During the height of the James Bond phenomenon in the mid-1960s, a host of knockoff fictional spies sprung up throughout popular culture, hoping to capitalize to any small degree off even the fringes of Bond-mania. From Matt Helm and Derek Flint on the big screen, to the agents of the Impossible Missions Force and U.N.C.L.E.… Read More My Goodness, This Is Strong Shampoo | Casino Royale (1967) Blu-ray
I love all the James Bond movies. Even the bad ones (of which there have been a few) contain enough enjoyable parts to bring me pleasure. That’s a philosophy I struggle to maintain in certain cases. Unquestionably the worst of Sean Connery’s six (official) turns in the role, the 1971 Diamonds Are Forever is also… Read More No One’s Indestructible | Diamonds Are Forever (1971) 4K Ultra HD
Following four phenomenally successful James Bond movies, star Sean Connery grew tired of the role and announced that his fifth outing as the world’s greatest super-spy would be his last. Fittingly, You Only Live Twice should also be the movie to kill James Bond! Well, almost. As per the hint in its title, not even… Read More Instant Japanese | You Only Live Twice (1967) 4K Ultra HD
By 1965, James Bond was on top of the world. After the huge success of the character’s first three movies, especially the phenomenal blockbuster Goldfinger, Bond-mania had gripped popular culture. Audiences simply couldn’t get enough of British Secret Service Agent 007. Wise to capitalize on this, the franchise producers settled into a rhythm of cranking… Read More You Seem to Be Unbeatable, Mr. Bond | Thunderball (1965) 4K Ultra HD
Introducing a young movie fan to his first James Bond film is something of a rite of passage between fathers and sons. However, as the franchise has expanded across decades and multiple actors, and has changed in many significant ways over time, where does one begin? Which movie should be a kid’s first experience with… Read More Film at 11 Podcast: Episode 18 | Goldfinger (1964)
Although the title is undoubtedly more famous as the second movie in the James Bond film franchise, From Russia, with Love was originally the fifth novel by author Ian Fleming to feature his Agent 007 character. In bringing Bond to screen, the movie producers had very little concern for translating the work faithfully. The books… Read More Bond in Books | From Russia, with Love (1957)
As only the second James Bond movie, and a quick sequel cranked out for release just one year after the first, From Russia with Love finds the series still in a formative stage, not entirely settled into the formula that would define it for the next several decades. In fact, From Russia in particular stands… Read More No Substitute for Experience | From Russia with Love (1963) 4K Ultra HD
Made on a budget barely equivalent to $1 million USD at the time, the film adaptation of Ian Fleming’s spy thriller Dr. No was very modest even by 1962 standards. Although producers Harry Saltzman and Albert “Cubby” Broccoli surely had high hopes for it, I doubt even the most optimistic of projections could have foreseen… Read More World Domination, That Same OId Dream | Dr. No (1962) 4K Ultra HD
Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce star in the espionage thriller A Spy Among Friends. With its Cold War setting, incredibly complex plotting, and very slow-burn atmosphere, the series is decidedly more John le Carré in tone and style than James Bond – even if Ian Fleming happens to show up as a character in the… Read More I Rather Thought It Would Be You | A Spy Among Friends (2022) Series Premiere on Epix/MGM+
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