licence To Kill 4 - Dr No 5 - Goldeneye

[@frankb821]

Very interesting and well articulated take on the Bond Franchise...I like it! Well done, sir. I certainly hope the next few Bond films bring the fun factor back! BTW, I happen to think every movie should feature Gemma Arterton :)

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Good call!

[@simonvanthoff]

Yes! Finally! Also one of my favorites (Moonraker) ranked so highly! 👍🏻 I can also watch it anytime! Although, on the other hand, with some of the films we differ (for example Skyfall (yes, great, but (by some distance) not really no.1 for me), or View (for me sùrely not at the last place) or Spy (Moore in his best Bond-mood, so to speak ;-) Time (dreadful, in many, many, màny ways..), or Majesty (I just cannot get into Lazenby..) Thanks for your very well articulated ranking, really liked it. Kind regards from The Netherlands, Simon 🎹

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Thanks, Simon! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@Gary-vv5bg]

Ive been making great progress on my journey to watch every one, ive got about 11 left, seen 16 of them now!! Loved the video, you get out a bunch of thoughts about each movie without lingering on each one too long, my favorites thus far were Skyfall, Casino Royale, Goldfinger, Russia With Love, and Living Daylights. But i think Brosnan is my favorite 007

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Thanks, Gary!

[@markgillespie3971]

I was getting excited that you were going to have my favourite, Moonraker, as number one as most people trash it! But I'll settle for No.2. One silly, fun set piece after another and Jaws was always my favourite character.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Awww, hail fellow Moonraker lover, well met!

[@thefilmclassic4210]

Great video Mike even though we have different taste when it comes to Bond. I have always felt it was very difficult to rank all the Bond Movies, particularly because the worst ones I dont really feel for re-watching. And some of them I just find so boring to be honest. But luckily the best one I can watch over and over and almost never get tired of them. My list also have some controversial choices- I am not a big fan of the Brosnan era, so I dont have much love for Goldeneye like many others- So my list would look like this: 1. Casino Royale 2. Dr. No 3. From Russia with Love 4. On Her Majesty's Secret Service 5. No Time to Die 6. Skyfall 7. The Spy Who Loved Me 8. License to Kill 9. Thunderball 10. The Living Daylights 11. Goldfinger 12. You Only Live Twice 13. Moonraker 14. Diamonds Are Forever 15. The Man with the Golden Gun 16. Die Another Day 17. A View to a kill 18. Goldeneye 19. For Your Eyes Only 20. Tomorrow Never Dies 21. Octopussy 22. The World Is Not Enough 23. Spectre 24. Quantum of Solace 25. Live and Let Die. By the way even though I find Moonraker to be an entertaining mess, the horror sequence you are mentioning Mike with the dogs is one of my favorite scenes in the whole Bond series. The John Barry score in the scene is beautifully haunting.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

It is, isn't it? Fantastic music. And I love the way the director takes time over that sequence, making it all baroque and poetic, whereas the rest of the movie is "zany action flick"! Thanks for posting your list!

[@alphawoolf5981]

You hit the nail on the head, James Bond movies are great fantasy. That's why the newer films with Daniel Craig are simply dreadful.

[@JohnSmith-jn7nc]

The newer films are exactly what James Bond is supposed to be, the way stories and characters are told in the books which are for the most part very serious and gritty espionage thrillers. It was EON productions company who made you believe in the beginning that Bond is something you think it really is when it isn't.

[@shannonbayley3684]

@@JohnSmith-jn7nc I'm a hardcore Bond fan of 35 years and Ian Fleming would be turning in his grave at the absolute mess and soap opera of the Craig films. Casino Royale is great, that's it. Quantum Of Solace - Turd. Sure, Skyfall is fun, but it has huge gaping plot holes. Spectre - This is when it went right off the rails with the horrendous storytelling. They just had to shoehorn the spectre organisation into the backstory, making Le Chiffre, Silva etc all sub-bosses and bit players to Blofeld and Spectre. Just terrible. AND they had to make Blofeld Bond's f*cking brother! Pathetic. I didn't buy for a second that Bond and Madeleine were madly in love (terrible chemistry). Especially after everything with Vesper Lynd. No Time To Die - Terrible villain. His plot made no sense. He was barely in the movie. He's obsessed with Madeleine.. then he's not. Bond dies. Hot mess. Craig had ONE great movie. That's it.

[@JohnSmith-jn7nc]

@@shannonbayley3684 Fleming was already spinning enough in his grave from nonsensical trash such as Diamonds are Forever, Moonraker, Die Another Day and such, so the new rebooted series with Craig would come of as relief for him.

[@simonleduc4876]

Seriously Mr. bartlett, God bless You, that was an epic ranking of James Bond and You had me cracking up all the way to the top! First of all, I agree with Your analisys about Bond films attrait being a way to travel to places. During a European Culture class I attend, an essay question was: Is Dr. Mabuse The Gambler the ancestor of the James Bond franchise. And I had to agree, because both production took the viewers to places where they could never dream to go! Also, I love Moonraker. I remember my Mom telling me that Moonraker was quite imaginative for the time comapre to what they do today. It sticked with me. I am also currently reading the Moonraker novel by Fleming. Finally, I am curious about Your opinion on the fact that the movie The Rock, with Sean Connery and Nicholas Cage could be a secret James Bond movie. Let's have a go at it! Thanks again Mr. Bartlett, You are epic!

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Thanks so much, Simon! Glad you enjoyed it. Do you know, I've never sat all the way through The Rock. Might be something to do with Nic Cage - I can't stand him!! (However, I've watched all the Dr Mabuse films, and they're incredible!)

[@kimberlywalker3970]

I agree that Skyfall is the best film in the Bond series. Good on you for thinking so too 👍👍

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Thanks, Kimberly!

[@bjrneilertmork7504]

A special list for sure. I’m not going to say anything negative. My list would probably be «special» as well. I do agree with some of your picks/choices. I find «You only live twice» a top Bond as well. You have put «Moonraker» very high.. No comment.. :) On my list the «surprise» would be «The man with the golden gun». I think I love that one because it was one of the first I saw, and it fits a young boy.. I was 12 when I saw it, and to me then it was special. I’ve always liked Roger Moore. «The spy who loved me» is the top, and «On her Majesty’s secret service» is special as well. The Craig movies are not «English» enough, but very «American». It should be British with style and class.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Ha, ha! I love the description of it as "special"! And I like your last sentence a lot - very much approve, sir!

[@JamesK1963]

I have Moonraker in my top 3 too. You only Live Twice as well. Both space themed movies...

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

They're fab, aren't they?

[@toptrollking]

I love Moonraker, one of my childhood favs & first few bond films I saw!

[@DavyDredd14]

10. Live and Let Die (1973) 5. Moonraker (1979) 9. Casino Royale (2006) 4. Dr. NO (1962) 8. On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) 3. Thunderball (1965) 7. Octopussy (1983) 2. The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) 6. Goldfinger (1964) 1. From Russia with Love (1963)

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

So pleased to see Moonraker, Live and Let Die and Octopussy all make it

[@DavyDredd14]

@@michaelbartlettfilm Yes, all highly entertaining 'Bond' Films !

[@bonghunezhou5051]

Among the 25 EON Bond films, I actively dislike only 'Quantum' and DAD - the rest I like to varying degrees.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

I suppose I get something from all of them...but it's definitely hard with Die Another Day!

[@AaronStark1993]

Agreed. QOS is the only one for me that is completely unwatchable.

[@adamfromm]

Skyfall was my favorite when I first saw it, at a time when I'd only seen a fraction of the Bond titles. Then my wife and I did a full watch-through of the series from beginning to end, and once the smoke had cleared, Skyfall was still my favorite. (OHMSS and Casino Royale are a close second and third.)

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Don't forget Moonraker - I bet it was fourth! ;)

[@joefrancisuvf]

Brilliant video - can't say I agree with all your assessments however Moonraker I think we can - I can never forget that villain's brilliant lines ! Happy xmas and looking forward to your content next year.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Cheers, Joe! Happy xmas to you, too!

[@whitetioman22]

Sorry Quantum of Solace as high as number 14? A film centred on stealing WATER yes water.....humourless, rubbish villains and a 'joyless' Daniel Craig. Not for me. But a very big thumbs up for giving Moonraker a number 2 ranking! This is enormous fun, amazing sets, terrific locations (French chateau, Rio, space), superb villains (Drax, Jaws) and Moore on top form - what more do you want? What is wrong with people as you say! Appreciate your recap and views overall, you are clearly very passionate about film and Bond.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Thank you! Great to hear from another Moonraker fan. (But Q of S... It looks so lovely...)

[@garybryant5946]

Moonraker is literally a blast it's got it all standard Bond stuff plus comic strip sci-fi adventure and even horror with Corinne being chased to her death by the Dobermans Which matches You Only Live Twice with the Death of Aki as unsettling compared to the OTT feel to rest of the film they were both directed Lewis Gilbert

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Thanks, Gary! I must admit, I never made the Lewis Gilbert connection before with those two death scenes. And you're right, they really stand out. Good old Lew!

[@ROMMELEARLDIGO]

I agree, On Her Majesty's Secret is all about the enigmatic Diana Rigg/Countess Teresa de Vicenzo...and all the criticism about George Lazenby only adds to her advantage,

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Agreed. She's fab, isn't she? I mean, Eva Green is good in Casino Royale, but she's no Diana Rigg.

[@charlesc7950]

I've always said Moonraker is a great movie, right up until they go to outer space. Ny top 5 1. Casino Royale 2. License To Kill 3. Skyfall 4. Goldeneye 5. From Russia With Love

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

It's great even after they go into space! Thanks for posting your list.

[@freddy7199]

I've noticed that most rankings have various films in last place, but DAD is almost always second to last. Everyone agrees that the movie is bad, but everyone has that one movie they think is even worse. For me it's Diamonds are forever.

[@bonghunezhou5051]

For myself, Quantum of Solace places just below DAD in last place, thus confirming your thesis!

[@finslaw]

Moonraker was my #2 for the longest time and is still in my top 10.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Keep the faith!

[@masudaharris6435]

Never understood the lack of appreciation for Thunderball. Obviously, people see and appreciate different things from me. I love submarines and underwater scenes so naturally I love Thunderball. At the very least, it's better than Moonraker.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Pah! Moonraker rules!

[@MikeBD187]

Nice reaction, but I would have the Connery films much higher generally and Craig lower, with From Russia with Love at 1 and Dr No at 2.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Fair enough. At least we can agree that Connery is the best Bond in those movies and Goldfinger.

[@Trippitaka2]

I'm always interested in different people's Bond rankings, even when they are wildly different from my own. However, the bad thing is where you say - "I'm ranking it here because I can't remember a single thing about the film". Perhaps it would be better to rewatch first.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Perhaps put badly. I meant I found nothing memorable about the film.

[@archibaldsalyards926]

Thanks for your reaction!! You lost me at Thunderball. Bye

[@StevenEagleEagleman]

I think without a doubt, the worst bond ranking I have ever seen haha, but Michael that totally fine. I really enjoyed your reasons and the way you interpret Bond and how it comes across to you. Its totally different for me, anyways just watched another video from you and subscribed. Might be the only channel that I can watch that talks about movies that's just you facing the camera and talking, you make it work, keep it up! cheers.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Thanks, Steven, really appreciate your comment and your sub. I thought I might get more flak for loving Moonraker, but it's been OK so far!

[@StevenEagleEagleman]

@@michaelbartlettfilm I enjoy Moonraker alot though so I kinda get it But here's my list coming from a hardcore Bond fan 26: Die Another Day
 25: Never Say Never Again
 24: The Man With The Golden Gun 
23: A View To A Kill
 22: Quantum of Solace
 21: Diamonds Are Forever
 20: You Only Live Twice
 19: Spectre
 18: Tomorrow Never Dies
 17: Thunderball
 16: Octopussy
 15: Moonraker
 14: For Your Eyes Only
 13: Live and Let Die
 12: On Her Majesty’s Secret Service 
11: The Living Daylights 
10: The World is Not Enough 
9: No Time To Die 
8: Licence To Kill 
7: Dr. No
 6: The Spy Who Loved Me
 5: Skyfall 
4: From Russia With Love
 3: Goldeneye
 2: Casino Royale
 1: Goldfinger

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

@@StevenEagleEagleman No Time To Die in the Top 10! Well, Moonraker didn't do too bad at 15.

[@moose6509]

Great list. I love it when reviewers don´t just state the collective consensus. My top 5 would be 1) From Russia with Love 2) Licence to Kill 3) Casino Royale 4) Goldfinger 5) OHMSS and my bottom 5 would be 25) No Time to Die (you can´t kill off Bond Mr Craig, you pretentious prat !) 24) Quantum of Solace 23) Die Another Day 22) Diamonds are Forever 21) Spectre. The rest could be in pretty much any order in between. Today´s fun fact from my extraordinary life: My girlfriend at the time appears in the opening credits of Octopussy. We went out for 2 years before Hollywood beckoned. She ended up marrying Michael Biehn. True story which will appear in my memoirs......

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Michael Biehn! You mean the guy from Aliens? Blimey, that's a story. I can't wait for these memoirs! I'm trying to think of something to match it... Um, I once knew someone who body doubled in a sex scene with Johnny Depp. That's the best I can do, I'm afraid.

[@moose6509]

@@michaelbartlettfilm Haha ! Body doubled JD or who he was erm.....acting with.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

@@moose6509 No, his lady friend. She was barely (!) recognisable, to be honest.

[@willhemmings]

Please rank Tarkovsky. We may agree on something!

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Well, mate, I already have! kzbin.info/www/bejne/jYjJiax9etateM0

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Enjoy!

[@JamesK1963]

Tomorrow Never Dies was actually influenced by Ted Turner & CNN, not Rupert Murdoch. It was perfect.

[@johnhansen1501]

Funny how we can agree on what makes a Bond movie great and yet disagree on the ranking. Both AVTAK and DAD are among my favorites

[@handsomestik]

I don't know if it's Gen X thing or what but Pierce is the best Bond and only Bond. I love Connery and Craig but Pierce is who pops up when I think Bond.

[@motionpictureplus]

First six in the series are amazing. Also big fan of Roger’s run. Pierce is entertaining. I personally find Craig’s films to be the worst of the bunch - too serious, bit boring, not enough fun

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Fair enough. No love for Skyfall at all...?😥

[@motionpictureplus]

@@michaelbartlettfilm Casino and Skyfall are good. But as a whole not my cup of tea

[@francisdashwood1760]

It appears that films set in Iceland, Cuba, North Korea, Thailand, and Amsterdam are pretty low on your list, as well as films with gay people, bungee jumping, black female henchmen, cellos, fancy French horse barns, Nazi scientists, and the Eiffel Tower. That's my theory, anyways. Oddly enough, 3 of your top 5 films are set in the US! Go figure!

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

By George, you're right!

[@jazzdulook9228]

Sorry, but I take Bond seriously and have done since I saw Dr No on TV in the Seventies aged 7 or something. So Dr No and From Russia with Love top two. After that the directors don’t get the old world style and snobbishness. Goldfinger is of course great, but totally spoilt by Connery’s three piece suit (way too fashionable and arriviste) and one-piece towelling outfit. OHMSS is even better, but again spoiled by fashion. All the others are terrible. Now: Bresson! You weren’t kidding, I looked it up. Love Bresson’s movies to bits, and now I love Bresson himself. But bombshell (from Wki): French filmmaker Robert Bresson admired For Your Eyes Only "It filled me with wonder because of its cinematographic writing ... if I could have seen it twice in a row and again the next day, I would have done."[87][88] Elsewhere Bresson said he also loved the film's ski chase.[89]. How French is that? Love it.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

I'd love to have seen a Bresson Bond movie! Can you imagine? Bond and Moneypenny intoning their lines without emotion, lots of shots of hands and doors opening. It could be called Au Hazard Bond. L'argent to Kill!

[@jazzdulook9228]

@@michaelbartlettfilm If you think about it, it would probably be great. Austere danger.

[@felixjaitman4715]

the last rat died!

[@timdavenport8709]

Great list. My top 3 would be: 1) From Russia with Love 2) Casino Royale 3) Live and Let Die I have big problems with the last 2 Daniel Craig films. Spectre literally stole from Austin Powers with the Blofeld is his brother nonsense. No Time to Die was dreadful. It's as big a hatchet job as Chris Chibnall's Timeless Child and Ryan Johnson's Last Jedi. Dressing scorched earth story writing with no respect to screen history under the guise of subverting expectations is cultural vandalism.

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

Thanks, Tim. I think you're right about No Time To Die. I guess I was swept away by the beautiful cinematography and impressive action set pieces - so shallow! I'm not as invested in Bond as Who, so maybe I wasn't as upset. But the death of Bond was botched and totally unnecessary.

[@timdavenport8709]

Thanks for the reply. I've only just found your channel and I'm looking forward to watching many of the videos. Not often you find Fighting Fantasy, Doctor Who and the films of Powell and Pressburger in the same place. Lovely stuff!

[@michaelbartlettfilm]

@@timdavenport8709 Thanks so much, Tim! Hope you find a lot more to enjoy on the channel. Will be getting round to Citadel of Chaos in the new year!