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Dr. No

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For other uses of the title of this film, see Dr. No (disambiguation). For information about the person, see Julius No.
The Film Poster for Dr. No.
Dr. No
James Bond Sean Connery
Directed By Terence Young
Writen By Ian Fleming
Screenplay Richard Maibaum
Johanna Harwood
Berkely Mather
Music By John Barry Orchestra
Main theme
Composer Monty Norman
Performer
Distributed By United Artists
Released 1962 (UK)
May 8, 1963 (USA)
Running Time 110 Minutes (1 Hour, 50 Minutes)
Preceded By
Followed By From Russia with Love

British Secret Service agent James Bond is sent to Jamaica on a mission to investigate the recent murder of a fellow operative that seems to have some connection to a series of recent failures in the U.S. space program.

Contents

[edit] Summary

In Jamaica, British agent Commander John Strangways and his secretary mysteriously disappear; though nobody knows it yet, they have been killed. James Bond is sent to Jamaica to investigate the disappearances and determine whether they are related to recent disruptions of American rocket launchings at Cape Canaveral.

After arriving at an airport in Kingston, a taxi driver greets Bond, claiming he's been sent to drive him to Government house. In reality, the man is an enemy agent who commits suicide after he is found out, rather than risk the wrath of his boss. Bond learns that Professor Dent was Strangways' last contact before his disappearance. Unknown to Bond, Dent is an agent of Dr. Julius No, and is ordered to kill Bond. He is unsuccessful and, after a brief interrogation in which Bond learns Strangways is dead, Bond executes Dent.

During the mission, Bond meets CIA agent Felix Leiter and his Jamaican contact and assistant, Quarrel. Following evidence in the form of radioactive rock samples, Bond and Quarrel sail to Dr. No's island, Crab Key, meet Honey Ryder, and discover the Doctor's plot, which is, as suspected, to sabotage an American rocket launch. Bond overloads Dr. No's nuclear reactor, kills the villain and escapes with Honey.

[edit] Background Notes

[edit] Novel & Script Basis

  • Ian Fleming's ninth Bond novel, Thunderball, was originally chosen to be adapted as the first Bond film but, due to a legal battle with its co-author, Kevin McClory, EON Productions instead chose to film Dr. No, Fleming's sixth Bond novel, originally published in 1958.
  • During the film series' forty year history, only a couple of films would remain substantially true to their source materials; Dr. No is generally faithful to Ian Fleming's novel of the same name with many similarities to the book, but almost as many differences.
  • Though this film is titled "Dr. No", the original novel is sometimes published as "Doctor No".
  • This film established the tradition of venturing from Fleming's original novels to include topical references of the day.
  • An infamous scene of the film, in which Bond murders Professor Dent, is not in the original novel and fans of Ian Fleming's novels protested, arguing that even the literary version of Bond was never so cold-hearted.
  • Sylvia Trench, the first Bond girl of the film series, is not a character from any of Ian Fleming's novels.
  • Viewers of the film series might be surprised to discover that very little of the playful banter and flirting between Bond and Moneypenny actually exists in the novels; much of it was developed for the movies, although later Bond novelists would incorporate the film relationship into their takes on the characters.
  • Although the Dr. No novel only mentions Miss Taro in passing, the character's role was greatly expanded and embellished for this film.
  • A Girl Photographer working for Dr. No in this film is named Annabel Chung in the novel.
  • Felix Leiter appears in this film, though not in the novel, even though the character had been created and appeared in prior Bond novels written by Ian Fleming.
  • The novel has a different emphasis from the film on Bond's escape through a ventilation duct. In the book, this is a deliberate ordeal for Bond that culminates in a fight with a giant squid.
  • The book's version of the scene in which Bond finds a tarantula in his bed instead features a centipede. The film's makers thought that a spider would represent a more obvious danger to Bond.
  • Though Dr. No claims to be a member of SPECTRE in this film, he works for a Russian organization named SMERSH in the novel.
  • Also in the book, Dr. No is suffocated to death by a pile of guano and does not die in his own nuclear reactor, as he does in this movie.
  • In an early version of the script, Dr. No is the name of a monkey and not the name of the main villain.
  • The end of the movie had originally featured land crabs attacking Honey Ryder when Bond rescues her. The sequence was filmed, but the crabs were thought to move too slow to be menacing and the end was reshot without the crabs. Despite the scene's exclusion from the movie, photographs of the earlier ending can be seen on the special edition DVD.

[edit] Searching for James Bond

  • Initially, Cary Grant, Patrick McGoohan, James Mason, and David Niven were each considered for the role of James Bond. Max Von Sydow was offered the role of the villainous Dr. Julius No.
  • Ian Fleming originally wanted his cousin, Christopher Lee, to play the role of Dr. Julius No. Other possibilities Fleming personally favored were Noel Coward as Dr. No and David Niven as Bond, both of whom he knew personally. When Fleming asked his friend, Noel Coward, to play Dr. No, Coward replied with a telegram that read "Dr. No? No! No! No!".
  • According to Albert R. Broccoli's autobiography, When The Snow Melts, Fleming also originally favoured Roger Moore as James Bond, due to having seen Moore as Simon Templar on the television series The Saint. However, this story is often debunked by fans pointing to the fact that The Saint television series did not begin airing in the United Kingdom until 4 October, 1962—only one day before the premiere of Dr. No. Moore wouldn't be publicly linked to the role of 007 until 1967, in which Harry Saltzman claimed he would make a good Bond, but also displayed misgivings due to his popularity as Simon Templar. Moore was finally selected as Bond in 1973 for Live and Let Die.
  • Sean Connery was a relative unknown at the time he won the role of Bond. It is often reported that Connery won the role through a contest set up to "find James Bond". While this is untrue, the contest itself did exist, and six finalists were chosen and screentested by Broccoli, Saltzman, and Fleming. The winner of the contest was a 28-year-old model named Peter Anthony who, according to Broccoli, had a Gregory Peck quality but lacked the technique to cope with the demanding role of Bond.

[edit] Firsts & Continuity

  • This film first introduced several themes that would return in subsequent Bond films, including the distinctive James Bond theme, the gun barrel sequence, "Bond girls", exotic locales, narrow escapes, Bond's astonishing good luck and skill, Bond's signature Walther PPK and his licence to kill, an over-ambitious villain, quirky, villainous henchmen, Felix Leiter of the CIA, the main character's introduction as "Bond, James Bond", as well as his taste for fine champagne, vodka martinis (shaken, not stirred), women, and weaponry.
  • This is the first Bond film to reference the criminal organization SPECTRE, as Dr. Julius No is established as being a member of the organization. However, although both Ian Fleming's novels and later Bond movies establish that S.P.E.C.T.R.E. is an abbreviation of "SPecial Executive for Counterintelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion", this film gives the full version of the organization's title, referenced only once (by Dr. No), without the word "and". Additionally, SPECTRE's role in this film is minor. The organization would later be a more formidable foe in From Russia with Love through You Only Live Twice (with the exception of Goldfinger). The head of SPECTRE, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, would continue to be Bond's nemesis until Diamonds Are Forever, and again (briefly) in For Your Eyes Only.
  • M and Miss Moneypenny, played by Bernard Lee and Lois Maxwell, first appear in this film and would become permanent fixtures until the 1980s.
  • Q is not referred to in this movie, though the film does feature a man who provides Bond with weapons named "Major Boothroyd" both on-screen and in the end credits. Although the character is played by Peter Burton, the armourer would seem to be the same person as Q, since Ian Fleming's novels refer to Q as Major Boothroyd. Usual Q actor Desmond Llewelyn would appear as "Boothroyd" in the following film, From Russia with Love, due to Burton being unavailable. Although Q-Branch is first mentioned in that film, it would not be until Goldfinger that the armourer would be referred to as Q.
  • Felix Leiter, who would eventually become a recurring character played by various actors in the film series, first appears in this movie, played by Jack Lord. The film also establishes that Bond first meets Leiter in this movie, having only heard of Leiter previously, but this would later be contradicted by the official prequel movie, Casino Royale, in which the two meet.
  • This film provides the first of only two views of Bond's flat, the other being in Live and Let Die.
  • In one scene, M claims that he is head of MI7, even though MI6 is referenced earlier in the film. No other mention of MI7 would be made in subsequent Bond films and it currently does not exist in real life, although MI7 was once the name of a temporary subsection that specifically dealt with propaganda during World War I. One possible explanation for the reference to MI7 is that there might have been a prohibition on mentioning MI6 in the media at the time this film was made. If so, this changed and not only would MI6 be cited frequently in future Bond films, but also its real-life headquarters building would first be seen and used in GoldenEye, decades later (although the real-life MI6 is not known to have a 00-section).
  • In another scene, Dr. No offers Bond a vodka martini "with lemon peel". Besides being the first on-screen reference to Bond's favorite drink by a major character (a waiter serves one to Bond when he arrives in his hotel room), it is the only occasion in the original continuity that any additional ingredient (namely the lemon peel) is mentioned (Also mentioned in 2006's Casino Royale, released more than forty years after this film).
  • Sylvia Trench also appears in the next James Bond film, From Russia with Love, becoming the only Bond girl to have appeared twice in the film series.

[edit] Gun Barrel Sequence

  • This film starts with strange electronic noises that accompany the familiar white dot which unusually pauses in the middle of the screen as the credit "Harry Saltzman & Albert R Broccoli present" appears (the ampersand is within the dot). The dot continues moving before it opens out to reveal black and white footage of stunt performer Bob Simmons, doubling for Sean Connery who was apparently unavailable when it was decided to film the sequence. Simmons, wearing a hat, jumps to the side and fires. We hear the sound from the gunshot dissipate and only after that does the James Bond Theme start. The same footage would be reused for the next two films, From Russia with Love and Goldfinger, and Connery wouldn't appear in the gun barrel sequence himself until the fourth official Bond film, Thunderball.

[edit] Guns & Gadgets

  • None of the gadgets that would eventually become a staple of the Bond film series appear in this first movie. Even Bond's car, a Sunbeam Alpine Series 1, is not equipped with any gadgets.

[edit] Locations

  • As the first film to use exotic locations, Dr. No is set in London, Kingston in Jamaica, and Crab Key - an island off Jamaica.
  • The casino scene at the beginning of the film was set at the "Les Ambassadeurs" Club, Hamilton Place, London W1J 7ED. The club still exists, and is one of London's most exclusive casinos. The Club itself was a Ken Adam set that was subsequently re-used as Pleydell-Smith's office.

[edit] Bond Girls

  • Honey Rider would prove to be well-liked by many viewers who consider her the standard to which future Bond girls are measured up to.
  • Both fans and critics have likened Honey Rider's emergence from the sea in a white bikini to Botticelli's Venus, a painting which depicts the goddess Venus, having emerged from the sea as a full grown woman, arriving naked at the sea-shore.
  • Sylvania Trench was originally intended to be Bond's regular girlfriend but that concept was ultimately abandoned and the character only made one subsequent appearance before she was dropped in favour of further developing the playful relationship between Bond and Miss Moneypenny.
  • Eunice Gayson, the actress who appears as Sylvia Trench in this film, was originally hired to play Miss Moneypenny, and Lois Maxwell was to have played Sylvia, but the two actresses swapped their roles. Gayson's daughter would later appear as an extra in GoldenEye.
  • Former "Miss Jamaica" Margeurite LeWars, who appears as the villainous Girl Photographer, was initially considered for the role of Miss Taro by director Terence Young, whom the actress met while working at an airport counter. The role, according to LeWars, was too racy for her, so she opted for the part of the Girl Photographer instead.

[edit] Music & Soundtrack

  • The original James Bond Theme, which was first heard by audiences in this film, was written by Monty Norman, who also composed the soundtrack for Dr. No. However, it has occasionally been suggested that the theme was not written by Norman, but by John Barry, who arranged the theme but was uncredited, except for the credit of his orchestra playing the final piece. The dispute over authorship of the theme has resulted in two court cases, the most recent in 2001. Monty Norman won the latest court case, confirming his authorship of the theme, and some portions of the famous theme are based on music he composed for a stage musical several years prior to this film's production. The James Bond Theme reached number 13 in the UK charts in November 1962.
  • This first film in the Bond series does not have an individual main theme, unlike the subsequent films; the opening titles use the James Bond Theme which fades into calypso music. The end titles again use the Bond Theme.
  • The scene in which M claims to be head of MI7 is actually dubbed, since it is clear that M says MI6 (the subtitles on the special edition DVD release also says "MI6", and at least one trailer features the undubbed dialogue).
  • Most female voices in this film, including that of Honey Ryder actress, Ursula Andress, who had a thick Swiss German accent, were dubbed by an uncredited actress, Monica Van Der Syl, in post-production. The only time when Van Der Syl's voice is not used for Honey Ryder is when the character sings "Underneath The Mango Tree" during her first appearance; Diana Coupland, an actress who was married to Monty Norman at the time this film was being created, provided the singing voice of Honey Ryder. The undubbed voice of Eunice Gayson as Sylvia Trench can be heard on the theatrical trailer for Dr. No, included on the special edition DVD; Gayson speaks with a noticeably higher pitch than Van Der Syl. The practice of dubbing actress' voices in post-production would be a standard procedure with Bond films throughout the 1960s and few actresses were provided with a chance to present their own voices, with notable exceptions being Honor Blackman (as Pussy Galore in Goldfinger), Diana Rigg (as Tracy Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service), and Lois Maxwell (as Moneypenny).
  • The voice of Louis Blaazer, who plays Plydell-Smith in this movie, was also dubbed. Although a resident of Jamaica at the time of filming, he had been brought up in Aberdeen. The producers of the film were concerned about the movie's audiences hearing two Scottish accents during the actor's scenes with Sean Connery and it was consequently decided to re-dub Plydell-Smith's lines with a clipped Home Counties voice.

[edit] Title

  • The title of Dr. No has one of the more obvious derivations of the Bond films, being as it is the name of the movie's villain, Dr. Julius No.
  • The film was alternatively titled James Bond Chases Dr. No in Germany, James Bond Vs. Dr. No in France and Belgium, 007 Is The Killing Number: Dr. No in Japan, Agent 007 Vs. The Satanic Dr. No in Spain and Portugal, Agent 007: Mission: Kill Dr No in Denmark, Agent 007 With A Licence To Kill in Sweden and, more simply, Licence To Kill in Italy.
  • Because the film received titles that incorporated the phrase "licence to kill" in some countries, a minor problem arose during translations of the title of the sixteenth film.
  • A number of amusing stories exist about how the title was supposedly translated in various languages (as, for instance, "We Don't Want a Doctor"). However, many of these stories are untrue.

[edit] Other Trivia

  • As Bond is being ushered into Dr. No's dining room, he pauses to take notice of a portrait of the Duke of Wellington by Goya. This was actually a joke, making light of the fact that the painting had been stolen in real-life from London's National Gallery in 1961 and was still missing when the film was released. The potrait was finally recovered in 1965.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Crew

[edit] External Links


The James Bond films
Official films
Dr. No | From Russia with Love | Goldfinger | Thunderball | You Only Live Twice | On Her Majesty's Secret Service | Diamonds Are Forever | Live and Let Die | The Man with the Golden Gun | The Spy Who Loved Me | Moonraker | For Your Eyes Only | Octopussy | A View to a Kill | The Living Daylights | Licence to Kill | GoldenEye | Tomorrow Never Dies | The World Is Not Enough | Die Another Day | Casino Royale | Quantum of Solace | Bond 23
Unofficial films
Casino Royale (1954 TV) | Casino Royale (1967 spoof) | Never Say Never Again
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