Dr No (1962)

Dr No (Terance Young, 1962)

The film that launched the longest running franchise in movie history and made a star of Sean Connery in the process. 

Connery stars as Ian Fleming’s James Bond 007 in this adaptation of the sixth novel in the series. (Casino Royale, the first novel, had been previously adapted for US TV and was therefore not available to producers ‘Cubby’ Brocolli and Harry Saltzman’s Eon Productions for filming.)

Investigating the disappearance of fellow MI6 operatives, Bond heads to Jamaica and is soon on the trail of the titular Dr No, an underground dwelling, Nemo-esq scientific genius with plans to wreck the US space programme. Fist fights, shoot-outs and car chases ensue! 

In many respects, Dr No is Bond in its purest form. Before the over reliance on gadgets, before the campy, double entendre laden humour, before the over the top action set pieces. Connery is perfect in the role: suave yet cool, a lover and a fighter. This lean, mean Bond would seemingly provide the template for the latter movies; with the advent of the Daniel Craig era and a back-to-basics attitude that has seen the series return to its original, sleeker, more economic roots. 

Connery is surrounded by a classy supporting cast. As Island girl Honey Ryder, Ursula Andress set the standard for Bond girls, emerging like Venus from the ocean in a two-piece swimsuit and creating one of the most iconic images of the entire series. Future Hawaii Five-O star Jack Lord and John Kitzmiller make appealing allies for Bond, while Bernard Lee and Lois Maxwell make their first appearances as Bond’s MI6 boss M and his flirtatious secretary Miss Moneypenny, respectively. The casting of white American Joseph Wiseman as Chinese villain Dr No will probably raise some eyebrows, but it’s worth remembering that such casting was common practice when the film was made and was neither meant as racist or seen as racist back in 1962. Be happy we live in more enlightened times but don’t let it spoil your enjoyment of the movie. 

Director Terance Young never lets the pace flag. Dr No is one of the shorter Bonds but Young never wastes a second as he delivers a gripping, intelligent thriller. Arguably the best of the many Bond directors, Young would return to direct two further excellent early entries: From Russia with Love (1963)  and Thunderball (1964). 

It wouldn’t be a Bond movie without John Barry’s arrangement of Monty Norman’s iconic theme. Its first appearance, pre-credits as we view 007 through the barrel of a gun, was so successful as to become the standard opening sequence on all future Bond movies. Barry would become the composer most closely associated with Bond, writing the score for a further 11 movies in the series. 

The Bond movie mould would really be set across the next two features From Russia with Love and Goldfinger (Guy Hamilton, 1964). For me these early series entries have never been surpassed (although the Craig era comes close). They have a certain 1960s cool that will never be replicated - from the cars and the clothes to the colourful Jamaican locales, virtually any image from Dr No could be taken from an early 1960s lifestyle magazine. Rewatching the movie almost 60 years after release it is fascinating to see how much of what we associate with the series is already present. Certainly refinements were made to the formula over the coming films, but, honestly I don’t think this series opener was ever bettered. Equalled maybe, but it has a certain economic, raw, unpolished appeal that box office success and bloated budgets would not allow for in the future. Six decades on this is still a fantastic piece of popular cinema. Intelligent in a way action movies rarely are today, shot through with streak of sardonic humour. If you are a Bond fan I do not need to extol the virtues of Dr No to you. If you have never seen a Bond movie (where have been for 60 years?) or are only familiar with later entries than this original classic should really be next on your Bond viewing list!