Dr. No (1962)
Average Rating: 7.7/10
Reviews Counted: 47
Fresh: 46 | Rotten: 1
Featuring plenty of the humor, action, and escapist thrills the series would become known for, Dr. No kicks off the Bond franchise in style.
Average Rating: 7.4/10
Critic Reviews: 5
Fresh: 5 | Rotten: 0
Featuring plenty of the humor, action, and escapist thrills the series would become known for, Dr. No kicks off the Bond franchise in style.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.5/5
User Ratings: 99,967
My Rating
Movie Info
Terence Young directed this first of a long line of screen adventures with Ian Fleming's unflappable British Secret Service Agent 007 in a fast-paced, tongue-in-cheek style that set the tone for the rest of the popular series. Sean Connery sets the standard by which all future takers must measure themselves as the insouciant and devil-may-care James Bond. The story concerns Bond being sent to Jamaica to investigate the murders of a British agent and his secretary. During his investigation, he
Oct 5, 1962 Wide
Oct 22, 2002
United Artists
Watch It Now
Cast
-
Sean Connery
James Bond -
Ursula Andress
Honey Ryder -
Joseph Wiseman
Dr. No -
Jack Lord
Felix Leiter -
-
Anthony Dawson
Prof. Dent -
Zena Marshall
Miss Taro -
John Kitzmiller
Quarrel -
Eunice Gayson
Sylvia -
Lois Maxwell
Miss Moneypenny -
Margaret LeWars
Photographer -
Peter Burton
Maj. Boothroyd -
Reggie Carter
Jones -
Lester Prendergast
Pussfeller -
Yvonne Shima
Sister Lily
ADVERTISEMENT
All Critics (47) | Top Critics (5) | Fresh (49) | Rotten (1) | DVD (26)
All of the elements of the formula are there, but in pleasing moderation.
An entertaining piece of tongue-in-cheek action hokum.
Top CriticAs memorable as anything in the series.
Top CriticOf course, it's nonsense -- pure, escapist bunk, with Bond, an elegant fellow, played by Sean Connery, doing everything (and everybody) that an idle day-dreamer might like to do.
While it may appear tame by the standards of the later productions, it's an entertaining look back in movie history at a project that developed into a worldwide phenomenon.
About as perfect a franchise-starter as you could imagine and certainly accomplishes the task of leaving you eagerly anticipating Bond's next adventure.
The first James Bond cast a relatively unknown actor, Sean Connery, who forever defined 007 as a cool, suave, womanizing agent, adept at delivering witty one liners.
The film geek in me wants to praise it, but the film critic in me wants to expose its flaws. I still have a soft spot for it, but if I'm being truly honest, it's kind of lackluster.
In the end, it's more gumshoe mystery than action-adventure and, comparative to almost everything that followed, very low-key. But legends must start somewhere, and looking back at its reminders of how Bond wasn't always "Bond" are fascinating.
The low-key mystery plot and the resolutely human-sized drama of it all makes this one of the sanest of all Bond pictures.
007's silver screen debut. Not for young kids.
It's terrific entertainment, to be sure, but its unevenness keeps up from being a great film.
Capably brings together Caribbean travelogue, Gropius-type architecture, and cardboard computers with "danger level" plaques
The Bond series developed a winning formula, and this prototypical adventure featured many elements that stuck...[Blu-ray]
...a fine cinematic introduction to the world's most famous secret agent.
The Bond formula is established in this first, arguably more credible Ian Fleming adaptation.
Still ranks in the upper echelon of the Bond series.
Less gimmicky, more charming.
The first entry in what was to become the most profitable movie series of all time is a solid, surprisingly modest spy thriller, enlivened by Sean Connery's screen charisma and occasional hints of the extravagance to come.
Essential viewing for any Bond fanatic.
Audience Reviews for Dr. No
Super Reviewer
Despite having a limited budget, they make the most of it as we follow Bond to Jamaica where an investigation into the death of a fellow agent sees him trying to foil a nefarious plot to dismantle the U.S. space program, with said plot spearheaded by a mysterious scientific genius named Dr. Julius No- a mad villain with ties to SPECTRE- a group who are something of an arch nemesis for MI6 and 007.
Connery is solid, and he's joined by Joseph Wiseman and Ursula Andress, who are equally solid and memorable as No and Honey Ryder, the prototypical "Bond girl" love interest, respectively.
This film lays the groundwork for future films in the series, and it establishes most, but not all of the elements that would become series trademarks. Compared to later films it's rather low-key and pretty bare bones, but it's still fun, charming, and pretty thrilling.
It might be a bit rough around the edges, and it is disorienting to see it after having exposure to most all of the later films first, but problems aside, this is a really good yarn.
Super Reviewer
-
- James Bond: Bond. James Bond.
-
- James Bond: I admire your courage, Miss?
- Sylvia: Trench. Sylvia Trench. I admire your luck, Mr.?
- James Bond: Bond. James Bond.
-
- Honey Ryder: Are you looking for shells?
- James Bond: No, I'm just looking.
-
- James Bond: Bond, James Bond.
-
- James Bond: Tell me, does the toppling of American missiles really compensate for having no hands?
-
- Dr. No: The Americans are fools. I offered my services, they refused. So did the East. Now they can both pay for their mistake.
- James Bond: World domination. The same old dream. Our asylums are full of people who think they're Naploeon. Or God.
Discussion Forum
| Topic | Last Post | Replies |
|---|---|---|
| Does anyone else believe that the villian death was too cheesy? | 4 days ago | 0 |
Latest News on Dr. No
April 12, 2013:
Digital Multiplex: Classic James Bond movies, The Hunger Games and MoreThis week in streaming, we've got enough James Bond movies to have yourself a little 007 marathon, a...
October 22, 2009:
Joseph Wiseman: 1918-2009Actor Joseph Wiseman, who famously portrayed the titular villain in the James Bond film "Dr. No,"...
October 21, 2008:
Bonding with Bond, Day 1: Dr. NoCommunity Manager RT-Ryan has never seen a single James Bond film, except for 2006's Casino Royale....
What's Hot On RT
Bradley Cooper's Best Movies
Fast & Furious 6 is Certified Fresh
Fast & Furious cars gallery
Blockbusters ranked!
Featured on RT
- Critics Consensus: Fast & Furious 6 is Certified Fresh 14
- Red Carpet Photos with Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Gina Carano and More 0
- Video: The Hangover Part III Cast Interviews 0
- Total Recall: Bradley Cooper's Best Movies 37
- Parental Guidance: Epic and Beautiful Creatures 2
- Comic Book Movies You Can Watch Online 9
- In Pictures: The Cars of Fast & Furious 0
Top Headlines
-
Evan Peters Joins X-Men: Days of Future Past
0
-
Toby Jones Talks Captain America: The Winter Soldier
0
-
The Poltergeist Reboot May Actually Be a Sequel
3
-
Will Forte Promises MacGruber 2
0
-
Universal Plans Timecop Reboot
1
-
Return of the Jedi Turns 30
0
-
Vin Diesel Says Fast & Furious 7 Will Take Place in L.A.
0
Fresh Links
Featured
Star Trek Movies Ranked
HitFix offers their own take on the worst-to-best of the Enterprise crew's cinematic adventures.
Top 10 Star Trek Villains
Rolling Stone unveils the Enterprise's most irksome adversaries.
Celebrity Yearkbook Flashback
We'll bet you never realized how many stars were cheerleaders and high school athletes!
50 Most Classic Movie Moms
In celebration of Mother's Day, TimeOut offers up 50 iconic matriarchs from the big screen.
Weirdest Movie Siblings
From Twins to The Royal Tenenbaums, Moviefone explores cinema's oddest siblings.
Promos
Follow RT on Twitter!
Spice up your feed with hourly Tomatometer updates!
Foreign Titles
- James Bond jagt Dr. No (DE)
- Dr. No (1962) (UK)
