Overview: The action, the intrigue, the women… The films and THE Bond that established the enduring franchise. Experience the spy thrillers that made Sean Connery immortal like you’ve never seen them before in stunning 4K for the first time. The films are part of the 5th highest grossing film franchise of all time with more than $7.8 billion in worldwide box office revenues.

THE SEAN CONNERY COLLECTION from Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM), a collection of six James Bond films starring Sean Connery as 007, will be available to own on June 10 as a 4K UHD collection for the first time for the ultimate at home movie-watching experience. The collection includes Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice and Diamonds Are Forever.

The collection will be available in collectible steelbook packaging and as a standard 4K collection. These six films will also be available on Digital from MGM.

4K UHD Blu-ray Verdict: Warner Bros. Entertainment is expanding their 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray catalog offerings this month with the release of the much beloved Dirty Harry (4K Ultra HD + Digital) in the expansive 4K Ultra HD video format this April 29th, 2025.

For my money, this Dirty Harry (4K Ultra HD + Digital) sharpness takes a fairly large step forward from others in their 4K Ultra HD catalog and even comes with HDR (High Dynamic Range) for the complete 4K Ultra HD experience, of course.

So, what we have is Dirty Harry presented to us as a one-disc with a sheet for a Digital HD Copy. Other stand out points you should know are: Codec: HEVC / H.265, Resolution: Native 4K (2160p), HDR: HDR10, Aspect ratio: 2.40:1 and Original Aspect ratio: 2.39:1.

Featuring Dolby Vision and HDR10 for brighter, deeper, and way more lifelike colors, as with most all 4K UHDs, everything that we watch features these qualities - but somehow, this film gloriously shines within them all.

Noticeably crisp with the overall clarity receiving an obvious boost here on this release, what is more is that it is enjoyably noticeable. For as well as some new nuances to the somewhat drab palette courtesy of Dolby Vision, we also get to witness sudden bright pops of color, which makes the eyes draw in, for sure.

As for the audio, well we get the plentiful choice of: English: Dolby Atmos, English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 and English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono.

Overall, this is a very strong 4K HDR Blu-ray presentation, and, for the most part, the audio track remains fairly similar to its DTS-HD counterpart; with much of the action occupying the surrounds with outstanding directionality and placement where effects flawlessly pan between the sides and rears.

As for the films themselves, well, the first movie is DR. NO (1962). His name is Bond, James Bond. And here, in his explosive film debut, Ian Fleming’s immortal action hero blazes through one of his most spectacular adventures. Sean Connery embodies the suave-yet-lethal cool of Agent 007 as he battles the mysterious Dr. No, a scientific genius bent on destroying the U.S. space program.

Despite being the first film in the series, Dr. No is actually based on Fleming’s sixth novel in the series. As the inaugural Bond film, director Terence Young had a blank slate to work with. The clichés and archetypes that are instantly connected with the franchise today had not yet been established.

Fleming actually wanted David Niven to play Bond, but the studio ultimately went with Sean Connery, who played a major role in defining what the popular view of Bond would become. He simply exudes confidence through his voice, appearance, and attitude.

From that genre-defining first moment where we’re introduced to Bond, he instantly slips right into the character. It’s no wonder people often cite Connery as the definitive Bond, because his performance laid a lot of that groundwork for future incarnations. He’s easily one of the best aspects of the film.

Next up is FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE (1963). Connery returns as James Bond in this thrill-a-minute adventure featuring remarkable villains, beautiful women and exotic locales! This time, Bond squares off against the evil SPECTRE organization, thrusting him into a thrilling boat chase, a brutal helicopter attack and a deadly brawl aboard the Orient Express.

Connery came, he acted, and he conquered as James Bond in this second installment of the film franchise. With some of the most realistic fight scenes for a 60’s movie and terrific story by Fleming, this film has a recipe for a masterpiece.

The story is not meant to be an action picture. It is more like the adventures of a spy, with the dangers of being a spy. In short, it is a complex spy thriller, made to suit the target audience which are spy fans and intelligent viewers.

Then we get GOLDFINGER (1964). From the opening bomb blast outside a steamy nightclub to a last-minute escape from the president’s personal jet, James Bond’s third screen adventure is an exhilarating, pulse-pounding thrill ride! Sean Connery returns as Agent 007 and faces off with a maniacal villain bent on destroying all the gold in Fort Knox — and obliterating the world economy!

Goldfinger could best be described as the quintessential, definitive Bond film, the first of the series to set the necessities of the entire saga in motion. It is also the best of the Bond movies, arguably the most suave and sophisticated, far superior to the Roger Moore era and those who followed in Connery’s footsteps. It is the Bond ultimatum, so to speak.

Goldfinger was the first of the iconic legacy to feature Q (Desmond Llewelyn) as a recurring comic relief figure. He was introduced in From Russia with Love, the second film in the series, where he was credited as Major Boothroyd, and given little screen time.

It was also the first to truly setup the suave nature of 007, the tongue-in-cheek humor (absent in the first movie, Dr. No), the far-fetched gadgetry (including fast cars, this one being an Aston-Martin) and, arguably, the first of the series to feature the famous line, Bond, James Bond, as a 007 catchphrase, versus a mere line of dialogue.

Along next is THUNDERBALL (1965). The thrills never let up as James Bond dives into this riveting adventure filled with explosive confrontations and amazing underwater action! Sean Connery brings his characteristic style and magnetism to Agent 007 as he travels to Nassau to track down a villainous criminal who is threatening to plunge the world into a nuclear holocaust.

Sean Connery is at his peak of fame as 007 and his character of Bond works in an excellent way. His portrait of the suave sophisticated super spy is tough, ironical, glamorous and a bit cynical; physically he’s in great shape. This is the definitive image of Bond - which entered the movie history.

Thunderball is the fourth 007 movie. Many things have changed since the small budgeted Dr. No. Here we a have a larger-than-life adventure, full of gadgets and jokes. The film is still exciting watching it today as it was back then. I mean, I always ponder just how the underwater scenes are so accurate with all they involved back then.

The film is a mix of revolutionary technology, British humor, sex and gorgeous women. In 1965 it was unbelievable to see such films. Thunderball in the 60’s was like Matrix in 2000, maybe with a stronger impact than the latter on audiences, popular culture and fashion.

Then we get YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE (1967). A disaster in space pushes humankind toward World War III, and only James Bond can prevent it in this magnificent, pull-out-all-the-stops movie spectacular. Sean Connery returns as Agent 007, who travels to Japan to stop the evil SPECTRE organization and its diabolical leader, Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Donald Pleasence), from instigating global warfare from his massive headquarters in an inactive volcano.

This was the fifth in the Bond series, released in 1967. Producer Albert Cubby Broccoli had quite a challenge on his hands outdoing the runaway success of Thunderball. He undertook to surpass it by increasing the budget, trying more elaborate gadgets and stunts (an ultralight heavily armed one-man helicopter being chased by 4 other helicopters), gargantuan sets (a launch pad inside a volcano) and exotic locations (Japan). At almost $10 million (that’s about $80 million in today’s dollars), this was one of the highest budgeted films at that time.

The movie was produced at a time when Sean Connery was growing tired of the role and the world was still in the midst of a massive 007 frenzy. And, in truth, this 007 adventure is where the series started to go off the rails. With each adventure, the James Bond franchise was put in a position of out-doing themselves with each successive film. Or, at least, that’s what they appear to have believed.

Lastly comes DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER (1971). A fortune in stolen diamonds thrusts James Bond into action in this thrilling adventure! Sean Connery returns as Agent 007 and teams up with the beautiful Tiffany Case (Jill St. John) to prevent his nemesis Blofeld (Charles Gray) from using the diamonds in a deadly laser satellite.

Personally, I thought this outing was a LOT of fun. Connery is perfect. My favorite Bond, if you hadn’t guessed by now. Charles Gray is a nice Blofeld. Kidd & Wint (Putter Smith, Bruce Glover) are enjoyably quirky henchmen. Jill St. John’s a great Bond girl. It’s got good action, hot women, a memorable Shirley Bassey theme song, and lots of humor.

Voluptuous Lana Wood’s Plenty O’Toole is one of the sexiest Bond girls ever. This is the one with Bambi & Thumper as well as Jimmy Dean, the sausage king! There’s a lot to like about it. If you’re someone who enjoys the Bond movies for colorful escapist adventure more than for dark espionage stories, you should like this as much as I do.