On Her Majesty's Secret Service was Lazenby's first acting role. When he was cast, he was a successful model, best known for a Fry's Chocolate Ice Cream advertisement. Prior to modeling, Lazenby was a car salesman.
During the 1969 publicity tour for the film, Lazenby announced that he would not be continuing as Bond. Fans were shocked and Lazenby's life would never be the same.
I recently watch/reviewed On Her Majesty's Secret Service to prepare for this documentary.
Director Josh Greenbaum turns the camera on Lazenby to tell his life story. Lazenby speaks directly to the camera and occasionally pauses to answer questions posed by Greenbaum. While he tells his story, the events are reenacted. Jason Maybaum is George as a child, then Matthew Josten takes on his teenage years. Josh Lawson, who starred on TV's House of Lies and is a recurring character on Superstore, is George as a adult. As the film progresses, they also add Lazenby's commercials (the actual clips) and videos of some of his Bond interviews.
The story is remarkable, causing Greenbaum to interrupt and ask if the story is true. Lazenby is a charismatic narrator and even though part of the story (him becoming Bond, him leaving the role) are well known, you still want to see what will happen next. It doesn't change my opinions about On Her Majesty's Secret Service, but it was a fascinating documentary... and it sheds some light on the man that played Bond once and walked away.
Becoming Bond (2017) 92 minutes
Director: Josh Greenbaum
Starring: George Lazenby
Josh Lawson as George (reenactment)
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