Dr. No (1962)
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Dr. No (1962)
BOND#1: With His Walther PPK in Hand
starring SEAN CONNERY as James Bond 007
co-starring URSULA ANDRESS * JOSEPH WISEMAN as Dr. No * JACK LORD as Leiter
BERNARD LEE as M * ANTHONY DAWSON * LOIS MAXWELL as Moneypenny
Directed by TERENCE YOUNG
Then Bond himself, 007, is introduced or, actually, introduces himself (on his home ground of England) - a classic for the ages, as if the filmmakers knew he would still be thrilling us on film four decades later. Maybe they did.
Then the 1st appearances of M (male for the next 30 years or so) and Moneypenny, and we're off and running, for 50+ years and counting. Even the Q dept. shows up in M's office, but he's not called Q, yet (M refers to him as 'Armourer'); and, a different actor would take over in the next 15 or so Bonders. The repartee here would be revisited in most of the subsequent films and is very enjoyable. Later, we and Bond meet Leiter, Bond's CIA liaison, even though this was redone in the new Casino Royale version in 2006.
Bond's first mission on film (not counting the TV Casino Royale back in '54) was to Jamaica, where a local agent and his secretary have disappeared. As such, this first one had less scope than the epic adventures dominating the later sixties and onward, where the formula always entailed about three different locations scattered across the globe; Bond stayed in the Jamaica area for this entire mission. And, for most of the film, he was engaged in almost pure detective work, a skill which many feel was subsumed under gadgetry and huge sets as the film series went on. I suppose this can be viewed as a trade off when the budgets became much bigger.
Connery proves to be the best Bond right off the bat: you can see him out-thinking the villains scene to scene and he's arrogant enough to allow himself some self-knowing smirking as he foils their lethal plans over & over, yet it's not over the top; in fact, it can be quite chilling - Bond proves to be just as ruthless as the villains, a type of hero audiences were not, again, used to (Dirty Harry copied this attitude in the States almost a decade later). But, we cheer him on, knowing that if he was any nicer, he'd probably be terminated halfway through the story.
And, the arrogance - some of this just makes us shake our heads: near the end, when Bond is captured, he's still issuing orders to his captors (just before the decontamination scene). No wonder Bond wins at everything. From our modern perspective, one display of arrogance doesn't work too well - when Bond instructs his temporary sidekick, Quarrel, to fetch his shoes on the beach. Yet, the grief Bond displays at a later death would become all too rare in later Bonders, when the super agent had seemingly become too inured to his friends/girlfriends dying around him (btw, Quarrel, Jr. would pop up in Live and Let Die, 1973).
The epic, fantastic elements the film series is known for do not enter the picture here until the 2nd hour begins, involving such concepts as radioactivity and guidance rocket systems. Bond finally meets his main Bond girl, Ms. Ryder, coming out of the blue or out of the sea, take your pick. She is stunning, no doubt, and lends to this air of the unexpected, with some unusual character traits. There's also an encounter with a mechanical 'dragon' - the first of several bizarre tools used by villains in the Bond films, suggesting a slightly alternate world.
The main villain of the title and his awesome lair are not shown until even later - such large elements were given more exposure in many of the later films. This is all calculated to string the audience along in terms of suspense (we do hear Dr. No's ominous voice in an earlier scene) and then, hopefully, fulfill their expectations with some grand reveals.
By the way, SPECTRE is first mentioned, being the organization Dr. No serves, so it does suggest a series of films from the get go. Bond would return in From Russia With Love. Would Dr. No?
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BoG's Bond Scores: Bond:10 Villain:9 Femme Fatales:9 Henchmen:6 Leiter:8 Fights:8 Stunts/Chases:7 Gadgets:6 Auto:5 Locations:8 Pace:9 overall:8
Base of Galactic Science Fiction :: SCIENCE FICTION CINEMA :: Semi-Science Fiction Films :: Super Agents - James Bond and his ilk
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