James Bond Archives

5th July 20195th July 2019

From Russia With Love retrospective review

Bond was off to a great start with Dr.No, so it was soon time to deliver the next chapter in the story. Making a successful sequel is no easy task – musicians often struggle with their second ‘sophomore’ album and the same goes for filmmaking. Think of the number of sequels you’ve seen that are well-made and entertaining, but lack depth because they’re no longer telling us an origin story. In the superhero genre, nearly every sequel chooses the “things get difficult for superhero” story, because there isn’t really any other option. The first film tells us how the character starts out and usually goes out on a massive high, so the only real choice is for things to get worse before they get better.

13th June 201913th June 2019

Dr. No retrospective review

To reinforce how old Dr. No is, it was released only a year after Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space, and the Boeing 707 (their first passenger jet) seen at the start of the film had only been in service for 3 years. The legendary Aston Martin DB5 featured in later films didn’t go into production for another two years.

Despite it’s age, new viewers shouldn’t worry about getting a sub-par or bare-bones Bond film. It has almost all of the ingredients that made the rest of the series so popular. Bond takes his orders from M, and then flirts with Moneypenney on his way out of the office. There’s international filming locations, car chases, fights, and a complex and evil super-villain with an elaborate lair. Ursula Andress makes a strong case for being the best Bond girl of all time. The scene where she emerges from the sea in a white bikini is cinematic legend, still winning awards over 40 years later

5th June 20195th July 2019

Upcoming film reviews from the BOND 50 box set

Recently I purchased something that reignited an interest in all things Bond. I’ll save the story of what it is for another time (spoiler – it’s not an Aston Martin), but it encouraged me to start watching or rewatching some of the more recent entries in the series. Yes, even Die Another Day. Soon after, I saw an opportunity to do things properly with the BOND 50 box set, going cheap in as-new condition on eBay.