Dr. No - classic movie review
Dr. No
Plot: A resourceful British government agent seeks answers in a case involving the disappearance of a colleague and the disruption of the American space program.
Cast: Sean Connery, Ursula Andress, Bernard Lee
Director: Terence Young
Rating: PG (mild action violence)
Runtime: 1hr 50 mins
Release Date: Sunday 7th October 1962
The year is 1962. The Cuban Missile Crisis is as tense as it's ever been. Brazil have won the World Cup. Marilyn Monroe dies after a drug overdose. And the world is introduced to perhaps the greatest spy ever. The name's Bond. James Bond. After a string of successful novels, it was only going to have been a matter of time before Ian Fleming's stories of 007 would be transferred to film. This saying has been used for so many films but Dr. No really was the one that started it all and that's not just all 24 Bond films. Without Bond, we may never have had Bourne, Hunt (Mission: Impossible) or Kingsman. So to switch things up a little, every week, we'll be running down the Bond films all the way from 1962 to 2015. The good and the bad. The cheesy and the downright awful.
It's debatable but Sean Connery is the quintessential Bond. He might not be the best incarnation of the character in my opinion, but there's no denying how talented he is in the role and the fact that it launched both him and the character to super stardom. Yes, people may now take the piss out of his accent and it's become a common impression to make but Connery is the distinguished gentleman who had the ability to bring Bond to life from the pages of Fleming's books. Considering that the general public had never even come across 007 until Dr. No, Connery is a fantastic lead. With quips, cheeky one-liners and a suave persona that pulls the ladies, what Connery is able to with balancing the comedy and the seriousness when it's required is very impressive. The majority of all Bond films up until Timothy Dalton, are all tongue in cheek but Dr. No is probably the least comedy centric of Connery's era. Obviously it goes without saying, with any Bond film, there must be a Bond girl and there could be no Bond girl more iconic than Ursula Andress. The scene in which she emerges from the water was highly likely to have made young boys instantly go through puberty. Andress isn't exactly the greatest actress, in fact, she's pretty bad at times, but none of the early Bond girls needed to be acting at an Oscar winning calibre. As harsh as it sounds (especially in today's PC environment), they were hired to look pretty for Bond to sweep off their feet. And the way Bond flirts with women is a mixture of creepy and funny. His way of getting to sleep with women is about as questionable as Donald Trump's definition of locker room talk. Nonetheless, Andress is a memorable Bond girl even if she doesn't arrive until over an hour into the film and her inclusion makes little to no sense. Literally, she is collecting shells on the same island that Bond is using for spy business and somehow, she gets roped along risking her life. All she wanted was shells.
Of course, Bond films are known not just for the girls but also the menacing villains. Even though Joseph Wiseman doesn't appear as the titular Dr. No until the final twenty minutes, his presence is felt throughout especially in a great scene interrogating a colleague where only his voice is heard. From that moment, we are shown the fear that he can strike into people. Then, when we meet him, it is slightly underwhelming to see that Bond's first major threat is a small, weedy guy with metal hands. Clearly it was meant to present brains over brawn but then at the culmination, Dr. No and Bond do have a fist fight where both gain the upper hand at some point. Bearing in mind, this was well before the day of complex fight choreography but after his reveal, Wiseman didn't seem like that much of a threat to Bond. That being said, Wiseman played the role very well and it was clear that he was just pure evil. No need for remorse, Dr. No was just an evil dick. What this film did brilliantly is that it laid the groundwork for what was to come. As well as the little nuances that are commonplace in any Bond film (exuberant title sequence, the gun barrel introduction that we've all practised at home and the iconic quotes), Dr. No also introduced everyone to Bernard Lee as M, Jack Lord as Felix Leiter and Lois Maxwell as Miss Moneypenny, all three of which are recurring characters in the Bond universe.
FACT: After seeing an early screening of the film, James Bond author, Ian Fleming, described it as "Dreadful. Simply dreadful."
Having been released in 1962 but then made in 1961, it's inevitable that parts of Dr. No are going to be dated. As much as anyone may say, every film that has ever been titled as revolutionary in terms of effects or just overall story, will at some point be dated. There will come a day where films like Jurassic Park and Inception will be looked back upon and we'll say that it's dated. That's not to say it wasn't impressive for it's time but that's the natural course of history. With Dr. No, scenes like the car chases, supporting roles, extras and the fight scenes are not as refined as today's films. The car chases have clear green screen behind them and Bond frantically turning the wheel whilst the car doesn't budge an inch. Supporting roles and extras seem like they were hired for numbers rather than talent. Extras are sometimes looking directly at the camera and, in perhaps the most unintentionally funny part of the film, saxophone players are not even playing the saxophone yet we can hear saxophones. Sets wobble when someone shuts a door or goes against a wall and the fight scenes are very basic (punchy punchy kicky kicky) with many clear misses. I'm not denying that in 1962 when Dr. No came out, audiences were blown away by what they were watching but over fifty years since the release, I have to be honest and say that many parts do not hold up as well as they did back then. Another downfall of Dr. No is the actual story. It may have been the starting point for one of the most successful franchises and become an iconic landmark in the history of cinema but the plot is not at the standards of other Bond or even spy films in general. It basically consists of Dr. No wanting to do bad things across the world. It wasn't clear what his overall evil plan was nor how he would go about it. They spent so much time gathering information in Jamaica that when we meet Dr. No, his plan is rushed through. It literally is a destroy the world scenario but nothing is ever clear. It's very muddled and overly convoluted for what could be just a simple take over the world plan.
It may be dated, have a confusing story and lack the villain they were promising, but Dr. No is an undeniable achievement in creating a legacy. Connery makes a fantastic Bond and regardless of the cheese coated with extra cheese topped with more cheese, this is an exciting film and a great way to start this rundown.
My Verdict: 7.5/10
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