Dr. No (1962)

Director: Terence Young

Starring: Sean Connery, Ursula Andress, Bernard Lee

A resourceful British government agent seeks answers in a case involving the disappearance of a colleague and the disruption of the American space program.

Ahh, and so here we are: the very first James Bond film. How nice; a time before CGI took over the film industry, and movies were shot on location with practical effects.

Its interesting to see this very first film didn’t have as much action and none of the gadgets and fancy cars the series is renowned for. I must be honest, I had a difficult time following the plot. I know Bond (Sean Connery) was investigating the disappearance of a colleague and his secretary, and then became involved in the wrong doings of an antagonist called Dr No. I honestly had no idea what it was all about apart from wanting to rule the world.

Dr No (Joseph Wiseman) only makes his appearance towards the end of the film, which is not standard procedure for a film’s villain. When I did a screen writing course, they insisted the villain should appear early in the film. So, what happened here and why was this acceptable? This espionage thriller gets a bit too involved, and confusing.

Note the bad sound effects, as well, which I suppose was the norm for its time. I mean, screeching tires on a gravel road during a chase sequence!!! The action sequences are also not all that impressive. The best part about the film, were Sean Connery’s shirtless scenes on the island – this man is a stud! And then there’s the now famous scene of the first Bond girl, Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress) walking onto the beach from the sea. And off course that iconic Bond score. The ‘love interest’ between Bond and Honey felt all too forced and for effect only. It is unrealistic at best. Dr No’s friendly gesture towards Bond and Honey is also questionable. Why would he do that? What did he have to gain? The short-lived climax is over before the viewer can even truly grasp what is actually happening.

The Production Design is very good, and clearly a taste of what was to come in future movies. In general – for me – there was nothing all that special about this first Bond installment. It wasn’t action-packed, it was more confusing than intriguing, and had plot flaws galore. Sean Connery with his charm, dashing looks and deep voice made the movie more enjoyable.

‘Dr No’ earned $16 million on a $1.1 million budget.

Would I watch it again? Maybe, in time.