Dr. No is the movie, that followed the book, that started the legendary franchise of James Bond 007. Starring Sean Connery as 007 and Ursula Andress as Honey Ryder, Dr. No is set on the island of Jamaica and features a chase scene, multiple shootouts and some spy work. This is the beginning of James Bond as we know him and some of the items in this movie became mainstays in everything James Bond. To mention a few there is the trademark vodka martini, the Walter PPK, the expensive sports car and the womanizing. Sean Connery plays the role with an air of business mixed in with a playful boyishness that convincingly wins the ladies. It is this cool about Sean Connery that probably won the audiences over as he calmy accepts the bed of a beautiful courtesan or patiently waits for a poisonous spider to leave his chest. The story is all character-driven and with Connery’s James Bond as center stage, it is enough to make it work.
Across from Connery is the equally cool and dangerous Dr. No (Joseph Wiseman), a Chinese/German villain who has made a nest in Jamaica to plot his villainous schemes. Playing with Atomic energy, missing limbs in lieu of metallic ones and commanding a lair with hundreds of bad guys, Dr. No set the bar for the super villain, not just in James Bond but in all movies of the type. One thing that stuck out about this villain is that his voice alone is enough to cause fear in his prey. His lair is beautifully crafted within a cave and looks surprisingly better than other lairs that follow in the bigger budget Bond movies. Operating under SPECTRE (remember this name), Dr. No’s lab was meant for interfering with rockets launching from Cape Canaveral.
When another agent of MI6 ends up missing in Jamaica, super spy 007 is sent in to investigate and discovers that his former was probably killed by a man named Dr. No. Taking caution to dodge the numerous attempts at his life by man and woman alike, James goes around the island asking questions and making allies in order to gain access to Crab Key island. Rumored to be protected by a dragon and the goons of Dr. No, natives fear the island because people who had done so in the past had disappeared. When James finally finds a bold friend in the boatman Quarrel (John Kitzmiller) he is able to access the island and take on Dr. No.
Ursula Andress plays the beautiful Honey Ryder, a brave woman who frequently visits Crab Key island to collect shells while dodging the guards there. One of the most famous scenes in James Bond history occurs on the initial introduction of Honey as she emerges from the beach to meet James. Not quite your standard eye-candy only Bond girl, Honey Rider did not offer much as a fighter but was very brave, beautiful and strong in her own right. As the first Bond Girl she was a sort of role model for up and coming actresses who aspired to be “like Honey”.
Dr. No is a quick adaptation of a mystery novel and a delightful movie for anyone’s collection. Ian Fleming (creator and writer of James Bond 007) was involved in the production of this first film and you can almost tell just from watching. On a final note, the music was very festive throughout, featuring many reggae and calypso ballads… this, with the beaches of Jamaica offering a stark contrast to the dark dreary world of the villain Dr.No makes for an ageless movie for your collection.
Bond-o-meter Score (ranges from 1-10)
James Bond (10): Ice cold Connery, balancing tough guy antics with suave lover-boy. It’s perfection.
Story (7): Jamaica, mystery and one ice cold super-spy.
Bond Girl (8): Honey Rider the original girl, a strong, blond bombshell.
Bond Toys (-): Hmm no toys in this movie aside from the Walter PPK. Can’t deduct from the original.
The Villain (8): Ice cold villain, I really liked Dr. No as the original of the bad guys.
Written by Greg Dragon – who has written 365 reviews on Spicy Movie Dogs.
Cinephile and opinion writer, Greg Dragon has been a fan of movies since the 80's when Kung Fu theater was all the rage and Roger Moore was James Bond. As an opinion writer that has reviewed Box Office releases on a number of prominent websites, Greg is the founder and lead critic of Spicy Movie Dogs.
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