From Russia With Love

Description

Often hailed as the 'best' James Bond film, From Russia With Love (1963) is celebrated for its direction by Terence Young, memorable performances from Sean Connery in his second outing as 007, Pedro Armendariz as Kerim, Lotte Lenya as the lesbian villain Colonel Rosa Klebb, and Robert Shaw as Red Grant, the sexually ambiguous SPECTRE assassin. And regardless of its place within the longest-running continuous film series in cinema history, it is also an outstanding example of the British spy thriller in its own right. Llewella Chapman's study of the iconic film pinpoints its place within the James Bond film franchise, and its significant cultural value to critics and fans as well as this film's important place within British cinema history more widely. Drawing on a broad range of archival sources, Chapman traces the film's development and production history, including its adaptation from Ian Fleming's source novel, as well as its reception and lasting impact. Chapman also considers the film's portrayal of gender politics, with its queer villains counterpoised with the heterosexual couple Bond and his Russian counterpart Tatiana Romanova, the context of Cold War politics, and the influence of Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest (1959).

Llewella Chapman is Visiting Scholar at the University of East Anglia, UK. She is a film historian and has published extensively on British cinema, James Bond, costume and gender. Her publications include Fashioning James Bond: Costume, Gender and Identity in the World of 007 (Bloomsbury Academic, 2021) and articles published in edited volumes and in journals including The Journal of British Cinema and Television.

Persuasive. -- Neil Smith * Total Film * A riveting read and one that Bond fans will devour ... if you are a Bond fan, or just a fan of cinema in general, this is well worth the effort of tracking down and reading. -- Glam Adelaide This short book is an excellent quick read for anyone with a love of Bond ... Its in-depth analysis and archival research offer new perspectives even for hardened fans. * Retro Cinema * Llewella Chapman's From Russia with Love is the BFI Film Classics first foray into the Bond canon and they could not have picked a better Bond film to start with. Chapman takes a deep dive into all aspects of the film from script beginnings to costumes, film production, promotion, reception and a comparison between Ian Fleming's novel and the film. Meticulously documented and researched and lavishly illustrated From Russia with Love is a gift to Bond fans, scholars, and students. Chapman argues that From Russia with Love is the best Bond film and this volume makes a good case for it. -- Robert G. Weiner, Texas Tech University, USA Echoing the film's detail, meticulous swagger, precision and velocity, this is a perfectly rich companion to one of the rich, pivotal Bond movies. -- Mark O'Connell, author of Catching Bullets - Memoirs of a Bond Fan Just like Bond's attache case, Chapman's book is tightly packed with surprises. Even Bond experts will see From Russia With Love with fresh eyes after reading this (once the tear gas has dissipated). -- David Lowbridge-Ellis, author of License to Queer