Dr. No (1962)

Happy April, everyone!  Welcome back to my James Bond marathon!  Today, I'll be reviewing the first official Bond film, Dr. No (1962).

SYNOPSIS:
Strange radio signals have been throwing NASA's space rockets at Cape Canaveral off course.  British spies were investigating a potential lead down in Jamaica when they suddenly went missing.  MI6, the secret head department of British Intelligence, sends their best agent, James Bond (Sean Connery) - code name 007 - to investigate their disappearance.  Along the way, Bond meets up with a CIA agent, Felix Leiter (Jack Lord), a local fisherman named Quarrel (John Kitzmiller), and Honey Rider (Ursula Andress), a woman hunting for seashells who gets caught up in the action.  Together, the group must track down the mysterious Chinese man, Dr. No (Joseph Wiseman) and uncover his secret plot to destabilize the world!

REVIEW:
This film, being the very first official Bond film, introduced several characters who would continue to make appearances throughout the history of the films.  James Bond being the biggest, but also his American CIA agent counterpart, Felix Leiter; his boss at MI6, M (Bernard Lee); and M's secretary, Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell), who would spend years pursuing Bond but never getting more than flirtatious affection from him.

James Bond's first introduction to the big screen

This film also introduced the secret terrorist organization, SPECTRE (Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge, and Extortion).  They would go on to become one of the greatest antagonists that James Bond battles with.  However, due to a real-world legal battle, they disappeared from later films.  But I'll get more in detail about that in later reviews.

This first Bond film is a classic, bringing you back to the simpler times of the early '60s.  There are no fancy gadgets involved.  James Bond is forced to give up his trusty Beretta handgun in exchange for the government-issued Walther PPK, which would become his standard-issue gun throughout the film series. And that's it; no other gadgets or secret toys.  He's sent on assignment to find out what happened to his fellow agents in Jamaica and uncover the secret radio disturbances.  The US is planning to send their next rocket to the moon, which requires very precise coordinates, so Bond is on a tight deadline.

Along the way, he seduces a couple women, bests a few assassins, and eventually finds himself in the secret lair of Dr. No, where he has to find a way to shut him down for good.

Honey Rider and James Bond

What I love about this film is the pacing.  Unlike modern action films that have non-stop action, only pausing to insert some exposition for the audience, this film takes its time.  You watch Bond go through the entire investigation process.  He finds clues that eventually point him toward his destination, but getting there is the story.  In this 2-hour film, he doesn't even meet Dr. No until the last 20 minutes!

There are wonderful stretches where you watch a process unfold, rather than cutting straight to the action.  For instance, there's a point where a henchman goes to warn Dr. No that Bond is on their trail.  But it doesn't cut to him talking to Dr. No.  Instead, you see him leave his office, go down to the docks, explain to a boatman why it's essential he "break protocol" and visit Dr. No, travel to an island, in-process on arrival, and be escorted to a dark room, where he FINALLY gets to talk to the boss.  It gives so much room to just observe the story and process it, without holding your hand from plot point to plot point.  Which is the whole point of a visual medium; show, don't tell.

Felix Leiter and James Bond meet for the first time

It's also interesting to note that in this film, which released in 1962, Cape Canaveral was trying to send a mission to the Moon.  It wouldn't be until 1969 when we actually land on the Moon.  So making a successful mission to the Moon was a big deal at the time of this film's release; part of the motivation for Bond to succeed in his mission, and a big motivator for the villain to ensure it didn't happen.

Dr. No himself is the first Bond villain with a sinister style/defect.  His hands are both metal.  I assume they're robotic, as he can move his fingers and grab things, but it's never clearly expressed.  He just refers to them as accidents caused in pursuit of his goals.  He also wears a traditional gray Asian suit with a high collar, which would later be the inspiration for Dr. Evil's gray jumpsuit in the Austin Powers films.  The character of Dr. Evil, however, would be based off the actual leader of SPECTRE, who we will learn about in tomorrow's review.

Dr. No and his metal hands

Finally, this film started the famous gun barrel opening scene, followed by the film's theme music set to dancing silhouettes of women.  Every James Bond film is known for their beautiful orchestral theme song that matches the time period in which it was released.  But the main theme for this film became the standard James Bond theme for the rest of the franchise.  Regardless of which film you're watching, the "James Bond Theme" song can be found playing in one form or another.  Easily one of the most recognizable musical riffs today.  Here's the title sequence for this film in its entirety:

RECOMMENDATION:
This film is a masterpiece, introducing the famous Ian Fleming novels to the big screen.  Despite being the first official movie, the story of Dr. No was actually Ian Fleming's 6th book in his series.  You'll learn that the movies definitely have a signature style for the stories/characters that differ from the books.  And in some cases only use the title of a book while presenting its own unique story.  Back then, loyalty to the source material wasn't a big deal.  What mattered was how moviegoers would enjoy the films, and they were a hit!  This film spawned a franchise that is still going to this day, 58 years later.  If you haven't seen this very first James Bond film, you should!

Random Trivia: Sean Connery started balding at 21 years old.  By the time he filmed Dr. No, he was 32 and had to wear partial wigs.  Throughout his entire time as James Bond (and most of his young acting career), he wore wigs.  It wasn't until he was really old and gray that he fully embraced his bald head.  For years, I didn't realize that Indiana Jones' elderly father in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) was the same actor as James Bond in these early Bond films.