Review of From Russia with Love (1963) by David P — 11 Jan 2011

"From Russia With Love" is Sean Connery's second outing as Ian Flemming's famed super-spy. Even if the scale of the film seems more modest then it's predecessor, there's plenty of memorable characters, cool gadgets, and cloak n' dagger action to appease Bond buffs.

In a refreshing nod to continuity, the film more or less is a direct continuation of "Dr. No" and features the shadowy criminal organization SPECTRE attempting to avenge the demise of their poster-boy super-villain in the previous flick.

Their plot: tempt MI6 into sending their star secret agent to Istanbul to relieve the Soviets of a highly-prized Lektor cryptographic device. Once it's in Bond's possession, they extort a beautiful Russian cypher clerk named Tatiana Romanova (Daniela Bianchi) to steal it back while implicating Bond in the theft.

As if that wasn't nasty enough, KGB double agent Rosa Klebb (Lotte Lenya) also dispatches a mentally unbalanced (and seemingly invulnerable) assassin named Donald Grant (Robert Shaw) to shadow and eliminate Bond once they recover the Lektor from him.

Fortunately, thanks to the aid of local Turkish operative Kerim Bey (Pedro Armendáriz) our hero dodges endless pitfalls and manages to flee via rail aboard the legendary Orient Express. Needless to say, SPECTRE isn't content to just sit back and watch their plans unravel.

The upper hand swings back and forth like a pendulum as each side attempts to outwit and outmaneuver the other. Although "Russia" features innovations that would come to influence the formula of all future 007 pics (such as the first use of a "grabber" sequence before the starting credits, the introduction of Q and his innovative gadgets and a theme song with lyrics), there's a certain freshness on display here that is quaintly amusing.

Long before the series began to degenerate into self-parody, the plots were rife with point/counter-point espionage, believable levels or realism and gritty action sequences. Witness the inevitable fracas between Bond and Grant, which plays out within the confines of two tiny train compartments.

Even today, their melee is vicious, shocking and filled with a real sense of peril. Other modest but admirable action sequences involve 007 defeating an armada of SPECTRE gunboats with some fuel drums and a flare gun and a truly harrowing sequence in which a helicopter tries to plaster 007 across the landscape.

The level of innovation with these set pieces (plus the fact that Connery seems crazy enough to do most of his own stunts) certainly lends a convincing air to the proceedings. Director Terrence Young keeps the pot boiling expertly and seems just at home staging economic scenes of exposition as he is with choreographing a wild gypsy catfight.

Istanbul, with it's ancient mosques, underground cisterns and colorful train stations, also makes for a truly exotic and colorful setting. As an added bonus, the sequence on the Orient Express is romantic, mysterious and claustrophobic.

Plus it's a real kick to see 60's era vehicles, styles and sensibilities captured for posterity. A conspicuous absence of political correctness really makes you feel as if you're watching a cinematic time capsule.

Indeed, there's a lot of fascinating appeal watching a spy flick set in the same era that makes the television show "Mad Men" so compelling. Having said that, it's also kind of unnerving when the cold eye of the camera impassively captures Bloefeld's Siamese fighting fish ripping each other to shreds or Bond casually backhanding Tatiana when he begins to suspect her duplicity.

The performances here are all win. Connery displays ample bravado, cool humor and charisma, but he can also turn on a dime when called upon to be SPECTRE'S patsy. And although her voice is dubbed, Daniela Bianchi is certainly one of the most alluring, sympathetic and memorable Bond girls.

Both of the lead actors get enough help from the patient script to bring their respective characters to life. Whereas these archetypes eventually became somewhat cartoonish, here both Bond and Tatiana seem like real, three-dimensional people and we can't help but root for them.

Like a precursor to John Rhys-Davies' Sallah in "Raiders of the Lost Ark", Pedro Armendáriz is also tremendous fun to watch. He's affable, natural and charming here as Kerim Bey, which, regrettably, was his last film role.

The villains of the piece also deserve considerable praise. Robert Shaw, who would go on to portray the grizzled Quint in "Jaws", plays a stoic killer with iron resolve and unnerving calm. By the time he finds himself in hand-to-hand combat with 007, it's hard to imagine that our hero even stands a chance against him.

Finally, Lotte Lenya is delightfully cold, shrill and sadistic. One could only imagine how many eyebrows her early scenes with Daniela Bianchi must have raised amongst the sensors. In watching "From Russia With Love" it's no real surprise to me that the recent Daniel Craig version of "Casino Royale" resonated so much with audiences.

Both films were occupied more with intelligent plotting, character investment, solid performances and rough and tumble action sequences over splashy sets and gimmicks. And, frankly, I think both pictures are all the better for it.

Tilt: up.