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The second James Bond
film then opened in the USA on April 8, 1964 and went on to gross twice as
much as Dr. No (1962) [released in 1963 in the USA]. Despite its
troubled production, From Russia With Love (1963) has always been
highly regarded by critics and fans, with Sean Connery proclaiming it was
always his personal favourite. Staying close to its source material,
Terence Young’s masterpiece can hold its head high among the Cold-War
classics that it inspired. With its outstanding international cast, and a
crew of experienced technicians, many of whom went uncredited at the time,
and who have only become well-known through the continued championing of
the film in 007 MAGAZINE, and by most serious Bond commentators, who still
regard From Russia With Love as the high watermark of the series.
With only two Bond films to
their credit Messrs Saltzman & Broccoli consolidated their success, and
went on to even larger box-office grosses in the following years.
Financier & distributor United Artists were equally pleased with the
success of From Russia With Love and took out a full-page
advertisement in the British trade magazine Kinematograph Weekly
[pictured right]
on May 7, 1964, congratulating the producers on their record-breaking
hit. Although
its creator Ian Fleming would not live to see the huge global phenomenon
that the James Bond series eventually became, it is fitting that the last
film he saw to completion was arguably the best of them all. |
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Whilst many later entries
were often only nominally related to their source novel,
From Russia With Love (1963) has lasted as a wholly credible
standalone entry, so different from what preceded and what followed.
Whilst it may be missing the outlandish set designs of Ken Adam and a main
title from Maurice Binder, From Russia With Love was suitably
well-served by Art Director Syd Cain, and graphic designer Robert
Brownjohn. Everything came together with From Russia With Love –
Sean Connery’s assured performance is arguably his most relaxed and
convincing of the series, Terence Young’s confident direction sets the
tone from the opening shots, Peter Hunt’s dynamic editing, and John
Barry’s pulsating score ties it all together.
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From Russia With Love
was made and released at a time of huge cultural change in the UK. Many
commentators have noted that the 1950s didn’t really end until 1963 – a
year that saw many important events happen across the country in the space
of 12 months. After the coldest UK winter for 200 years, April saw 70,000
marchers arriving in London from Aldermaston to demonstrate against
nuclear weapons; July saw British intelligence officer and a double agent
for the Soviet Union, Kim Philby given asylum in Moscow; The Great Train
Robbery took place in Buckinghamshire in August, The Profumo Affair made
national headlines resulting in the resignation of Prime Minister Harold
MacMillan in October, and the first episode of the still-running BBC
Television series Doctor Who was broadcast on November 23, 1963.
But perhaps the most far-reaching world event of 1963 was the
assassination of US President John F. Kennedy in Dallas on November 22nd,
and the subsequent shooting of alleged assassin Lee Harvey Oswald live on
television two days later.
Ironically it was JFK who
had been largely responsible for the success of the James Bond novels in
the USA, beginning with his endorsement of FROM RUSSIA, WITH LOVE in
LIFE Magazine in 1961. Ian Fleming was a great admirer, and although the
pair only met once in 1960, he subsequently sent Kennedy an autographed
copy of each new novel as it was published. The James Bond connection
would come full circle, when just a month before he was assassinated
President Kennedy invited his friend Ben Bradlee, (1921-2014) an American
journalist [who served as managing editor and later as executive editor of
The Washington Post, from 1965 to 1991], to watch the second James
Bond film From Russia With Love at a private screening at the White
House on October 23, 1963 – four months before its US release. Within
another year, Ian Fleming too would be dead at the age of 56.
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ABOVE: From
Russia With Love opened at the Astor Theatre, Broadway, New
York City on Wednesday April 8, 1964. In addition to the two
1-sheet posters issued to accompany the US release, newspaper
advertising featured an adapted version of David Chasman's
photo-montage, adding images from David Hurn's UK photo shoot.
BELOW: There were two different advertising campaigns for From
Russia With Love in the USA, both reminding audiences that
this was the second adventure in the 007 series. Pre-release
teaser adverts reminded cinemagoers there was still time to jump
on the Bond Bandwagon that had begun with Dr. No, released
in the USA just 11 months earlier. The large 3-sheet poster
announced that the world had 69-million James Bond fans, with a
tag-line inviting cinemagoers to join them in the
“Throbbing World of Hot-Blooded Excitement!”. By the end of the
year the USA had caught up with the rest of the world and
Goldfinger had a Gala Premiere at the DeMille Theatre on
Broadway on December 21, 1964, with ‘Bondmania’ then sweeping the
nation in the following months. |
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CONTINUED |
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