All eleven reviews are positive, and the praise lands in the same places. Most critics treat this as the Bond film that lets the character feel something, and they credit the closer adaptation of Fleming for it. Diana Rigg’s Tracy is singled out repeatedly as a heroine who is Bond’s equal in wit and action. John Barry’s score comes up in nearly every notice, as do Peter Hunt’s action sequences, the ski chase in particular. Several critics also praise the closing minutes, which we will not describe.
The reservations cluster around George Lazenby, whom most critics find capable but limited and inevitably measured against Connery. Digital Spy notes pacing problems across a long runtime; The AV Club mentions technical rough edges. The spread is narrow, 70 to 90, and it runs by date: the notices in Variety and The New York Times see a brisk chase picture with a new lead, while later reviews, from The Guardian to Den of Geek, call it a series high point that took decades to be recognised.