Review of From Russia with Love (1963) by Jason N — 07 Feb 2011

This one is my favorite of all the Connery Bond films, and it just might be my favorite overall. After the borefest that was Dr. No, this one really got the ball rolling in the series. This is the one that set up the whole SPECTRE army concept, trademark action scenes, and a good level of realism not seen often in later Bonds.

This one had the romance we have come to expect from thee franchise, too. The script is tight, the story is top notch, and is not bogged down by cliche one liners, heavy reliance on gadgets, or an over-the-top death for the villain(s).

Everything is classy, sometimes savage (girlfights and train cabin brawls, anyone?), and the danger and urgency of matters is conveyed quite well. By today's moviemaking and scriptwriting standards, this one still hold up from a story standpoint.

The ending is one that some might not expect. Bond's love interest actually pops off one of the bad guys which kinda broke the stereotypical mold of having the male hero do the dirty work. Again, as with Dr.

No, the locales were one of the best parts of this film. I consider this Bond to be a dark film; a seedy film where we see a Bond who is sure of himself, and knows that everyone he meets is a potential backstabber; everyone except Kerim Bey.

Bey is one of the more memorable Bond allies in the series. Frankly, I like him more than the 2 million different Felix Leiters that show up later on in the series. He's a good, warm, welcoming character who has excellent chemistry with Bond which added to an already character rich film.

There's too many good points that I could talk about, but then I would be giving away too much, although, I did say what happens to one of the villains without saying who that villain is/was. LOL.

Go see this one asap. This one is much better than Goldfinger and Dr. No, in my opinion. Whereas Goldfinger (though excellent) relies more on visuals than story to satisfy viewers, From Russia With love delivers on both visuals and a high caliber story to deliver the goods.

Basically, if you liked Casino Royale, then you will like this one if given a choice between FRWL, or Goldfinger.