James Bond Wiki
Register
Advertisement
James Bond Wiki
Header_Tag_Spacer.png
Cinematic Tag


"Aren't we a little over dressed Goodnight?"
"I like a girl in a bikini, no concealed weapons.
"
James Bond and Francisco Scaramanga[src]

Mary Goodnight is a fictional inexperienced field operative and the main Bond Girl in the 1974 James Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun. Portrayed by Swedish actress Britt Ekland, Goodnight is based on the literary character who appeared in several Ian Fleming's novels.

Biography[]

Mary Goodnight is a Secret Service staffer, more ditzy than in the novels, who assists James Bond when he is following Andrea Anders in Hong Kong. Very quickly it is established that she has as-yet unfulfilled desires toward Bond.

"Now, Goodnight, would I do that to you?"
"Yes, James, you bloody well would!
"
James Bond and Mary Goodnight[src]

After Goodnight shows Bond where Miss Anders is staying, she hopes to spend the evening with Bond, but 007 declines, as he has his meeting with Hai Fat. Goodnight later avoids Bond's advances, as she sees that he just has pity on her.

Her playing hard to get doesn't last long, and goes to meet Bond in his room anyway. She is then embarrassingly pushed into the wardrobe of Bond's hotel room when Miss Anders enters Bond's bedroom. Goodnight falls asleep in the closet as Anders and Bond have sex; after Anders leaves, Bond wakes Goodnight and condescendingly tells her "Your turn will come, I promise." After this event, Goodnight becomes cold in her attitude towards Bond, particularly when interacting with him in Scaramanga's presence.

"What time is it?"
"Twoish."
"Two? You mean I've been asleep in there for two hours?"
"I was just finishing business."
"Business? I'm resigning in the MORNING!
"
― Mary Goodnight and James Bond[src]

At the meeting point with Miss Anders, Goodnight takes control of the Solex, but whilst placing a homer on Francisco Scaramanga's AMC Matador, she is spotted by Scaramanga himself and pushed into the car's boot (trunk). Upon reaching Scaramanga's island, Goodnight becomes Scaramanga's new mistress. Knowing Goodnight is a potential threat due to her MI6 training, Scaramanga forces her to wear a bikini at all times to prevent her from carrying concealed weapons, as well as to eliminate all confidence through the psychological effect of being half-naked in front of her enemies. Although his prisoner, Scaramanga is polite to her and offers her all the luxuries the island has to offer. She spends the next few days sunbathing, swimming and dining with Scaramanga. Although she starts to enjoy her new luxurious lifestyle and Scaramanga's hospitality, her will is not easily broken by her new master and maintains hope that she will be rescued. One day she is ordered to eat lunch with Scaramanga and to her surprise and delight, Bond has arrived on the island. During the meal, Goodnight compliments Scaramanga's hospitality with a bitter tone while glaring at Bond, hinting to him that she blames him for her imprisonment. She then quickly becomes worried when Scaramanga challenges Bond to a duel.

During the duel of the two, Goodnight is guarded by Scaramanga's maintenance man, Kra, who delightfully observes the young woman's incredible beauty. Uncomfortable with this, Goodnight sheepishly crosses her arms in an attempt to cover her exposed midriff. As Bond's duel continues, Kra starts caressing Goodnight, much to her disgust, but fortunately he stops when a technical problem demands his attention, though he orders Goodnight to accompany him. Eventually, she senses an opportunity to escape and knocks him into a pool of liquid helium. Following Scaramanga's defeat, Bond and Goodnight are reunited and head on to retrieve the Solex. Bond is surprised when he learns Goodnight took Kra down all by herself, but becomes worried when he realizes that her actions caused a chemical reaction that is waiting to blow up the plant. Goodnight apologizes for her ignorance but Bond ignores her as he hurries down a shaft to retrieve the Solex. As Goodnight bends over to observe him, she accidentally pushes a button on a control panel with her buttock, which activates a beam that prevents Bond from getting the Solex. Goodnight manages to shut it down, Bond retrieves the Solex and the two manage to escape and after dealing with Nick Nack, Goodnight manages to finish what she started with Bond aboard Scaramanga's personal Chinese Dhow (slow boat from China).

Personality[]

As a British Secret Service liaison, Mary Goodnight is a courageous woman who can hold her own even with men. However, due to her inexperience, she is often insecure and unsure of herself, resulting in her being clumsy in many areas, to the point of being more of a nuisance than an asset to the agents she assists like James Bond. Goodnight is also naïve, inexperienced and lacking in general knowledge; for example, she does not know how a solar power plant works. Goodnight seems to like to joke around on her missions, but her sense of humour is quite sarcastic as she uses it mostly when she is angry. Despite this, her dedication more than make up for her clumsiness, making her a funny and very endearing person. She has also shown to be strong-willed, being able to resist Scaramanga's attempts to break her will as she became his captive and maintained hope that MI6 will come for her. She is also known to be feisty and carries grudges, as evidenced by how she blamed Bond for her imprisonment on Scaramanga's island.

Gallery[]

Mary Goodnight (Britt Ekland)/Gallery

Trivia[]

  • Mary Goodnight is the Bond girl to spend the longest amount of screen time in a bikini.
  • Mary Goodnight is the second Bond girl to reject Bond's advances (even if its only brief). This was also cleverly helped by having the extras in the scene conveniently applaud at the line for something in the background.
  • Britt wore different shoes in between being on the set and promotional photoshoots.

See also[]

References[]

Advertisement