Average Rating: 
Rating: - JAMES BOND IS BACK!!
Terence YOung directs this 1963 action film based on the novel by Ian Fleming. Starring Sean Connery and Daniela Bianchi. Agent 007 is sent to Turkey to confisicate an encrypiton device which is actually a trap for him concieved by S.P.E.C.T.R.E. Evil crime cartel S.P.E.C.T.R.E. seeks revenge for the death of its operative Dr. No and sets a trap to lure British agent James Bond to his death. The bait is a Soviet encryption device called a Lektor, which the British Secret Service is desperate to get hold of. TRIVIA: (1) This was chosen as the second 007 film when President John F. Kennedy listed the book among his top ten favorite novels of all time. (2) According to the book "DEATH OF A PRESIDENT" (1964) by Willaim Manchester, this was the last motion picture John F. Kennedy ever saw, on November 20,1963, in the White House. (3) "Q"/Major Boothroyd,played by Desmond Llewelyn (1914-1999), appears for the first time. This character was played by Peter Burton in "DR. NO". When Burton was unable to return in "FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE", the role was recast with Llewelyn in the part. Llewelyn would reprise the role of "Q" in 17 subsequent James Bond films (18 performances in all), the most a single actor has played the same role in major motion picture history.
Rating: - Come For The Movie, Stay For The Extras
From Russia With Love, the second James Bond film, is one of the best (in my view, second only to Goldfinger). Unlike the later films in the series, From Russia With Love is extremely faithful to the Ian Fleming novel with only slight variations on the story. In order to obtain a Russian decoding machine, 007 must travel to Istanbul, Turkey to aid a beautiful Russian defector ... even though he and the British Secret Service know it's probably a trap. But unbeknownst to Bond SPECTRE is playing the Russians and the British against each other. This is the most realistic of the Bond films with a story that could probably happen in the real world of espionage. The film does contain a gadget -- a trick briefcase (also in the Fleming novel) that contains throwing knives, ammunition, a folding sniper's rifle, 50 gold sovereigns and a tear gas cartridge that explodes when the case is opened improperly. The film, however, takes a very realistic approach to the story with none of the cartoon antics present in many of the later Bonds.Terence Young, who also helmed Dr. No and Thunderball, does an outstanding job of directing. He makes wonderful use of the locations, especially in Istanbul. As with his other two Bond efforts, Young eschews a cartoon approach to the action in favor of a more brutal, realistic approach. And unlike many later Bond directors, Young concentrates on developing characters, making them real people with real emotions. The audience feels for the characters emotionally -- something unheard of with the cardboard cutout characters of the later films. Peter Hunt's editing is a marvel. The action scenes are tightly edited and the film's pacing and continuity are flawless. In addition, the DVD documentary shows just how much Hunt helped shape the final project. He went beyond simply editing the film and actually helped shape and improve the story. However, the best thing about the film is the casting. Young must have taken great care to properly cast From Russia With Love because every part matches their novel counterpart down to the last detail. Sean Connery, of course, is, and always will be, the best James Bond. Newcomer Daniela Bianchi is terrific as pseudo defector Tatiana Romanova. She is beautiful, sexy and appealing. It's too bad she didn't have more of a screen career. Lotte Lenya (Threepenny Opera), the famed German musical star, does a wonderful villainous turn as Rosa Klebb, former SMERSH agent who is now working for SPECTRE. Robert Shaw (A Man for all Seasons, Black Sunday, Jaws) is chilling as SPECTRE assassin Red Grant. And Pedro Armendariz (the Mexican who says "who don't need no stinking badges!" in Treasure of the Sierra Madre), in the performance of his career, plays Ali Karim Bey, the head of Station T, Turkey. Aremedariz's performance is especially poignant because he was dying of cancer during the filming. He shot himself while in the hospital soon after he was through filming. From Russia With Love is not only a good Bond film, but a good film alone, apart from the series. Along with Dr. No and Goldfinger, From Russia With Love represents a high point that the later films never quite matched. The DVD tranfer is spectacular, with terrific sound and picture quality. What makes the DVD special, however, are the special features which include three documentaries, trailers, TV and radio spots and cast & crew profiles. The main documentary is especially interesting as it details how the filmmakers drastically changed the story progression during the shoot. As with all of the Bond DVD's, MGM has done a superb job, giving the buyer much, much more than just the film to view.
Rating: - Among the Finest in the Series
From Russia With Love ranks among the top three films in the durable James Bond series. As in many of the best films in the series, the tone is relatively serious. Rather than the fantastic schemes of some of the later Bond films, the plot is a fairly straightforward espionage story, dealing with Bond's attempts to get his hands on the obligatory MacGuffin, a coding machine. The story is believable and there is an atmosphere of genuine tension throughout the film.From Russia With Love's greatest strength is its superb cast. Sean Connery, in his second outing as Bond, is very good, handling both dialogue and action adeptly. Daniela Bianchi is a beautiful heroine, and her onscreen relationship with Bond is very plausible. Other roles are also cast from strength--Lotte Lenya and Robert Shaw, as the principal villains, and Pedro Armendariz, as Bond's fellow MI-6 agent, are the most notable performances. While From Russia With Love cannot be considered a classic movie--it owes too much to North By Northwest for that--it is a very enjoyable movie to view again and again. I watch it several times a year.
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