Spy in July: The Early Connery Films

James Bond was born in 1953. His father: author Ian Fleming. His birthplace: Goldeneye—Fleming's famous Jamaican home. His first adventure took place on the page and was titled Casino Royale. But in 1962 (after ten 007 books had been released), film producers Harry Saltzman and Albert "Cubby" Broccoli brought Bond to the big screen with Terence Young's Dr. No.

I'll admit to being a little cold toward the film at first, I think, because it's pretty simple. But Dr. No is a deceptively good Bond film. Most fans of the series understandably admire it because it was the first, because Connery is so good, and because the titular villain and striking love interest transcend the series. Everyone has seen the clip of Ursula Andress emerging out of the sea in the white bikini, even if they aren't Bondphiles like myself.

But Dr. No is tight and (relatively) down-to-earth. The villain's plot is outlandish—it has something to do with rockets and nuclear energy—and the finale is indicative of some of the series' worst tendencies (excess, a tendency to lose the story in some way), but Young, Connery, and company kick the series off with the kind of bang that will reverberate for 50-plus years and 23-plus films.

As good as Dr. No is, however, it doesn't come close to matching what Young (back again in the director's chair), Connery, and company do in From Russia with Love. For a long time (until Casino Royale came out, I'd say), this was my favorite James Bond film. It's one of the only ones I've formally reviewed on this site (check out my thoughts here), and it remains in my five most-watched Bond films simply because it does just about everything right.

Though SPECTRE dominates the first third of the series as far as villains go, "From Russia" contains the first element of Cold War tensions with the Soviets. I've always felt Bond films were on strong ground here because they're more believable as a threat, and with so many surreal (often silly) things going on around him, it's nice to ground Bond a little in reality.

Moving things from the tropical Caribbean to Istanbul is a nice touch, and though the Rosa Klebb/Red Grant villain combo isn't as memorable as Dr. No, they're solid, cunning adversaries. And I'll always have a soft spot for Daniela Bianchi, who's as underrated as Bond girls come. Ditto Pedro Armendariz, whose Ali Kerim Bey is right up there with Dr. No's Quarrel for the most enjoyable Bond ally (outside of Felix Leiter, of course).

Goldfinger is Bond's third cinematic adventure, and though there's a new man behind the camera (Guy Hamilton), the series is still firing on all cylinders. Here, even more than in Dr. No and From Russia with Love, the series starts to establish trademarks—a megalomaniacal villain and his physically imposing sidekick, witty repartee between 007 and a bevy of beautiful babes, and sets, characters, scenes, and moments so ridiculous that they somehow become unforgettably amazing.

It's that last point that becomes Goldfinger's calling card. From the famous "death by gold paint" scene to Oddjob's hat and a near castration by laser, Goldfinger goes for broke on crazy and comes out on the other side shining. Without these elements Goldfinger is a forgettable exercise (the locations aren't as exciting as the first two films, and Honor Blackman's Pussy Galore—despite the memorable name—isn't that great a Bond girl). That'll change later on as the series mistakenly (at least in my opinion) loads up on comedy and outlandishness while ignoring any sense of plausibility or menace. Here, though, things are still fresh, and everything is executed so well that Goldfinger carries a timeless quality no other film in the series will match.

Thunderball is the series' first noticeable dip in quality. It's probably the Bond film I give the weakest pass to. Like Dr. No, I used to think much less of it, but I've since come around a bit. It sleepwalks its way through the first 30 minutes (and last 30 minutes, actually), but thanks to one super hairy-chested spy and one evil ginger temptress, it's recommendable.

Young returns to the director's chair for what's arguably the biggest Bond film to date. Gone are the days of hero and villain sparring over a decoding device or the gold in Fort Knox; Thunderball focuses on Bond's attempts to thwart a SPECTRE-caused nuclear disaster. We get our first glimpse of the organization's #2—the eye-patch wearing Emilio Largo. And the monumental effort behind the film's mostly underwater climax is stunning. Because it's all underwater, it's silent and oddly inert. But visually and in terms of scope, nothing to this point in the series equals it.

Earlier, I mentioned Connery (the super hairy-chested spy) because I think he gives his strongest performance as 007 (and probably the strongest performance of any actor as James Bond until Craig in Casino Royale). The evil ginger temptress is Fiona Volpe, a SPECTRE operative played by Italian actress Luciana Paluzzi. She's the first of many femme fatales throughout the series, but it's all downhill from here. Paluzzi owns the screen whenever she's on it (and especially when she's opposite one of the blandest Bond girls—Claudine Auger's Domino Derval).

Ian Fleming famously hated what Saltzman and Broccoli did to his beloved book series, and it's easy enough to empathize with someone who conceived of something only to see it drastically changed for commercial reasons (Fleming's Bond is much darker than anything you'll ever see on screen). That said, we're now four films in, and Bond is kicking ass in ways he never will in the future. Two films in this bunch are undeniable greats. The other two are solid entries, and Connery looks comfortable all the way around. Plus, the elements you grow to expect out of a Bond film (Q Branch, slick cars, the famous lines) are all established in ways that make you look forward to them popping up in future films.

At this point, it should go without saying, but below are my martini-inspired ratings for these four movies:
Dr. No—Shaken
From Russia with Love—Shaken
Goldfinger—Shaken
Thunderball—Shaken

And with that, we're off and running. The chronology becomes a little confusing over the next three films as Connery finally confronts Blofeld in You Only Live Twice before George Lazenby does so again in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. Then, Connery returns in Diamonds Are Forever for a battle of wills against a mystery villain (Spoiler alert: Find out below in the title of the next post.)

THE END

OF

"THE EARLY CONNERY FILMS"

JOHN GILPATRICK WILL RETURN

in

"THE BLOFELD TRILOGY"