From Russia with Love
Short description
From Russia with Love sends James Bond to Istanbul, where a Russian embassy clerk named Tatiana Romanova claims she will defect and hand over the Lektor, a Soviet decoding machine. The offer comes from a secret criminal organization, and it is meant to draw Bond into a trap. The plot involves stolen code equipment, an attempt to damage relations between Britain and the Soviet Union, and revenge for the death of an earlier adversary.
The film is the second entry in the James Bond series, released in 1963. Terence Young directed it directly after Dr. No (1962), with Richard Maibaum writing the screenplay and Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman producing. Sean Connery plays Bond for the second time, alongside Daniela Bianchi, Pedro Armendáriz, Robert Shaw, Lotte Lenya and Bernard Lee. Its budget was about 2 million USD and its worldwide box office reached 79 million USD, a strong return for the period.
On IMDb the film holds 7.3/10 from roughly 158,000 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 7.1/10 from a much smaller voter base. A film critics' rating of 8.1/10 from 63 reviews is higher than both audience scores, suggesting critics rated it more warmly than the general public did.
What's left behind the scenes
- Two actresses in minor roles in this film also appeared in subsequent Bond films. Nadia Regent, who played Kerim's girlfriend, appeared at the beginning of "Goldfinger". She played a bar dancer. And Martine Beswick, who played one of the gypsies, appears in "Thunderball" as Paula.
- According to William Manchester's book "The Death of a President" (1964), this film was the last one John F. Kennedy saw. This happened on November 20, 1963, at the White House.
- The decision to film this movie was made after President Kennedy stated that Ian Fleming's novel 'From Russia with Love' was one of his ten favorite books.
- Another dangerous incident occurred involving a helicopter. The aircraft carrying director Terence Young crashed and fell into a body of water. The director was trapped under the cockpit for a time and remained there until he was rescued. Immediately after his fortunate escape, Young, despite an injured hand, stood by the camera and continued to direct the creative process.
- The actor Pedro Armendáriz, who played Ali Kerim Bey in the film, was diagnosed with cancer. His condition deteriorated during the filming of "From Russia with Love", but he still completed his work on the picture. Later, he committed suicide in the hospital.
- The actor who played Ernst Blofeld is not credited in the film. A question mark appears next to the character's name.
- The scene in the Istanbul catacombs required rats. According to British law, wild rats could not be filmed. They attempted to replace them with laboratory white rats covered in cocoa powder. However, the animals rubbed against each other, and the powder fell off. Furthermore, the animals cleaned each other during a single take. The scene had to be filmed in Madrid, where a local rat-catcher provided the rats.
- In "From Russia with Love", Sylvia Trench appeared for the second and final time in the Bond series, although the actress was initially planned to be a permanent fixture in the sensational project.
- This film begins a tradition whereby each James Bond film ends with the title of the next film in the series. This practice ended with 'A View to a Kill' (1985).
- Ian Fleming, the author of the James Bond novels, appeared in one of the film's episodes. He can be seen standing next to the train, wearing gray trousers and a white sweater.
- So much footage was shot with helicopters that not only did it not all make it into the film, but it was also used in some other British films and television shows.
- The producer Harry Saltzman's wife can be seen in the film: she leans out of a window of the Orient Express. Robert Shaw's character appears in the next window.
- Of the entire Bond series, this is Sean Connery's favorite film.
- In the film, Krilenko attempts to escape through a secret window hidden in the wall with an advertisement for the 1963 film "Call Me Bwana". Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli were also producers of that film. The advertisement features Anita Ekberg, the star of the film. In Ian Fleming's novel "From Russia with Love", the secret window opened into a wall with a poster for Marilyn Monroe's 1952 film "Niagara".
- During the filming of a scene with a helicopter, an inexperienced pilot flew too close to Sean Connery, and this incident nearly ended in tragedy.
- All the actresses in the film, with the exception of Lois Maxwell, who played Miss Moneypenny, were voiced by the same English actress, whose name is not credited.
- This film marked the first appearance of the character Q, played by Desmond Llewelyn. Llewelyn appeared in a total of 18 films in the James Bond series.
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