| “ | It's sure to be a beautiful day. Yes, sir; a beautiful day. | „ |
| ~ Samedi to Bond. |
Baron Samedi is a major antagonist in the James Bond film Live and Let Die. He is the primary henchman of Dr. Kananga and a master of Voodoo who has the reputation of being "The man who cannot die".
Samedi wears elaborate costumes resembling a Grim Reaper–like figure and is frequently surrounded by special effects and props to enhance the notion that he is supernatural, though the viewer assumes his powers are all fake.
However, after his supposed demise, Samedi is seen again shortly before the end of the movie, leaving the question whether he is truly immortal.
He was portrayed by the late Geoffrey Holder.
Biography[]
He is at first seen in a hotel on San Monique, entertaining the guests with his show.
While on the way to Kananga's heroin fields on San Monique, Bond and Solitaire stumble across a small abbey in the woods. There, Samedi, now without makeup and hat, sits on a tombstone and greets the two. He tells them that it sure is going to be a beautiful day. Bond and Solitaire continue their journey and after they are out of sight, Samedi warns Kananga with a radio built into his flute.
Samedi on San Monique.
After Bond has been captured in New Orleans and been brought to the crocodile farm, Samedi meets with Kananga while the latter confronts Solitaire for her betrayal as he wants to know why she betrayed him although he gave her everything and she lacked for nothing. She tells him that the cards foresaw it. He angrily smacks her to the ground, telling her that in proper time he would have given her love and that she knew that. He says that there is only one appropriate way to deal with this betrayal, to which Samedi draws the tarot card 'Death', laughing maniacally.
Samedi is encountered again when Kananga orders Solitaire to be executed during a voodoo ceremony. Though it initially seems that Solitaire is to be killed by the bite of a poisonous snake, the henchman holding the snake backs of in the last moment. A man with a hat then approaches a tombstone nearby and leaves it on the grave. After knocking on the tombstone with a machete three times, Samedi rises from the grave, the hat on his head. At this point Bond reveals himself and shoots Kananga's henchmen, including the one holding the snake.
Samedi with Solitaire.
When shooting Samedi in the head, the head simply breaks. After shooting the body multiple times it becomes clear that it wasn't the real Samedi but just a clay figure. After fighting more henchman, another motionless Samedi rises from another grave. Bond ignores him, deeming him another impostor, but Baron Samedi then opens his eyes and starts to laugh. He then takes the machete sword from the tombstone and engages Bond in a short fight, but Bond hits him in the stomach and knocks him back, causing Samedi to fall into the coffin full of poisonous snakes, where he is bitten multiple times. Eventually Samedi stops screaming and does not move anymore, and Bond believes him dead.
Bond then uses the machete sword to hit the tombstone three times. It is revealed that the tomb in fact is a hidden elevator and the mechanism brings Bond and Solitaire into Kananga's underground headquarters.
However, at the very end of the movie, Baron Samedi is seen riding on the front of the train that Bond and Solitaire are leaving on, laughing as the camera zooms in to focus on him while the credits start playing. This heavily implies that he is a supernatural being. However, it seemed as though that he held no ill-will toward Bond at this point as he does not try to kill Bond like Tee Hee.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Baron Samedi also appears in the bonus level, Egyptian, in the N64 video game GoldenEye 007. He is fought and "killed" in the level three times, and even after that appears yet again while leaving.
- He is based off the Haitian Vodou loa of the same name.
- He is one of a few James Bond villains who is, or implied to be, a paranormal entity.
- His actor, Trinidadian-American Geoffrey Holder, has a fear of snakes in real-life, just like the late Roger Moore (James Bond). Both actors hated to do scenes where snakes are present but only relented after they learned that the production coincided with a royal visit to Jamaica (the filming location) by Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy, and were informed that the aforementioned British royal will be visiting the set and would be watching the filming.
- Holder declined to perform the stunt of diving into the the snake-filled casket when his character is knocked by Bond into it, but only agreed to do so in order not to dismay a member of the Royal Family.
