Roger Moore at 90: His James Bond movies ranked: Which of his SEVEN 007 movies is best?

The legendary actor sadly passed away aged 89 after a short battle with cancer, before his 90th birthday which would have been today.

Sir Roger leaves behind an epic film legacy and still reigns as the longest-serving James Bond, closely followed by Daniel Craig.

His incarnation of 007 will be remembered for its lightheartedness, comedy and camp humour.

Following Sean Connery and George Lazenby, Sir Roger kicked off his tenure as Bond with 1973’s Live and Let Die, with some films considered better than others. Here’s our ranking.

7. For Your Eyes Only (1981)

What makes this entry the worst Roger Moore Bond movie? It’s just pretty boring, even with the lead actor’s charm.

The plot of a British ship being sunkcontaining a nuclear submarine control system may sound Cold War-tastic as superpowers race to find it.

However For Your Eyes Only’s more serious tone following the sci-fi fun of Moonraker, just doesn’t quite work for Roger Moore.

The dull action isn’t helped by Aris Kristatots as a Greek smuggler. Where’s his evil volcano lair?

6. A View to a Kill (1985)

It seems to be the norm for every Bond to end their tenure with their silliest outing and A View to a Kill is certainly that for Roger.

Not only was this his seventh outing, but the star entered this adventure at an incredible 57-years-old.

Nevertheless Christopher Walken’s Max Zorin steals the show as Bond sets out to stop him destroying Silicon Valley.

5. Octopussy (1983)

While it’s the best of the Roger’s 1980s entries, Octopussy is a bit of a mixed bag.

A strong entertaining first hour sets Bond off following a general stealing precious relics and jewels from the Soviets, and sees 007 amusingly disguised as a clown.

However when 007 finds Kamal Khan and Octopussy, everything slows down a bit too much letting the film down somewhat after a fun beginning.

4. Moonraker (1979)

This one really splits Bond fans, which is probably why it’s right in the middle.

It may seem likely something of a gamble to send James Bond into space, but with the success of Star Wars just two years earlier, it was a risk producers wanted to take.

Although it received mixed reviews upon release, the film was the highest-grossing Bond film until 1995’s Goldeneye.

Moonraker saw Bond take on Hugo Drax, a classic Bond villain bent on wiping out the world’s population and creating a master race – a step away from serious Cold War antics.

If not taken too seriously Moonraker is tons of fun, only aided by the return of Richard Kiel’s Jaws.

3. The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)

Roger’s second entry might have one of the worst Bond theme tunes, as admitted by its singer Lulu herself, but the movie still holds up today.

Goldfinger director Guy Hamilton took the reigns in a story that featured two of the most notorious Bond villains: Christopher Lee’s Scaramanga and Herve Villechaize’s Nick Nack 

In a recent interview before his death, Roger recently claimed that Herve was ‘a diseased sex maniac with unnatural lusts’.

The Man with the Golden Gun is essentially tons of fun, aided by the colourful characters Bond meets across the exotic locations he ventures across like Thailand and Hong Kong.

2. Live and Let Die (1973)

Roger’s first film kicked off his tenure as Bond with a bang.

Apart from Paul McCartney’s iconic theme and Hamilton’s direction, Live and Let Die also featured some memorable baddies and scenes.

The villainous Dr Kananga, Tee Hee and Baron Samedi, are the centre of a drug-fuelled plot, which Bond sets out to end.

Roger was also joined by one of the best Bond girls, Jane Seymour’s Solitaire and saw the introduction of Clifton James’ hilarious Sheriff J W Pepper. 

As for the best scene, it has to be when Bond escapes being eaten by alligators by stepping on their heads.

1. The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)

Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, The Spy Who Loved Me is a fan favourite across 50 years of Bond films.

The story follows classic Bond villain Karl Stromberg – who lives in his Atlantis lair – as he sets out to destroy the world and start a new one under the sea.

Teaming up with Soviet spy Anya Amasova, Bond sets out to stop the baddie, avoiding the clutches of Jaws, while introducing the iconic submarine car.

Nominated for three Oscars, pure Bond doesn’t get much better than this.