The ''James Bond'' series of films contain a number of repeating, distinctive
motifs which date from the series' inception with
''Dr. No'' in 1962. The series consists of twenty five films produced by
Eon Productions
Eon Productions Ltd. is a British film production company that primarily produces the ''James Bond'' film series. The company is based in London's Piccadilly and also operates from Pinewood Studios in the UK.
''Bond'' films
Eon was start ...
featuring the
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
character, a fictional British
Secret Service
A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For ...
agent. The most recent instalment is ''
No Time to Die
''No Time to Die'' is a 2021 spy film and the twenty-fifth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, starring Daniel Craig in his fifth and final portrayal of fictional British MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by Cary Jo ...
'', released in UK cinemas on 30 September 2021. There have also been two independently made features, the satirical
''Casino Royale'', released in 1967, and the 1983 film ''
Never Say Never Again
''Never Say Never Again'' is a 1983 spy film directed by Irvin Kershner. The film is based on the 1961 James Bond novel '' Thunderball'' by Ian Fleming, which in turn was based on an original story by Kevin McClory, Jack Whittingham, and Flemi ...
''.
Whilst each element has not appeared in every Bond film, they are common threads that run through most of the films. These motifs vary from integral plot points, such as the assignment briefing sessions or the attempts to kill Bond, to enhancements of the dramatic narrative, such as music, or aspects of the visual style, such as the title sequences. These motifs may also serve to enhance excitement in the plot, through a chase sequence or for the climax of the film. Some of these—such as "
Bond girl
A Bond girl is a character who is a love interest or female companion of James Bond in a novel, film or video game. Bond girls occasionally have names that are double entendres or puns, such as Pussy Galore, Plenty O'Toole, Xenia Onatopp, o ...
s" or megalomaniac villains—have been present in all of the stories, whilst others—such as
Q's gadgets or the role of
M—have changed over time, often to shape or follow the contemporary zeitgeist.
These elements are formulaic and the Bond films tend to follow a set pattern with only limited variety, often following within a strict order. A number of the elements were altered or removed in 2006 with the
reboot
In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is physi ...
of the series,
''Casino Royale''.
[
Some of the elements involved are a result of the production crew used in the earliest films in the series, with the work of ]Ken Adam
Sir Kenneth Adam (born Klaus Hugo George Fritz Adam; 5 February 1921 – 10 March 2016) was a German-British movie production designer, best known for his set designs for the James Bond films of the 1960s and 1970s, as well as for ''Dr. Stran ...
, the original production designer, Maurice Binder
Maurice Binder (December 4, 1918 – April 9, 1991) was an American film title designer best known for his work on 16 James Bond films including the first, '' Dr. No'' (1962) and for Stanley Donen's films from 1958.
Early work
He was born in Ne ...
, title designer, and John Barry, composer, continually updated and adapted as the series progressed.
Opening sequences
Gun barrel sequence
All of the Eon Bond films feature the unique gun barrel sequence, created by graphic artist Maurice Binder
Maurice Binder (December 4, 1918 – April 9, 1991) was an American film title designer best known for his work on 16 James Bond films including the first, '' Dr. No'' (1962) and for Stanley Donen's films from 1958.
Early work
He was born in Ne ...
, which has been called by British media historian James Chapman "the trademark motif of the series". As Bond walks across the screen, he is viewed by the audience through the barrel of a gun trained on him by an unknown assailant. Bond wheels around and shoots directly at the gun/viewer, followed by the assassin's blood spilling down the barrel/screen. It was originally filmed in sepia
Sepia may refer to:
Biology
* ''Sepia'' (genus), a genus of cuttlefish
Color
* Sepia (color), a reddish-brown color
* Sepia tone, a photography technique
Music
* ''Sepia'', a 2001 album by Coco Mbassi
* ''Sepia'' (album) by Yu Takahashi
* " ...
by putting a pinhole camera
A pinhole camera is a simple camera without a lens but with a tiny aperture (the so-called ''pinhole'')—effectively a light-proof box with a small hole in one side. Light from a scene passes through the aperture and projects an inverted image o ...
inside an actual .38 calibre gun barrel, with stunt man Bob Simmons playing the part of Bond. The remake of the sequence for the wide-screen '' Thunderball'' featured Connery as Bond. This is accompanied by the opening bars of the "James Bond Theme
The "James Bond Theme" is the main signature theme music of the James Bond films and has featured in every Eon Productions#James Bond series, Eon Productions Bond film since ''Dr. No (film), Dr. No'', released in 1962. Composed by Monty Norman ...
", composed by Monty Norman
Monty Norman (''né'' Noserovitch; 4 April 1928 – 11 July 2022) was a British composer, musician and singer. A contributor to West End musicals in the 1950s and 1960s, he is best known for composing the "James Bond Theme", first heard in th ...
, orchestrated by trumpeter and composer John Barry and Burt Rhodes.
After Maurice Binder's death in 1991, Daniel Kleinman
Daniel Kleinman (born 23 December 1955) is a British television commercial and music video director who has designed every title sequence for the ''James Bond'' series of films since ''GoldenEye'' (1995), with the exception of '' Quantum of ...
was responsible for the gun barrel sequence up to and including ''Casino Royale''. Design house MK12
MK12 is a graphic design company best known for creating the title sequences for the films of Marc Forster, such as ''Stranger than Fiction (2006 film), Stranger than Fiction'' and ''Quantum of Solace'', as well as the interstitial videos in ''Th ...
supervised the graphics for ''Quantum of Solace''. Chapman has suggested that the sequence is a significant part of the James Bond mythos because it "foregrounds the motif of looking" that is central to the spy film
The spy film, also known as the spy thriller, is a genre of film that deals with the subject of fictional espionage, either in a realistic way (such as the adaptations of John le Carré) or as a basis for fantasy (such as many James Bond films) ...
genre. The gun barrel imagery sometimes carried over to the film poster
A film poster is a poster used to promote and advertise a film primarily to persuade paying customers into a theater to see it. Studios often print several posters that vary in size and content for various domestic and international markets. The ...
s used to promote Bond films, including as a familiarising element on the introduction of Timothy Dalton for ''The Living Daylights''.
The sequence was traditionally placed at the start of each film until the 2006 instalment ''Casino Royale'', where it appears at the end of the cold open
A cold open (also called a teaser sequence) is a narrative technique used in television and films. It is the practice of jumping directly into a story at the beginning of the show before the title sequence or opening credits are shown. In Ameri ...
and is incorporated into the plot; in the 2008 film, ''Quantum of Solace'', the sequence was placed at the end of the film and incorporates the film's title in its design.
For ''Skyfall'', director Sam Mendes had wanted to return the gun barrel to the start of the film but in editing realised that the sequence was similar to his opening shot of the film. Because of this, the sequence was placed at the end of the film fading into a 50th Anniversary logo. In ''Spectre'' the sequence returns to the start of the film and also returns to the classic Binder design. This time the barrel fades into a title card that reads "The Dead Are Alive" (a sentence which ''seems'' to be explained by the fact that the picture starts in Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
during the Day of the Dead
The Day of the Dead ( es, Día de Muertos or ''Día de los Muertos'') is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. It is widely obser ...
, as remarked by the next subtitle/title card, but can be later explicated by the presence of the seemingly deceased character of Franz Oberhauser, alias "Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Ernst Stavro Blofeld is a fictional character and villain from the James Bond series of novels and films, created by Ian Fleming. A criminal mastermind with aspirations of world domination, he is the archenemy of the British Secret Service agen ...
"). The gun barrel remains at the opening for Craig's final film, ''No Time to Die
''No Time to Die'' is a 2021 spy film and the twenty-fifth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, starring Daniel Craig in his fifth and final portrayal of fictional British MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by Cary Jo ...
''.
Pre-title sequence
In the first film of the series, ''Dr. No'', the gun barrel sequence is followed by the main titles, but starting with ''From Russia with Love'' and in all subsequent films, the titles are preceded by a pre-title sequence or "teaser". The contents of the sequence can relate to the main plot of the film in a number of ways, including being not at all related (as in '' Goldfinger''), loosely connected (as with '' The Man with the Golden Gun'' or ''The World Is Not Enough
''The World Is Not Enough'' is a 1999 spy film, the nineteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions and the third to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by Michael Apted, from an ori ...
'') or fully related to the plot (as can be seen in ''Licence to Kill
''Licence to Kill'' is a 1989 spy film, the sixteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the second and final film to star Timothy Dalton as the MI6 agent James Bond. It sees Bond suspended from MI6 as he pursues t ...
'' and ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'').
From ''Thunderball'' through to ''Die Another Day
''Die Another Day'' is a 2002 spy film and the twentieth film in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It was produced by Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, and directed by Lee Tamahori. The fourth and final film starrin ...
'', the gun barrel sequence segues into the pre-title sequence by having the opening shot be sighted through the barrel. Beginning with ''The Spy Who Loved Me'', the teasers emphasised not only action sequences but stunts, a practice that prevailed until ''Casino Royale''. At over fourteen minutes, the sequence for ''The World Is Not Enough'' is two to three times the length of most others in the series. ''No Time to Die'' surpassed this in 2021 with a pre-title sequence that runs twenty minutes.
Title sequence
The main title sequences incorporate visual elements that often reflect each film's theme, often showing silhouettes of nude or provocatively clad women set against swirling images. For example, the 1965 film ''Thunderball'' features scenes of deep-sea diving and this is reflected in the associated opening sequence; similarly the opening sequence for the 1964 film ''Goldfinger'' shows clips from Bond films projected onto the gold-painted silhouette of actress Margaret Nolan
Margaret Ann Nolan (29 October 1943 – 5 October 2020) was an English actress, visual artist and glamour model. She appeared in '' Goldfinger'', '' A Hard Day's Night'' and six ''Carry On'' films, and also regularly appeared on screen from the ...
: the titles have been described by Bond scholars Smith and Lavington as "Gorgeous, iconic, seminal."
The concept for the titles came from designer Robert Brownjohn
Robert Brownjohn (August 8, 1925 – August 1, 1970) was an American graphic designer known for blending formal graphic design concepts with wit and 1960s pop culture. He is best known for his motion picture title sequences, especially '' From R ...
, who worked on ''From Russia with Love'' and ''Goldfinger'', before he fell out with producer Harry Saltzman
Herschel Saltzman (; – ), known as Harry Saltzman, was a Canadian theatre and film producer. He is best remembered for co-producing the first nine of the ''James Bond'' film series with Albert R. Broccoli. He lived most of his life in Denh ...
and left the series. In creating the titles, Brownjohn was inspired by seeing light projecting on people's bodies as they got up and left a cinema; he was also influenced by constructivist artist László Moholy-Nagy
László Moholy-Nagy (; ; born László Weisz; July 20, 1895 – November 24, 1946) was a Hungarian painter and photographer as well as a professor in the Bauhaus school. He was highly influenced by constructivism and a strong advocate of the i ...
projecting light on to clouds in the 1920s. Brownjohn also used the effect in the poster he created for ''Goldfinger''. Designer Maurice Binder
Maurice Binder (December 4, 1918 – April 9, 1991) was an American film title designer best known for his work on 16 James Bond films including the first, '' Dr. No'' (1962) and for Stanley Donen's films from 1958.
Early work
He was born in Ne ...
, who had worked on the first Bond film, ''Dr. No'', had been unable to work on either ''From Russia with Love'' and ''Goldfinger'', but returned for ''Thunderball'', where he retained Brownjohn's concept for the titles. Binder eventually worked on thirteen Bond films and after his death in 1991, the opening credits were done by Daniel Kleinman
Daniel Kleinman (born 23 December 1955) is a British television commercial and music video director who has designed every title sequence for the ''James Bond'' series of films since ''GoldenEye'' (1995), with the exception of '' Quantum of ...
. This changed for ''Quantum of Solace'', with the studio MK12
MK12 is a graphic design company best known for creating the title sequences for the films of Marc Forster, such as ''Stranger than Fiction (2006 film), Stranger than Fiction'' and ''Quantum of Solace'', as well as the interstitial videos in ''Th ...
taking control. However, Kleinman returned to direct the title sequences for the following three Craig films.
A contemporary artist usually sings during the title sequence and an instrumental version of the main track may also be featured as a leitmotif
A leitmotif or leitmotiv () is a "short, recurring musical phrase" associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical concepts of ''idée fixe'' or ''motto-theme''. The spelling ''leitmotif'' is an anglici ...
during the film, which repeats in various moods. Writing for ''Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'', Andy Greene says that "James Bond title songs, as a rule, have the name of the movie in the chorus," though he notes that this is not always the case. ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service On Her Majesty's Secret Service may refer to:
* ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (novel), a 1963 novel by Ian Fleming
* ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (film), a 1969 film adaptation of the novel
** ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (sou ...
'' has an entirely instrumental credit sequence, though the film features an alternate theme, "We Have All the Time in the World
"We Have All the Time in the World" is a James Bond theme song sung by Louis Armstrong. Its music was composed by John Barry and the lyrics by Hal David. It is a secondary musical theme in the 1969 Bond film '' On Her Majesty's Secret Service'', ...
", sung by Louis Armstrong
Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...
. Until the Daniel Craig era, only "Nobody Does It Better
"Nobody Does It Better" is a power ballad and the theme song
Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequenc ...
" and "All Time High
"All Time High" is a song by American singer-songwriter Rita Coolidge that serves as the theme song to the James Bond film ''Octopussy'' (1983). Written by John Barry and Tim Rice and produced by Stephen Short and Phil Ramone, the song was rele ...
" served as an opening theme without sharing a title with the movie. John Barry provided the title song music on ten of the eleven films for which he composed the musical score. Several of the songs produced for the films have been nominated for Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
s for Original Song
"Original Song" is the sixteenth episode of the second season of the American television series ''Glee'', and the thirty-eighth episode overall. It was written by Ryan Murphy, directed by Bradley Buecker, and premiered on Fox in the United Stat ...
and become pop hits, including Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
's " Live and Let Die", Carly Simon
Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter, memoirist, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Top 40 U.S. hits include "Anticipation" (No. 13), " The Right Thin ...
's "Nobody Does It Better
"Nobody Does It Better" is a power ballad and the theme song
Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequenc ...
" (for the film ''The Spy Who Loved Me''), and Sheena Easton
Sheena Shirley Easton (; born 27 April 1959) is a Scottish singer and actress. Easton came into the public eye in an episode of the first British musical reality television programme '' The Big Time: Pop Singer'', which recorded her attempts to ...
's " For Your Eyes Only" with Adele
Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a reco ...
's "Skyfall
''Skyfall'' is a 2012 spy film and the twenty-third in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. The film is the third to star Daniel Craig as fictional MI6 agent James Bond and features Javier Bardem as Raoul Silva, the villai ...
" and Sam Smith
Samuel Frederick Smith (born 19 May 1992) is an English singer and songwriter. After rising to prominence in October 2012 by featuring on Disclosure's breakthrough single "Latch", which peaked at number eleven on the UK Singles Chart, they ...
's " Writing's on the Wall" (for ''Spectre
Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to:
Religion and spirituality
* Vision (spirituality)
* Apparitional experience
* Ghost
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...
'') eventually winning the award.
Plot elements
Flirting with Moneypenny
With the exception of the first two Daniel Craig films, ''Casino Royale'' and ''Quantum of Solace'', every Bond film has a sequence in which Bond interacts with Miss Moneypenny
Miss Moneypenny, later assigned the first names of Eve or Jane, is a fictional character in the James Bond novels and films. She is secretary to M (James Bond), M, who is Bond's superior officer and head of the British Secret Intelligence Serv ...
, the personal assistant to M, Bond's superior. Lois Maxwell
Lois Ruth Maxwell (born Lois Ruth Hooker; 14 February 1927 – 29 September 2007) was a Canadian actress who portrayed Miss Moneypenny in the first fourteen Eon-produced ''James Bond'' films (1962–1985). She was the first actress to play the ...
was the first to portray Moneypenny and did so for fourteen Eon-produced Bond films from ''Dr. No'' in 1962 to ''A View to a Kill
''A View to a Kill'' is a 1985 spy film and the fourteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and is the seventh and final appearance of Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Although the title is adapted ...
'' in 1985 opposite Connery, Lazenby, and Moore. She was followed by Caroline Bliss
Caroline Bliss (born 12 July 1961) is an English actress who trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. She is best known for her appearance as M's secretary, Miss Moneypenny, in the James Bond films of the Timothy Dalton era.
Early life
Sh ...
, Samantha Bond
Samantha Jane Bond (born 27 November 1961) is an English actress, who is best known for playing Miss Moneypenny in four James Bond films during the Pierce Brosnan years, and for her role on ''Downton Abbey'' as the wealthy widow Lady Rosamund ...
and Naomie Harris
Naomie Melanie Harris (born 6 September 1976) is a British actress. She started her career when she was a child, appearing in the television series ''Simon and the Witch'' in 1987. She portrayed Selena in the zombie film ''28 Days Later'' (2002 ...
, who played opposite Dalton, Brosnan and Craig respectively. The four have arguably divergent interpretations of Moneypenny's personality, as do the six actors who have played Bond.
A running joke
A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling. Though they are similar, catchphrases are not ...
throughout the film series is Moneypenny's unrequited love
Unrequited love or one-sided love is love that is not openly reciprocated or understood as such by the beloved. The beloved may not be aware of the admirer's deep and pure affection, or may consciously reject it. The Merriam Webster Online Dic ...
for Bond and his playful flirting with her. She flirts back, jokes and sometimes pouts, hoping to wrangle a proposal and a wedding ring out of him. A fantasy sequence in ''Die Another Day
''Die Another Day'' is a 2002 spy film and the twentieth film in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It was produced by Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, and directed by Lee Tamahori. The fourth and final film starrin ...
'' marks the only occasion in the Eon film series in which Moneypenny was actually shown in a romantic embrace with Bond, although this is only in Q-branch's virtual reality machine.
Receiving assignment from M
Early in most plots Bond is called in to see M, the head of the UK's Secret Intelligence Service
The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...
(also known as MI6) in his or her office to receive his assignment. In several films, Bond receives the assignment outside the MI6 offices, or at a local secret office. Bond often finds M in a subdued state of agitation over a new threat to world peace. M typically shows confidence in the service's best agent but feels a need to rein in Bond for his risky methods and often chides him for his indiscretions.
The first actor to portray M was Bernard Lee
John Bernard Lee (10 January 190816 January 1981) was an English actor, best known for his role as M in the first eleven Eon-produced James Bond films. Lee's film career spanned the years 1934 to 1979, though he had appeared on stage from t ...
, who appeared in all eleven Bond films from ''Dr. No'' in 1962 to ''Moonraker'' in 1979. With Lee's illness from stomach cancer in 1980–1981, he was unable to appear in his scenes for '' For Your Eyes Only''; he died on 16 January 1981 and, out of respect, no new actor was hired to assume the role for the film. Instead, the script was re-written so that the character is said to be on leave, letting Chief of Staff Bill Tanner
William Tanner is a fictional character in the James Bond film and novel series. Tanner is an employee of the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) who acts as M's chief of staff.
Novels
In Ian Fleming's novels, Bill Tanner is MI6's chief of staff ...
take over the role as acting head of MI6 and briefing Bond alongside the Minister of Defence.
Lee was replaced for four films between 1983 and 1989, by Robert Brown who had previously appeared in the series as Admiral Hargreaves. Judi Dench
Dame Judith Olivia Dench (born 9 December 1934) is an English actress. Regarded as one of Britain's best actresses, she is noted for her versatile work in various films and television programmes encompassing several genres, as well as for her ...
took over the role of M from 1995's ''GoldenEye
''GoldenEye'' is a 1995 spy film, the seventeenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by Martin Campbell, it was the first in the ser ...
'' until 2012's ''Skyfall
''Skyfall'' is a 2012 spy film and the twenty-third in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. The film is the third to star Daniel Craig as fictional MI6 agent James Bond and features Javier Bardem as Raoul Silva, the villai ...
''. In ''Skyfall'', Gareth Mallory, played by Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes ( ; born 22 December 1962) is an English actor, film producer, and director. A Shakespeare interpreter, he excelled onstage at the Royal National Theatre before having further success at the Royal Shak ...
, takes over as M at the end of the film after the death of Dench's character.
In the books, "Universal Export" (later "Transworld Corporation") serves as a cover for the British Secret Service. In the films, "Universal Exports" or variations thereof are used, such as the abbreviation "UnivEx" in ''From Russia with Love'', a brass name plate in ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'', and Bond's helicopter in ''For Your Eyes Only''. Academic Paul Stock argues that M's office—and Universal Exports by extension—is a metonym
Metonymy () is a figure of speech in which a concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated with that thing or concept.
Etymology
The words ''metonymy'' and ''metonym'' come from grc, μετωνυμία, 'a change of name' ...
for England, whilst he sees M as being an iconic representative of England and Englishness.
Technical briefing with Q
After getting his assignment, Bond is often sent to Q Branch for the technical briefing in which he receives special equipment to be used in his mission. The pre-mission briefings quickly became one of the motifs that ran through the Bond series. ''Dr. No'' provided no spy-related gadgets, although a Geiger counter
A Geiger counter (also known as a Geiger–Müller counter) is an electronic instrument used for detecting and measuring ionizing radiation. It is widely used in applications such as radiation dosimetry, radiological protection, experimental ph ...
was used. Industrial designer Andy Davey observed that the first ever onscreen spy-gadget was the attaché case shown in ''From Russia with Love'', which he described as "a classic 007 product". The gadgets assumed a higher profile in the 1964 film ''Goldfinger'' and the film's success encouraged further espionage equipment from Q Branch to be supplied to Bond, although the increased use of technology led to an accusation that Bond was over-reliant on equipment, particularly in the later films.
Starting with ''From Russia with Love'', the briefings with Q branch involve various gadgets and technology, although Boothroyd is not referred to in the credits as Q until the third film, ''Goldfinger''. Each Bond film thereafter up until ''Die Another Day'' contains a technical briefing of some kind, usually given by Q, with the exception of ''Live and Let Die'', in which Q does not appear and ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' in which Q does not brief 007 but is demonstrating to M.
Q is sometimes shown joining Bond in the field, taking with him a portable workshop and his staff. These workshops are established in unusual locations, such as an Egyptian tomb in ''The Spy Who Loved Me'' and a South American monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
in ''Moonraker''. On three occasions, in ''Octopussy
''Octopussy'' is a 1983 spy film and the thirteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It is the sixth to star Roger Moore as the MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by John Glen and the screenplay was written by G ...
'', ''Licence to Kill'' and ''Spectre'', Q takes active roles in Bond's missions. For the 2006 ''Casino Royale'' reboot and the subsequent instalment, ''Quantum of Solace'', the character of Q was, like Moneypenny, dropped, and although Bond still receives a supply of mission equipment, no technical briefing is shown on screen.[ The technical briefings resume, under the tutelage of Q, in ''Skyfall'' and ''Spectre''.
There are several running jokes throughout the series. Established in ''Goldfinger'' is Q's continuing disgust at how his equipment is often lost, damaged or destroyed by Bond during missions. Another is how easily distracted Bond is in the lab ("Now pay attention") as Q rattles off details about the use of the equipment which Bond needs to commit to memory. Another part of the customary byplay between Q and Bond is Bond's amused reaction to the latest devices and the Quartermaster's indignant response ("I never joke about my work"). There are also sight gags showing prototype equipment. In the field, however, Bond always remembers the details and takes full advantage of the tools supplied.
]Desmond Llewelyn
Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn (; 12 September 1914GRO Register of Births: DEC 1914 11a 490 NEWPORT M. – Desmond W. Llewelyn, mmn = Wilkinson – 19 December 1999GRO Register of Deaths: JUN 2000 A70E 247 EASTBOURNE – Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn, D ...
played Q in seventeen Bond films, appearing in more Bond films than any other actor, where he worked with the first five ''James Bond'' actors. Llewelyn's first film was the second in the Eon series, ''From Russia with Love'', after the actor who played the part in ''Dr. No'', Peter Burton
Peter Ray Burton (4 April 1921 – 21 November 1989) was an English film and television actor.
Early life
Peter Ray Burton, was born in Bromley, Kent, to Frederick Ray Burton and Gladys Maude (née Frazer).
Career
He is perhaps best known fo ...
, was unavailable for the filming schedule. (Burton's character was not yet called Q, but "the Armourer", Major Boothroyd, who instructed Bond on a new firearm, the Walther PPK
The Walther PP (german: Polizeipistole, or police pistol) series pistols are blowback-operated semi-automatic pistols, developed by the German arms manufacturer Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen.
It features an exposed hammer, a traditional double-ac ...
.) After appearing as Q's assistant in ''The World Is Not Enough'', John Cleese
John Marwood Cleese ( ; born 27 October 1939) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. Emerging from the Cambridge Footlights in the 1960s, he first achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and ...
appeared as Q in Pierce Brosnan's last film, ''Die Another Day''. For Daniel Craig
Daniel Wroughton Craig (born 2 March 1968) is an English-American actor who gained international fame playing the secret agent James Bond in the film series, beginning with '' Casino Royale'' (2006) and in four further instalments, up to '' ...
's third film, ''Skyfall'', the character was re-introduced, with Ben Whishaw
Benjamin John Whishaw (born 14 October 1980) is an English actor and producer. After winning a British Independent Film Award for his performance in ''My Brother Tom'' (2001), he was nominated for an Olivier Award for his portrayal of the titl ...
playing the part.
Guns, cars and aircraft
;Guns
The first Bond film, ''Dr. No'', saw M ordering Bond to leave his Beretta behind and take up the Walther PPK, which the film Bond used in eighteen films. Since ''Tomorrow Never Dies'', Bond's main weapon has been the Walther P99
The Walther P99 () is a semi-automatic pistol developed by the German company Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen of Ulm for law enforcement, security forces and the civilian shooting market as a replacement for the Walther P5 and the P88. The P99 and ...
semi-automatic pistol
A semi-automatic pistol is a type of repeating single-chamber handgun ( pistol) that automatically cycles its action to insert the subsequent cartridge into the chamber (self-loading), but requires manual actuation of the trigger to actuall ...
.
;Cars
Bond has driven a number of cars, including the Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC is an English manufacturer of luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Steered from 1947 by David Brown, it became associated with ...
V8 Vantage during the 1980s, the V12 Vanquish
The Aston Martin Vanquish is a high-performance grand tourer introduced by British luxury automobile manufacturer Aston Martin in 2001 as a successor to the Aston Martin Virage, Aston Martin Vantage (1993).
The Aston Martin "V12 Vanquish," des ...
and DBS during the 2000s, as well as the Lotus Esprit
The Lotus Esprit is a British sports car that was built by Lotus Cars at their Hethel factory in England between 1976 and 2004. It was among the first of designer Giorgetto Giugiaro's polygonal "folded paper" designs.
Background
In 1970 Tony ...
; the BMW Z3
The BMW Z3 is a range of two-seater sports cars which was produced from 1995 to 2002. The body styles of the range are:
* 2-door roadster (E36/7 model code)
* 2-door coupé (E36/8 model code)
The Z3 was based on the E36 3 Series platform, whil ...
, BMW 750iL
The BMW Generation E38 is the third generation of the BMW 7 Series luxury cars and was produced from 1994 until 2001. The E38 replaced the E32 7 Series and was produced with petrol and turbo-diesel straight-six and V8 engines, along with a petrol ...
and the BMW Z8
The BMW Z8 is a roadster produced by German automotive manufacturer BMW from 1998 to 2006. The Z8 was developed under the codename "E52" between 1993 and 1999, through the efforts of a design team led by Chris Bangle from 1993 to 1995. The ext ...
. He has, however, also needed to drive a number of other vehicles, ranging from a Citroën 2CV
The Citroën 2CV (french: link=no, deux chevaux(-vapeur), , lit. "two steam horse(power)s", meaning "two ''taxable'' horsepower") is an air-cooled front-engine, front-wheel-drive, economy family car, introduced at the 1948 Paris Mondial de l ...
to an AEC Regent III RT
AEC may refer to:
Organizations
* Catalan Space Agency (Agència Espacial de Catalunya)
* Ars Electronica Center, Linz, Austria
* Art Ensemble of Chicago, US
Governance
* African Economic Community
* African Energy Chamber
* Alaska Engineering ...
bus, amongst others.
Bond's most famous car is the silver grey Aston Martin DB5
The Aston Martin DB5 is a British grand tourer (GT) produced by Aston Martin and designed by Italian coachbuilder Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera. Originally produced from 1963 to 1965, the DB5 was an evolution of the final series of DB4.
Alt ...
, first seen in ''Goldfinger''; it later featured in ''Thunderball'', ''GoldenEye'', ''Tomorrow Never Dies'', ''Casino Royale'', ''Skyfall'', ''Spectre'', and ''No Time to Die''. The films have used a number of different Aston Martins for filming and publicity, one of which was sold in January 2006 at an auction in the US for $2,090,000 to an unnamed European collector.
The features of the original DB5, as featured in ''Goldfinger'', included an ejection passenger seat, operated by a pushbutton concealed in the shift lever; a metal pop-up shield in the rear; rotating licence plates; an on-demand oil slick; rotating blades concealed in each wheel hub that could be extended to shred an enemy's tyres; and a tracking device, with a dash-mounted display, that predated the modern GPS
The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a Radionavigation-satellite service, satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of t ...
tracker. Some features were referenced in later films, such as ''Skyfall'', in which M (Judi Dench) asked Bond "What are you going to do, eject me?".
;Aircraft
Bond also shows his taste for aircraft: a gyrocopter
An autogyro (from Ancient Greek, Greek and , "self-turning"), also known as a ''gyroplane'', is a type of rotorcraft that uses an unpowered rotor in free autorotation to develop lift (force), lift. Forward thrust is provided independently, by an ...
—''Little Nellie''—features in ''You Only Live Twice'', a Cessna 185
The Cessna 185 Skywagon is a six-seat, single-engined, general aviation light aircraft manufactured by Cessna. It first flew as a prototype in July 1960, with the first production model completed in March 1961. The Cessna 185 is a high-wing ...
Seaplane in ''Licence to Kill'', an Acrostar Jet in ''Octopussy'', the titular Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program na ...
in ''Moonraker'' and an Aero L-39 Albatros
The Aero L-39 Albatros is a high-performance jet trainer designed and produced in Czechoslovakia by Aero Vodochody. It is the most widely used jet trainer in the world; in addition to performing basic and advanced pilot training, it has also fl ...
in ''Tomorrow Never Dies''.
Meeting allies
Once in the field, Bond frequently meets up with a local ally upon arrival. These can be his foreign counterparts like Tiger Tanaka
This is a list of allies of ''James Bond'' who appear throughout the film series and novels.
MI6
M
M is a Rear Admiral of the Royal Navy, and the head of the Secret Intelligence Service. Fleming based the character on a number of peop ...
in Japan or CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...
operatives like Felix Leiter
Felix Leiter is a fictional character created by Ian Fleming in the ''James Bond'' books, films and other media. The character is an operative for the CIA and Bond's friend. After losing a leg and his hand to a shark attack, Leiter joined the P ...
, or his own staff in a secret location. Such characters can also be female, some of whom succumb to Bond's charms. Often these allies will provide Bond either with information to complete his mission, or with additional gadgets from Q. Some allies recur through a number of instalments, such as the Western-friendly KGB chief, General Gogol
This is a list of allies of ''James Bond'' who appear throughout the film series and novels.
MI6
M
M is a Rear Admiral of the Royal Navy, and the head of the Secret Intelligence Service. Fleming based the character on a number of people ...
, Sir Frederick Gray, the Minister of Defence
A defence minister or minister of defence is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from coun ...
and René Mathis
This is a list of allies of ''James Bond'' who appear throughout the film series and novels.
MI6
M
M is a Rear Admiral of the Royal Navy, and the head of the Secret Intelligence Service. Fleming based the character on a number of peop ...
.
Felix Leiter
One of Bond's closest allies in both the novels and films is CIA operative Felix Leiter. Fleming wrote twelve novels, of which Leiter appears in six; in the second book, ''Live and Let Die'', Leiter was attacked by a shark and lost his right arm and half his left leg and his subsequent appearances were with prosthetics. For the film series the shark attack occurred in ''Licence to Kill'', the fifteenth instalment in the series. Following ''Licence to Kill'', Leiter did not appear until the reboot of the franchise with ''Casino Royale''.
In total Leiter appears in nine Eon Bond films: four out of the six Connery films, one film with Moore, both Dalton instalments and none with Brosnan (where Bond's CIA contact is Jack Wade), but returned for Craig's; he is also not in George Lazenby
George Robert Lazenby (; born 5 September 1939) is an Australian actor. He was the second actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond in the Eon Productions film series, playing the character in '' On Her Majesty's Secret Service ...
's sole Bond film. In the Eon series, there were no Leiter film appearances between 1973 and 1987 and no Leiter appearances between 1989 and 2006.
Although other recurring characters in the Eon series, such as M, Q and Moneypenny, had continuity within the actors, the character of Leiter has not. In the nine Eon films in which Leiter makes an appearance, there have been seven actors playing the role. Only two actors have played the part twice: David Hedison
Albert David Hedison Jr. (May 20, 1927 – July 18, 2019) was an American film, television, and stage actor. He was billed as Al Hedison in his early film work until 1959 when he was cast in the role of Victor Sebastian in the short-lived espion ...
and Jeffrey Wright
Jeffrey Wright (born December 7, 1965) is an American actor. He is well known for his role as Belize in the Broadway production of ''Angels in America'', for which he would win a Tony Award, and its HBO miniseries adaptation, for which he would ...
. Wright's first appearances also made him the first African-American actor to play the part in the Eon series, although Leiter was also played by Afro-American actor Bernie Casey
Bernard Terry Casey (June 8, 1939 – September 19, 2017) was an American actor, poet and professional American football player.
Early life
Casey was born in Wyco, West Virginia, the son of Flossie (Coleman) and Frank Leslie Casey. He graduated ...
in one of the non-Eon films, ''Never Say Never Again
''Never Say Never Again'' is a 1983 spy film directed by Irvin Kershner. The film is based on the 1961 James Bond novel '' Thunderball'' by Ian Fleming, which in turn was based on an original story by Kevin McClory, Jack Whittingham, and Flemi ...
''.
Chase scenes
Keeping with the greater Hollywood tradition, every Bond film features chase scenes, usually more than one per film. Bond and his allies evade their pursuers in a wide variety of vehicles, including custom air- and watercraft, to trucks and even tanks and moon-buggies. Although most chase sequences feature Bond getting chased by the villains, such as the Aston-Martin DB5 in ''Goldfinger'' and the ski sequence in ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'', some feature Bond chasing the villains, such as the tank pursuit in ''GoldenEye'' and all sequences in ''Casino Royale''. As the Eon series has progressed, the chases have repeated themselves with some variations and have all increased in extravagance.
Among the more unusual chase sequences include the gondola sequence from ''Moonraker'', which leaves the canals of Venice to continue on land, and the cello case chase in ''The Living Daylights'', as well as a double-decker bus
A double-decker bus or double-deck bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. They are used for mass transport in the United Kingdom, the United States, New Zealand, Europe, Asia and also in cities such as Sydney; the best-known example is the ...
in ''Live and Let Die''.
International locations
Bond's adventures have taken him to over sixty countries, as well as outer space, in locations mostly described as attractive and exotic. These locations are primarily real places, though on occasion—such as San Monique ('' Live and Let Die'') and Isthmus (''Licence to Kill
''Licence to Kill'' is a 1989 spy film, the sixteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the second and final film to star Timothy Dalton as the MI6 agent James Bond. It sees Bond suspended from MI6 as he pursues t ...
'')—the destinations have been fictional.
The locations used for filming have often altered because of the effects of Bond's presence: Scaramanga's hideout on Ko Tapu
Khao Phing Kan ( th, เขาพิงกัน, ) or Ko Khao Phing Kan (, ) is an island in Thailand, in Phang Nga Bay northeast of Phuket. About from the shores of Khao Phing Kan lies a tall islet called Ko Ta Pu (, ) or Ko Tapu (, ).
Th ...
( th, เกาะตะปู) in ''The Man with the Golden Gun'' is often now referred to as ''James Bond Island'' both by locals and in tourist guidebooks. Similarly, the revolving restaurant
A revolving restaurant or rotating restaurant is usually a tower restaurant eating space designed to rest atop a broad circular revolving platform that operates as a large turntable. The building remains stationary and the diners are carried on ...
, located atop the Schilthorn
The Schilthorn () is a summit in Europe, in the Bernese Alps of Switzerland. It overlooks the valley of Lauterbrunnen in the Bernese Oberland, and is the highest mountain in the range lying north of the Sefinenfurgge Pass. The Schilthorn lies ab ...
near the village of Mürren
Mürren is a traditional Walser mountain village in the Bernese Highlands of Switzerland, at an elevation of above sea level and it cannot be reached by public road. It is also one of the popular tourist spots in Switzerland, and summer and wi ...
used in ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' has retained the name Piz Gloria
Piz Gloria is a revolving restaurant at the -high summit of the Schilthorn near Mürren in the Bernese Oberland, Switzerland.
Overview
The cable car station and the restaurant were designed by Bernese architect Konrad Wolf. The Piz restaurant c ...
since filming took place there.
Klaus Dodds
Klaus Dodds is Professor of Geopolitics at Royal Holloway, University of London.
Academia
After taking up a position at the University of Edinburgh, he was appointed to a lectureship at Royal Holloway in 1994. He is the co-editor of the Routle ...
has noted that there is a geopolitical aspect to the locations used, although this is often a pre-emption of an issue by the film. For example, in the first film, ''Dr. No'', the title villain's disruption of the American Project Mercury
Project Mercury was the first human spaceflight program of the United States, running from 1958 through 1963. An early highlight of the Space Race, its goal was to put a man into Earth orbit and return him safely, ideally before the Soviet Un ...
space launch from Cape Canaveral with his atomic-powered radio beam mirrored claims that American rocket testing at Cape Canaveral had problems with rockets going astray. Similarly Bond's anti-heroin mission in ''Live and Let Die'' coincided with President Nixon's 1972 declaration of a War on Drugs
The war on drugs is a Globalization, global campaign, led by the United States federal government, of prohibition of drugs, drug prohibition, military aid, and military intervention, with the aim of reducing the illegal drug trade in the Unite ...
, whilst ''GoldenEye'' played against the backdrop of Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
's Strategic Defense Initiative
The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), derisively nicknamed the "''Star Wars'' program", was a proposed missile defense system intended to protect the United States from attack by ballistic strategic nuclear weapons (intercontinental ballistic ...
.
Characters
Larger-than-life villains
For the series of Bond novels, Fleming realised that without threatening villains Bond seemed less heroic: this tradition of strong literary villain was brought across to the screen in the Eon series. The third Bond film, ''Goldfinger'', set a pattern for having a main villain with a loyal and dangerous henchman, a model which was followed in subsequent films.
Whilst Bond scholar Glenn Yeffeth argues that there are only three Bond villains of note— Dr. No, Auric Goldfinger
Auric Goldfinger is a fictional character and the main antagonist in Ian Fleming's 1959 seventh ''James Bond'' novel, '' Goldfinger'', and the 1964 film it inspired (the third in the ''James Bond'' series). His first name, Auric, is an adjectiv ...
and Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Ernst Stavro Blofeld is a fictional character and villain from the James Bond series of novels and films, created by Ian Fleming. A criminal mastermind with aspirations of world domination, he is the archenemy of the British Secret Service agen ...
, fellow scholar Kerstin Jütting has identified a path of development of villains, all of whom adapt to a contemporary zeitgeist:
* Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Ernst Stavro Blofeld is a fictional character and villain from the James Bond series of novels and films, created by Ian Fleming. A criminal mastermind with aspirations of world domination, he is the archenemy of the British Secret Service agen ...
(1963–2021)—Model megalomaniac facing 007 eight times
*Francisco Scaramanga
Francisco Scaramanga is a fictional character and one of the main antagonists in the James Bond novel and film version of '' The Man with the Golden Gun''. Scaramanga is an assassin who kills with his signature weapon, a pistol made of solid gol ...
(1974)—the first "freelance" villain
*Aristotle Kristatos
The following is a list of primary antagonists in the ''James Bond'' novels and film series.
Novel villains by author
Ian Fleming
Kingsley Amis (writing as Robert Markham)
Christopher Wood
John Gardner
Raymond Benson
...
(1981)—the first false ally
*Franz Sanchez
''Licence to Kill'' is a 1989 spy film, the sixteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the second and final film to star Timothy Dalton as the MI6 agent James Bond. It sees Bond suspended from MI6 as he pursues t ...
(1989)—the first villain with the already fulfilled operation
*Alec Trevelyan
Alec Trevelyan (006) is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 1995 James Bond film ''GoldenEye'', the first film to feature actor Pierce Brosnan as Bond. Trevelyan is portrayed by actor Sean Bean. The likeness of Bean as Alec Tre ...
(1995)—the first MI6 villain
*Elliot Carver (1997)—the modern megalomaniac
*Elektra King (1999)—the first villainess
*Raoul Silva (2012)—the first attack on M
Many of Bond's adversaries are characterised by an unusual physical deformity; for example, Le Chiffre suffered haemolacria, causing his tear ducts to weep blood. Not all of the villains have unusual physical traits; Mathieu Amalric's Dominic Greene was depicted without such characteristics, instead being inspired by Tony Blair and Nicolas Sarkozy.
Many of the henchmen employed by the villains may have unique weapons; Oddjob, Auric Goldfinger's enforcer, carries a bowler hat with a razor-sharp blade concealed in the rim, while Xenia Onatopp is known to crush victims to death with her thighs during sexual intercourse, intercourse. In addition to these weapons, many of the henchmen are physically different; the over-large Tee Hee had an iron claw, Jaws (James Bond), Jaws, an assassin with steel teeth, was played by 2.18m (7'2") actor Richard Kiel, whilst Renard (James Bond), Renard (the henchman to the main villainess Elektra) survived being shot in the head, which progressively killed off his senses and his ability to feel pain.
Many of Bond's adversaries meet their deaths at the hands of Bond who often uses his environment or equipment to kill his opponent. Mister Big (James Bond), Mr. Big was killed when Bond force-fed him a pellet of compressed gas, causing him to inflate and explode whilst Hugo Drax was ejected into outer space. Very few villains actually survive the course of Bond's assignment, and their deaths often come in the final scenes of the film. Lindner has noted that a number of the villains or henchmen have met their deaths through Bond using the technology of the villains against themselves and these include Alec Trevelyan being speared by part of the communications dish, Elliot Carver impaled by his sea-drill and Renard skewered by a nuclear fuel rod.
Bond girls
At some point on the mission, Bond meets the principal Bond girl
A Bond girl is a character who is a love interest or female companion of James Bond in a novel, film or video game. Bond girls occasionally have names that are double entendres or puns, such as Pussy Galore, Plenty O'Toole, Xenia Onatopp, o ...
, a character portraying Bond's love interest or one of his main sex objects. There is always one Bond girl central to the plot, and often one or two others who cross his path, helpful or not. They may be victims rescued by Bond, or else ally agents, villainesses, or henchwomen. Many partner with Bond on the assignment, while others such as Honey Ryder are solely passive participants in the mission. More generally, the degree to which Bond girls are pivotal to propelling the plot forward varies from one film to the next. Five of the Bond girls are "bad" girls (or at least working for the villain) who turn "good" (or switch sides) usually due to Bond's influence. Bond has fallen in love with only Tracy Bond, Tracy di Vicenzo in ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'', Vesper Lynd in ''Casino Royale'', and Dr. Madeleine Swann in ''Spectre
Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to:
Religion and spirituality
* Vision (spirituality)
* Apparitional experience
* Ghost
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...
'' and ''No Time to Die
''No Time to Die'' is a 2021 spy film and the twenty-fifth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, starring Daniel Craig in his fifth and final portrayal of fictional British MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by Cary Jo ...
''. Both Tracy and Vesper die early in their relationships with Bond, and this reoccurring tragic outcome was used to create tension in ''No Time to Die'' regarding Swann's fate.
Roald Dahl, a screenwriter of ''You Only Live Twice'', said he was given a formula to work to for the film: "you put in three girls ... Girl number one is pro-Bond. She stays around roughly through the first reel of the picture. Then she is bumped off by the enemy, preferably in Bond's arms." The next girl is anti-Bond and normally captures him, but Bond will save himself by using his charm and sexual potency: she is normally killed midway through the film. Girl number three will survive and end the film in Bond's embrace.
Academic Kimberly A. Neuendorf notes that James Bond promotes stereotypical, sex-typed male attitudes, especially when interacting with women and in doing so demonstrates Western society's patriarchal, individualistic culture. Academic Tricia Jenkins, meanwhile, sees that Bond as "hyperheterosexual", as he is "''more'' masculine, ''more'' sexually desirable, ''more'' heterosexual than the others around him". Bond girls became a major theme in many Bond film posters, beginning with ''Dr. No''; the suggestiveness of the images used had to be toned down in some countries.
Bond girls often have highly suggestive names, including ''Goldfinger'' Pussy Galore, which the American censor refused to allow on promotional materials and for the US market she was subsequently referred to as "Miss Galore" or "Goldfinger's personal pilot"; however Honor Blackman took delight in embarrassing interviewers by repeatedly mentioning her character's name. Other double entendre names included Holly Goodhead from ''Moonraker'', Mary Goodnight and Chew Mee from ''The Man with the Golden Gun'', Honey Ryder from ''Dr. No'', Plenty O'Toole from ''Diamonds Are Forever'', Xenia Onatopp from ''GoldenEye'', and Christmas Jones from ''The World Is Not Enough''.
Humour
One of the elements used throughout the Bond series is humour, particularly 'one-liners', delivered by Bond, either when killing an enemy, or at the end of the film when with a woman. The humour was present in the first film in the series, ''Dr. No'', with Bond leaving a corpse in a car outside Government House and asking the Duty Sergeant to make sure he did not get away, whilst in ''Goldfinger'', Bond electrocutes a man in a bath, before commenting, "Shocking, positively shocking".
During Sean Connery's Bond films, the humour was delivered by Connery to soften a violent situation, such as the electrification, or his shooting a villain with a spear gun and saying "I think he got the point". The humour changed towards innuendo and self-mockery during the Roger Moore films, with his jokes delivered with what media historian James Chapman considered to be a "wink at the audience", with the suggestion that the violence was all a joke. This was shown in ''Live and Let Die'' when he threw the villain, Tee Hee, out of a train, removing his prosthetic arm in the process, Moore commented that he was "Just being disarming, darling". When Timothy Dalton took the role, the humour was downplayed, bringing the character more in line with that of the novels. The humour returned for the Brosnan films,
with Bond admitting between kisses that he "always enjoyed studying a new tongue". Similarly, Moneypenny called Bond a "cunning linguist" after she interrupted his lesson with his Danish-language teacher. Brosnan was not happy with some of the humour in the films, particularly the "stupid one-liners — which I loathed — and I always felt phony doing them".
The films often include a one-liner, often of a sexual nature, at the dénouement. At the close of ''The Spy Who Loved Me'', Roger Moore's final line when caught with a woman, was that he was "Keeping the British end up, Sir!", something that Chapman considered to have "plumbed new depths of banality". Similarly, ''Moonraker'' closes with a distracted Q answering M's question of "What's he doing?" as they are a live broadcast of Bond having sex in space with "I think he's attempting re-entry, sir"; a line described by Barnes and Hearn as "sheer magnificence".
The films also contain elements of visual humour: when Jaws is dropped into a shark pool in ''The Spy Who Loved Me'', it is Jaws who bites the shark. The following film, ''Moonraker'', sees Bond in a comic chase scene with a gondola that becomes a hovercraft, a continuation that Bond author Raymond Benson considered "so dumb that one wonders at what age group the film was really aimed." The music and sound effects are also used for comic effect in the films: the laboratory of Hugo Drax is opened by touchtones that play the tune of ''Close Encounters of the Third Kind'', whilst when Bond and Anya Amasova, Anya are seen walking across the desert in ''The Spy Who Loved Me'', the theme from Lawrence of Arabia (film), ''Lawrence of Arabia'' is heard.
Dénouement
Protracted attempt to kill Bond
In most of the films, the main villain often captures Bond and, rather than kill him quickly, attempts a slow and protracted death, from which Bond always escapes. This will often also come with a scene of the villain explaining his master plan to Bond. Goldfinger chained Bond to a nuclear bomb in the vault, while Alec Trevelyan tied an unconscious Bond to a helicopter that was programmed to fire its own missiles at itself. Francisco Scaramanga gave Bond lunch and then proposed a duel in his "fun room", while Hugo Drax trapped Bond beneath the exhaust of a rocket to burn to death. This convention within the Bond canon has been lampooned in spoof films, including the Austin Powers (film series), ''Austin Powers'' series.
Climax
The climax of most Bond films is the final confrontation with the villain and his henchmen, sometimes an entire army of cohorts, often in his hard-to-reach lair. The villain's retreat can be a private island (''Dr. No'', ''The Man with the Golden Gun''), underwater (''The Spy Who Loved Me''), mountaintop retreat (''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'', ''For Your Eyes Only'') volcano (''You Only Live Twice''), or underground base (''Live and Let Die''), a ship (''Thunderball'', ''Tomorrow Never Dies''), an oil rig (''Diamonds Are Forever'') or even a space station (''Moonraker'')—among other variations. Bond usually sabotages the lair and, with time ticking down, dispatches the supervillain, rescues the principal Bond girl and they escape as the place blows up. In some cases, the villain or his primary henchman escapes to launch a final attack on Bond and his lover in the final scene.
Ending
The first twenty films of the Bond series, with the exception of ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'', end with Bond embracing, kissing, or making love with the film's Bond girl. Sometimes an embarrassed M catches Bond during these embraces. Most endings feature a double entendre and, in many of the films, the Bond girl purrs, "Oh, James." ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' subverts this motif by concluding with Bond's wife Tracy being killed immediately following their wedding. Other than ''Spectre
Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to:
Religion and spirituality
* Vision (spirituality)
* Apparitional experience
* Ghost
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...
'', none of the Daniel Craig Bond films feature this traditional Bond girl ending. ''No Time to Die
''No Time to Die'' is a 2021 spy film and the twenty-fifth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, starring Daniel Craig in his fifth and final portrayal of fictional British MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by Cary Jo ...
'', the 25th film in the series, was the first to end with the death of James Bond.
Every Bond film from ''Thunderball'' through ''Octopussy
''Octopussy'' is a 1983 spy film and the thirteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It is the sixth to star Roger Moore as the MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by John Glen and the screenplay was written by G ...
'' concludes with text reading "James Bond will return..." or "James Bond will be back" followed by the title of the next film to be produced. These were sometimes incorrect: ''The Spy Who Loved Me'' promised James Bond would return in ''For Your Eyes Only'', but after the success of ''Star Wars (film), Star Wars'', the producers decided to make ''Moonraker'' instead and ''For Your Eyes Only'' followed in 1981; similarly, the very first film to contain such a message ended with "The end of ' Goldfinger'," and "but James Bond will return in 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service On Her Majesty's Secret Service may refer to:
* ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (novel), a 1963 novel by Ian Fleming
* ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (film), a 1969 film adaptation of the novel
** ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (sou ...
'", which was replaced with the now-correct "but James Bond will be back in ' Thunderball'" for foreign releases. From ''A View to a Kill'' onward, these messages no longer included the title of the upcoming film. Despite the death of Daniel Craig's 007 in ''No Time to Die'', the film still concludes with the declaration that "James Bond will return", confirming that the character will return with a new actor in the role.
Quotations
The first Bond film, ''Dr. No'', included the introduction of the character of James Bond. Bond was introduced in an exchange near the beginning of the film with Sylvia Trench. It was Sean Connery's second line in the film.
Following the release of ''Dr. No'', the quote "Bond ... James Bond", became a catch phrase that entered the lexicon of Western popular culture: writers Cork and Scivally said of the introduction in ''Dr. No'' that the "signature introduction would become the most famous and loved film line ever". In 2001 it was voted as the "best-loved one-liner in cinema" by British cinema goers. On 21 June 2005, the line was honoured as the 22nd historically greatest cinema quotation by the American Film Institute, in its AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes, 100 Years Series.
Not all the films contain the introduction, ''Quantum of Solace'', for example and in others it is often mocked by others—in ''Thunderball'', the villainous character Fiona Volpe mocks him by saying it to him while with Mr. Big in ''Live and Let Die'' interrupts Bond's introduction with: "Names is for tombstones, baby... waste him!" Likewise, in ''Goldfinger,'' Tilly Masterson cuts him off as he is offering his name by asking him to carry her luggage.
Bond's preferred drink is a Martini (cocktail), vodka martini, which he asks to be "shaken, not stirred". This instruction quickly became another catchphrase. It was honoured by the AFI as the 90th most-memorable cinema quotation. In order to distance his version of Bond from Sean Connery's, Roger Moore did not order a martini. The martini was present in the first Ian Fleming novel, ''Casino Royale (novel), Casino Royale'', where Bond eventually named it "Vesper (cocktail), The Vesper", after Vesper Lynd. The same recipe was then used for the 2006 film of the novel, with the martini ordered by Daniel Craig's Bond.
See also
* James Bond music
* List of James Bond films
* Production of the James Bond films
* Outline of James Bond
Notes
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External links
James Bond Official Website
Pinewood Studios – home of Bond
The Bond Encyclopedia
Overview of Bond films and DVD review of Ultimate Editions
George Lazenby interview 2008
{{Good article
James Bond in film
Articles containing video clips
Visual motifs, James Bond film series