Dr. No
Dr. No
Director: Terence Young
Producers: Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman
Writers: Ian Fleming (novel); Richard Maibaum & Johanna Harwood & Berkley Mather; Terence Young (uncredited)
Title Song: Composed by Monty Norman
Bond Visits: Jamaican Islands; Crab Key
Film Gross: United States--$16,067,035;
Worldwide--$59,600,000
Plot Summary: When a fellow operative is brutally murdered in
Jamaica, the British Secret Service sends their best man to investigate:
Bond, James Bond (Sean Connery).
Strangways, the murdered agent, died while investigating mysterious signals that seem to stem from a nearby island and interfere with American missile launches. Bond immediately travels to Jamaica to solve the mystery. Once there, he teams with CIA agent Felix Leiter (Jack Lord) and a local islander named Quarrel (John Kitzmuller). With their help, 007 discovers leads that bring the team to Crab Key, but not before various attempts are made to kill Mr. Bond.
At Crab Key, James and his friends meet an attractive seashell collector
named Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress), who secretly, and frequently, visits
the forbidden island. With Honey's assistance, the group attempts to
stop Dr. No (Joseph Wiseman), an evil scientist who "topples" missile
launches on behalf of an organization known as S.P.E.C.T.R.E.
Review: Dr. No is a great adventure and a near-perfect
introduction to a franchise that still stands the test of time. Although
it is somewhat obvious that the film was never intended to spawn sequel upon
sequel of successful action movies, Dr. No is an engaging and original
mystery that moves at a much slower pace than one would predict from a Bond
adventure, simply because it is more plot-based than many of the 007 films
that would follow.
Of course, it is Connery that is the most unique and enjoyable part of the film. It's almost as if he knew exactly what he wants to do with the Bond role from Day One, because his characterization of the part is absolutely superb. He succeeds in making Bond eerily two-faced to a degree, while still maintaining professionalism and a disarming brand of charm.
Understandably,
the film doesn't completely settle into the James Bond formula.
Don't look for any high-tech gadgets or cars that shoot flames. In
this film, Bond drives a regular (albeit attractive) Sunbeam Alpine, and
only for a short distance. However, there is a high-speed automobile
chase to enjoy, topped with a tongue-in-cheek Bond witticism, as he calmly
watches the opposition's automobile roll down a steep hill and burst into
flames.
The greatest aspect of Dr. No is the fact that it doesn't need to rely on gadgets or flashy automobiles to impress its audience. Its true strength is in the wit and the mystery of its writing. The humorous repartee between Bond and Miss Moneypenny kicks in right from the beginning, an attribute that has remained a constant in nearly every 007 movie.
There are also actual clues that Bond has to notice and follow in order to solve the mystery. This added bonus makes Dr. No seem more like a smart detective film than a huge spectacle.
In that same vein, Dr. No does not bring James Bond forward as an indestructible superhero. In this, his first film adventure, 007 gets dirty, bloody, soaking wet, bashed, tortured, and sweaty with nervousness. Today's James Bond can mow down twenty or thirty villains with his machine gun and still walk away without a smudge on his suit. Either way, James Bond is a guy that everyone can root for.
Ursula Andress, who is still a widely remembered figure in the James Bond phenomenon, captures the innocence and aloofness of a simple but brave shell collector. Another strong character, Dr. No, is a wonderfully intense and especially evil man whose casual detachment throughout the film is chilling. However, the final fight between Bond and Dr. No isn't as suspenseful as one would expect, which makes for a significantly disappointing ending to such an ambitious adventure.
This film inadvertently, but successfully, kick-started the exciting 007 series with a tremendously enjoyable and straight-forward adventure. Dr. No has seduction, tarantulas, car chases, fistfights, and plenty of charm. It also includes clever dialogue, and one of Connery's top performances in the James Bond role.
Grade: B+