Review of From Russia with Love (1963) by Sean M — 12 Nov 2009

The Bond genre has spanned over 46 years; ?From Russia with Love? is probably the best example of a James Bond film ever made. The movie doesn?t acknowledge Bond as an action star; he doesn?t live to blow things up real good ? that is just a consequence of his mission. He is fundamentally a spy who lives for the women, the gadget, and the martini. He speaks with a turn of phrase that is witty and packed full of innuendo, he is so used to getting these women if one young lady turned him down I?d imagine he?d have a heart attack. ?I?m reviewing an old case?, he chimes to Miss Moneypenny over the phone, whist cradling a woman in his arms.

Since the reinvention of the Bond genre in 2006?s brilliant ?Casino Royale? and the disappointing ?Quantum of Solace?, the old Bond films are looked on with fondness, remembered mostly for the thrills they provided to young boys. The director, Terence Young (who also made two other four-star Bond movies, ?Thunderball? and ?Goldfinger? as well as the Japanese/Western epic ?Rising Sun? with Charles Bronson) directs the movie with a light touch on the cold war, creating iconic villains from strong, harsh-looking women to blond Russian secret agents (both male and female), whilst portraying Bond as the whimsical debonair that we all know and love.

The plot is what is now considered typical James Bond; a technical MacGuffin is stolen by one of the enemies of Britain. Bonds mission: to retrieve this device and dive out of an exploding building into a river. Of course on the way there will be interruptions from naïve Russian beauty Tatiana (?Miss World? runner up Daniela Bianchi) and the villainous Rosa Klebb (Lotte Lenya - nominated for the academy award for best supporting actress for ?The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone? in 1961). But as with all the James Bond movies, the story isn?t what the movie is about; it?s about the exploits that 007 gets up to while doing it, ?From Russia with Love? is not only a great Bond movie, it is a thrilling piece of action from the surreal opening sequence to the suave Venetian ending. A wonderful and exciting movie.