Shaken, Not Stirred ...

About 400 days ago, I bought the complete James Bond collection. And it has gathered dust among my stacks of unwatched DVDs for the duration. I did cancel my Netflix rental for the time being because of such backlog. So why not catch up by kicking off with finally watching the series from the first Bond to the latest? Besides, who knows who the next Bond will be? At this rate, it'll be 2007 before we hear that theme song, see that gunbarrel stare, in the cinema again.

James Bond has always been a man's man. The films always involved thrilling spywork, beautiful women, exotic locales, outrageous plots, and even more outrageous solutions. I think my first taste was getting to see Moonraker or Octopussy in the local sinehan. Since then, I've always been a fan. Obviously, 20 movies in 40 years does have an impact on pop culture. I wonder, in another 40 years, how will Bond's incarnation look like?

So, let's get it on!

Dr No (1962) - Terence Young
The Plot
Disillusioned engineering genius threatens to mess with US missile launches. Bond has to find the staging base for this nefarious plot and stop it. And play baccarat and hook up with some women before, during and after.
Grade: B

Locales

London, Jamaica.
Grade: B-

The Man
Sean Connery. The Alpha Bond, and the standard by which every Bond is measured.
Grade: A

The Villain
Dr. No (played by a made-up Joseph Weisman) - island fortress-owning megalomaniac of German-Chinese descent. Has metal hands (iron fists? thats an idea!) because of playing around with radioactive toys. I guess John Lone was still 10 years old in 1962 and unavailable for the role.
Grade: B+

The Girl(s)
Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress) - seashell-collecting free spirit. Happened to be at the scene of the crime - yes, collecting seashells.

Ms Taro (Zena Marshall) - eavesdropping spy at the Home Office in Jamaica. Yes, there were no Asian actresses who passed the audition.

Sylvia Trench (Eunice Gayson) - London socialite with a penchant for naked golf
Grade: A+ mostly Ursula. Hooo-haaa!

Gadgets
Q wasn't really "Q" yet, but Bond is introduced to the venerable Walther PPK for the first time.
Grade: B

Bond Moments
There weren't enough over-the-top moments yet - however:

With 3 hours before his flight to Jamaica, Bond finds a half-naked Sylvia Trench in his room playing mini golf. Scores! (and still makes his flight)

Bond scores on Ms Taro. Twice. And because he suspects she's a spy for the opposition, calmly gets the cops to book her right after scoring. Whatta man.
Grade: A-

One Liners
(after villains' car veer off and crashes down a ravine)
Bystander: What happened?

Bond: I think they were on their way to a funeral.

Ms Moneypenny: You never take me to dinner looking like this, James. You never take me to dinner, period.
Bond: I would you know, only I would be court martialed for illegal use of government property.

Bond (to Dr No): Tell me, does the toppling of American missiles really compensate for having no hands?

Bond (to the world): Bond ... James Bond
Grade: A

Overall
nice debut, and kickstarts the long-running series with style and panache.
Grade: A-


Halle Berry Who? No one comes close to the original Bond girl.