We already looked at the legendary Sean Connery’s first outing as James Bond in 1962’s Dr. No, but now we are here with the sequel, 1963’s From Russia with Love. With Dr. No being a huge success, a sequel was fast tracked with an increased budget, but the movie still went over budget and was very close to not making it out when the studio wanted it.
How to Download From Russia with Love
From Russia with Love was released on 11 October 1963. You can download or stream the film from a digital platform. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice.
The Movie Review
From Russia with Love vs. Goldfinger: Connery’s Finest?
When it comes to Sean Connery as James Bond, From Russia with Love is my favorite movie of his. Actually, it is really close between this and Goldfinger. If I am being honest, I would rate the majority of Bond movies at around an 8, as even a not great Bond movie is still a fun time. However, after watching all the Bond movies again recently, From Russia with Love was even better than I remembered it being and I already remembered it being pretty damn good!
SPECTRE’s Plan for Revenge
This is a direct sequel to Dr. No, and SPECTRE are furious that Bond killed Dr. No, and they want their revenge, in the form of his life. Of course, they could not just hire a hitman and call it a day! Instead, SPECTRE comes up with an elaborate plan to trap Bond to ensure that they get him just where they want him, and then one of their assassins can take him out.
Tiana Romanova and the Trap
The plot of the movie revolves around a Soviet woman called Tiana Romanova, who is our Bond girl for this movie. Tiana wants to defect from the Soviet Union to the West, and Bond is sent to help deal with this. However, there is more at play than just this, with a lot of moving parts and M actually suspects that this whole thing is a trap. I love the way that Bond is sent on his way with his briefcase full of awesome Bond gadgets to help him along his way.
More Action, More SPECTRE, More Bond
Look, From Russia with Love is just an awesome action movie, and I would say that it is better than Dr. No in pretty much every way. It has more action, it has more epic set pieces and I think that the stuff with SPECTRE is very well done and they feel like a real threat for Bond to have to deal with.
A Serious Tone That Stands the Test of Time
While I love some of the quirkiness of the later Roger Moore Bond movies, this one plays it all mostly straight and it has a real serious edge to it that I liked. Even though this is a movie from the ’60s, I feel that it holds up very well to this day and is just as good of an action movie as it was back then. It is very easy to see why people flipped out over this and why many say that it is their favorite Bond movie of all time.
The From Russia with Love Video Game
Before I bring this thing to a close, I have to talk about the From Russia with Love video game which was released in 2005. Bond has appeared in so many great video games and while I prefer 2004’s 007 Everything or Nothing. The From Russia with Love video game was so well done, they even managed to get Sean Connery back to record all new voice lines for the game! It is a fun action game that expands on the elements of the movie and even adds a few new and fun things, too.
Ranking the Bonds: Connery’s Best Adventure?
When it comes to Bond movies, we all have our favorites for each Bond, mine being Moonraker for Moore, License to Kill for Dalton, The World Is Not Enough for Brosnan, and Casino Royale for Craig. However, when it comes to Sean Connery, From Russia with Love and Goldfinger are the two best Bond adventures he took me on.
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