Dr. No

 

DIRECTED BY-:
Terence Young
STARRING-:
Sean Connery
Ursula Andress
Bernard Lee
YEAR OF RELEASE-:
1962
PREMISE-:
A resourceful British government agent seeks answers in a case involving the disappearance of a colleague and the disruption of the American space program.

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS.

THE NEGATIVES-:

• A car conveniently passes by at the exact time the three ‘’blind’’ black assassins are about to shoot James Bond.

• Why does Dr. No use an overcomplicated way- a tarantula - to kill Bond ? I mean, the only reason that the first assassination attempt failed was because a car incidentally happened to pass by Bond. So, couldn't Dr. No have instead given orders to shoot Bond when there are no disturbances around ? 

• Bond luckily notices the tarantula on his bed before it can do any harm to him.

• When Bond is on his way to Miss Taro, the assassins stupidly chase him around in their car instead of actually shooting at him (either from their car or from a far-off distance).

• Bond conveniently meets Honey Ryder JUST MOMENTS before the boat (sent by Dr. No to search for Bond) arrives on the shore of the island.

• Instead of coming to the island WITH THEIR DOGS in the first place, the armed guards instead stupidly return to their base to acquire the dogs, leaving Bond, Honey, and Quarrel ample time to run and hide in a swamp.

• Bond conveniently wakes up in his cell JUST A FEW MINUTES before Dr. No begins the execution of his plan. Had he woken up 5 minutes later, it would’ve been too late for him to do anything.

• Bond luckily survives the electric shock which he gets after touching the air-vent in his cell. 

• Why did Dr. No imprison JAMES BOND, an international spy, in a room with a HUMAN-SIZED air vent? Yes, it is clear that there were contingency measures (the gate of the vent was laced with electricity), but why even take the risk? Were there NO rooms without vents and windows?

• When Bond finally comes out of the air-vent, a worker at the base conveniently arrives in the area A FEW SECONDS after Bond arrives. If he had arrived earlier or even at the same time as Bond, it would've been very difficult for Bond to assume his identity.

• Bond and Honey are luckily able to escape Dr. No's base JUST BEFORE it explodes. 

• Some of the visual effects (like the green screen background while Bond is driving) have aged very poorly.

• The action scenes, especially the hand-to-hand combat, also had a lot of scope for improvement. 

THE POSITIVES-:

• The character of James Bond was consistently well written - he’s smart, competent, charming , and a womanizer. These traits were nicely supported through his actions - whether it be outsmarting his enemies or flipping the table on his femme fatale. But, it was also very humanizing to see that he's not invincible or perfect. I mean, the very first information that we get to know about him is how his affection for a certain gun got him injured and hospitalized. He gets beat (physically and mentally) several times in the film and has his life basically saved by Quarrel. He's also not superhuman, and requires the help of Quarrel and Felix to complete his mission. It was also a nice touch to show that he too can be afraid sometimes (his hands sweat when he and Honey get called to dine with Dr. No). His decision to put on a tough exterior even when he is afraid not only reflects his presence of mind (not letting the enemy know that you're vulnerable is very crucial) but also subtly establishes his experience and intellect. Bond admitting his fear to Honey also puts her at ease, which further depicts what a true gentleman he is.

• The set designs, especially of Dr.No’s lair, were immensely beautiful yet cunning.

• Sean Connery does a fantastic job portraying the character of James Bond. His look, dialogue delivery, and mannerisms all wonderfully help in bringing Bond to life.

• The James Bond theme song and the background music lend themselves perfectly to (almost) all the scenes of the film. 

• The dialogues and interactions between characters were also impressively written. Some of my favorite dialogues were - ‘’I think they were on their way to a funeral’’ and "It's a Smith & Wesson and you've had your six." 

RATING-: 6/10