THAILAND – Bangkok, Wat Nang Chi Chotikaram at Khlong Dan // The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)

Don’t go to the wrong floating market – but the original one! The real place of the boat action in “The Man With the Golden Gun” is Khlong Dan. And it is perfectly hidden.

Why Bond was here
James Bond (Roger Moore) gets drugged by industrialist Hai Fat (Richard Loo) and pushed into a karate contest at the beautiful Dvaravati House. Some of Bangkok’s finest fighters are about to kick Bond’s butt, but he manages to escape. Outside the karate school is a khlong – the famous Bangkok canals – and Bond hits a longtail boat. The henchmen follow him, starting a cat and mouse game through Bangkok’s khlong system.

How you gonna get there
Many location blogs wrongfully claim, that the boat chase was filmed at Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, a famous tourist attraction 80 kilometers outside Bangkok. That’s not true. In reality the scenes had been filmed at Khlong Dan and his smaller sidearms – right inside Bangkok.
Khlong Dan is a big canal in Bangkok’s southern district Thonburi. Filming took place in front of Wat Nang Chi Chotikaram, a peaceful temple along Khlong Dans western shore and along the canal from Wat Mai Yai Nui in the north to Wat Nang Ratchawarawihan in the south. The scene with the elephant selling boy had been filmed around this spot here on the river.

You can easily reach the area with the BTS line, one of Bangkok’s two rivaling metro systems. Just take the dark green line heading to Bang Wa. Get off at station Wutthakat, Khlong Dan passes right underneath.

Good to know
It is understandable the area of the boat chase in “The Man With The Golden Gun” often gets confused with Damnoen Saduak Floating Market. In older times, Bangkok was traversed by khlongs – think of an Asian Venice. People used the small canals offside huge Chao Phraya River to trade goods and move in the huge city. Farmers sold their products straight from the boats.
As Bangkok grew bigger and more modern, many khlongs were filled up and replaced with streets. Only a few like Khlong Dan remained, the tradition of the boat traders as seen in the movie nearly faded away. For tourists, markets like Damnoen Saduak still remain – though farmers don’t really sell products anymore but rather rent their boats to visitors.

If you want to experience a floating market you can either visit Damnoen Saduak (busses runs from Victory Monument and need about two hours), or try to find a rare original one inside Bangkok. Talin Chang still operates, Khlong Lat Mayom is also a good little market. Or try Khlong Dan itself. Pandan Tours do boat cruises along the khlong, early morning is a good time to still see some traders rowing their boats over the gentle waters. If you are not lucky, don’t worry. Just sit back and enjoy the peaceful ride along the many small temples of Khlong Dan.

Take a little time to explore the neighborhood along Khlong Dan. It won’t be that peaceful and quite in the rest of Bangkok! And if you are already in the area: Head east into Thonburi district, home of the famous Sinn Sathorn Tower and the bike chase scenes from “Tomorrow Never Dies”.

© 2019 Huntingbond (1,3), © 1974 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. and Danjaq, LLC. The Spy Who Loved Me (2)