Dr. No [DVD] [1962] The beginning of a Legend – Siamese – Azores, Portugal
The first entry in the decades long successful James Bond franchise seems irrevocably dated in its aesthetics and style of filmmaking. Nevertheless, this is indeed where it all started as several of the standards that were to recur in the series were already here: the Bond/M scene in London, an airplane flight to an exotic location, the Bond girls (two good, one bad), a loyal local contact to show 007 around before he gets killed, many unusual attempts to assassinate Bond, an inscrutable villain owning a hidden HQ soon to be blown up in colourful pyrotechnics and so forth.
Even though it’s well made considering the budget limitations, ‘Dr. No’ seems to go in two directions, the first half being a detective thriller and the second a rather naive and occasionally poor science fiction movie typical of the late 50s and early 60s. Sean Connery holds it all together brilliantly and he portrays James Bond as a tough, cold and merciless killer – just look at how he kills Dent -, a characteristic that would be subdued in the subsequent films.
The restored print included in this ultimate edition is so good it feels like the film was finished only a few months ago. The remaining extras are not sensational, but the film itself is worth its purchase so go for it!
MASTER PLAN: sabotage America’s space program. Way back when, the wicked humor was already evident, indoctrinating us into a new style of mayhem and violence. Three blind mice, it sings over the credits, after the now-familiar gun-barrel opening shot. These are three blind men, or so it seems, tragically comical as they make their way along; but, we’re in for a rude awakening – they are actually ruthless assassins. We’re rarely prepared for such plot turns in a Bond thriller, even now, and back then, this being the first one, it must have been fairly shocking. Especially brutal is the murder of the female – this was no way to treat a lady back then. Of course, other ladies in this pic behaved somewhat differently than viewers were accustomed to back in the early sixties. Then Bond himself is introduced (on his home ground of England) – a classic for the ages, as if the filmmakers knew he would still be thrilling us on film four decades later. Maybe they did. Then the 1st appearances of M (male for the next 30 years or so) and Moneypenny, and we’re off and running, for 45 years and counting. Even the Q dept. shows up in M’s office, but he’s not called Q, yet (M refers to him as ‘Armourer’); and, a different actor would take over in the next 15 or so Bonders. The repartee here would be revisited in most of the subsequent films and is very enjoyable. Later, we and Bond meet Leiter, Bond’s CIA liaison, even though this was redone in the new “Casino Royale” version in 2006.
Bond’s first mission on film (not counting the TV “Casino Royale” back in ‘54) was to Jamaica, where a local agent and his secretary have disappeared. As such, this first one had less scope than the epic adventures dominating the later sixties and onward, where the formula always entailed about three different locations scattered across the globe; Bond stayed in the Jamaica area for this entire mission. And, for most of the film, he was engaged in almost pure detective work, a skill which many feel was subsumed under gadgetry and huge sets as the film series went on. I suppose this can be viewed as a trade off when the budgets became much bigger. But here, Connery as Bond had to command our attention through his powers of observation, training and natural cunning. Bond is a target as soon as he arrives at the new locale and must avoid such dangers as assassination attempts by being pro-active: he anticipates the bad guys, obviously due to years of experience. Connery proves to be the best Bond right off the bat: you can see him out-thinking the villains scene to scene and he’s arrogant enough to allow himself some self-knowing smirking as he foils their lethal plans over & over, yet it’s not over the top; in fact, it can be quite chilling – Bond proves to be just as ruthless as the villains, a type of hero audiences were not, again, used to (Dirty Harry copied this attitude in the States almost a decade later). But, we cheer him on, knowing that if he was any nicer, he’d probably be terminated halfway thru the story. And, the arrogance – some of this just makes us shake our heads: near the end, when Bond is captured, he’s still issuing orders to his captors (check out that scene just before the decontamination). No wonder Bond wins at everything.
The epic, fantastic elements the film series is known for do not enter the picture here until the 2nd hour begins, involving such concepts as radioactivity and guidance rocket systems. Bond finally meets his main Bond girl, Ms. Ryder, coming out of the blue or out of the sea, take your pick. She is stunning, no doubt, and lends to this air of the unexpected, with some unusual character traits. The main villain of the title and his awesome lair are not shown until even later – such large elements were given more exposure in many of the later films. This is all calculated to string the audience along in terms of suspense (we do hear Dr.No’s ominous voice in an earlier scene) and then, hopefully, fulfill their expectations with some grand reveals. Dr.No is the first of the wealthy, genius-level megalomaniacs to plague Bond in the film series, suitably larger-than-life and almost godlike (but serving dark gods). He’s created his own world and seems serene in his near-omnipotence, which also may suggest over confidence. This may be why Bond’s escape (via an air duct) to cause trouble in the final minutes appears to be a gross oversight for such a master villain. Well, Dr.No spells it out (’You are just a stupid policeman’): master villains tended to underestimate Bond in many of the films. Bond may also pique such villains curiosity – it may be reasonable to assume his ruthlessness is a trait they need to examine for a brief, crucial time. By the way, SPECTRE is first mentioned, being the organization Dr.No serves, so it does suggest a series of films from the get go. Bond would return in “From Russia With Love.” Would Dr.No? Bond:10 Villain:9 Femme Fatales:9 Henchmen:6 Leiter:8 Fights:8 Stunts/Chases:7 Gadgets:5 Auto:6 Locations:8 Pace:9 overall:8 : Released in 1962, this first James Bond movie remains one of the best and serves as an entertaining reminder that the Bond series began (in keeping with Ian Fleming’s novels) with a surprising lack of gadgetry and big-budget fireworks. Sean Connery was just 32 years old when he won the role of Agent 007. In his first adventure James Bond is called to Jamaica where a colleague and secretary have been mysteriously killed. With an American CIA agent (Jack Lord, pre-Hawaii Five-O), they discover that the nefarious Dr. No (Joseph Wiseman) is scheming to blackmail the US government with a device capable of deflecting and destroying US rockets launched from Cape Canaveral. Of course, Bond takes time off from his exploits to enjoy the company of a few gorgeous women, including the bikini-clad Ursula Andress. She gloriously kicks off the long-standing tradition of Bond women who know how to please their favourite secret agent. A sexist anachronism? Maybe, but this is Bond at his purest, kicking off a series of movies that shows no sign of slowing down. –Jeff Shannon
Edition details
- Inside Dr. No (PG)
- Terence Young: Bond Vivant
- Audio commentary featuring director Terence Young and members of the cast and crew
- 1963 Dr No “featurette”
- Dr. No gallery of pictures
- Radio advertising
- Trailers for Dr. No, From Russia With Love and Goldfinger
- Goldfinger and Dr. No TV advertising
On the DVD: “He was James Bond,” remarks several interviewees of the late Terence Young, the suave, globetrotting, hard-living director who played a major role in defining the look, humour and tailoring of the Bond movies, making the extras on this DVD something of a cinematic festschrift to his talents. Since this was the first film in the franchise, the “making of” featurette goes into some detail about the Ian Fleming novels and how Sean Connery came to be cast, and made-over, by Young. The featurette also has excerpts from one Young’s last interviews, spliced together with observations from his daughter, Ursula Andress (Honey Rider) and many of the other actors, production-designer Ken Adam, composer Monty Norman and host of other talents who took part in the making of the film. Many of their quotes are integrated into the commentary track. Also included is an amusing black and white doc from 1963 narrated by a podgy guy with specs who appears to be cousin of Harry Enfield’s Mr. Cholmondley-Warner. –Leslie Felperin Dr. No [DVD] [1962]
Recommend : Plus Size Women Studyabroadafrica.Estudiantis.Com Passover Blog Kubota http://home-decoratoreblog.co.cc/
Dumbo [DVD] This is just another very good Disney DVD film, which now I bought for my granddaughter. I enjoyed it as much as I rememeber I did the first time I watched it. I did not realise that, as many other Disney films, it has scenes that are either scary or upsetting for little children. So, I would say children younger than 4 should watch it with their parents. : A Disney “classic” that actually is a classic, Dumbo should be part of your video collection whether or not you have children. The storytelling was never as lean as in Dumbo, the songs rarely as haunting (or just plain weird), the characters rarely so well defined. The film pits the “cold, cruel, heartless” world that can’t accept abnormality against a plucky, and mute, hero. Jumbo Jr. (Dumbo is a mean-spirited nickname) is ostracized from the circus pack shortly after his delivery by the stork because of his big ears. His mother sticks up for him and is shackled. He’s jeered by children (an insightful scene has one boy poking fun at Dumbo’s ears, even though the youngster’s ears are also ungainly), used by the circus folk, and demoted to appearing with the clowns. Only the decent Timothy Q. Mouse looks out for the little guy. Concerns about the un-PC “Jim Crow” crows, who mock Dumbo with the wonderful “When I See an Elephant Fly,” should be moderated by remembering that the crows are the only social group in the film who act kindly to the little outcast. If you don’t mist up during the “Baby Mine” scene, you may be legally pronounced dead. –Keith Simanton Dumbo [DVD]
