A piece I wrote for The Hans India - a reputed daily in Telangana
Roger Moore, the renowned English actor died a few days ago. Another great Hollywood actor’s presence has been robbed off from us. Moore was an incredible actor who never failed to charm the audiences with his on-screen persona. Although he had starred in several television series, including “Ivanhoe” “The Alaskans” “Maverick” “The Saint” “With Earl Green in the Saint” and “The Persuaders!”, he would be hugely remembered for his role as 'James Bond' in the Bond movies, which he donned with a panache.
This man literally swept women off their feet with his charming personality and evoked laughter from his audiences with his quirky acting that combined mischievousness amusement with deadly action. Of course, he may not be on an equal footing with Sean Connery, who unfortunately called it a day in playing the role of James Bond in 1972, but definitely commands respect for filling the big boots of Sean Connery as James Bond.
Moore’s first appearance as 007 was in the movie “Live and Let Die”. The resounding success of this movie had a slew of other projects lined up for him. Moore continued to portray Bond in ”The Man with the Golden Gun” “The Spy Who Loved Me” “Moonwalker” “For Your Eyes Only” “Octopussy” and “A View to a Kill”. Unlike Sean Connery, Moore lent a sense of casualness to the Bond personality and a smug attitude that had its own devious but powerful approach.
The quirkiness of Roger Moore in Bond films was that he used to make "the mission" look silly and “the damsels” significantly important. Though, not many were in favour of this line of depiction, he still had his own crowd whistling at his performance. In some incidents, where the Bond personality was generally supposed to be silent and introspective, he altered the pattern and used to don a sporty attitude punctuated with an unexpected wink. Eventually, he still used to pull off a surprising on-screen manipulation. Which incident would only send the villain up the wall crying and seething for his blood!
What perhaps endear anyone are his Karate chops, which made him stand in a fine line and length and deliver the chop with a flamboyance that is totally inimitable. Of course, this being cinema, the villains would fly off and land gently on a sofa or padded table. Sofa, because, you can't see Moore, as a person, who would want to seriously hurt others, even if he had to draw some powerful karate chops. Such was the endearing personality of Roger Moore.
His movie, Octopussy, had captured the rich flavour of his acting as well as India's uniqueness. The movie, which was shot in India, had Vijay Amritraj, the renowned Indian tennis player, donning on a significant role. The damsels, the spectacular palaces, crocodile infested waters; the never-ending adventure… the movie would send anybody’s adrenaline pumping. Yes! Moore is the man if you are hunting for movies with fun and adventure in the same breath.
Apart from the Bond Movies, Moore also starred in other flicks that showcased his extraordinary acting skills. In fact, he donned several different hats, including that of acting, directing, producing and of course playing a key role as the good will Ambassador of UNICEF. He had a checkered career amply accentuating his versatile personality. Unfortunately, he lost his battle against cancer. We are sure to miss this terrific film personality.
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