The character of agent 007
He is the most famous secret agent in the world and the longest-lived cinema character of all time: James Bond, double-zero agent 007 with a license to kill! For almost six decades in the service of Her Majesty The Queen, he has consistently saved the world from the villains who wanted to rule or destroy it.
His profile
The Cast
SEAN CONNERY
GEORGE LAZENBY
ROGER MOORE
TIMOTHY DALTON
PIERCE BROSNAN
DANIEL CRAIG
Characteristics of the Bond films
When Ian Fleming published his first Bond novel, "Casino Royale", in 1951, he was surprised by its success - and wrote eleven more novels and nine short stories about the adventures of the man he had given the name of an ornithologist: James Bond.
When his agent 007 first appeared in the cinema in 1962 on the hunt for Dr. No, no one could have guessed the success story that was about to begin. It's been going on for almost six decades now, and all the films have continually set new standards with their stunts and effects.
But there was more that made the Bond adventures unforgettable:
The Bond music
They add excitement to every film: Monty Norman's legendary 'Bond' theme and John Barry's '007' action theme. The latter has also composed numerous theme songs. And many title songs have now become classics.
The most legendary car: the Aston Martin DB5
In his first Bond film 'Casino Royale', Daniel Craig drives up again in an Aston Martin - just like Sean Connery did in 'Goldfinger'. Back then, the silver sports car was something very special, after all it had such extras as machine guns, oil spray, extendable blades in the wheel nuts and an ejection seat. The car also had something unimaginable for its time: a navigation system!
The most mysterious villain: Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Already in 'From Russia with Love', Bond antagonist Blofeld appears with his organization 'Spectre', but only as the man with the cat. You can't see more of him than his stroking hand. Only in film number five 'You Only Live Twice' does the stranger finally get a face: that of Donald Pleasance. Later, Telly Savalas, among others, slipped into this role, and Christoph Waltz took on this part in the latest film.
The biggest opponent: the walker
He was 2.17 meters tall, weighed three hundredweight and wore steel teeth: the biter, played by Richard Kiel. Since he was so well received in 'The Spy Who Loved Me', he was allowed to make life difficult for 007 again in the next Bond adventure 'Moonraker'.
The most exciting Bond girl of his time: Ursula Andress
Swiss Ursula Andress became the first Bond girl. She played the Honey Rider in 'James Bond Chases Dr. No. When Ursula Andress got out of the waves singing in her bikini on the beach in the film, she drew everyone's attention - and triggered a bikini boom. Only very few courageous women wore it before.
The most famous scene: the gilded corpse
In 'Goldfinger', Bond girl Shirley Eaton died an extraordinary death as Jill Masterson: She was suffocated by having her body completely covered in gold. Shirley Eaton wasn't completely golden at the time of shooting; since she was lying on her stomach, a large area was left uncovered to be on the safe side. Today the experts know that one cannot die that way.
The secret star: Q
His tinkering and gadgets save James Bond's life in every adventure. And yet they are never treated with the caution and respect they deserve. The Welshman Desmond Llewelyn embodied its inventor "Q" in 17 films for 36 years until 1999. In total, he was on screen for just over 30 minutes.
The most erratic scene: the struggle for a parachute
The 'Moonraker' adventure begins with Bond fighting an airborne opponent for a parachute. It took five weeks of shooting and 88 jumps to get the two-minute film sequence in the can.
The most spectacular chase: by tank through St. Petersburg
No action, no suspense and no Bond without a proper chase: sometimes by car, sometimes on a motorcycle, sometimes under water, sometimes in the air. But in 'Goldeneye', Bond tops it all: he follows his opponent in a tank through the streets - and even through walls - of St. Petersburg. But the city was not harmed; the street was specially recreated 1:1.
The longest opening sequence: Crossing the Thames by boat
The traditions of the Bond films also include the exciting opening sequences at the beginning. At over 16 minutes, "The World Is Not Enough" from 1999 is the longest of all Bond films made up to that point. During their chase, Pierce Brosnan, among other things, also shot across the Thames by boat at full throttle. Brosnan even took the wheel himself. The shooting also dragged on: it took four months for the sequence to be finished.
The famous martini - shaken, not stirred
Bond doesn't drink a classic martini (4 parts gin, 1 part vermouth), but a vodka martini: 3 parts gin, 1 part vodka, 1/2 part vermouth The whole thing just shaken, not stirred and served with a lime slice instead of an olive.
"Unofficial" Bond films
In addition to the 25 official Bond films to date, James Bond has appeared in numerous other productions. Some examples:
- In 1954, Ian Fleming's novel 'Casino Royale' was first adapted for television. James Bond's only name was Jimmy, while gangster Le Chiffre was played by Peter Lorre.
- In 1967 "Casino Royale" came to the big screen, but as a pastiche, in which David Niven, Peter Sellers and Woody Allen, among others, acted as James Bond
- In 1983, Sean Connery, who never wanted to play Bond again, broke his word. That's why the film got the title 'Never Say Never'. In terms of content, it is a remake of 'Feuerball' from 1965
The German stars of the Bond films
German-speaking actors were primarily allowed to take on the roles of the villains: Gerd Fröbe shone in "Goldfinger" as a brilliant Bond antagonist, Curd Jürgens in "The Spy Who Loved Me", Klaus-Maria Brandauer in "Never Say Never, Gottfried". John in 'Goldeneye', Claude-Oliver Rudolph in 'The World Is Not Enough', Christoph Waltz in 'Spectre' and again in 'No Time to Die'
One bright spot in this series: Bond girl Karin Dor in 'You Only Live Twice'. There was also a German in 'Casino Royale' from 2006: Ludger Pistor played a Swiss banker. The Swiss Anatole Taubmann, who lives in Berlin by choice, can be seen in 'Quantum of Solace': He plays Elvis, the right-hand man of villain and Bond opponent Dominic Green in the person of Mathieu Almaric.
Milestones in Bond history
James Bond chases Dr. No
Roger Moore was originally supposed to play the secret agent in the first Bond adventure, but he was still tied to the 'Simon Templar' series. So Sean Connery got a chance and the necessary urbane polish.
The film was shot in London, Jamaica and on the island of Crab Key. Bond girl Ursula Andress drew everyone's attention in a white bikini – a full-body make-up ensured that she looked good doing it.
Goldfinger
Spectacular: Bond escapes with a rocket backpack right at the start. It was really real. And not the only special effect. The film even got an Oscar for all the optical tricks and technical finesse!
The story was filmed again later: 1983 in "Never Say Never," again with Sean Connery, and once again with a German opponent: Klaus Maria Brandauer. However, the remake is not one of the official Bond adventures, because Roger Moore was the official Bond actor at the time.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
George Lazenby was the only Bond who was ever allowed to marry. But there was no happy ending for the couple: Bond girl wife Tracy aka Diana Rigg was shot dead in the end. Otherwise, what would have become of the woman's darling Bond...
In any case, George Lazenby never became Bond again. Although he actually had a contract for three films, he got out after the first one. He has since regretted that very much.
The spy who loved me
Roger Moore's second Bond film begins with a spectacular stunt: Bond escapes his pursuers on skis over the cliff of a mountain - and then parachutes safely down into the valley!
This time the bad guy is a German again: Curd Jürgens plays the shipowner Karl Stromberg, who wants to destroy people and build a new civilization on the seabed.
Bond has to watch out for his accomplices, among other things, because the giant "Beißer" has teeth made of steel. And he was so well received that he was allowed to bite again in the next film.
On a deadly mission
Bond adventure number twelve offered fewer gimmicks from "Q's workshop", but plenty of action for Bond: Of course, a car chase wasn't enough, he was also being chased by motorcyclists, almost run over by a boat, had to fight fend off a submarine, crashed on a rock face ... - but always got away safely! Just a great guy, this James Bond!
Sheena Easton made it to the top: Her title song "For Your Eyes Only" became number 1 in Germany!
The touch of death
Roger Moore was getting on in years and didn't quite fit the times. That's why Pierce Brosnan was supposed to do the Bond part in this film, but he had to do a few episodes of 'Remington Steele' instead. This is how Timothy Dalton made his debut as the new Bond actor. And even did a lot of stunts himself.
The film's plot is based on a true story: a KGB officer defected to the Americans, held talks with the CIA for several months, and then defected back to the Soviets. However, the rest of the film is fictional.
Die another day
The success story 'James Bond - 007' is celebrating its anniversary. The 20th adventure - the last one starring Pierce Brosnan - grants fans many, many nods to the earlier films:
Diamonds matter ('Diamonds Are Forever'), a parachute with the Union Jack ('The Spy Who Loved Me'), a jetpack ('Thunderball'), poison shoes ('From Russia With Love'), Bond -Girl Halle Berry cuts a good figure in a bikini like Ursula Andress - and is even rewarded with an Oscar. Bond also pretends to be a bird watcher - after all, he was named after an ornithologist - and is there something going on between Bond and the faithful Miss Moneypenny in the end...?
Casino Royale (2006)
On November 23, 2006, a new era began in our cinemas: let's film! It was said for "Casino Royale", the 21st Bond adventure, with a new actor: Daniel Craig.
Not only was Bond blonde for the first time and an agent who can make mistakes and also show emotions such as weakness, pain, fear, vengefulness, he also returned to his roots, to the time when the young MI6 agent had yet to earn his license to kill. Yes, even with James Bond, every beginning was difficult...
A quantum of consolation
The 22nd Bond adventure is, for the first time, a direct sequel to the previous film. And yet not like everyone else: "My name is Bond, James Bond." - one waits in vain for this sentence. The sequence was filmed for "Quantum of Solace" but then fell victim to the scissors cutting. Also, there is no Miss Moneypenny, no shaken martini...
No time to die
Daniel Craig's Bond entries numbers three and four, 'Skyfall' and 'Spectre', have been the highest-grossing films of the entire series to date. Can Bond spectacle number 25 top that? At least Craig's last assignment as secret agent 007 can already come up with a record: 'No time to die' is the longest Bond film of all: 163 minutes the viewer can follow and fear whether Bond will succeed this time, the world to rescue ...
