From Russia with Love (2nd Bond Film) Review.

Thoughts: Continuing with the James Bond movie review, here is From Russia with Love. While Dr. No (1st Bond film) was a good movie that started the franchise. From Russia with Love is a great Espionage Thriller. It is considered by many to be one of, if not the best Bond movie. Although it is my third favorite Bond film, From Russia with Love is one of the greatest Espionage Thrillers and a must see for fan of the genre. Dr. No had some unintentionally funny moments, while From Russia with Love was played completely serious. There was also a scene that obviously played homage to the classic Crop Duster scene in North by Northwest. The action is far improved over Dr. No's action but still not spectacular compared to many action movies today. Daniela Bianchi as Tatiana Romanova (voiced by Barbara Jefford) was one the best "Bond Girls" because she plays an important role in the plot.


Directed by: Terence Young
Genre: Spy, Espionage, Thriller, Action,
Release Date: 10 October 1963 (1963-10-10)
Running Time: 115 minutes
MMPA rating: PG


The Good: Excellent espionage, Introduced gadgets to the franchise, Original plot, Fantastic soundtrack, Good action for its time,

The Bad:





Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.
SPECTRE's expert planner Kronsteen devises a plot to steal a Lektor cryptographic device from the Soviets and sell it back to them while exacting revenge on Bond for killing their agent Dr. No. The Spectre Number 1 puts ex-SMERSH operative and Number 3 Rosa Klebb in charge of the mission. Klebb recruits Grant as an assassin, and Tatiana Romanova, a cipher clerk at the Soviet consulate in Istanbul, as an unwitting pawn, as Romanova thinks Klebb is still working for SMERSH.
In London, M tells Bond – agent 007 and sometimes simply '007' – that Romanova has contacted their "Station 'T'" in Turkey, offering to defect with a Lektor, which MI6 and the CIA have been after for years – but Romanova said she will only defect to Bond, whose photo she has allegedly found in a Soviet intelligence file. Bond then flies to Istanbul, where he meets station head Ali Kerim Bey. 007 is followed from the airport by an unkempt man in glasses and by Red Grant. The next day, after Kerim Bey's office is bombed, Bond and Kerim Bey spy on the Soviet consulate, where Kerim Bey sees rival agent Krilencu. At night, Kerim Bey and Bond go to a rural gypsy settlement, which suffers an attack by Krilencu's men, who wound Kerim Bey and nearly kill Bond, who is saved by a hidden Red Grant. Watch the movie to see what happens next.


Plot: 9.0/10- From Russia with Love had one of the best Espionage Thriller plots.

Action: 7.9/10- Although the action does not hold up as well today as other action film but it is still great.

Acting: 8.3/10- The acting overall is very good, much better than Dr. No.


Special effects: N/A-


Soundtrack: 9.5/10- The soundtrack its self is one of my favorites but the use of the soundtrack was a bit odd in some places.


Comedy: 6.5/10- There area few one liners but overall there was not much humor.


Gadgets: 7.0/10- There were not any real Bond like gadgets, but this is the first movie that the character "Q", played by Desmond Llewelyn, who would later become a important character in the other Bond movies.

Title Sequence: N/A- The use of a song during the title sequence had not been established in the Bond franchise at this point.


Would I Watch This Again: Its one of my favorite James Bond movies and I have already watched this multiple times.

Overall: 8.7/10- Not only is From Russia with Love a great Bond film, it is one of the best Spy/Espionage movies ever made.


Closing comments: Even if you did not like Dr. No, you should give From Russia with Love a viewing.

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


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