Casino Royale
CASINO ROYALE (1953)
The first of Ian Fleming’s James Bond novels. Bond is sent to a casino in Royale-les-Eaux to disgrace the lethal Russian agent “Le Chiffre” by ruining him at baccarat and forcing his Soviet spymasters to “retire” him, but he soon finds that his quarry is not content to go without a fight. Preferring to work alone, 007 is annoyed to be assigned a female assistant, but his compelling attraction to the enigmatic Vesper Lynd only leads him into further danger.
The 2006 film version is the first outing for Daniel Craig as the ultimate secret agent. The story line is topped and tailed with a contemporary twist but the essential theme of the original remains and stands up well given it was written only eight years after the WW2. The film also marked a welcome change in emphasis for the Bond franchise introducing us to a new grittier Bond.
LIVE AND LET DIE (1954)
Mr Big, a gold thief, Lord of the Black Widow voodoo cult and top SMERSH operative is the next dangerous opponent Bond has to face. (SMERSH is a contraction of Smiert Spionam which means Death to Spies and was the official murder organisation of the Soviet government.) 007’s mission to track him down takes him to the smoky jazz joints of Harlem, to the Florida Keys and on to the lush tropics of the Caribbean. He finds himself entangled with the raven-haired fortune teller Solitaire, who Mr Big is holding prisoner and won’t let go without a fight. The battle of wills comes to a head in Jamaica’s Shark Bay, where Bond must face the deadly teeth of barracuda if he is to capture the biggest fish yet.
The 1973 film saw Roger Moore take on the mantle of James Bond after Sean Connery’s departure from the franchise. Sean subsequently made one more Bond film – Never Say Never Again in 1983 – but that was for a different franchise. Moore, internationally renowned for his role of the Saint in the cult TV series presents us with a suave Bond, an English gentleman, licensed to thrill rather than kill. The film broadly follows the book and is regarded by many as Moore’s best Bond film.
MOONRAKER (1955)
At M’s request, Bond has gone up against Sir Hugo Drax at the card table, on a mission to teach the millionaire and head of the Moonraker project a lesson he won’t forget and prevent a scandal engulfing Britain’s defence system. But there is more to the mysterious Drax than simply cheating at cards. And once Bond delves deeper into goings-on at the Moonraker base he discovers that both the project and its leader are something other than they pretend to be.
1979 saw the film version hit the big screen. A staggering $30 million was spent on one of the poorest Bond epics of the Moore era. The original novel was too dated to translate to the big screen so the film version only retained the essence of the characters and the premise of a megalomaniac using a space programme for his own ends. It had uncomfortable nods towards the Star Wars films but unlike early Bond movies of the Connery era followed fashion rather than setting the standards for others to imitate.
DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER (1956)
Tiffany Case, beautiful, reckless and cold, stands between James Bond and the leaders of a diamond smuggling ring that stretches from Africa via London to the states. Bond uses her to infiltrate this gang but once in America the hunter becomes the hunted. Bond is in real danger until help comes from an unlikely quarter, the ice maiden herself.
1971 saw Sean Connery reprise his role as James Bond for the last time in the Bond franchise following the mixed reaction to George Lazonby in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969). For all the hype and anticipation the film failed to live up to expectations although the theme tune and Connery’s presence add weight to the movie. Like many of the films it has a flimsy attachment to the original book and is considered by many Bond aficionados to be the worst of the Connery era Bonds.
FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE(1957)
Every major foreign government has a file on James Bond, British secret agent. Now Russia’s deadly SMERSH organisation has targeted him for elimination. They have the perfect bait in the irresistible Tatiana Romanova. Her mission is to lure Bond to Istanbul and seduce him while her superiors handle the rest. But when Bond walks willingly into the trap, a game of cross and double cross ensues with Bond both the stakes and the prize. As one book critic put it “Mr Fleming is in a class by himself. Immense detail, elaborate settings and continually mounting tension, flavoured with sex, brutality and sudden death”.
And the 1963 film starring Sean Connery certainly lived up to the excitement of the book which it follows almost to the letter but introduces SPECTRE (The Special Executive for Counterintelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion. The founder and chairman of this sinister organisation is Ernst Stavro Blofeld). Its a down to earth detective thriller, reminiscent of the Third Man, without all the high tech gadgetry which became the hallmark of most of the later films. The fight scene on the Orient Express was graphic for its time and the the menacing lesbian Rosa Klebb and her spiked poison shoes will remain ever iconic amongst Bond fans.
DR NO (1957)
Dr No a sinister recluse with mechanical pincers for hands and a sadistic fascination with pain, holds James Bond firmly in his steely grasp. Bond and Honey Rider, his beautiful and vulnerable Girl Friday, have been captured trespassing on Dr No’s secluded Caribbean island. Intent on protecting his clandestine operations from the British Secret Service, Dr No sees an opportunity to dispose of an enemy and further his diabolical research. Bond and Rider are fighting for their lives in a murderous game of Dr No’s choosing.
Yes this is the film that began it all. 1962 – 50 years ago – and Bond is still going strong today. It is said that Sean Connery personified James Bond with such perfection that even Ian Fleming, initially critical of the choice of Connery for the role, admitted that it was difficult imagining anyone else in the part. Fleming’s description of Bond is as follows:- “Height 183 cm, weight 76 kg, slim build; eyes: blue: hair: black; scar down right cheek and on left shoulder; all round athlete; expert pistol shot, boxer, knife thrower; does not use disguises. Languages: French and German. Smokes heavily (nb: special cigarettes with three gold bands); vices; drink; but not to excess, and women.” The film closely follows the book and was the surprise run away hit at the box office in 1962.
GOLDFINGER (1959)
Auric Goldfinger – cruel, clever. frustratingly careful. A cheat at Canasta and a crook on a massive scale in everyday life. The sort of man James Bond hates. So it’s fortunate that Bond is the man charged by both the Bank of England and MI6 to discover what thi , the richest man in the country, intends to do with his ill gotten gains and what his connection is the SMERSH. But once inside this deadly criminal’s organisation, 007 finds that Goldfinger’s schemes are more grandiose and lethal than anyone could have imagined. Not only is he planning the greatest gold robbery in history but mass murder as well.
The film version reached the big screen in 1964 and was the first Bond film to be classed as a box office blockbuster. This film has it all – Connery, a gold painted girl, the Aston Martin DB5; Pussy Galore and her Flying Circus and of course Odd Job - and set the scene for the Bond films to follow. It also has one of the most memorable Shirley Bassey theme tunes.
FOR YOUR EYES ONLY (1962)
Sudden emergencies and beautiful girls who aren’t quite what they seem are the stock-in-trade of James Bond. And when 007 is on the case there’s only one thing you can be sure of – the result will be thrilling. Whether he’s dealing with the assassination of a Cuban thug in America, the destruction of an international heroin ring, or sudden death in the Seychelles, Bond gets the job done in his own suave and unmistakable way.
Bond fans will also recognise that the chapter headings in For Your Eyes Only provided the film makers with non Fleming titles for the later films such From a View to a Kill (1985) and Quantum of Solace.
The 1981 film version bears no relation to the book. Starring Roger Moore and following criticism of Moonraker being too far fetched, this film is far more believable. It also boasts Moore’s best performance as Bond. Its all about the sinking of a British trawler – in reality a spy ship – in Albanian territorial waters. It had on board a top secret device involving Polaris submarines. The British want it back and the Soviets want to get their hands on it first. Bond is assigned to get it back from the wreck. The film has two villains –Kristatos and Columbo- and a cross bow expert –Melina Havelock – out to avenge her parent’s murder.
THUNDERBALL (1961)
When a stranger arrives in the Bahamas, the locals barely turn their heads seeing another ex-pat with money to burn at the casino tables. But James Bond has more than money on his mind. He’s got less than a week to find the whereabouts of two stolen atom bombs hidden among the coral reefs. While acting the playboy, Bond meets Domino, the sultry plaything of secretive treasure hunter Emelio Largo. In getting close to this gorgeous Italian girl Bond hopes to learn more about Largo’s hidden operation.
The big screen version of Thunderball hit the screens in 1965. Interestingly, it was originally intended to be the first Bond movie. It follows the book reasonable well and sees Connery at ease with the role and at his athletic best although he complained that the character was being swamped by the gadgetry. The underwater special effects won an Oscar.
THE SPY WHO LOVED ME (1962)
Vivienne Michel is in trouble. Trying to escape her tangled past, she has run away to the American backwoods, winding up at the Dreamy Pines Motor Court. A far cry from the privileged world she was born into, the motel is also the destination of two hardened killers the perverts Sol Horror and the deadly Sluggsy Morant. When a coolly charismatic Englishman turns up, Viv, in terrible danger is not just hopeful, but fascinated. Because he is James Bond 007 the man she hopes will save her; the spy she hopes will love her.
You’ll be hard pushed to find any Fleming in the 1977 film version of The Spy Who Loved Me starring Roger Moore. Submarines disappear and Bond finds himself working alongside Russian spy Anya Amasova to defeat the villain Karl Stromberg who rules an underwater kingdom called Atlantis. The trade mark Moore humour is more measured and mature and we meet Jaws and the well equipped Lotus Esprit. This is probably the best Bond film starring Moore in terms of capturing a lot of the essence of the Connery era films even though it does bear an uncanny resemblance to a stylish remake of You Only Live Twice (1967).
ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE (1963)
From the moment he first meets Teresa di Vicenca – a reckless play girl with a love of fast cars and danger – Bond is fascinated. She also leads him to new information on Blofeld. In his alpine mountain base, Blofeld is developing weapons that could threaten the whole world. Only 007 with the help of someone who can handle herself at speed can stop the evil genius.
The film version sticks closely to the Fleming source novel, which is one of his very best, and plays down the gadgetry. Quite simply it is one of the best Bond movies ever made. You have to feel sorry for George Lazenby who had a difficult act to follow – Sean Connery – but looking back certainly made a better fist of the role than some who followed him.
YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE (1964)
Shattered by the murder of his wife at the hands of Blofeld, Bond has gone to pieces as an agent. M gives him one last chance, sending him to Japan for a near impossible mission. There Bond is trained in the fighting arts of ninja warriors and sent to infiltrate a mysterious fortress known as the Castle of Death – places of nightmares with a lethal poisoned garden that destroys all who go there – where he awakens an old terrifying enemy.
In the 1967 screen adaptation of Fleming’s penultimate full length 007 novel we see only a scant reminder of the original plotline. American and Soviet space craft are disappearing and the cold war super powers blame each other not realising that a third organisation, SPECTRE, is behind it all. Bond is sent to Japan to investigate. Much parodied, the iconic rocket base in the dormant volcano and the cat stroking, scar faced Blofeld wowed the cinema audiences of the day. The script by Roald Dahl is excellent and the theme tune isn’t bad either.
THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN (1965)
A brainwashed Bond tries to assassinate M. Now he has to prove he can be trusted again. His task is to kill of of the most deadly freelance hit men in the world – Paco “Pistols” Scaramanga – the Man with the Golden Gun. But 007 is no straightforward assassin and on finding Scaramanga in the sultry heat of Jamaica, he decides to infiltrate the killer’s criminal operation to get his results. If he fails he might just be on the next on a long list of agents “retired” by the Man with the Golden Gun.
Considered by many to be the weakest Bond film when it was released –1974 –it starred Roger Moore (with a third nipple – honest) but a very creditable Christopher Lee (a distant cousin of Ian Fleming) as the villain. The plot is pure hokum, containing little to commend it. Bond is assigned to recover a Solex Agitator which can convert sunlight into electricity and encounters Scaramanga along the way who has a flying car.... The theme tune is one of the worst with ridiculous lyrics sang enthusiastically by Lulu. Britt Ekland is in it too – say no more!
OCTOPUSSY/LIVING DAYLIGHTS (1966)
Bond tracks down a wayward major who has taken a deadly secret with him to the Caribbean. He also identifies a top Russian agent secretly bidding for a Faberge egg in a Sotheby’s auction room. He also ruthlessly guns down an unlikely assassin in sniper’s alley between East and West Berlin.
Just what any of the above has got to do with the 1983 film Octopussy starring Roger Moore and the 1987 film Living Daylights starring Timothy Dalton is anyone’s guess. Octopussy is all about a renegade Russian General wanting to attack NATO, forming an alliance with one Kamel Khan, an aristocratic smuggler of gems. Octopussy, another smuggler, finds that her exotic travelling circus is unwittingly carrying a nuclear bomb to blow up a USA army base. Bond saves the day. Living Daylights has an intriguing plotline which takes our hero to Czechoslovakia, Afganistan and Tangiers.
In summary, all the Ian Fleming James Bond books are an excellent read although it is evident that the plot lines became weaker towards the end of the series. Cinematically, the films that work best are arguably the ones that stick as closely as possible to the original novels where character development overrides the gadgetry. One of the drawbacks is the fact that the films did not not follow the chronology of the books which clearly follow on from one to the other. This distraction aside, the films also can confuse the viewer – kick starting Daniel Craig with his first kills to earn him his 00 status for example. There is now even talk of bringing Blofeld and SPECTRE back! Everyone has their favourite Bond. It all depends when you were introduced to the franchise and which Bond you saw first. Whilst Daniel Craig looks little like the character in the books, Ian Fleming would no doubt instantly recognise his chillingly ruthless ultimate secret agent with his license to kill!
Charles Walton
Tagged in James Bond