James Bond in the Cinema (1972)
The first book to recount the plots of the James Bond films in great detail in the days before video tapes, DVDs or streaming services. The original edition covers the films through Diamonds Are Forever, while the second adds coverage of the films through Moonraker.
James Bond, Agent 007, is probably the most popular literary and screen hero of the postwar period. Ian Fleming began writing his Bond thrillers in the early Fifties, but it was not until almost ten years later that Dr. No, From Russia with Love, and Goldfinger were brought to the cinema.
These films broke box-office records everywhere, and made Sean Connery, the Scot who played Bond, into a superstar of spectacular proportions. Now, with Diamonds Are Forever fresh in the minds of millions, this book offers an entertaining assessment of Bond on the screen.
John Brosnan, a freelance writer who has reviewed films in Australia, captures the tongue-in-cheek suspense of the Bond thrillers as he describes, in precise detail, virtually every sequence of Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and Diamonds Are Forever.
The author also indicates how various tense moments and special effects were achieved, and he discusses the initiative of Harry Saltzman and Albert (“Cubby”) Broccoli in launching the series through their company, Eon Productions. In a valuable Appendix, there is coverage of Casino Royale, based on the novel by Ian Fleming, but made by a different team to the Connery pictures; and of the other films that tried to cash in on the phenomenal success of the 007 series. The full credits and cast lists for the Eon productions are also given.
This attractive volume contains over one hundred stills from the Bond films, and these illustrations, together with Mr. Brosnan's amusing and compulsively readable text, make James Bond in the Cinema an excellent acquisition for anyone who has enjoyed either the novels or the films — or both.
Author
Publication History
- London: Tantivy. Hardcover.
- Cranbury, NJ: A. S. Barnes. Hardcover.
- 2nd ed. London: Tantivy, 1981. Hardcover. (?)
- 2nd ed. Cranbury, NJ: A. S. Barnes, 1981. Hardcover.
Reviews
- L. Rubenstein, Cineaste, no. 1 (1983), p. 51.
- Ernest Callenbach, Film Quarterly, Summer 1982, p. 61.
- Filmmakers Newsletter, May 1977, p. 53.
- Library Journal, 1 September 1972, p. 2748.
- National Review, 16 October 1981, p. 1221.
- Wilson Library Bulletin, September 1981, p. 54.