From Russia with Love
{3.5/5} “I’ve had a particularly fascinating life. Would you like to hear about it?”
From Russia with Love, released in 1963
SPECTRE is after an encryption device and to get it they’re setting a trap for the Russians and the British. They know that the British will send their best agent, James Bond — who they would like to kill since he dispatched their operative Dr. No. Bond heads to Istanbul knowing it’s a trap — he just doesn’t know what type of trap.
I was less familiar with this story than that of Dr. No, and therefore more interested in watching it again. It drags a bit and there are a few odd moments, but it’s still a good movie.
This movie introduces the tradition of the pre-credits sequence, in which James Bond does something interesting or mysterious — which may or may not have anything to do with the main story.
This movie also introduces the guy who pets the white cat — otherwise known as the head of SPECTRE, Ernst Stavro Blofeld. In this movie we don’t see his face.
Desmond Llewelyn plays Q for the first time — he continues playing that role in 16 more movies. The character of Kerim Bey is a terrific one — he’s Bond’s contact in Istanbul.
Filmed in Turkey, Italy, and the UK.
Stars Sean Connery and Robert Shaw. Directed by Terence Young (Dr. No).
The music is by John Barry, his first of 11 soundtracks for this series. The 007 Theme is a great tune, which is used again in a few more movies.
This is probably the second time I’ve seen it. I previously reviewed the 1st movie in the series, Dr. No.