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This movie certainly improves on Dr No, depsite the lack of action scenes and the grand finale that Dr No had. It relies more on the story and the perfomances of all actors involved. It's a super movie and, quite correctly, will finish above Dr No in my final rankings. I have to say that watching it for this Bondathon has made me appreciate it even more than I already did. Super movie.
Actor & Character Elements
Bond and Actor Performance:
I think it’s safe to say that with both Dr. No and From Russia with Love, we have the two prime representations of Sean Connery’s greatest work as Fleming’s character that are cornerstone performances in the franchise at large. These are Connery’s deepest, meatiest, more resonant takes on the character in scripts that feel like true to form spy thrillers that give him some great stuff to play with, sans any silliness.
I view Sean’s performance in From Russia with Love as a strong continuation of all he did in Dr. No, to such fruitful results. In Dr. No he was a man very much on his own in a game of deceit, and, while Bond has a bigger team working with him this time around thanks to Kerim’s network of spies-very much a literal and figurative family unit-what made Bond shine as a character in the first adventure is still here in opulence.
So much of what we get in From Russia with Love is a delicious continuation of the greatness of Dr. No:
Bond’s arrival at the airport in Istanbul resembles Bond’s touching down in Jamaica in the previous film, where he arrives unsure of who to trust as he is tailed from the airport to his destination. Another fantastic Dr. No callback occurs when Bond investigates his hotel room checking for bugs. The latter scenes are some of my favorites in both films, because they are quiet little moments that really speak volumes of Bond as a character, and detail just how dangerous the spy world can be when you’re always being watched or listened in on.
Bond doesn’t get as many opportunities to showcase his 12-steps-ahead tenacity here as in Dr. No-largely because the film needs to have him duped by the SPECTRE plot surrounding him for a good chunk of the film-but many moments allow him to shine as a character and strong man of action and resourcefulness. The gypsy camp fight is rousing fun and chaotic, with Bond holding his own throughout, and I love that he lies to Tatiana about the date that the Lektor retrieval is to go down (the13th) to make sure the Russians can’t prepare ahead of time to foil his plans.
There’s also a great feeling of fun in Sean’s demeanor throughout; he seems like he’s really getting a kick out of the shoot, and that comes through in scenes where he’s interacting with other characters. Sean’s thrills make Bond’s blooming friendship with Kerim feel extremely genuine as they share laughs and smiles through all the danger. A highlight of Sean’s performance for me comes during the gypsy camp belly dance scene where, for one second, Sean breaks conviction and starts laughing while watching the dancer. It’s a blink-and-you-miss-it moment, but is completely genuine and it creates a sense of camaraderie between Bond, Kerim and all the gypsies that resonates off the screen.
With all this in consideration, the greatest essence Sean conveys in his performance as Bond here can be best described by one word: “predatory.” The animal magnetism we saw in Sean’s Bond from Dr. No returns to amazing effect, and the best way I can describe From Russia with Love as a film is by comparing Bond and his enemies to wild beasts wrestling for supremacy in an untamed jungle. Everything about this film feels animalistic, beast-like, untamed, wild. Bond is every inch a preying panther slinking his way through Istanbul, setting his sights always on the Lektor. He enters every situation with darting eyes like an animal mapping out the terrain, plotting like the panther for the kill that’ll give it another feast. Even in more tame and “fun” moments like the gypsy belly dance, Bond gazes at the dancer like a lion trying to mate in the wild, starving for the sensuality presenting itself to him in the form of the dancer’s gyrations.
There’s also a great sense of fury we get to see build up in Bond here, as the conspiracy surrounding him grows more and more apparent over time. From the very moment that he steals the Lektor from the consulate and races on to the train to the instant he kills Grant, we have one of the all time greatest chains of scenes in a Bond film that will ever come. This section of the film is what makes it a classic, gives it that “Hitcockian” vibe, and is littered with duplicity, danger and death, so in tune with the depths of darkness Bond occupies as a spy.
It’s during these scenes where Sean goes into full-on Bond mode, and the man of danger we saw in Dr. No storming around Jamaica in full control returns, but less confident and more furious and untamed. In From Russia with Love it’s a real treat to watch Bond’s demeanor change over time in how Sean plays him. At first he feels secure in his mission and he makes plans with Kerim to ensure all is in order, promising to drink to their successes while in London. But Bond has yet to account for Grant, the man who has been in the shadows acting unnoticed during the entire film, and before long SPECTRE’s agent will have unraveled all that Bond has orchestrated like a finely tuned killing instrument.
Kerim’s death signals to Bond that not all is right on the Orient Express or in his mission, crystallizing that the simple trap he and M counted on before is much deeper than a simple skirmish of Brits and Ruskies. At this point in the film, Bond knows he’s caught in something bigger than he at first prepared for, and doesn’t quite know the full extent of the trap even yet. Connery’s performance is filled with increasing paranoia, as Bond expresses the feeling like he’s being watched. Now, when Bond sees Tatiana after Kerim’s death, he tears open the carriage door and is done playing lothario. In his mind, she is the one who’s been playing him and he has reason to think she helped engineer the man’s death, consciously or unconsciously. Bond’s face after Tatiana says “I love you” following their confrontation says it all. He’s been here before, you see it in his eyes.
The carriage confrontation between the spy and Tatiana continues into Bond’s meeting with Grant, who is filling the guise of Nash, as everything comes to a head. Little by little red flags register in Bond’s head until it’s too late to act and Grant has him caught in the crosshairs.
The entire train exchange between Bond on his knees and Grant with his gun pointed square at him is amazing, representing the pinnacle of Sean as Bond as well as one of the best scenes in the whole franchise. The plan all comes into the clear here and Bond’s ego is done in a bit by Grant. Bond has been had, and even in the face of death itself, he’s interviewing Grant about the kind of tactics the man employed to learn about how he slipped up and got in the rough spot he now finds himself in. Then the conversation turns more sick when Grant seems to be enjoying himself a bit too much, which Bond responds badly to. The increasing levels of anger and disgust on Sean’s face here is the stuff of legend. Bond can’t wait to kill this bastard. The look of disgust in his Bond’s eyes, mixed with the genuine fear of death are immaculate, and Bond’s last minute ingenuity to level the odds equal between him and Grant equally so. The iconic scenes closes with great acting from Sean as he fixes his suit after Grant roughed it up, pilfering his still-warm corpse and barking a contemptible “old man” back at the psycho in retaliation for all the times he’d had to hear it up to that point in the film.
In conclusion, Sean refines all the iconic and masterful work he did in Dr. No in From Russia with Love, except this time around Bond is a little more vulnerable, a little more over his head in a larger conspiracy, and it’s fascinating to watch him dart between crosshairs as his devastating act against Dr. No and SPECTRE at the end of the last film comes back to haunt him. We don’t get to see Bond until around 20 minutes into this film, but Sean sells every scene afterward to marvelous effect.
Bond Girl and Performance:
Tatiana Romanova- This particular watch of From Russia with Love really opened me up to some of the great character details the filmmakers were trying to use to build up Tatiana more as a character. I think that we would be hard pressed to find a Bond girl who is as genuine, natural, raw and real a Bond girl as Tatiana. She’s a beautiful woman who evokes a nice appeal, but she isn’t purposely represented as a Venus like goddess as Honey in Dr. No is meant to be, which almost separates Ryder from us into an unattainable fantasy. Instead, From Russia with Love delivers us a girl who is ordinary and grounded, and whose actions feel true to what you would expect from such a woman unknowingly caught in a dangerous spy game.
For a woman used to only modeling (being a first-runner up in the 1960 Miss Universe pageant) and ballet, Daniela Bianchi conveys a convincing innocence needed for this part. Voice dubber Barbara Jefford gives Bianchi’s performance a wonderful voice, sultry at times, and Russian enough without sacrificing a certain air of grace.
A few character moments I noticed throughout From Russia with Love that build Tatiana up in this image:
*When Bond and Tatiana first meet in the hotel room, she almost seems awkward and shy in getting off her clothes, like she isn’t used to this sort of seduction, while Bond wrote the book on this kind of passionate mating ritual. If you look at Tatiana in this scene, her clothes are on the floor and the chair was presumably knocked down as she rushed to prepare herself in the bed for Bond. Her desire to impress is endearing, and sort of adorable. From her opening discussion with Klebb we know Tatiana is the type to fall in hard love with men, but she doesn’t make a habit of sleeping around. She feels commitment minded like a real Russian woman, so when she’s asked to fake a connection for her job, it’s understandable that she’s not effortlessly falling into it. I like this about Tatiana, and how innocent and awkward she feels while seducing Bond, like she’s never sure she’s doing the ritual right. She differs wonderfully from other Bond girls who almost feel too experienced or too “perfect” in their seductions of Bond. We feel all the anxiety of the moment with Tatiana, and because she’s a sweet girl and not an intimidating sexual force, it’s easy to get behind her cause.
It seems Bianchi was embarrassed and nervous on set as this scene was being shot, always worried she would show too much skin if the sheets slipped a certain way. The real life worries Bianchi had transmit perfectly to the screen and, intended or not, give the scene added layers.
It’s also from this moment in the film that Bond always calls Tatiana “Tania,” endearingly, instead of by her full name. For all the times Bond seems frustrated by her, he does seem to get on with her well and genuinely cares about her well-being, until his feelings are questioned as SPECTRE’s hand is revealed.
*A growing connection with Bond seems visible in Tatiana’s words and body language as she and 007 discuss the Lektor decoder on the boat traveling down the Bosphorus. Tatiana seems through the roof in love with Bond, while he knows his mission and what M needs to hear about the Lektor and is trying to keep her focused. It’s visible how frustrated he is by the seemingly lovesick Tatiana who keeps going off on tangents from the crucial information MI6 need to hear about the decoder.
*Another great thing I noticed in this viewing of From Russia with Love is how much of a culture clash character Tatiana is throughout. She seems extremely fascinated by western life (I guess as any women would be from the Soviet Union) and attracted to Bond’s foreign appeal. Moreover, once she gets an American name on her passport (Caroline Somerset), she visibly repeats it lovingly over and over again with enthusiasm as Bond and Kerim make plans for later. It’s a great little character detail that depicts her in love with a new identity beyond her own.
Tatiana must feel a sense of freedom with the western culture open to her through her partnership with Bond, which is enabling her to do what she wants outside of the stricter control she could’ve grown to accept in the Soviet state. She has no idea about western customs, and its clear from her ignorance about the dresses she’s wearing. She is also adorably lost while trying to decide what to order on the menu, so Bond decides to get her what he’s having to move things along. Again, she is culturally blind to anything non-Russian. The elation she exudes outside of Klebb’s hold and the larger Soviet state are clear, which makes me think Tatiana is the biggest representation of a culture clash character we’ve got in Bond, not too dissimilar from Kara Milovy in The Living Daylights. Both women are also innocent and in over their heads, stupidly in love with Bond. I think Kara was purposely and actively meant to recall Tatiana in how she was characterized and portrayed.
Overall, I really enjoy Tatiana as a character and Bond girl. She feels real yet mysterious at the same time, because at times it’s hard to know whether or not her motivations rest with Bond or Klebb, making her tough to pin down. It’s interesting to watch how Tatiana’s demeanor changes around Bond and Klebb respectively throughout, as there’s a great mystery in how she really feels. Is she truly falling for Bond and neglecting her mission from Klebb to help him, or is she faking the affection to get Bond into a vulnerable position to fulfill her duty to the Russian state?
This inner confiict I sense with Tatiana is best underscored as Bond is wrestling with Klebb in the hotel room, and she wavers the pistol between shooting one or the other of them, when the choice should be easy for her to make at this point, since she seems like she’s been shot with Cupid’s arrow and loves Bond. Maybe she thinks that if she kills Klebb, SPECTRE will have her head on a pike in retaliation?
I don’t think we ever get a clear sign of Tatiana’s inner struggle, or what side she is fighting for until she chooses to kill Klebb, but that is all part of what makes her fascinating.
Bond Henchman and Performance:
Kronsteen- This master calculator played by Vladek Sheyba reminds me very much of Mads Mikkelson’s Le Chiffre. His egotism is so pronounced, deliciously so, and I enjoy watching his plans fall under the weight of his miscalculations on account of Bond every time I pop in From Russia with Love.
Following the PTS, Kronsteen is the first person we see, and I love how the film opens proper with the chess game he is playing that is very symbolic of the spy game Bond plays, and the trap he’ll be placed in the middle of during the movie with so many moving pieces and moments of checkmate throughout. If there’s any Bond film that feels like watching a chess game played by two maestro players as they move pieces strategically to usurp enemy control of the board until victory is reached, it’s From Russia with Love.
I love how once Kronsteen gets the note and knows he’s expected by SPECTRE, he almost seems to finish his opponent early just to make the appointment. This makes me think that he’s such a skilled chess player that he has to reign himself in to avoid playing his best with lesser opponents just to entertain himself and make the game worth watching for others. His arrogance is mighty.
His death is magnificent. A simple moment of biting tension when he thinks he’s arguing for Klebb’s demise instead of his own. He and Bond never meet in person, but I love how 007 still manages to write his death certificate, as indirect an action as it is.
Rosa Klebb- Lotte Lenya is in fine form here as a menacing bitch of a woman, a true metal heel of the Soviet and now SPECTRE ranks.
Throughout the film Klebb is characterized chillingly as an invasive woman. She backs down from nothing and boars her way into the personal zones of others to get the information she needs. Her meeting with Tatiana is the perfect example of her invasive personality. The scene carries a tense and uncomfortable mood as Tatiana’s privacy is demolished and Klebb closes in on her physically and mentally to ensure she has control over the girl and can count on her to follow the orders she’s been given.
Even creepier is later on in the film when, unbeknownst to Bond or Tatiana, Klebb is having a sex tape filmed of them in secret from behind the bedroom glass. Klebb is locked in to the moment, and you can feel her eyes piercing Tatiana in a way that clearly relates her true sexuality and attraction to the woman to the audience. She’s using the sex tape as a perfect opportunity to get off on her kink, in a very uncomfortable and creepy fashion. She’s the pinnacle voyeur Bond villain.
Her demise is magnificent, as well, though the overacting on Lenya’s part after she is shot is amusing. I still get a bit hot under the collar and feel the tension as Klebb’s knife shoe brushes the legs of Bond as he tries to block her in with the chair. No matter how many times I watch the film, I always worry Bond is about to be stuck by the point!
Grant- If there’s ever been a perfect adversary in every way to Bond in this franchise, it is in the form of Donald Grant. This Bondathon viewing of From Russia with Love only confirmed how much I love this character even more. He’s a predator like Bond, a complete animal with equal skills in resourcefulness, cunning, brutality and ability. The thing that sinks him, however, is his confidence as he gets too complacent with his plan coming to fruition, and slips up just enough for Bond to level the field and kill him.
It’s amazing just how much this film does to build up Grant as Bond’s true doppelgänger throughout, reinforcing the idea that these two are perfect matches for each other, building up to that great face-off between them on the Orient Express. In many scenes Grant’s suits seem ripped from Bond’s closet, as he rotates through the same repeating wardrobe of gray suits with white or blue shirts and black or blue ties. His style seems heavily picked from Bond’s own, almost consciously so, like he’s studied Bond so intensely in order to know how to kill him that he’s unintentionally absorbed some of Bond’s style along with his voracious study. We know that Grant killed at least one man to get information on Bond before the SPECTRE mission, so it’s not difficult to image that Grant knows Bond so well he’s unconsciously copied his wardrobe. In addition, Grant knew he’d have to pose as a British agent at one point in the mission, so he may have adopted Bond’s British dress sense to fall into that role with greater, more convincing ease. I love the idea of Grant actively aping Bond, like an animal studying its prey so that it can effectively fit into its ecosystem to strike at it when the opportunity is prime. These details are one of the many reasons this film feels predatory in nature, as it’s packed to the brim with scheming, double-scheming, assassination attempts, mating rituals and more beastly acts than can be counted.
Overall, Grant carries a feeling of intense danger in From Russia with Love, acting like walking pestilence. Everywhere he goes he casts an ominous shadow, and rarely leaves anyone who crosses him alive. It’s fitting that Grant is SPECTRE’s blunt instrument, as he haunts Bond’s path throughout like spectre, always in the shadows but acting to make Blofeld’s plan go through. I’ve never noticed until this watch just how much Grant uses gloves. He puts them on before every kill he makes, which is funny when you consider the old adage about clean hands. Grant gets his hands dirty without actually getting his hands dirty.
Grant and Bond feel more and more like doppelgängers of each other as the Orient Express travels on. The shot of Bond walking along the track in Belgrade station while Grant tails him through the train windows is immaculate. It’s funny that Shaw would go on to star in ‘Jaws’ as the hunter of the beast, because here he’s very much a predatory shark preying on Bond, to the tune of tense music not unlike John Williams’ iconic theme for the film in question. Then, when the train stops at the Zagreb station, the scene that plays out is a clever reversal of the previous station stop in Belgrade. This time Grant gets off the train, while Bond prowls from the carriages. With the code words known to him, Grant tries to act British/like Bond, further underscoring the doppelgänger feeling he gives off as Bond’s equally deadly match.
The greatest section of the film is when Grant and Bond finally meet, and the real chess game between them carries out as both are in the position to checkmate. The tension builds as Grant says one “old man” too many in the train car as he, Bond and Tatiana eat, and slips even more when Bond spots him adding something into the girl’s drink. In this scene in particular, Grant’s attempts at seeming British by being overtly British is almost painful to watch. If he’d kept his cool and calmed down a bit in his performance, Bond would’ve played right into his hand, but his overconfidence make him slip up in the mask he’s trying to wear, which Bond sniffs out with ease. I like this detail, because in real life, a person pretending to be a certain person or thing convincingly will act with a greater, more exaggerated degree in order to sell it, often showing their hand. It’s a great window into Grant’s psychology.
When Grant gets Bond on his knees, it’s clear that he really has it in for 007, like it’s personal. He was a great pick by SPECTRE for this mission, as he has studied Bond well and gets a kick out of stringing him along, making him wait for death, condescending him by referring to him as “the great James Bond.” An amalgam of envy and disgust coats his words. Grant sets himself apart as a Connery Bond villain in this scene in that he refuses to treat Bond as an equal, showing him no respect or courtesy beyond allowing him one last cigarette, which he still demands payment for. This man wouldn’t serve Bond a five star meal or treat him to a game of golf, oh no. Grant is razor focused on his mission and the hell he wants to unleash on Bond for meddling with SPECTRE, ending 007’s suffering only when the spy crawls over to kiss his foot. All this tension builds perfectly to their fight, which remains an all time high for the franchise. Bond and Grant finally get to face-off and the payment in thrills is high as the entire film has been steadily building to it from the very beginning.
Grant gets a seriously high mark as a villain because he’s one of the only people who has come that close to actually killing Bond. 007’s fear while in Grant’s crosshairs is palpable, and the man worked with surgical precision to get Bond and the other “pawns” in the film to play into his hand like a true chess master in the league of Kronsteen. Robert Shaw is a magic mix of strength, danger, brutality, coldness and cunning in this film. No surprise, he is the perfect foil to Connery’s Bond, perfectly playing to the same strengths as his acting partner. Shaw will never be forgotten for his work here as the ultimate Bond henchman to this day, with many imitators but no worthy successors.
Bond Villain/s and Performance:
Blofeld/SPECTRE- After getting a tease of the SPECTRE conspiracy in Dr. No, in From Russia with Love we see the face-er, I mean the hands, of the terrifying organization the late Dr. threw his lot in with.
Blofeld feels similar to Grant in that they both hang from the shadows and wait to properly shift pawns in directions that will best serve their ends. Blofeld’s voice makes you uneasy, and I like the contrasting image of him delicately petting his cat while he discusses vile schemes to come. He’s every bit as cunning and stealthy as his pet, that much is certain.
Supporting Cast Performances:
M- Bernard Lee makes good use of his short screen time here. I love how he defuses Bond’s attempt to impress Moneypenny with his hat toss. Then, in the briefing he gives Bond the pair feel like true equals in mind and strategy as they agree that the chance to possess a Lektor should be pursued by MI6. He and Bond have a nice dynamic here that is very relaxed, accommodating and respectful. M isn’t lecturing Bond on something he’s done wrong, and Bond isn’t trying to defend himself for a mistake he’s made recently like the briefing of Dr. No.
I also love how M acts later in the film when he’s listening in to Bond’s questioning of Tatiana about the Lektor decoder. When he overhears Bond talking about an experience the two of them had in Tokyo, M is fast to switch off their communications in an effort not to embarrass himself in front of his colleagues and underlings, including Moneypenny. It’s a unique moment in the Bond cannon where M breaks out of his stoic, stiff upper lip demeanor to display a rattled constitution.
Moneypenny- Lois Maxwell is just as exquisite here as she was in Dr. No, but it’s impossible for her to do wrong, so that’s not saying much. Although the meeting between her and Bond goes by fast, it’s a sweet and flirty moment as Bond pecks her with kisses, and tells her, “let me tell you the secret of the world,” one of my favorite lines from their many interactions together throughout the series. This film only continues to prove that no other actor talked to Lois’s Moneypenny as well as Sean’s Bond always did. Their interactions always feel genuine, and their chemistry is unmatched.
Q- Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know he’s technically referred to only as “Boothroyd” here, but I’m counting it anyway.
In just a quick exchange here with Bond and M, Q’s love of his work is heavily visible. He seems so pleased watching Bond play with his creation, testing it out.
Bond really owed Q big time on this particular adventure, because without the gadget master’s attaché case he’d have been dead to rights in the crosshairs of Grant. This film shows better than most that Bond is never a true loner. He always depends on others to help him out of tough patches and can’t do everything on his lonesome.
Kerim- A mix of great little character details and interactions make Kerim a great ally for Bond.
I love that he grew up breaking chains and bending bars in the circus, and how keen he is to always share a story from his “interesting” life. He’s also an endearing family man who knows the true value of blood and trust better than most.
Through Kerim’s eyes we also get to see an interesting window into spy craft of Turkey. The relationship Kerim and his agents have with the Russians in Istanbul is fascinating. While the west is eager to hide in the shadows to stalk their enemies, Kerim and the Russians are overt towards one another and don’t play any games. It’s a great contrast to the kind of locations Bond usually visits where enemies aren’t out in plain sight.
One of my favorite scenes of the entire franchise is Bond and Kerim going underground through the Byzantine tunnels to eavesdrop from underneath the Russian’s own consulate. This ingenuity shows Kerim is prepared for anything and I love the image of him and Bond spying on the Russians from underneath their “home” base.
Overall, Kerim’s character is a great window for Bond and the viewer into how Turkey’s espionage operations differ from the rest of the world. His experience in these matters is palpable and he’s like a tour guide for us as he takes us everywhere from under ground level, to a smoky gypsy camp, around crowded bazaars and on roaring trains across international boarders.
One of my favorite character details for Kerim is the moment when he is worn down by the woman in his office to sleep with her again. While in other scenes he seems to be quite a lustful man, here Kerim views sex as an obligation and not as a fun recreational activity like Bond does.
Kerim’s death is a particularly poignant moment in the film, not only because he is such a wonderful character, but also because of the effect it has on Bond that shows 007 there’s a greater conspiracy afoot than he realized. Kerim’s last words to Bond,“Life in Istanbul will never be the same without you” cement him as a great ally who was always kind and welcoming to Bond from the very start in a fatherly capacity, and it’s a moment underscored with sadness for those of us who know what’s coming. Bond’s sadness at Kerim’s passing is palpable, displaying just how much the Turkish man meant to him as a partner and friend.
As said as Kerim’s death is, what the actor behind the great performance, Pedro Armendariz was going through rings even more tragically. A consummate professional, Armendariz was suffering from a debilitating illness during the filming of From Russia with Love. Stricken with cancerous hips, Armendariz can be seen limping in some scenes, and shooting schedules had to be built around his illness, with Terence Young sometimes having to step in for the actor during certain moments.
But Armendariz never complained through the pain and worked through it to ensure that his family would get his paycheck from the film. In June of 1963, while filming on From Russia with Love was still being undergone, Armendariz found himself in a UCLA medical center tormented by the pain that would soon await him and his family as his cancer worsened. In a moment of self-mercy and selflessness, Armendariz took a pistol he smuggled into the hospital with him, held it to his heart, and pulled the trigger.
From Russia with Love was his last movie, and with the personal straits he was facing while filming the picture in proper context, it’s doubly tragic to watch Bond find Kerim dead and blooded in the train compartment, knowing our dear Pedro would be found in much the same state not long after in reality.
Still, Armendariz’s work lives on as one of the all-time greatest Bond allies we shall ever see, and watching him smile and joke around, so full of life in his performance here, you’d never guess that inside he was dying from cancer. A true professional and gentleman, to the very end.
Looking at the films again from older eyes, a lot of the later Maxwell scenes are woefully underdone. I feel Lazenby's Moneypenny scene is excellent as well, his real life playboy nature creeping in creating a playful relationship between the two
No chance. We expect a compelling and thought provoking essay on Die Another Day when the time comes.
\:D/
@NicNac, that'll be the challenge, for sure. I'll have to do an essay on how DAD is actually a clever deconstructionist commentary on the nature of Bond and his place in the spy world at large following his imprisonment in Korea disguised as a shoddily produced, written and directed cinematic abortion. But that's months away yet.
I'll be as thorough each time as I feel the film warrants, and mileage of course will vary, depending on the Bond actor being discussed, the interest the characters hold for me, etc. I want to try to keep up a consistent level of return, even for films I don't care as much for to see if more analysis gets me to appreciate them more. And I just like the idea of having comprehensive write-ups of these films and their elements on hand that I can go to to see how my impressions have developed over time from say, 2011 or so when I first joined the forum.
I can tell you right now with extreme confidence that my longest analyses for this Bondathon will be, in no particular order: DN, FRWL, TB, LTK, CR, QoS, SF and SP. I've rattled on for years about the Craig era and essentially written books on each film at this stage, but I'll be damned if I don't write another book on each of these films when the time comes. CR's analysis will of course be the longest of all, though, because that's one I could talk about endlessly, right up there with DN and FRWL, as they are so fruitful in content.
Because I feel love and admiration for ALL of them. Yes, even SF, it's merely its main villain that I despise.
But after reading @0BradyM0Bondfanatic7 's effort I feel silly even thinking of trying to write such a thing.
My admiration for your intellect is endless Brady. It's the one thing I really miss in my life, I wish I was more educated or intelligent for that matter.
Still after doing the piece on Elvis I feel like I can do it, maybe to a smaller extend for some Bond films.
I love to write actually. Just difficult to decide where to start.
@BondJasonBond006, sometimes when I'm watching a film, it helps me to think about what others don't like about it, and start my analysis there. If a film is criticized for lacking a strong villain, for example, I really analyze that villain to see if anything interesting can be found in them that hasn't been pointed out yet. This kind of thinking made me go from having a less than favorable reaction towards QoS to really appreciating it more and more over time, because years of hearing it derided opened my eyes to the truly stunning work it does with various film conventions and its characters.
Overall though, I'm a lover of film and simply dive into them and always stay on the look out for details. I like to study how the camera moves, the little ticks actors show in their performances, the color palette on display throughout the film, how locations are used (or not used), whether the sets are wide and open or cramped and claustrophobic; basically any and all elements that contribute to giving the film a source of life or atmosphere. Most of all though, I simply open myself up and try to react truthfully to what I see while at the same time trying to find things I may not have seen as clearly before and that others haven't expressed.
Going into DN and FRWL with an empirical cap on, actively searching for the minute details in order to compose a review, I discovered so much more to love about both of them that hadn't clicked for me before. It's great when films like this are so good that they welcome rediscovery no matter how much you watch them. This isn't true with every Bond film, but I try my best to give them all a fair shake, and I'm well on my way to appreciating and/or respecting the vast majority of them.
I think when you're first introduced to Bond you have your favorites, and you only want to experience those favorites (mine were Connery's). Then, when you see other films in the franchise with your fanboy hat on, you actively dislike anything that doesn't match your favorite films in style or content perfectly (this was how I felt about the Moore era). But over time, as you talk with fans of different tastes and mature yourself as a consumer of film, you grow to understand why certain movies hold resonance for people and realize that they all have merits at the end of the day, no matter how little that may appear to be at times.
Thanks to this forum I grew to respect the Moore era, despite how different they are from what I want from Bond, and I only continue to develop as a more open-minded Bond fan as the years go on. I owe a lot of that to the members here who've put me down a few pegs and popped out the lenses in my rose-tinted glasses over time, making more lucid my vision overall. I still love the Connery films as I always have, if not loads more-the only difference is that nowadays I don't actively despise the films that don't reach their mark or present their particular vision.
Must admit I couldn't bring myself to go into great detail on this Bondathon, due to the time restraints we have given ourselves. So, I stuck to a few bullet points.
My main interest has always been the actors and how they breathe life in to the character. I don't mean from the sense of capturing Fleming's creation (I'm very much a 007 film man) but how compelling they are, how charismatic. It's why I love Connery and why I am a little hard on Dalton.
In other words when Brady eulogises Licence To kill I will be tearing it apart with a vengeance. ;)
I think that's why on this viewing of Octopussy, I wasn't as enthused by it. I still love it, but there isn't the care taken in the directing like with the best Bond films. In my current Bondathon, I have DN just above OP. They will both be top 8 entries.
The movie looks fantastic. High definition on a decent TV Set does it good!
One of the most beautiful to watch actually in that format.
DN also looked bloody fantastic!!
That's funny.
FYEO features some of the most stunning cinematography and scenery of the series.
The underwater scenes look especially beautiful in High Defintion. A piece of art.
I hear this a lot, but I never worry about whether a film meets the formula or not. I just judge whether the film does something interesting with Bond that feels engaging, which, to me, LTK does in spades. We've rarely seen Bond so unhinged, and it's a breath of fresh air in a series where the status quo was kept at the same volume for so long and self-parody set in. LTK shakes things up and gives a surprisingly raw portrait of Bond.
Oops! I always forget the scenes in FYEO (I like the film but it's doesn't stand out). Ok the other Glen films are not particularly beautiful. In FYEO I love it when Bond and Melina walk through the streets and markets of the city (I forget the name).
The location work for his other films is terrible (cue stock shot of a couple walking towards the Eiffel tower
Interesting perspective. My opinion has swayed towards the fantasy and charm, and the magic of the whole Bond package (the score has a big part in that). That's why for the most part I can't hate Moonraker like most others do.
I will have to view LTK with different coloured glasses next time. While its standing as a Bond film has decreased, I still marvel at the incredible action from beginning to end including perhaps what is the best ending battle of any Bond film
FYEO
LTK
TLD
OP
AVTAK (the only one that in fact looks cheap in many places)
DN I enjoyed more than I did previously, mainly by trying to block the later Connery efforts out of my mind and focus on what it was. It is amazing how much they got right first time round. It was a great start to the series, it laid out all the ingredients for the next couple of films to perfect.
FRWL was fantastic as usual. Builds of all the elements DN did well, improves on others (gunbarrel, pacing, titles) to make a more satisfying experience. Brilliantly written, acted, directed, etc. One of those films where everything just works perfectly. That train fight is still one of the best. Think it's Connery's best but we'll see as this goes on if I continue to feel that way.
1) FRWL
2) DN
Unfortunately I'm taken, but my wife isn't as big a Dalton fan as you so maybe I should give it some thought.
Yeah I do feel a little guilty about that not because I don't like the Connery films, I just rank the films in order of enjoyment and there are a few that I enjoy watching more.
Your wife would get quite a right ear-bashing from me about the Dalton matter ;) @thelivingroyale
@BeatlesSansEarmuffs
what's a Top 5...
I don't have any Connery there either... but near it...on spots 7 and 8 and now possibly 9 as well.
Everyone's entitled to their own opinion of course...except on the topic of Connery being The Best Bond Beside Which All Others Pale. You'll just have to re-arrange your rankings.
From Russia with Love Review
I love the Cold War plot revolving around British intelligence trying to get their hands on a decoding device used by Russian intelligence. You also get one of my favorite baddies here in "Donald Grant" (played by the fantastic Robert Shaw) who is set up right from the PTS as a force to be reckoned with out to kill Bond and who is a constant malevolent force stalking Bond throughout the film. Oh, did I mention the camerawork? I love Hitchcock films & I really can't help but love the camera work here. The lighting & color palette here is drastically different here than in DN. Whereas DN was often a bright film with vibrant colors, this film is one with far more shadows with darkness often creeping in--it fits this particular film quite well. From the film's opening until his death the shadows almost seem to signal Grant's closing in on Bond--he creeps in under cover of darkness. The way the score by John Barry and the cinematography comes together as Connery strides through the train station as we the audience see his formidable foe Grant lurking after him through the train windows is magnificent. The film does such an incredible job of building up suspense & John Barry definitely deserves some credit for this as well. I really love that dark ominous portion that plays when Tatiana is dropping off blueprints for 007 at the Saint Sophia Mosque with Grant once again lurking in the shadows. The action to the movie kicks in right when it I want it to and the majority of exposition is at the start of the film where I like it. Red Grant racking up dead bodies builds our anticipation for Bond's encounter with the character and when this man who we have seen so quickly kill again and again does have the opportunity to kill Bond, he doesn't instantly try to kill him. No this man, like Bond, is a professional and he waits methodically just like one of Blofeld's tropical fish "waits until the survivor is so exhausted that he cannot defend himself, & then, like SPECTRE, he strikes". The early scene where we get our first peek into SPECTRE and the faceless "number 1" is quite possibly still my favorite use of Blofeld and SPECTRE in a Bond film. Here Blofeld is never seen but rather skillfully moves killers in on Bond from the safety of his leather chair as if they were Kronsteen's chess pieces. Here we get a Blofeld who really does feel like M's dark counterpart. The scene between Bond and Grant in the claustraphobic confines of the cabin of the Orient Express is such a tense scene to watch--expertly acted and directed and the desperate fight to the death between two highly skilled assassins is still one of the series' most exciting brawls to watch thanks to skillfull camera work, lighting, sound editing, and excellent choreography. The casting all around in this movie is pitch perfect and there's not a single weak link in the cast. I love the exploding briefcase, sniper rifle, & throwing knife--all relatively practical gadgets that it wouldn't require too much stretch of the imagination to believe a spy might make use of. Also we get the first appearance of the legendary Desmond Llewellyn. Here the character is "Major Boothroyd" (the literary equivalent to "Q"). Here the character is about like Peter Burton in the first film. The relationship between these two characters that we've come to know & love in the films hasn't yet developed. Great ensemble cast, excellent build up of suspense with not a single scene that doesn't add something to the film for me, a classic score from John Barry, excellent action sequences, an intricate and compelling Cold War plot, some of the best villains in the series, one of my favorite opening credit sequences, a tense PTS, and all of this conflict and deception is set against the fabulous exotic backdrop of Turkey. I absolutely love this movie, I've watched it more times than I can count and it still never gets old.
Every time I watch this film there's something new to appreciate. Although already mentioned, I love the scene where Connery seems to be genuinely merry during the belly dance sequence. This gives the film some verisimilitude that I really appreciate. But on this last viewing something else caught my eye: there's a brief cut to Connery for a couple seconds during the Gypsy fight and he has this watchful intensity about him. The fight has gotten particularly brutal at this point & it's as if that is why Bond is suddenly so engrossed in it. I remember an interview where Fleming was asked to describe the Bond character and he said "Bond is fatalistic". The man seems to have a morbid intensity about him watching the two women fight to the death. For me it's a great bit of character development and in that brief moment Connery justifies the scene's relevance in the film.
Bondian Elements
Gun barrel sequence- I love the gun barrel sequence for this film. We immediately get a slightly sped-up shot of the Bond theme as the dots race across the screen, then Simmons is spotted, he turns, fires his shot and the blood drips. Afterward, quite magnificently, the booming Bond theme fades into the background like a spy racing to the shadows as the PTS sequence begins. I love how the fading music here perfectly sets up Grant chasing the SPECTRE agent through the gardens, as it conveys the stealthy mood that scene and the entire film transmits to the viewer.
Pre-Title Sequence- The pre-title sequence for From Russia with Love is one of the all-time greats. It’s such a great fake-out to see who you think is Bond being preyed upon by an adversary, and it’s even more intense and shocking to see him come upon by Grant and killed ruthlessly. The atmosphere of the sequence is on another level, best exemplified when Grant snaps a twig while tailing the SPECTRE agent and the music booms alongside the crack as the paranoid agent’s head turns to the source of the noise.
The sequence wins points for doing what other Bond pre-title sequences would never dare to do, which is leaving Bond out of the picture entirely to shed a light on the lives and operations of the villains that will be his enemies throughout the rest of the film. At this early stage in the series there wasn’t the expectation that audiences needed to see Bond as soon and often as possible like there is today with a series 24 films strong. Just two films in, Young and his team could experiment and do things you would never be allowed to see in today’s movie climate.
From Russia with Love is a special film because we get to live with the villains as much as our hero, and because of this, we get to set our sights on the training rituals of SPECTRE’s agents as in this sequence and witness first-hand what their hierarchical structure looks and feels like underneath big dog Blofeld. Only From Russia with Love has delivered this, and it’s one of the many reasons why it’s so special.
Locations- When I think about the locations of From Russia with Love, I am instantly transported to the smoky train stations of Zagreb and Belgrade. I can hear my shoes clapping against the ruined stone roads of Istanbul’s districts and hear the echo of my whistles in the wide expanse of its mosques.
As in Dr. No, Young and his team bring alive the sights of Istanbul and truly take us with Bond on his journey. We’re with him as he navigates the Grand Bazaar with its vast color spectrum of opulent quilts and rugs. We go hand in hand with him on the boat as Kerim rows us along the waters of the ancient reservoirs to spy on the Russia consulate. We lick our lips as we sit with Bond, Kerim and Vavra while the belly dancer gyrates just inches away, giving off an insatiable attraction. Everything feels alive and enchanting.
Istanbul in the days when it was only known as Constantinople was the world center of mass trade for nations from vastly different worlds and cultures, and that massive variety of cultural color is heavily visible in this film. Istanbul feels like a true melting pot, and the vibrant palette of colors we see in the bazaars and the gypsy camp and the gradations of cement grays and smoky whites that paint the train stations evoke a great sense of atmosphere.
Moreover, as vibrant, engrossing and inviting as the locations are, the film also successfully carries a prevalent sense of dread. The atmosphere, the gradations of grey and browns we witness in the many locations and the thick shadows of the Istanbul nights all come together to produce an ominous feeling, like Bond could be shot from a far away corner or crevice at any moment. Nowhere in Istanbul feels safe to travel or take rest, and not just because Grant is likely hiding in wait near every bend in the road or curve of the street.
Above ground or under, the locations of Istanbul and the surrounding areas wear menacing faces that make Bond and his allies feel sensitive to harm, and that compounds the intense danger their landmarks give to the film and Bond’s adventure at large.
Gadgets- For this movie, the gadgets we have are perfect because they feel like real spy craft items an agent of the day would have on hand in a Cold War climate.
Q’s briefcase is exquisite, the perfect spying kit for Bond to have in the thick of the danger he’ll be facing. Its many functions, hidden compartments and booby traps are immaculate, as is the AR-7 rifle resting inside it, a real-life survival weapon still made today by military personnel. Production designer Syd Cain produced this nifty gadget to great effect, Young’s own “Q” on set.
Like everything in From Russia with Love, the gadgets feel believable and necessary for what awaits Bond. Honorable mention must also go to the cool little electronic bug detector Bond uses to snuff out the surveillance in his hotel room while touched down in Istanbul. Everything Bond has on hand feel like practical and believable spy tools that would be indispensible in the kinds of environments he finds himself in this time around.
Action- The action in From Russia with Love can best be described by the adjectives messy, economical and brutal. As Bond himself says in the film, “Let’s just say that Istanbul’s a rough town.” The action we see in this film, and its rough and messy nature, inform this statement well.
The scenes of action we see feature people going at each other like animals to the death, their every kick, punch or squeeze of the trigger designed to end their opponent with extreme effectiveness, post haste. These acts of violence are often brutal and untamed, connecting with the feeling of animalistic savagery From Russia with Love gives off when I watch it.
The gypsy camp fight is one of my all-time favorite action sequences in a Bond film, because it ticks the boxes perfectly for messy, economical and brutal conflict. The vivid and rousing sequence plays out much like a West West shootout, with chaos unloading as gun smoke covers the torn up and blown out camp space. Bond is a marvel, devilishly navigating himself through it, running all over the place tripping people up, hammering them on the head with his Walther, shooting them center mass from a downed position on his knee classic Connery style, and using his environment of carriages, arrows and knives to effectively sabotage the enemy forces into incapacitation. Connery’s Bond is so much fun to watch in this sequence because he feels like a visibly cunning and effective dispenser of his foes, a true man of action.
Another short but sweet sequence is Krilencu’s death, plotted by Bond and Kerim from the shadows. It’s such a great spy idea on Fleming’s part to have a man hiding behind the guise of a billboard depicting a beautiful woman. It’s also a nice character detail that Kerim is adamant about him being the one to take the fatal shot; he needs to do it on principle to get even for the past attempts Krilencu made to harm him and his family. The build up to the action thanks to Barry’s score is rich, and the moment is tense until Kerim strains to pull the trigger and we spot the release of relief on his face.
Other sequences in the film, like Bond’s battle with the rabid copter that follows him all along the gorgeous greens of the countryside is great, as is the boat sequence that leads into Bond touching down in Italy. But anyone who’s anyone knows that nothing compares to the granddaddy of them all.
That’s right, folks, the fight on the Orient Express. The fight that still holds up and always instantly comes to mind when I think of this film and Bond on the whole, because it perfectly transmits the messiness and danger of the world he occupies in the rawest way possible. It is straight-up genius to have a no-holds-barred fight between two alpha male spy killers play out in the cramped compartment of a train carriage. The entire film from the very start builds up to this face-off so that when it finally comes, it’s like viewing a high-stakes boxing bout, and it instantly cements itself to the viewer as a vital scene of iconography in the franchise.
When the fight kicks off, it’s pure, unadulterated cinematic magic. Bond and Grant butt heads like two animals going at it in the wild competing for the supremacy of their ecosystem; two beasts of equal feats battling for survival like a pair of lions before their pride. The claustrophobic bout is rough, loud, cloaked in shadow and seeped with blood and sweat. We hear every muffled groan of Bond and Grant, feel every punch, deflection, counter, crack of glass and shatter of bone as the battle plays out in the vibrant blue hues of the darkened space. We strain in our seats and seize up as Bond nearly has the life choked out of him, like Grant has a wire wrapped around our throats as well, then we breathe an exhausted sigh of relief when 007 turns the tables and brutally finishes his opponent. Bond’s payback to Grant at the end by calling him “old man” is the cherry on the top of a very tasty cake. It truly doesn’t get any better than this.
The predatory nature of From Russia with Love in mood, atmosphere and feeling is encapsulated best by this train fight, a signature moment of the film. It remains a legendary sequence for a reason, over 50 years on.
Humor- As with Dr. No, much of the best laughs here come in the way of physical comedy or in lines of rather black comedy Bond or his allies spout during or after moments of extreme fatalism.
A great moment of entertainment happens early when Bond’s hat toss falls flat once he realizes that he’s playing to an audience of two, with M looking on quite indifferent to his attempts at giving Moneypenny a show.
Furthermore, it’s delicious to hear Bond ask, “Who won?” when he sees Kerim’s destroyed hide-out, and even more so later on when he says, “She should have kept her mouth shut,” following Krilencu’s death after the man mounted a failed escape from dear Anita’s chompers. Other favorites are when he says to Kerim, “I’m not mad about his tailor, are you?” after they tie up Benz in his own wardrobe, or the line, “Yes, she had her kicks” that he throws out following Klebb’s demise. I also adore Bond’s delivery of, “Day and night. Go on about the mechanism” as he grows annoyed with Tatiana’s constant requests of lovemaking. I also grin every time I witness From Russia with Love’s Bond/Moneypenny scene, where Bond comforts a jealousy Moneypenny by saying, “Darling, Moneypenny, you know I’ve never even looked at another woman.”
My personal favorite moment, however, is when Bond condescends Grant in the train car even in the face of death, asking what lunatic asylum SPECTRE got him out of, and then, once the man is dead, how he spits an “old man” at his corpse for good measure. The scene where Bond and Grant have the former exchange reminds me fondly of the talk Bond and Dr. No have in the first film, where Bond’s disgust at the doctor’s character and his scheme rises to the surface and he can’t resist sending ad hominem attacks him.
Kerim is also used to good effect in the film as a storyteller who enjoys torturing people with his big mouth, as he does to Benz in the train compartment in a funny moment.
Plot plausibility- One of the many reasons why I think From Russia with Love is still so well respected, and why it still feels timeless is because of just how real and raw it feels. So much of what we see in this film feels ripped from the history books, and the geo-political conflicts feel distinctly Cold War in nature as the tensions between the Brits and the Russians and the Turks and the Bulgars resonate off the screen. Conflict rules the day, here.
Everything depicted in the film is perfect, and I’m never taken out of the action through disbelief in what’s happening. Dr. No carries this same feeling for much of it, but I do admittedly grimace during the radiation bath scene from the sheer implausibility of the moment in the middle of a film that usually feels so straight down the middle and raw.
In From Russia with Love, however, there’s no moments like that. For my money it’s the most “real” Bond film we have, and its tight and perfectly constructed spy thriller plot presents geo-political subterfuge that at times feels like a documentary on the Cold War. In fact, Fleming is said to have been inspired to write the original book from a real life scenario he heard about involving an American intelligence agent who was killed and thrown off the Orient Express by an enemy faction.
Villain's scheme- The overall plausibility of the plot of From Russia with Love is lent credence to by the scheme that is featured inside it.
From Russia with Love features one of the greatest villain schemes we have, and I am scrambling to find another that matches it. Everything is so finely crafted in this film, from the motivations of SPECTRE, MI6, the gyspies, the Turks, the Bulgars and the Russians all explosively playing off each other. It’s like a western and spy thriller made a baby, giving us a scheme that features groups manipulating each other into for the kill that feels true to real life spy situations. I fully believe something like what SPECTRE is planning here could’ve happened in the midst of the Cold War, where an outside party played nations off one another and planted compromising film to mask their plot under the veil of a gaudy scandal.
I said in my initial character analyses of this film that viewing From Russia with Love is like seeing two master chess masters going head to head, moving their rooks, bishops, knights and pawns across the board to utter conquest, setting up devastating counter-maneuvers and offensive attacks. Watching Bond, Kerim and Tatiana race aboard the Orient Express is like witnessing a maestro shove a queen chess piece up and down the board, just as seeing Bond choke the life out of Grant is like watching a player use his white knight to knock down a black king and claim checkmate.
Film Elements
Direction- Terence Young returns to the Bond series for a landmark second time to give us another rousing adventure.
Young’s directing style favoring wide shots and a distaste for close-ups is back as he delivers us even more action and drama than the first time. Young’s wise choice to always show as much of the actors moving in scenes as possible pays off here and the expansive locations the cast navigate help to create a sense of smallness, like Bond is a speck in a dangerous world, under the thumb of SPECTRE.
The production of From Russia with Love cemented Young’s genius as a director, and proved his knack for working around problems that could pop up on the fly. While shooting at the train stations of Istanbul, for instance, Young was annoyed by all the attention the camera equipment, lights and film stars were attracting from loads of bystanders there, so he had a stuntman distract the crowds by hanging himself over a nearby balcony, pretending like he was going to fall without proper assistance. As the crowd rushed to the stuntman, Young called for cameras to roll and got his shots.
When deciding how to realize the scripted fight between the gypsy girls at the camp location, Young had the two women involved, Martine Beswick (later a star in Thunderball) and former Miss Israel Aliza Gur train exhaustively for the bout every day for a three week period to ensure that they had the movements down and would look natural when shot. Wanting to ensure that he would catch a realistic looking fight on camera, Young’s directorial advice to the women while shooting the scene urged them to act as though they really were going to kill each other.
The biggest moment in the production for Young, however, was the helicopter crash that occurred when he was scouting locations in Scotland for the film’s boat chase. Young, along with the pilot and his art director took off in the copter, which had been showing signs of malfunction, and, once in the air, they fell with it into the water, sinking fifty or so feet to the bottom of the ocean. Thankfully members of the production were on shore nearby the crash, and were able to swim to the rescue of Young and his fellow passengers. In true Terence Young fashion, the director was back behind the camera filming From Russia with Love only thirty minutes after the near-fatal crash. Unflappable, just like Bond.
Opening title design- I adore this title design. The vibrant colors of the text and the kinetic energy of the moving bodies of the women and the credits projected on them is brilliant. The theme for From Russia with Love used is my favorite arrangement of it, so full of brassy life, and it’s stuck right in the middle of Barry’s updated Bond theme. The theme is produced here with a great mix of bellowing trombones as trumpets and saxes produce a wailing sound like the tune is struggling vigorously to come into life.
Script- Just as From Russia with Love has one of the strongest villain schemes and most plausible plots, it naturally also has one of the best scripts, and may be Maibaum’s finest.
There’s so many great themes and ideas at play here interspersed with a rousing spy adventure. For one, From Russia with Love is one of the most sex-laden and adult films in the Bond canon, when you really sit down and think about it. This film features a honeypot spy scheme, a incriminating sex tape gets filmed with Bond and a girl, Bond has a threesome at a gypsy camp of all places, and one of the villains is a repressed lesbian who acts on her attractions with a sensuality laced with poisonous control and force.
On top of these adult themes and ideas, From Russia with Love is a film about fractured privacy because there are so many incidents throughout the picture where intimate moments between characters are uprooted, surveyed or exploited, and where spaces that are meant to be safe havens are bugged, compromised or rigged to blow, taking you with the blast. Bond’s hotel room is covered in bugs that only increase the paranoid feeling he displays while in Istanbul. Kerim’s domestic life in his secret hide-out in the Grand Bazaar is figuratively and literally obliterated by a mine, shaking him up and nearly writing his death certificate. The agents of the Russian consulate have no idea that Kerim and his team have literally burrowed into their fox’s den and have compromised their security. Later in the film, the same consulate is bombed and in the ensuing chaos, Bond breaks through their security and robs them of their greatest possession. The gypsy camp is raided in a moment of peace and lit up with gunfire and flames in a massive ambush. Kerim goes directly to Krilencu’s doorstep and kills him at the place where he expected sanctuary and protection with nothing more than a cold shot to the back from the AR-7 rifle. Kerim’s death in the confines of the train car forever fractures his domestic family back in Turkey, who are now without their leader. And lastly, Klebb breaks into Bond and Tatiana’s hotel room when the pair think their troubles are behind, them under the guise of a cleaning lady.
From Russia with Love also shows us no secrets can get kept, and depicts characters wearing all kinds of masks to survive. Bond, M and Kerim all know they’re in the middle of a duplicitous game, yet they play their part in it to secure the Lektor. Klebb lies to the Russians and Tatiana, Tatiana lies to Bond as Bond lies to her, and they are both lied to by Grant, who nearly succeeds in his mission. That’s not even factoring in the duplicity that plays out between Kerim, the gypsies, the Bulgars and the Russians, who each think the wrong things about the other thanks to SPECTRE’s delicate and manipulative hand. Analyzing From Russia with Love and studying the motivations of each of the characters, the lies they tell and the lies they’re told is head-spinning to contemplate. The script presents us with a raw spy adventure that creates a very real world picture of the Cold War climate, where you were constantly being watched from above ground or below, and where danger was always lurking around the corner to strike at those unaware.
In true espionage fashion, a great emphasis in the script is also put on surveillance and communication between parties, and how our words have the power to manipulate the state of play. An emphasis is put on mouths and lips as the carriers of information or deliverers of lies of great duplicity. Tatiana comments to Bond about how her mouth is too small. Krilencu attempts to escape his hide-out from the open mouth of Anita Ekberg. Grant won’t allow Bond to die until he crawls over to kiss his foot. The words Bond and his spy colleagues as they exchange plans around the stations are muted to nothing by the rattling of the carriages, the steam puffing from the trains halted on the tracks and all the voices of the pedestrians milling about, masking their secret operations. And of course, in a spy game this tough, it’s lips that need silenced most of all.
The motif of fish become surprisingly prevalent as well, where Blofeld’s fighting fish serve as metaphors for the characters at conflict in the film. The shot composition and editing as the pair of fish flap violently beside SPECTRE’s No. 1 is amazing, and it’s great visual foreshadowing for the brutal action that unfolds on the train between Bond and Grant in their final confrontation. Even more so, however, the bout of the fish is strong foreshadowing of the conflict between Kerim, Benz and Grant. Kerim and Benz are the two fish fighting it out, while Grant is the sharper fish that lies in wait, striking when the enemy’s weakness is highest.
In addition to all the interesting elements the script really seems to showcase, there’s and endless amount of ways that From Russia with Love truly sets itself apart from any other film out there, even 50 years on. The filmmakers dared to underserve Bond for the first twenty minutes of the film in order to give screen time to the villains to build up the scheme that will be building itself around our British agent in this adventure. This is a film where we get to spend as much time with the villains as we do our hero. We as the viewers actually get to see SPECTRE island on the screen as opposed to having it just mentioned off-hand by one of Blofeld’s agents, or by the man himself. Like no other Bond film, From Russia with Love walks us by the hand into the villain’s den on SPECTRE island to give us a front row seat into how the organization is run and how SPECTRE agents are forged from normal candidates into brutal killing machines. I grin sadistically every time I hear Morenzy state that they use “live targets too.” We live with these villains, sleep with them and follow them as they lay traps for Bond and his allies. As the SPECTRE plot gradually envelopes Bond and the rest of our heroes, we know the truth behind the traps they’re falling into through our time with the villains and can only watch as 007 is swallowed up in it and ends up on his knees a train car with a pistol jammed in his face. The script makes you wonder just how Bond is going to worm his way out of that predicament, it feels so fatal and final.
The film never loses the ominous feeling of impending doom from start to finish that the script helps form, and this danger is felt in such a vast variety of different locations, from smoke filled stations and massive mosques to colorful bazaars and the cramped, quiet train compartments of the Orient Express where your only company is hopefully the sound of the rattling carriages on the tracks.
Such is the magic of From Russia with Love.
Cinematography- Ted Moore returns to continue his great work from Dr. No in a film that once again allows him to showcase the atmosphere a location can exude for audiences. While his work depicting Jamaica was fantastic, the contrast of the less exotic, more rugged and gray toned Istanbul does magic for the film.
What makes Dr. No and From Russia with Love such great back to back Bond adventures is that the creative team took what worked in the first and brought it back in the second, while also flipping the script on a few things to make the adventure feel extremely fresh and different from Dr. No visually and in mood, which they really succeed at.
From Russia with Love carries a smoky feeling and atmosphere, and Moore’s visuals and lighting choices make us able to smell the odorous alleyways of Turkey, feel the rough textures of the rugs littering the bazaars and taste the cigarette smoke coating our lips as Bond and Kerim both light one up. This is truly transportive filmmaking here, where the movie looks and feels like a visual travelogue to the location, making us believe for a moment that we were there with the filmmakers as they brought it to beautiful life. The color palettes on display, the use of light and shadow, the staging of the action and how the shots are composed are all finely tuned and perfect, representing some of Moore’s greatest work.
Music- In John Barry’s big debut as the main composer of a Bond film, he doesn’t back down and delivers big time. For From Russia with Love he produces an amazing set of compositions, some that delivered the now classic arrangement of Norman’s Bond theme, and others that used local sounds of Turkey to give the score an exotic and cultural edge. Throughout the film Barry’s arrangements of the Bond theme hit hard, and you can feel his orchestra’s instruments straining and wailing to birth the classic Bond sound.
Constantly, Barry’s music adds layers of atmosphere to the film, ramping up the tension to excruciating levels of tension that don’t let up. And when you mix his music with the visuals of Ted Moore and the performances of the cast, you get a combination that’s hard to beat.
This film also debuts the secondary Bond them by Barry, simply titled “007” that for my money is just as classic as the main theme. It’s rip-roaring and action packed, pulse-pounding music that is used to great effect. All hail John Barry!
Lionel Bart’s song From Russia with Love, with vocals by Matt Munro has always been a favorite for me as well, largely because it’s the closest we’ll ever get to hearing a Frank Sinatra styled Bond song. The orchestra is grand, as is Munro’s range, his greatest moment being during the finale of the tune when he holds the final note for twelve long seconds. Classic.
Editing- As with Terence Young, Ted Moore, Richard Maibaum and John Barry, editor Peter Hunt returns from the Dr. No team to continue to marvel us.
Hunt’s fast and exhilarating editing style is back in full effect, bringing with it a great sense of kinetic energy. He makes the simple image of two fish in a tank wrestling with one another feel as lively and tension-filled as the gypsy camp and helicopter chase.
Some of Hunt’s all-time finest work comes in the train fight between Bond and Grant, where he keeps the momentum of the shots quick and vigorous. As in Dr. No, he amps up the sound to give the audio a serious punch, making the cracking and shattering of the glass, the steady rhythm of the train carriages shuffling on the tracks and the bodily collisions of Bond and Grant as they wrestle each other in the cramped space register as avalanches of cascading sound that delight our eardrums even while the noises are in serious danger of rattling them to muteness.
Hunt’s rough, quick and messy style perfectly compliments a film like this whose script and cinematography strive to evoke the same feelings that the Cold War era imprinted on our human history.
Costume Design- One of the many things that return from Dr. No to From Russia with Love is Bond’s wardrobe, handled here by the costume design team of Jocelyn Rickards and Anthony Sinclair. The first two Bond films cemented gray suits with white or light blue dress shirts and navy grenadine ties as Bond’s go-to “uniform” out in the field. These looks defined Bond’s visual appeal under Connery, and he wears them with the same swagger as he did in his debut appearance. He truly feels like he sleeps in the suits-as Terence Young even advised-it’s so natural how he wears them. And this time around the grenadine ties use a four-in-hand knot instead of the Windsor knot used in Dr. No, as Fleming himself despised the latter and thought they made a man look too vain. Sinclair also provides Sean with another exquisite tuxedo (seen in the PTS), a nice navy lounge suit for M’s briefing and the flannel chalk stripe suit that he wears while facing off with Klebb in the hotel room at the end. All exquisite, no less.
Where the other members of the cast are concerned, there’s some great suits to behold, from Kerim’s collection of suits to M’s brown flannel suit with matching bowtie. The suits picked for Grant feel reminiscent of the suits Bond wears, which further makes them feel like doppelgängers of one another. The different factions in the film, from the Turks, the gypsies, the Russians and the Bulgars also have distinctive looks, setting them apart visually. And of course the style choices made for Daniela Bianchi’s Tatiana are perfect. Her wardrobe nicely accentuates and accompanies her graceful beauty and makes her feel like a presentable and professional woman. Bianchi could pull off wearing nothing but a neck ribbon with class though, so this is no surprise!
Sets- Most of the original team from Dr. No returned for From Russia with Love, but one big exception was Ken Adam, who was off on production design duties for Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove at the time of production.
EON sought out Syd Cain to fill the vacancy, the production designer extraordinaire who created the iconic visual of the dragon tank for Dr. No, though he went uncredited for it at the time.
While much of From Russia with Love is built up of location shooting, Cain’s work here stands up well in the history of the series’ production design. If the anteroom chamber of Dr. No was the visual treat of that film’s production design, in From Russia with Love it must be Cain’s chess room set that he made for $150,000. It’s a set that stands up to all the greatest sets in the Bond series, with a strong use of chess motifs to give it that special something. Like Adam, Cain plays with space to make the actors feel small, ramping up the tension of the scene and the operatic nature of the space. His use of shapes, notably the rising circle that supports Kronsteen and his opponent while they play the game, and the larger outer floor designed like a chess board are exquisite, to say the least.