A double-0 number. Licensed to kill. A vodka martini: shaken, not stirred. A Walther PBK. A beautiful goddess on one well-dressed arm.
Even if you hadn't read the title of this article or seen the poster above, you probably would have known that I was describing James Bond. Few fictional characters have become as iconic as 007. Bond's name means something: suave sophistication, high-tech gadgetry, smoldering charm, and cool violence.
Ian Fleming's original novels had a fairly large fan base (including John F. Kennedy), and they are important; after all, they introduced James Bond to the world. However, it's the movies that turned the character into an icon. It's hard to imagine that there was ever a time that Bond movies weren't being made; the franchise has been around for over fifty years. The series has proven to be incredibly resilient, surviving rotating actors and jarring changes in tone. On top of all that, let's not forget that the Bond franchise is the most successful in movie history, having earned over 13 billion dollars for MGM, United Artists, and Eon Productions, the company that produces the series.
What has made the Bond film franchise so iconic? We'll find out in this series! We'll take each Bond film, one by one, and dissect them, looking at each element and seeing what makes them tick. In this article, we'll delve into the film that started it all: 1962's Dr. No!
The Story
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| MI6's John Strangways (Timothy Moxon), just before his death. |
The place: Kingston, Jamaica. John Strangways, the station chief of British Intelligence's Jamaican branch, leaves his bridge game at the Queens Club so he can make his radio appointment with his London officials. He never makes it to his meeting: he's murdered in the Queens Club parking lot by the Three Blind Mice, a team of assassins. The same assassins go to Strangways's house, where they murder Strangways's secretary. The men break into the house and go to Strangways's study. They open the file cabinet and remove two files: one marked Crab Key and the other Doctor No. (Cue dramatic music!)
Back in London, MI6 is going nuts over Strangways's disappearance. You see, Strangways was collaborating with American CIA agent Felix Leiter (Jack Lord) on a major case. The U.S.'s Cape Canaveral rockets are being toppled after launch by a mysterious radio signal. Said signal seems to be coming from Jamaica. MI6 needs to find out what Strangways knew. There's only one man for such a dangerous mission...
"Bond. James Bond."
After receiving a message during his baccarat game, Bond (the great Sean Connery) leaves to report to his superior, M (Bernard Lee). (Not before he trounces and flirts with his beautiful opponent, though!) Bond leaves on the next flight to Kingston, where he's immediately placed in danger. Within seconds of his plane landed, a shady photographer snaps his photo and a mysterious chauffeur offers to give him a ride, even though no car was sent by Jamaican officials. 007 gets the drop on the chauffeur, but the chauffeur would rather commit suicide with a cyanide-laced cigarette than face his angry boss.
While searching Strangways's house, Bond discovers a photo of the dead agent posing with Quarrel (John Kitzmiller), a local charter-boat captain. 007 initially thinks Quarrel is an enemy, but it turns out that he's actually an ally; he had been collaborating with Felix Leiter and Strangways as they investigated the island of Crab Key and its mysterious owner, Dr. Julius No. Leiter, Quarrel, and Bond team up to continue the investigation.
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| The tremendous trio: Felix Leiter (Jack Lord), James Bond (Sean Connery), and Quarrel (John Kitzmiller). |
Unfortunately, Bond's life becomes more endangered the longer he hangs around Kingston. The attempts on his life come quick on each other's heels: poisonous spiders in his bed, almost being run off a cliff-side road, and good, old-fashioned shootings. Eventually, 007 becomes tired of being a sitting duck and decides to embark for Crab Key to confront Dr. No directly. Quarrel joins him.
The morning after their arrival, Bond and Quarrel meet Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress), the first-ever Bond Girl. Whoa, Nellie.
Honey Ryder is an innocent bystander, a seashell-hunter who happened to come to Crab Key on a VERY bad day. Luckily, she's no shrinking violet; rather, she's a smart, resourceful young lady who helps lead Bond and Quarrel to Dr. No's hideout. Unfortunately, they're pursued by Dr. No's stooges. Said stooges are determined to grab the intruders and deliver them to their evil leader (Joseph Wiseman). They do. And that's where I leave you to watch the rest of the film for yourself.
The Script
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| Richard Maibaum, the writer who created "Movie Bond." |
Should you read Ian Fleming's original novels, you'll find that "Book Bond" is very different than "Movie Bond." Book Bond isn't particularly handsome. He's doesn't strike out with the women, but he's not Casanova. He's a perfectly nondescript man. So where did Movie Bond come from? Well, a lot of people contributed to Movie Bond's birth, but none were more influential than writer Richard Maibaum. Maibaum wrote or co-wrote 13 of the 16 Bond films released from 1962 to 1989, creating the character and his persona in the process
Obviously, Maibaum hadn't written a Bond script before Dr. No. It shows; 007's character is still vague in a lot of ways. Bond likes women, but he's not really a womanizer yet. He doesn't use any gadgets besides his gun. However, all the elements that would define Movie Bond are there in a germinal form. Think of Dr. No's 007 as proto-Movie Bond, and you'll have the right idea!
The Dr. No screenplay sticks to Fleming's novel very closely, something that would become a rarity as Maibaum tailored Movie Bond. Maybe it's lucky, however, that Maibaum stuck to Fleming's novel so closely. The movie stuck so closely to the novel that it convinced Fleming that his novels were in good hands!
The Acting
Ah, Sean Connery as James Bond. For many people (including myself), he's the definitive 007. No other Bond actor has been able to combine the womanizing and the jokes with the cool, violent side of 007 better than Connery. In Dr. No, Connery feels particularly dangerous. Sure, the charm is still there, but there's always an undercurrent of deadliness to Connery's performance. From the first moment you see him, you KNOW that 007 is a man who will not hesitate to kill all the villains he meets. And you're right.
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| Joseph Wiseman (with his unconvincing metal hands) as our villain, Dr. Julius No. |
Unfortunately, the two other marquee performances aren't as well-executed as Connery's. Joseph Wiseman is particularly stiff as the title character, Dr. Julius No. Granted, Wiseman appears in a mere two scenes, and one of them gives him a boring, exposition-filled monologue. However, Wiseman doesn't do the material any favors with his bored performance; he sounds as if he's reading his dialogue straight off the page. Ursula Andress isn't much better as Honey Ryder, but I'm inclined to cut her a little more slack; this was only her first English-language feature film and fourth feature film overall.
Really, the best acting in the film comes from the supporting actors, particularly Jack Lord as Felix Leiter and John Kitzmiller as Quarrel. Jack Lord plays the CIA agent with just a touch of swagger and confidence; it forms a subtle undercurrent that authentically establishes the character as American. (I'm an American, so I can say that.) John Kitzmiller is EXCELLENT as Quarrel; he almost steals the show out from under Connery, and that's saying a lot! He brings a lot of Jamaican local color and amiability to the role, and it goes a long way!
The Music
Dr. No's music is different than most Bond soundtracks in that there are more songs than there is score. That may be a good or a bad thing, depending on how much you like calypso music. I happen to love it, so the soundtrack is heavenly to me! Above, you'll find my favorite song from the film.
Interestingly, Dr. No's score was NOT written by John Barry, the famous composer who created most of the Bond soundtracks. Barry did serve as arranger, but the music was written by Monty Newman, a friend of producer Albert R. Broccoli. Most of the score is unremarkable; it just doesn't have the brassy, over-the-top vibe that Barry's Bond music would boast. The sole exception is the famous "James Bond Theme," which you can find below! (You've probably heard it before, but it's always worth listening to again!)
Final Thoughts & Rating
It's difficult to look at Dr. No objectively, especially after seeing all that the James Bond franchise would become. It's obvious that the filmmakers weren't sure how to handle the character; he was more violent and more blatantly sexual than any movie hero had been before, so the crew was treading carefully.
I find this film a lot rougher than the Bond films to come. I don't know about you, but when I think of a 007 flick, I think of something slick and glossy, luxurious and glamorous. Dr. No isn't any of those things, and I like it for being different! 007 feels a little more deadly here, the world feels more real, and the emotional scenes are more visceral.
Is Dr. No my favorite Bond film? No, but I love it for what it is and for what it started. If you haven't seen it, please do so!
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