--- title: "Thunderball: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/thunderball/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/thunderball" critics_score: 66 critics_reviews: 10 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Thunderball (1965): what the critics said Critics' score 66 from 10 reviews: 4 positive, 5 mixed, 1 negative. The reviews split by era more than by taste. The critics who saw it on release call it the best Bond yet, and most of the praise since clusters in the same places: Terence Young’s direction, which keeps the pace up, and Sean Connery, stylish and confident in the part even where one reviewer suspects he is bored by it. The underwater sequences are admired as spectacle almost everywhere, and the climactic battle is singled out more than once. The later reviews are cooler. Most find it a step down from Goldfinger, recycling earlier plots and leaning on gadgets at the expense of story, and several find the underwater scenes too long and short on thrills, however handsome they look. Sight and Sound goes furthest, calling it a polished parody with little to remember afterwards. The spread is wide, from raves to one outright dismissal, with the modern consensus settling on decent but uneven. ## The New Yorker — Brendan Gill Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 1966. The critic ranks Thunderball as the best James Bond film so far, praising its accomplished parody, direction by Terence Young, and Sean Connery's performance in the role. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1966/01/08/murder-under-the-sea) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 22 December 1965. The critic calls Thunderball the best Bond film yet, crediting Sean Connery and Terence Young with giving the hero a stronger sense of humor and more gaiety. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1965/12/22/archives/screen-007s-underwater-adventuresconnery-plays-bond-in-thunderball.html) ## Variety Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1964. The review highlights the inventive screenplay, mechanical gimmicks, strong action sequences, and Terence Young's direction that keeps the pace at fever pitch, with Sean Connery stylish as Bond. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1964/film/reviews/thunderball-1200420710/) ## Empire — Kim Newman Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 3 March 2006. The fourth 007 film is a slight step down from Goldfinger, recycling plot elements from earlier entries and featuring a standard nuclear extortion scheme, with Connery seeming more bored than cool. It still delivers the Bond formula effectively, highlighted by exciting underwater sequences and a stunning climactic battle. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/thunderball-review/) ## Radio Times — David Parkinson Rating 3/5. The Bond series goes fully comic-strip in this gadget-heavy extravaganza that sacrifices plot coherence for hardware. Connery remains engaging as 007 but shifts toward action-hero mode, while underwater pacing falters even as the Oscar-winning effects shine. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-18upl0/thunderball/) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Rating ★★★★☆. 23 October 2015. Good stuff here, but the franchise faltered a bit with long underwater sequences. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/oct/23/rated-best-james-bond-films-007-spectre) ## The Telegraph Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 30 November 2025. Thunderball was the high watermark of Bond but also its first damp squib, bloated with interminable underwater scenes and aping the Goldfinger formula; Connery found the image a bore. [Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2025/11/30/thunderball-james-bond-sean-connery-boring/) ## Sight and Sound Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). The critic finds the film a blatant, polished parody of the spy genre full of gadgets, extravagant sets and sexless blondes, with little memorable substance beyond the moment. Terence Young’s taut direction and strong underwater sequences are singled out as strengths that keep it entertaining despite its shallowness. [Read the review](http://old.bfi.org.uk/features/ultimatefilm/chart/details.php?ranking=18) ## Den of Geek — Mark Pickavance Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 15 October 2008. The critic praises the Blu-ray transfer of Thunderball as the best of the early Bond restorations, highlighting its vibrant colors and especially the underwater sequences. The review positions the film as Terence Young's final Bond directorial effort and a high point in the series' visual spectacle. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/thunderball-blu-ray-review/) ## Eye for Film — Stephen Carty Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 3 August 2009. The critic finds Thunderball a decent but uneven Bond entry that pales next to its predecessors and marks the start of the series sliding into excessive parody. Connery remains the standout highlight as the confident, charming 007, while the overlong underwater sequences drag and lack thrills. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/thunderball-film-review-by-stephen-carty) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/thunderball.md