Dr. No (1st Bond Movie) Review

Dr. No is the movie that started it all. It is the first in the James Bond series and one of the best Bond movies. It might not appeal to the general audience as much as the later Bond movies but it is important since it was the first Bond movie to be made. After watching North by Northwest I noticed that the James Bond movies were heavily influenced by it. The Bond movies also had revolutionary action in the later entries of the series. Dr. No is more of an Spy/Espionage than an action movie but it did have some good action.

Directed by: Terence Young
Genre: Spy, Espionage, Thriller, Action,
Release Date: 5 October 1962 (1962-10-05)
Running Time: 109 minutes
MMPA rating: PG-13


The Good: Started the James Bond franschise, Original plot and concept, Sean Connery is the perfect James Bond, Fantastic soundtrack,

The Bad:




Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.
John Strangways, the British Intelligence (SIS) Station Chief in Jamaica, is ambushed and killed, and his body taken by a trio of assassins known as the "Three Blind Mice". In response, MI6 agent James Bond – Agent 007 is summoned to the office of his superior, M. Bond is briefed to investigate Strangways' disappearance and to determine whether it is related to his cooperation with the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) on a case involving the disruption of Cape Canaveral rocket launches by radio jamming.
Upon his arrival at Kingston Airport, a female photographer tries to take Bond's picture and he is shadowed from the airport by two men. He is picked up by a chauffeur, whom Bond determines to be an enemy agent. Bond instructs him to leave the main road and, after a brief fight, Bond starts to interrogate the driver, who then kills himself with a cyanide-embedded cigarette.
During his investigation in Strangways' house Bond sees a photograph of a boatman with Strangways. Bond locates the boatman, named Quarrel, but finds him to be un-cooperative. Bond also recognises Quarrel to have been the driver of the car that followed him from the airport. Bond follows Quarrel and is about to be beaten by him and a friend when the fight is interrupted by the second man who followed Bond from the airport: he reveals himself to be CIA agent Felix Leiter and explains that not only are the two agents on the same mission, but also that Quarrel is helping Leiter. The CIA has traced the mysterious radio jamming of American rockets to the vicinity of Jamaica, but aerial photography cannot determine the exact location of its origin. Quarrel reveals that he has been guiding Strangways around the nearby islands to collect mineral samples. He also talks about the reclusive Dr. No, who owns the island of Crab Key, on which there is a bauxite mine: the island, and mine, are rigorously protected against trespassers by an armed security force and radar. Watch the movie to see what happens next.


Plot: 7.9/10- Although Dr. No's plot might be cliché it is really the start of the action spy genre, therefore it is very original.

Action: 6.7/10- While Dr. No does have some action it is some what tame compared to today.

Acting: 7.7/10- Sean Connery is the first and best James Bond, there will never be another Bond as good as Connery. The other cast members were good, some of the cast over played their roles a little too much but over the acting was good.
Interesting fact. The "Bond Girl" Honey Rider played by Ursula Andress, was voiced over by an actress named Nikki van der Zyl, who recorded the voices of almost all of the female roles in Dr. No. But there is almost no way to notice the voice overs.


Special effects: N/A-

Soundtrack: 9.9/10- James Bond's main theme is one of the most iconic themes in movie history.

Comedy: 7.8/10- The James Bond franchise is always know for its witty one liner and Dr. No is no different.

Would I Watch This Again: This is the 4th or 5th time I have seen the movie and I a few more times.

Gadgets: N/A- Dr. No really did have many gadgets since that has not been established in the franchise at this point.


Title Sequence: N/A-

Overall: 8.0/10- As a fan of the James Bond franchise I have to give it a high rating because of what it started but for the general audience I would give it a score of 7.5/10.

Closing comments: Dr. No started the James Bond franchise great but the best is yet to come.

Recommended for: Spy fans, Espionage fans, Thriller fans, Action fans,


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