One thing I liked about Ernst Blofeld is that he accepts James' plea for smoking while watching television. A perfect example showing that not all villains are always disrespecting their enemies.
The brilliant thing with classic Blofeld (specifically the Pleasance Blofeld) is that he seems to view Bond almost as an equal. His own specialists and top henchmen (Osato and Number 11) are seen as disposable and weak but his view of Bond, while still antagonistic, is almost of distorted reverence. For example, the way he instantly KNOWS the English visitor Osato received was Bond despite recent media reports of Bond’s (staged) death. The Pleasance Blofeld was ruthless, intelligent yet always courteous; remaining unsuspecting to those around him until he was ready to make a move. A true classic. Absolute legend. 🤩👍
Me: Do you know why Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in the United States? Blofeld: World Domination. Me: Japan attacked the United States because the United States froze all of Japan’s assets and cut off their oil supply. What would your country do if another country denied you the gasoline to run your cars and other assets.
His agent at the time told him to only do one Bond film and no more. I think he should have fired his agent. But then again Telly Savalas was pretty good too, even more menacing because of the deeper voice.
@@dtaylor4552 but does that necessarily make him better? Waltz is well known for these days but Donald Pleasance is great. I like Waltz in Django Unchained. Both his humor and ruthlessness is shown in that role. Oh well either way both actors portray blofeld good.
Donald Pleasence was in my opinion one of the very best actors around. In addition, his voice was made for the big screen, and to prove this, he was often chosen to narrate programs. Brilliant actor in any category, RIP Sir.
"You don't know what death is" "I spent 7 years trying to reach him, another 8 trying to keep him locked up because i realised what was behind that boys eyes was purely and simply...evil" "I met this 6 year old child with this blank pale emotionless face and the blackest eyes...the devil's eyes"
Loved to have seen the reaction of the cinema audience in 1967 when Blofeld was finally revealed. The ski jump in TSWLM 10 years later received a standing ovation.
Savallas as well, because he is more of an equal to Bond since he goes right into action. But parodies really focused on Pleasance (outfit, cat, secret lair...)
The best and closer version of Blofeld to the book character is the one played by Telly Savalas, but the Donald Pleasance portrayal is BY FAR, the most memorable and fitting for theatre. It's not a coincidence that anyone picturing Blofeld will immediately think of his portrayal in You Only Live Twice.
Well, being more liberal with what constitutes an official Bond movie, really Max von Sydow is the most book accurate onscreen Blofeld. Still, I agree that Pleasence is the overall best for the cinematic screen.
I love how even though the first couple of businessmen were unhappy with the extortion, Blofeld let them go anyway. Blofeld doesn’t mind a little arguing, he just doesn’t like people underestimating or making mistakes. He only kills those who fail an order.
He let them go because they were Red Chinese government officials - he was in the pay of Red China's government, trying to spark a war between the USSR and USA.
@@KetwunsGamingPad Also, Blofeld kills his henchmen if they prove disloyal, such as No. 9 who embezzled money during their drug smuggling project in South America.
@@nervchemnitz Like Fleming, the producers played down the US-Russia Cold War as time passed. The splendid prologue to YOLT makes both sides come on like dangerous idiots fueled by bad intel. Naturally Robin Bailey, the suave English diplomat, puts them right. A Sixties reset featuring Red China as SPECTRE's gullible paymaster made the background fresher and more topical, after Chairman Mao had broken with the USSR and was pursuing his own fanatical course. This was one of the first films to take China seriously as a potential superpower. It correctly foresaw that the PRC would make mischief between the whites without overtly intervening or initiating conflict. Japan, OTOH, is shown as fully collaborating with its WW2 enemies. Tanaka and 007 'bond' instantly. This was quite daring for a 1967 release, when many a GI and Tommy nursed reasons to hate and mistrust Hirohito's state. The politics of the earlier, classic Bond movies are fascinating. Beneath the light-hearted, comic near-self-parody of Roald Dahl's screenplay lurks his deeply conservative contempt for internationalism and his suspicion that power plays based on ideological clashes are a masquerade. You can sense Dahl's admiration for Blofeld as an unshowy, cold cynic who will use anyone who pays him well. No doubt Harry and Cubby insisted that Ernst Stavro should escape as per the books, but one doubts Dahl was sorry to let the ubervillain go.
2:28 I like how he says, “Go and think it over, gentlemen, I’m busy,” while he’s just sitting there playing with his cat. If only we could all have that much fun at work.
Monologuing is the key skill of supervillian. With a better monologue, you generate more fear, get more minions and overall create more aura of invincibility. It's not Blofeld's fault that his subordinates are too incompetent to eliminate Bond and he has to get his hands dirty. He's the CEO and they are the workers. It's so hard to find good help these days. #teamblofeld #nobond #bondsux #007sucks
I noted that in both YOLT and OHMSS, blofeld is very attentive to the little detail in his front. Like how he caught bond on his way to the capsule, while bond is carrying his air conditioner. He immediately noticed it. A small detail on his character. Shows him cunning and intelligent at the same time.
@@yrooxrksvi7142 In the original book, that SPECTRE operative is killed for a far more disturbing reason. Blofeld is fair, if nothing else. Failure to complete your assignments results in permanent failure to continue accepting them.
@@Ouopa. How do I put this nicely? Well actually, I can’t really, so I’ll just be as blunt as UA-cam allows me to be: So basically, in the novel, the SPECTRE operative is part of a scheme that involves the kidnapping of a young woman. This _charming gentleman_ then takes things a step further and r*pes her, defying his orders to leave her otherwise unharmed mentally and physically. Consequently, Blofeld immediately returns the woman along with a cut of the ransom money that her family had already payed as a form of compensation for the extra trauma she had to endure. By killing the operative, he essentially reminds the other SPECTRE agents that whilst they are criminals, they are professionals too, and professionals have standards. Obviously this was too controversial to explicitly state onscreen in 1965, so they changed it to what it is in the film, which works well enough on its own terms.
If you read the trivia on the film you may know that Blofeld was first set to be played by another actor that wasn't bald. I didn't see it before but at 5:26 you can see the that the original actor is playing Blofeld due to him having hair.
The original actor, Jan Werich, would physically have looked much like the Max Von Sydow version in Never Say Never Again - basically, an old grandpa-looking man in a suit.
@@emmarose4234 Christoph Waltz was very believable as Ernst Stavro Blofeld because he takes his personal hatred of James Bond to the next level because he is psychologically scarred with jealousy of his father's affection for James.
You Only Live Twice is my favorite of the Sean Connery James Bond Films, and Donald Pleasance is my favorite version of Blofeld. There's just something so odd about the mannerisms that make you question if he's all there. Like the way he speaks is a bit unnerving, but there's hidden malice in them.
I think I had this weird Mandela effect memory from childhood where Pleasance introduced himself as “Dr. Ernst Stavro Blofeld.” But upon rewatching I realize there was no title before his name, just Ernst Stavro Blofeld. I think that’s what makes this Blofeld so effective. He’s not a doctor or a scientist like so many other Bond villains. He’s just an extremely intelligent and influential man with a megalomaniacal desire for power.
It's not even necessarily about power. It's simply about wealth and manipulation. Other than the usual criminal activities he's shown to devise, a recurring plan of his is to creat instability between opposing powers and then profit as a result. He's never shown to have an interest in world domination - at least that I can remember.
Two possibilities: no CGI in the big setpiece action scenes, and a lack of Hollywood influence or input. Special FX are secondary. You can always tell if it's the real deal, be it Little Nelly or ninjas abseiling into a volcano. The unique sales proposition of the earlier Bond pix was their Britishness. Spoofiness, smutty double entendres, flirting with perversion. You could find these qualities abundantly in UK comedy movies and costume drama, but in big-budget action travelogs it was a novelty, like British pop groups storming the American charts. The Brits had never thought so big in cinema, but the humor is akin to cheap and cheerful films such as that other great Sixties series, the Carry Ons. Ian Fleming never thought he was writing literature. Bond had that British trait of self-mockery which made it parody-proof; today stuff such as Matt Helm and the 1967 'Casino Royale' looks far staler. The Bonds were primarily a partnership between Yanks exiled from Hollywood- Saltzman, Broccoli, Maibaum- and British directors who had discovered how to make movies pacier for Stateside: Terence Young, Guy Hamilton and Lewis Gilbert. YOLT is my favorite bc the spoofiness ran riot. Roald Dahl ignored the book and used his wayward imagination, with plenty to spend. And Ken Adam was to Dahl what Quentin Blake was to Dahl's books.
Donald Pleasence is the most iconic Blofeld, although I'd say Telly Savalas was the best overall (he combined intelligence with physical menace). You Only Live Twice is perhaps the single most influential Bond movie, along with Goldfinger.
Proof that an actor with thorough theater training can move to cinema (rarely in the opposite direction) and nail a part with an underplayed voice, a belated 'reveal' and a few minutes' screen time. DP is not only the best Blofeld. He is the best Bond villain, and one of the two or three best villains in all film. In fact his cat-stroking, sotto voce menace has become the generic archetype of screen megalomania. How do you bring that off, yet also portray the sweet, innocent old clergyman of Trollope's 'Barchester Towers' to perfection? When you have been a jobbing actor for years and learnt from it. This competence is taken for granted at the time, but in future years it comes to be recognized and valued.
Bond staring down Blofeld in the eye during the countdown, trying to see if he can be intimidaqted or if there is any hint of guilt or remorse for what he is about to do - and finding absolutely none with Blofeld casually staring back at him.
3:45 Helga's death really traumatized me growing up. The moment Blofeld opened the bridge to force her to fall into the piranha pool, she was already done for.
I heard during filming that the cat was so panicked by the explosions on set that it got free of Donald Pleasence's grasp and ran off, it was found a few days later in between the sets.
@@talbot2619 I remember reading an old article a while ago that said the poor cat was indeed scared of the explosions, so it ripped Donald Pleasance's arm to shreds, then ran away and hid for hours. When asked about his arm, Donald jokingly said the cat was a "very unprofessional actor to work with" 😂
You also get a glimpse of Bert Kwouk in his _second_ appearance as a minion in a James Bond film (the first was in Goldfinger). It's my personal headcanon that it is in fact the same character, and that he's also the same character as Kato in the Pink Panther movies _and_ the guy in _Last of the Summer Wine._
He died in Goldfinger but I'm quite prepared to believe the character he played in You Only Live Twice and the one he played in Last Of The summer Wine are the same person. It would make sense after fleeing Japan he would settle for a quiet inconsequential life in the Yorkshire Dales.
@@vordman He was _shot_ in Goldfinger, but there's a possibility that it wasn't fatal, and Kwouk's character just played dead for a while until Ernst was off the scene and got away somehow. I mean, he's clearly a versatile agent, so would be able to carry off maintaining his temporary cover long enough to get patched up before escaping back to China. ;)
Ernst Stavro Blofeld is completely overwhelming! And his perfect planned success combined with the perfect completion of his power and his ingenious masterplan that leads him to world domination! He is not only extremely supernatural, he also sees himself the almighty supergodlike being totally convinced of his superb success! Although most people find him totally repulsive and hideously disfigured caused by his appearance with the super-huge scar that completely makes his face looking pure ugly on first sight. But if you think that he takes over world domination, you bow to him and his sexy looking beige silk pantsuit as well as his subordinates!😍 Then you will immediately start worshipping him as the perfect super-god! And his repulsive facial scarring will no longer matter! ❤ Perfect Ernst Stavro Blofeld!❤
I've loved this film since I was a child. It's excellent. One of the best Bonds. Then recently I thought, if Bond and Blofeld met each other in this film, then why on earth didn't they recognize each other in the following film - 'On her majesty's secret service'? (even though both characters were played by different actors - and somehow Blofeld loses his scar). Turns out that Ian Fleming wrote 'OHMSS' before 'You only live twice', but the films were made the other way around.
In the Tom Cruise movie Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation and its sequel Mission Impossible: Fallout, the main villain (played by actor Sean Harris) is Solomon Lane. He's a former MI-6 agent turned anarchistic terrorist mastermind, the founder and supreme leader of the terrorist organization called "The Syndicate" or "The Apostles" alongside his partner John Lark, and the archenemy of Mission Impossible's central protagonist (played by actor Tom Cruise) Ethan Hunt. Solomon Lane is basically Ernst Stavro Blofeld to Ethan Hunt's 007 James Bond. And the Syndicate or the Apostles are basically the Mission Impossible version of S.P.E.C.T.R.E. HYDRA, founded and led by Captain America's archenemy The Red Skull, is primarily based on S.P.E.C.T.R.E. as well. Also, there's H.I.V.E. led by the immortal eco-terrorist Damien Darhk from ARROW, Season 4. They are also just like HYDRA, The Syndicate/Apostles, and S.P.E.C.T.R.E. as well.
The perfect mastermind operates from his throne! And with his ingenious masterplan he succeeds with his outstanding superb masterplan! And Ernst Stavro Blofeld wears a shiny beige pantsuit!😍 And a white super shiny satin blouse!
Pleasance undoubtedly the best ever Blofeld, however Puss did get more screen time. In fact when I first saw the film back in 1968 I though Pleasance was the name of the Puss.
3:31 Yes but you cannot expect EVERYTHING to go in order. Well,you CAN but it takes a little patience and diversity to kill one man under one`s whim if you`re familiar with that.
One thing I liked about Ernst Blofeld is that he accepts James' plea for smoking while watching television. A perfect example showing that not all villains are always disrespecting their enemies.
The brilliant thing with classic Blofeld (specifically the Pleasance Blofeld) is that he seems to view Bond almost as an equal. His own specialists and top henchmen (Osato and Number 11) are seen as disposable and weak but his view of Bond, while still antagonistic, is almost of distorted reverence. For example, the way he instantly KNOWS the English visitor Osato received was Bond despite recent media reports of Bond’s (staged) death.
The Pleasance Blofeld was ruthless, intelligent yet always courteous; remaining unsuspecting to those around him until he was ready to make a move.
A true classic. Absolute legend. 🤩👍
Word.
… and also that he’s failed to learn how Bond has defeated him in the past, by outwitting him with clever gadgets.
Imagine kids watching this for the first time at the cinema;
"Mummy, why are they talking to a cat?"
@The Open Source Graphic Designer It's like that episode of "The PowerPuff Girls"...
I'm wondering if my Godson is going to do that when we get to this movie. He loved Dr No so far. Can't wait to get to this one. This is my favorite
Because the cat was the true villain after all. When Blofeld changes appearance it's because the cat has found a new human host.
@MrHEC381991 And the Mother is like
"No, children; they're talking to the man petting the cat."
cccp ^?^ hövv $häl i pütt sys siene... well ´$ägäer ^^ ´wörlds a pärt v??v ? - äy ´ainn beehind you. jed in ´FröhND+ -: - :-
zett-kett is a vveekpöinte vFv i.nn tät€ -: - 4´27 ice zett i0v FillFi Flänksteak v?v? ´enüFF tear vp se plänk´$ ^V^
viddy ör vvell ´brö$ ^ ^
1:99 we är mir Föölce b4 yör ... ´lite ^.^ ´ist@iceterr > < sign bäeräre ^§^
Donald Pleasance is the absolute image of what Blofeld should look like.
“Extortion is my business. Go and think it over, gentlemen; I’m busy.”
Such a great line. Pleasance was awesome as Blofeld.
True
IKR. I kind of wished he stayed as Blofeld
Me: Do you know why Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in the United States?
Blofeld: World Domination.
Me: Japan attacked the United States because the United States froze all of Japan’s assets and cut off their oil supply. What would your country do if another country denied you the gasoline to run your cars and other assets.
cccp ^?^ hövv $häl i pütt sys siene... well ´$ägäer ^^ ´wörlds a pärt v??v ? - äy ´ainn beehind you. jed in ´FröhND+ -: - :-
zett-kett is a vveekpöinte vFv i.nn tät€ -: - 4´27 ice zett i0v FillFi Flänksteak v?v? ´enüFF tear vp se plänk´$ ^V^
viddy ör vvell ´brö$ ^ ^
1:99 we är mir Föölce b4 yör ... ´lite ^.^ ´ist@iceterr > < sign bäeräre ^§^
Pleasance never thought much of his performance in this film. I think he was absolutely brilliant.
I prefer him as Henderson. Ηis murder would not be true - like Bond in Hong Kong - and in the volcano he would say that he is Blofeld's half brother.
They never do, these great actors)
His agent at the time told him to only do one Bond film and no more. I think he should have fired his agent. But then again Telly Savalas was pretty good too, even more menacing because of the deeper voice.
@@CynicalBastard511 IDK, Telly makes a better soldier than mastermind. His Blofeld wasnt particularly menacing to ME, he felt watered down
I think Pleasance was the absolute best Blofeld, they should have made the other actors at least TRY to act like him
Of all the actors who portrayed Ernst Stavro Blofeld throughout the James Bond franchise, I think Donald Pleasence did it best.
Christoph Waltz was more believable as Ernst Stavro Blofeld because you understand why he hated James Bond on a personal level.
@@dtaylor4552 but does that necessarily make him better? Waltz is well known for these days but Donald Pleasance is great. I like Waltz in Django Unchained. Both his humor and ruthlessness is shown in that role. Oh well either way both actors portray blofeld good.
@@dtaylor4552 All the actors who portrayed the villains in that movie we're completely wasted.
Wasn’t spectre the movie that stole from the third Austin powers movie lmao, Waltz was doomed from the start
Yes I always pretend him and Connery were casted OHMSS and DAF Bond kills him like in YOLT novel same way.
Donald Pleasence was in my opinion one of the very best actors around.
In addition, his voice was made for the big screen, and to prove this, he was often chosen to narrate programs. Brilliant actor in any category, RIP Sir.
"You don't know what death is"
"I spent 7 years trying to reach him, another 8 trying to keep him locked up because i realised what was behind that boys eyes was purely and simply...evil"
"I met this 6 year old child with this blank pale emotionless face and the blackest eyes...the devil's eyes"
@@TyePansa He was a good Blofeld but he will always be Dr. Loomis to me no matter what role he plays.
Hell Yes!!!
@@TyePansa just watching the start of Halloween h20 lol and at that scene in Dr Loomis room with all the newspaper clippings
this inspired so much in pop culture
Dr. Evil
Evil genius
the villain and their pet
Dr Claw
I wonder if it inspired Marlon Brando's Vito Corleone too
Don't forget about Jeff Bezos. Oh wait...
India it's shakal much awesome than this
Blofeld was my favourite villain before I even knew about Blofeld
Loved to have seen the reaction of the cinema audience in 1967 when Blofeld was finally revealed. The ski jump in TSWLM 10 years later received a standing ovation.
When people think of Blofeld they think of the Pleasance incarnation. Enough said.
I preferred Telly Savalas'version
no spectre had the best blofeld by far easily.
Savallas as well, because he is more of an equal to Bond since he goes right into action. But parodies really focused on Pleasance (outfit, cat, secret lair...)
Idk
Dr Evil had the Donald Pleasance scar, but aside from that he looks a lot more like Telly Savallas
The best and closer version of Blofeld to the book character is the one played by Telly Savalas, but the Donald Pleasance portrayal is BY FAR, the most memorable and fitting for theatre.
It's not a coincidence that anyone picturing Blofeld will immediately think of his portrayal in You Only Live Twice.
Well, being more liberal with what constitutes an official Bond movie, really Max von Sydow is the most book accurate onscreen Blofeld. Still, I agree that Pleasence is the overall best for the cinematic screen.
@@zufgh And became a big inspiration for Dr. Evil from Austin Powers.
I love how even though the first couple of businessmen were unhappy with the extortion, Blofeld let them go anyway. Blofeld doesn’t mind a little arguing, he just doesn’t like people underestimating or making mistakes. He only kills those who fail an order.
He let them go because they were Red Chinese government officials - he was in the pay of Red China's government, trying to spark a war between the USSR and USA.
@@nervchemnitz oh ok.
@@nervchemnitz He would have killed them later had they decided not to pay.
@@KetwunsGamingPad Also, Blofeld kills his henchmen if they prove disloyal, such as No. 9 who embezzled money during their drug smuggling project in South America.
@@nervchemnitz Like Fleming, the producers played down the US-Russia Cold War as time passed. The splendid prologue to YOLT makes both sides come on like dangerous idiots fueled by bad intel. Naturally Robin Bailey, the suave English diplomat, puts them right.
A Sixties reset featuring Red China as SPECTRE's gullible paymaster made the background fresher and more topical, after Chairman Mao had broken with the USSR and was pursuing his own fanatical course. This was one of the first films to take China seriously as a potential superpower. It correctly foresaw that the PRC would make mischief between the whites without overtly intervening or initiating conflict.
Japan, OTOH, is shown as fully collaborating with its WW2 enemies. Tanaka and 007 'bond' instantly. This was quite daring for a 1967 release, when many a GI and Tommy nursed reasons to hate and mistrust Hirohito's state.
The politics of the earlier, classic Bond movies are fascinating. Beneath the light-hearted, comic near-self-parody of Roald Dahl's screenplay lurks his deeply conservative contempt for internationalism and his suspicion that power plays based on ideological clashes are a masquerade. You can sense Dahl's admiration for Blofeld as an unshowy, cold cynic who will use anyone who pays him well.
No doubt Harry and Cubby insisted that Ernst Stavro should escape as per the books, but one doubts Dahl was sorry to let the ubervillain go.
2:28 I like how he says, “Go and think it over, gentlemen, I’m busy,” while he’s just sitting there playing with his cat. If only we could all have that much fun at work.
5:26 - You can see the actor playing Hans receiving his cue from off-camera to move in front of Blofeld to hide his face for the big reveal.
Or Blofeld ordered him to stand in front of him for a dramatic face reveal
You can also see that the seated 'Blofeld' has hair...!
@@Wolsey58 Haha, I didn't see that! Nice catch!
Christoph Waltz was more psychologically scarred with jealousy of Bond.
I can't imagine the reaction in theaters when it happens.
By far the best Blofeld. Total psycho and so chilling.
And it took them 48 years to get it back right.
@@doge2899 nope, it took them 30, and that ended 5 years later
spectre had the best blofeld.
@@centralprocessingunit2564 Christoph Waltz was good but I was hoping for Hans Landa. Shame. And I'm a big Kasparov fan :)
@@bodieofci5418 nah his boring, Waltz is ok and had dept character but he was overall disappointing, Charles Gray is even a better Blofeld
Would have loved to have seen Bond face off against Blofeld's patient Michael Myers.
Janice Campbell Isn’t it ironic how the parody of his character was played by a comedian coincidentally named Mike Myers?
Null User and he was born in 1963 the year Michael kills Judith in the 1978 Film Halloween
Michael Myers ... YOOOOO
Null User Halloween
Blofeld thought bigger than Dr Evil. He wanted $100 million in 1967 money purely as a down payment.
Rule number one : when you are pointing a gun at James Bond, do NOT talk, just FIRE !
If you want to shoot shoot, don't talk.
Ironic that he always makes the same mistake as the henchmen he kills for their failure.
every
single
time
Lol he is Number One
Monologuing is the key skill of supervillian. With a better monologue, you generate more fear, get more minions and overall create more aura of invincibility. It's not Blofeld's fault that his subordinates are too incompetent to eliminate Bond and he has to get his hands dirty. He's the CEO and they are the workers. It's so hard to find good help these days. #teamblofeld #nobond #bondsux #007sucks
I noted that in both YOLT and OHMSS, blofeld is very attentive to the little detail in his front. Like how he caught bond on his way to the capsule, while bond is carrying his air conditioner. He immediately noticed it. A small detail on his character. Shows him cunning and intelligent at the same time.
Also in Thunderball, during the meeting, he picks on the traitor funnelling the money away.
@@yrooxrksvi7142 In the original book, that SPECTRE operative is killed for a far more disturbing reason. Blofeld is fair, if nothing else.
Failure to complete your assignments results in permanent failure to continue accepting them.
@@horrorfanandy4647 your right
@@horrorfanandy4647 what happens?
@@Ouopa.
How do I put this nicely? Well actually, I can’t really, so I’ll just be as blunt as UA-cam allows me to be:
So basically, in the novel, the SPECTRE operative is part of a scheme that involves the kidnapping of a young woman. This _charming gentleman_ then takes things a step further and r*pes her, defying his orders to leave her otherwise unharmed mentally and physically.
Consequently, Blofeld immediately returns the woman along with a cut of the ransom money that her family had already payed as a form of compensation for the extra trauma she had to endure.
By killing the operative, he essentially reminds the other SPECTRE agents that whilst they are criminals, they are professionals too, and professionals have standards. Obviously this was too controversial to explicitly state onscreen in 1965, so they changed it to what it is in the film, which works well enough on its own terms.
Blofeld: ''You only live twice Mr Bond''.
Cat: ''Haha, losers''.
jevvellewellwell lörrn büy $€ -pedö- bär€$ v..v ´$hine önn vFv
Donald Pleasence an amazing actor
You have to admire the work they put into making this movie
The reveal of blofeld is genuinely iconic.
It was built up over three movies too.
"I shall look forward personally to exterminating you Mr Bond!"
Love that line.
Them villains, eh ? The grandeur, the all-consuming self-importance and “mwa-ha-ha” demeanor. Love these guys 😈
If you read the trivia on the film you may know that Blofeld was first set to be played by another actor that wasn't bald. I didn't see it before but at 5:26 you can see the that the original actor is playing Blofeld due to him having hair.
Looked like Santa
Damn that's crazy!
The original actor, Jan Werich, would physically have looked much like the Max Von Sydow version in Never Say Never Again - basically, an old grandpa-looking man in a suit.
Jan Werich would have been great as Blofeld too.
@@emmarose4234 Christoph Waltz was very believable as Ernst Stavro Blofeld because he takes his personal hatred of James Bond to the next level because he is psychologically scarred with jealousy of his father's affection for James.
You Only Live Twice is my favorite of the Sean Connery James Bond Films, and Donald Pleasance is my favorite version of Blofeld. There's just something so odd about the mannerisms that make you question if he's all there. Like the way he speaks is a bit unnerving, but there's hidden malice in them.
This was the influence for Dr claw in inspector gadget
Shardon Burrell and doctor evil is a parody of this guy.
He was more like a parody, and parodies of Blofeld are a dime a dozen. He's an iconic villain.
NEXT TIME GADGET! NEEEXXT TIIIIME!
@@stentor9640 If another Inspector Gadget film is made Dr Claw should keep a tank of Saltwater Crocodiles, Anacondas or Tiger Sharks.
A guy mentioned it in one of the comments above that blofeld inspired Giovanni from pokemon. With The cat and hidden face.
"Why make trillions when we could make, billions?" -Dr. Evil
A trillion is more then a billion numb nuts
I always liked the cat.
Cats rule
Come Mr. Bigglesworth!
I wonder how Blofeld would have reacted if Osata had thrown the cat into the piranha pool.
@@hisdudeness8328 When Mr. Bigglesworth gets upset. People DIE!
I think I had this weird Mandela effect memory from childhood where Pleasance introduced himself as “Dr. Ernst Stavro Blofeld.” But upon rewatching I realize there was no title before his name, just Ernst Stavro Blofeld.
I think that’s what makes this Blofeld so effective. He’s not a doctor or a scientist like so many other Bond villains. He’s just an extremely intelligent and influential man with a megalomaniacal desire for power.
Thats Cirrect, Evil Geniuses do not necessarily need a title.
It's not even necessarily about power. It's simply about wealth and manipulation. Other than the usual criminal activities he's shown to devise, a recurring plan of his is to creat instability between opposing powers and then profit as a result. He's never shown to have an interest in world domination - at least that I can remember.
@@NoSTs123only the ones that spent 6 years at Evil Medical School get to be called doctor 😂
something about these classic bond movies with the camera quality, the music, the cheap effects that are just so good
Two possibilities: no CGI in the big setpiece action scenes, and a lack of Hollywood influence or input. Special FX are secondary. You can always tell if it's the real deal, be it Little Nelly or ninjas abseiling into a volcano.
The unique sales proposition of the earlier Bond pix was their Britishness. Spoofiness, smutty double entendres, flirting with perversion. You could find these qualities abundantly in UK comedy movies and costume drama, but in big-budget action travelogs it was a novelty, like British pop groups storming the American charts. The Brits had never thought so big in cinema, but the humor is akin to cheap and cheerful films such as that other great Sixties series, the Carry Ons.
Ian Fleming never thought he was writing literature. Bond had that British trait of self-mockery which made it parody-proof; today stuff such as Matt Helm and the 1967 'Casino Royale' looks far staler. The Bonds were primarily a partnership between Yanks exiled from Hollywood- Saltzman, Broccoli, Maibaum- and British directors who had discovered how to make movies pacier for Stateside: Terence Young, Guy Hamilton and Lewis Gilbert.
YOLT is my favorite bc the spoofiness ran riot. Roald Dahl ignored the book and used his wayward imagination, with plenty to spend. And Ken Adam was to Dahl what Quentin Blake was to Dahl's books.
The effects weren’t cheap, they’ve just aged a bit.
It's funny to imagine that it's the cat speaking telepathically to everyone.
RIP
Donald Pleasence
(1919-1995)
Donald Pleasence is the most iconic Blofeld, although I'd say Telly Savalas was the best overall (he combined intelligence with physical menace). You Only Live Twice is perhaps the single most influential Bond movie, along with Goldfinger.
Proof that an actor with thorough theater training can move to cinema (rarely in the opposite direction) and nail a part with an underplayed voice, a belated 'reveal' and a few minutes' screen time.
DP is not only the best Blofeld. He is the best Bond villain, and one of the two or three best villains in all film. In fact his cat-stroking, sotto voce menace has become the generic archetype of screen megalomania.
How do you bring that off, yet also portray the sweet, innocent old clergyman of Trollope's 'Barchester Towers' to perfection? When you have been a jobbing actor for years and learnt from it. This competence is taken for granted at the time, but in future years it comes to be recognized and valued.
Donald Pleasence's Blofeld was definitely menacing. The other characters seem terrified of him. And you would fear for your life around him.
Apart from the mind-controlled guy who brought Austin some orange sherbet...
By far the most iconic Blofeld
Bond staring down Blofeld in the eye during the countdown, trying to see if he can be intimidaqted or if there is any hint of guilt or remorse for what he is about to do - and finding absolutely none with Blofeld casually staring back at him.
Donald Pleasance should’ve won an Oscar for playing Blofeld.
I only know Donald Pleasance from original Halloween movies, by John Carpenter. So glad to see him play a James Bond villain.
I love the way he says the word *Annihilate*
Lmfao he was killing everybody but James Bond🤣 🤣
Blofeld is gay
Mr KEJKS fuck you
Bond villain weakness
The best Blofeld, both intelligent and dangerous.
3:45 Helga's death really traumatized me growing up. The moment Blofeld opened the bridge to force her to fall into the piranha pool, she was already done for.
9:30 I always get a laugh seeing the cat freaking out in his arms.
I heard during filming that the cat was so panicked by the explosions on set that it got free of Donald Pleasence's grasp and ran off, it was found a few days later in between the sets.
9:30 The cat is really acting his heart out here... One might think he's actually afraid of the explosions going on in the background.
Both good actors gone but not forgotten RIP😭
that cat probably was getting sick of always being in donalds arms 😂😂
I wouldn’t if I was the cat.
The cat perhaps got upset because of those explosions.
The cat is so cute at 9:33, I'm sure it got scared
@@talbot2619 I remember reading an old article a while ago that said the poor cat was indeed scared of the explosions, so it ripped Donald Pleasance's arm to shreds, then ran away and hid for hours. When asked about his arm, Donald jokingly said the cat was a "very unprofessional actor to work with" 😂
Blofeld very clearly loves his cat the cat is very beautiful ❤
Mr Bigglesworth!
Blofeld is one of the TOP 5 Best Villains in James Bond Movie history.
Look at the cat at 9:30, it's freaking out. I bet it clawed him quite a bit lol
6:09 - You Only Live Twice Mr Bond / You’re Welcome 👍
Peter Griffin: ah! ah! He said it! He said it!
You also get a glimpse of Bert Kwouk in his _second_ appearance as a minion in a James Bond film (the first was in Goldfinger). It's my personal headcanon that it is in fact the same character, and that he's also the same character as Kato in the Pink Panther movies _and_ the guy in _Last of the Summer Wine._
Um... he DIED in "Goldfinger", though.
He died in Goldfinger but I'm quite prepared to believe the character he played in You Only Live Twice and the one he played in Last Of The summer Wine are the same person. It would make sense after fleeing Japan he would settle for a quiet inconsequential life in the Yorkshire Dales.
@@vordman He was _shot_ in Goldfinger, but there's a possibility that it wasn't fatal, and Kwouk's character just played dead for a while until Ernst was off the scene and got away somehow. I mean, he's clearly a versatile agent, so would be able to carry off maintaining his temporary cover long enough to get patched up before escaping back to China. ;)
He was a SPECTRE agent n the SPECTRE briefing in Thunderball
9:32 My cat Topsie would've reacted like that too as she gets easily stressed.
3:57 I love the way the Chinese lads are like: “You know what? Let’s just pay him the bloody money”
These sets are amazing
KEN ADAM
Klaus Schwab of the *World Economic Forum* (spelled "Few" backwards because very few can join it) is the current Mr. Blofeld.
There's something super satisfying about how he gives orders
7:44 I like how he’s casually swinging his key.
"They say you only live twice, Mr. Bond"
*Leo points at the screen*
I’m loosing my absolute shit laughing rn because I didn’t know Dr Evil was based off this dude 😭
When I close my window shades at home I always think of these shutters at Blofeld's base. ^^'
If i was in osato's shoes, having watched a colleague get eaten alive by piranhas, there'd be no doubt a bit of piss coming out in fear
Ernst Stavro Blofeld is completely overwhelming! And his perfect planned success combined with the perfect completion of his power and his ingenious masterplan that leads him to world domination! He is not only extremely supernatural, he also sees himself the almighty supergodlike being totally convinced of his superb success! Although most people find him totally repulsive and hideously disfigured caused by his appearance with the super-huge scar that completely makes his face looking pure ugly on first sight. But if you think that he takes over world domination, you bow to him and his sexy looking beige silk pantsuit as well as his subordinates!😍 Then you will immediately start worshipping him as the perfect super-god! And his repulsive facial scarring will no longer matter! ❤ Perfect Ernst Stavro Blofeld!❤
Woah...Blofeld was definitely a intimidating bond villain
I've loved this film since I was a child. It's excellent. One of the best Bonds. Then recently I thought, if Bond and Blofeld met each other in this film, then why on earth didn't they recognize each other in the following film - 'On her majesty's secret service'? (even though both characters were played by different actors - and somehow Blofeld loses his scar). Turns out that Ian Fleming wrote 'OHMSS' before 'You only live twice', but the films were made the other way around.
If you believe the bond code name theory, and that blofeld has plastic surgery every movie, then it makes sense
@@themysteriouscatperson9483 that theory has some truth behind it was touch upon in diamonds are forever
@@themysteriouscatperson9483 He also has leg extensions to make him as tall as Charles Gray.
That's Mr. Evil
Donald Pleseance has a general malaise that the genius possess and the insane lament....
The cat at 9:30. Seen this movie a zillion times but never noticed that all-too-familiar cat action!
LOL... yeah, the cat did not want to be in that particular scene.
You can see Donald come out of character and comfort the cat.
Oh yes. I''ve seen this quadro-fuckin-million times but never noticed that. Maybe those fake explosios upset it too much.
Yeah, the pyrotechnics were freaking the cat out.
The cat was actually traumatised to the point that it refused to go near another film set ever again
I grew up watching austin powers not knowing it's base on old bond stuff. They did a really good job on dr.evil.
God, all I can think of is Scott Evil “I have a gun…in my room…”
I still prefer the deep voiced faceless Blofeld but… yeah, Donald is just so wonderfully creepy you can’t help but love him.
This is one job where you don’t want to ask your boss for a raise 😂
Best bond movie and best blofeld by a mile. Nothing beats a volcano base;)
In the Tom Cruise movie Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation and its sequel Mission Impossible: Fallout, the main villain (played by actor Sean Harris) is Solomon Lane. He's a former MI-6 agent turned anarchistic terrorist mastermind, the founder and supreme leader of the terrorist organization called "The Syndicate" or "The Apostles" alongside his partner John Lark, and the archenemy of Mission Impossible's central protagonist (played by actor Tom Cruise) Ethan Hunt.
Solomon Lane is basically Ernst Stavro Blofeld to Ethan Hunt's 007 James Bond. And the Syndicate or the Apostles are basically the Mission Impossible version of S.P.E.C.T.R.E.
HYDRA, founded and led by Captain America's archenemy The Red Skull, is primarily based on S.P.E.C.T.R.E. as well.
Also, there's H.I.V.E. led by the immortal eco-terrorist Damien Darhk from ARROW, Season 4. They are also just like HYDRA, The Syndicate/Apostles, and S.P.E.C.T.R.E. as well.
and Cobra from G.I. Joe
@RhaineM Yes. Thank you.
Allow me to introduce myself im Ernst stavro blofeld
Mahtava lause!
1:47 - I didn’t know Xi zing ping was an extra in this movie! 😂
9:02 didn't know filthy frank was in a Bond movie.
Ey boss
Grey guy. Old relative of pink guy
Bond walks into the room, and says, with Connery's voice "Ey b0sh"
EY boss's, can I have a da pussy boss
@@thememeslinger7506 Filthy Frank would have been the weirdest ally to James Bond ever :o
I had no idea Dr. Evil was based off a real Bond villain, who the hell is Austin Powers based off of?
James Bond...
@@luigihutjrs2472 but with the appearance of Michael Caine
Austin Powers is based on George Lazenby's performance as James Bond.
@@Sleygar I don't see it
@@venturatheace1
Look at the costume, it looks very similar to Austin powers’ costume
I've always considered Pleasence as my favorite Blofeld actor
The perfect mastermind operates from his throne! And with his ingenious masterplan he succeeds with his outstanding superb masterplan! And Ernst Stavro Blofeld wears a shiny beige pantsuit!😍 And a white super shiny satin blouse!
05:57 the reveal of the perfect mastermind! Ernst Stavro Blofeld!😍
One of my favorites lines, there are man in the crater.
Pleasance undoubtedly the best ever Blofeld, however Puss did get more screen time. In fact when I first saw the film back in 1968 I though Pleasance was the name of the Puss.
Thank you so much Augustus Caesar!
9:32 That cat is totally freaking the fuck out.
This guy is Dr. Evil, Dr. Claw, AND the villain from the Genghis Khan video.
1:29 Taro from Mind Your Language 🤣
If I would've been one of Blofeld's henchmen I would've jump over that moving bridge part every time I left the meeting
I love the tat tat tat tat tat tat in the score which starts at 1:00.
You'd think there would be a safety rail along the stairs above the piranha tank.
One of the best film sets in modern history.
9:30 I always notice the the cat completely freaking out at the explosion. It’s unintentionally funny. Poor thing.
This makes me want to have my own secret supervillain volcano rocket base with minions working for me.
oh look Klaus Schwab has himself a moonbase now. And indoor house pond, pirahnna.
1:46 Ok,thank you,Blofeld
3:31 Yes but you cannot expect EVERYTHING to go in order. Well,you CAN but it takes a little patience and diversity to kill one man under one`s whim if you`re familiar with that.
Extortion is my business at Spectre
9:32 the cat is clearly as relaxed as his master
Let this be a reminder that this organization will not tolerate failure
I love the little laugh Pleasence does at 1:51. It adds a lot to his character.