Dr. No (1963)

So Dr No is the first of the bonds( discounting David Nivens outing ) and therefore sets the Bluprint for the rest, which now covers the span of nearly 56 years to date. Your can't review this movie without showing some empathy towards the era it was made . It provided the audience at that time the chance of escapism, to enjoy the glamor and glamorous locations, it was easier to stimulate the senses, where now in a modern era we all have the accessibility to travel far and wide to these locations and we have more gadgets now, than any bond has had in the past. Where good over came evil and the guy got the girl. That's not to say the women in this film are weak characters and just fell over for Mr Bond as in other films of the series . They all had strong characters from the British operative in our Colonial island of Jamaica... which just happened to be in its last year, Jamaica became independent a couple of months before the film was released .... to the lady of distinction at the roulette table, who got her man. To the ruthless double agent with the Charlie Chan make over ... and nobody was going to argue with Ursula with a knife in her hand (not worth the handcuffs , I think not boys ). This bond is more like the current bond ( 2018) , no gadgets required , his cool as a cucumber until his up against incy wincy. The plot, the set, and the Villain, you can't criticise, as it's the first of the series , but I have given this 5 stars to give the other films a higher or lower rating in the series against this benchmark. The picture restoration by Laury is as much a benchmark for HD as the film. With rich colours and sharpness that makes it look like a modern film and in the world of 4K and some , you can probably see this film now better than the audiences of 62. I haven't said anything about the sound, as clearly restoration from the original source was going to be limited, and is expressed in the low quality of the HD spread through 5 speakers. But it's clear as a birds whistle. Turn the phone off, roll down the blinds and enjoy.

When the camera first raises its lens on Sean Connery, he simply says, "Bond, James Bond." Then there's that oh so familiar music; Later on, the martini, shaken not stirred. (Bruises the gin, we were taught in "Auntie Mame"). But then, there's the beautiful woman he agrees to meet for dinner later who somehow drops completely out of sight. Was she a victim of the Calypso "Three Blind Mice" we saw over the final seconds of the opening credits? After traipsing down a beautiful beach road, they suddenly opened fire on a secret agent and his brand new secretary in Jamaica, apparently for no reason, even after the secret agent put money in one of the man's cup. That brings Bond to Jamaica where he gets to meet the notorious title character, living flamboyantly on a forbidden tropical paradise island, the first of many mad men to want to take over the world, a premise deliciously copied by "General Hospital" in its over the top ratings heyday when Luke Spencer found himself on an equal beautiful tropical island trying to bring down a mad man with the same goal.For those of you who look for "unacceptable" behavior by movie heroes of the past in today's p.c. society, you'll have a field day. He flirts with Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell) but is non-committal, has a brief tryst ended with her being arrested for his attempted murder, and has a beautiful female photographer assaulted for taking his photo without her permission. So yes, he's a bit of a sexist pig, but he's a gorgeous one, and audiences were easy to look the other way. After all, it's Sean Connery at his best looking, so fit and trim, and that's what you get for the original Bond....James Bond. This is also one of the few times when you get to see Bond actually kill somebody in cold blood. Usually, their deaths are accidental or come thanks to one of the devices he gets from boss "M", a plot device which is not used in this film. But of course, there's the humor in these deaths, such as the fiery end for somebody following him which results in Connery telling a witness that the driver was obviously on their way to a funeral.That gorgeous but dangerous island paradise is certainly striking to look at, and rumors of a dragon prove to be semi-true. If you are afraid of spiders, be warned; There's a very close call for Connery with a rather large tarantula that gets a little too close to that gorgeous face for comfort. We know now that Bond would be back so there's no worry of him being bitten, but still, seeing that thing crawling so close to his face does give me the heebie-geebie's. On the island, Connery encounters the first real "Bond" girl, Ursula Andress, oh so gorgeous, oh so curvy, oh so smart. There's a horrific end for the kindly boat captain who takes Bond out to the island of Dr. No (Joseph Wiseman). I wanted to see more of Jack Lord as an American agent who briefly aids Connery, sort of ironic considering his later heroic role on the exotic TV series "Hawaii Five-O". Yes, this has all the clichés that would pop up in pretty much every Bond film made afterwards, but each one had their own style that made them so much fun, especially if you were lucky enough to see them on the big screen with a huge bag of popcorn. Bond villains, we can pray, do not exist, but it's always fun to see the build-up of their evil schemes and how Bond manages to take them down. Unlike later Bond films, this one just ended and did not give signals of a follow-up. No mention of another Bond movie appears in the final credits, although there is a final clinch with Connery and Andress that would be utilized in many of the future films, even with the others who followed Connery.

For a guy like me who wasn't around during the Connery years, "Dr. No" feels like James Bond in its (somewhat) experimental phase. The familiar iconography's there (technicolor opening, Monty Norman's theme, etc.) but it doesn't have the confident muscle or action emphasis that'll come later. But it does have great sets, exotic locale and it has Connery, bringing the cold-blooded killer in lieu of the British accent. In other words, it works, and it leaves a lasting impression; not just the lead actor but also Ursula Andress in the classic sex symbol mold.The series was bound to be a hit.7/10

Having just 1-starred that terrible latest Bond movie SPECTRE (0/2 approval - thanks fanboys), I thought I'd do some more reviews of the Bond series. Doctor No, if I remember rightly, is the sixth Bond novel - I have read them all but it was some time ago. It's easy to see why the producers chose this one first: exotic locations, interesting mystery story, good characters. This is a nice intro for peeps unfamiliar with Bond.This is a film full of iconic moments. "Bond...James Bond" to name but one. Connery's magnetic animal charm in this role made him into one of the biggest superstars in post WWII movies. And the guy can act, too. Daniel Craig is great in his first three outings, Moore a laugh, Dalton decent, Lazenby er.... Brosnan wooden; but none of them matched ol' Sean for me. His Bond is pretty different from the character in the books, but god is he good! In this one of course Bond is sent to Jamaica to investigate the toppling of American missiles ( a bit like North Korea's today!).For a film not far off its sixtieth year, it holds up remarkably well. That moment when Bond offs Anthony Dawson's character Strangways is still startlingly ruthless even today. A really enjoyable ride, then, with it's legendary theme music still one of the most recognisable in cinema. Only the villain disappoints. Fleming apparently recommended his cousin, Christopher Lee for the role. At least he got his chance later!