From Russia with Love (1963)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Terence Young

Writers:

Richard Maibaum (screenplay)
Johanna Harwood (adaptation)

Release Date:

27 May 1964 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

The world's masters of murder pull out all the stops to destroy Agent 007!

Plot:

James Bond willingly falls into an assassination ploy involving a naive Russian beauty in order to retrieve a Soviet encryption device that was stolen by SPECTRE.

Plot Keywords:

Russian | Spectre | Istanbul | KGB | Decoder

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 4 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Sean Connery	...	James Bond
Daniela Bianchi	...	Tatiana Romanova
Pedro Armendáriz	...	Ali Kerim Bey (as Pedro Armendariz)
Lotte Lenya	...	Rosa Klebb
Robert Shaw	...	Red Grant
Bernard Lee	...	M
Eunice Gayson	...	Sylvia Trench
Walter Gotell	...	Morzeny
Francis De Wolff	...	Vavra - Gypsy Leader (as Francis de Wolff)
George Pastell	...	Train Conductor
Nadja Regin	...	Kerim's Girl
Lois Maxwell	...	Miss Moneypenny
Aliza Gur	...	Vida
Martine Beswick	...	Zora (also as Martin Beswick)
Vladek Sheybal	...	Kronsteen

Also Known As:

Ian Fleming's 'From Russia with Love' (UK) (complete title)

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English | Russian | Turkish | Romany

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Iceland:12 | Ireland:PG | West Germany:12 (nf) | Germany:16 (DVD rating) | South Korea:15 | Brazil:12 | New Zealand:PG | UK:PG (2008) | Finland:K-16 (uncut) (1984) | UK:PG (video rating) (1987) | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Finland:(Banned) (uncut) (1964) | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (original rating) | Peru:14 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (original rating) | USA:GP (re-rating) (1971) | UK:A (original rating) (cut) | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1964) | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

"The Canals", Venice, Veneto, Italy

Company:

Danjaq

Trivia:

The periscope in the scene in which Bond and Kerim Bey spy on the Russian Embassy from the Basilica Cistern was actually a dummy wooden periscope double made by UK manufacturing company Barr and Stroud.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Early on, the head of SPECTRE uses the Siamese Fighting Fish to demonstrate how SPECTRE works, with two fish fighting while a third watches and waits to fight the winner, who will be weakened by then. However, partitions in the fish tank are visible - the third fish couldn't attack if it wanted to.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Morzeny: [after Grant kills a look-a-like Bond] Exactly one minute, fifty-two seconds. That's excellent.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Blow Out (1981)

Soundtrack:

From Russia With Love

The Greatest Bond

This has to be my favorite bond. It mixes the best aspects of an action movie with the necessary espionage. Recent Bond attempts have moved away from the "spy-game" aspect and rely more on large explosions to dazzle the viewer. Kerem Bey, the Turkish spy leader, is as much a partner and foil for Bond as there ever was. Any movie with a gypsy fight, absurd helicopter assassination attempts, and boat chase has to be great.

Also, Daniella Bianchi is my favorite Bond girl. Her truceau is as sexy as it gets, though this is a subject every true Bond fan will debate about. The only objection is that they dubbed her voice into a more coarse, Russian accent. Overall, it is a wonderful movie that spans the globe and defeats SPECTRE. James Bond will return, but never with as much intrigue, beauty, and suspense as "From Russia With Love".