It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

How sad is this?

Great Film overall

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

If not as colorful or as fantastically campy and over the top as its predecessor, "Dr. No", this still manages to provide plenty of thrills. Sean Connery is just as dry, this time dealing with a secret organization that provides itself on what we now know as fake news or alternative facts to throw the secret agents of the world off so they stay one step ahead on their nefarious plots. It's the first sighting of the unseen "Number One", the faceless man in wheelchair who strokes a white cat as he proclaims his sinister plans. But he underestimates the power of the British secret service, explained to Bond with gusto from Bernard Lee's M and observed by the witty Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell), still amused by Bond's womanizing. It's the rather brief presence of the legendary Austrian Singer/actress Lotte Lenya who provides the most sinister moments, presumed to be a sadistic lesbian as she gives the orders and makes a play for pretty Daniela Bianchi. Lenya makes much out of her small part, and as a result, is often referred to as one of the very best Bond villains. The story isn't as strong or detailed as others in the series, but there's plenty to keep your mind on the film. Scenes in Venice, Istanbul and a sequence on the Orient Express are filled with terrific fights, interesting tools of defense and even hundreds of rats running through shallow catacombs. The series had already gotten off to a great start, and the first follow-up is a ton of fun.

After a successful debut in theaters ("Dr. No") in 1962, James Bond is back as Agent 007 of the British Secret Service. As with the first film, "From Russia with Love" was released in England six months ahead of its U.S. release. So, movie fans in America who had seen "Dr. No" in 1963, and who heard about the new James Bond movie, would have to wait until May of 1964 to see this second film. The plot is more complex in this film, and involves U.S., British and Soviet spy organizations. But the real culprit is the nasty SPECTRE, the international "evil empire" that tries to dominate the world. The story is more interesting, and has more action. This film also introduces the character of "Q," who is MI6 director of special equipment. His crew experiments with and develops new weapons, hidden gadgets and special items that Bond and his fellow agents may need in emergencies. This film also began the practice of shooting in various exotic locations that are part of the plot. The scenic aspects of the Bond films soon became part of their appeal. In this film, scenes were shot in Istanbul, the Bosphorus Strait that connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara and the Aegean Sea, other parts of Turkey, the canals of Venice, other places in Italy, Madrid, and numerous locations in Scotland and England. Many of the early James Bond films introduced newcomers to audiences. Some went on to notable film careers, and others didn't. Tatiana Romanova is one of the longest roles of the many attractive female parts in Bond films. She is played by Daniela Bianchi, a new Italian discovery who could barely speak English. So, her voice was dubbed in the film. Bianchi was the Miss Rome of 1960 and was runner-up in the Miss Universe contest where someone noticed her and thought she might be good for this James Bond film. Her career was short lived, ending in 1968. She had just 16 appearances, mostly in Italian and French films. None of these were exceptional films or roles. Apparently, Bianchi didn't want to be an actress and in 1970 she married an Italian businessman and settled into home life. And, who will ever forget Lotte Lenya for her knife-in-the-shoe kicking scene in this film with Sean Connery. She plays Rosa Klebb, the former Russian security official who is now a member of SPECTRE. This was only Lenya's third film and second English film. The Austrian-born actress had a longer stage career. She was a dancer, singer and actress. Her movie career began with a major supporting part (as Jenny) in the 1931 German film, "The 3 Penny Opera." Before that, she had the same role in the 1928 stage play that ran successfully in Berlin. Lenya was married to composer Kurt Weill who wrote the music for the show. After the Nazi rise to power in 1933, Weill and Lenya fled to England. Lenya won the 1956 supporting actress Tony for her Broadway role of Jenny in "The Threepenny Opera." She received Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for her supporting role as the Contessa in the 1961 movie, "The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone." Lenya's name comes up frequently when the song, "Mack the Knife," is played. Lenya's husband, Kurt Weill, wrote "The Ballad of Mack the Knife" for "The Three Penny Opera." American jazz musician, Louis Armstrong, in 1956 added Lotte Lenya's name in a line in the song. Many singers around the world have recorded the song. By far the most famous (and arguably the best) is the 1959 smash hit by Bobby Darin. His "Mack the Knife" (with Lotte's name) topped the charts in the U.S. and the U.K.

FROM Russia WITH LOVE is an action thriller, which is a good combination between a fictional thriller and the Cold War fantasy. It is based on Ian Fleming's similarly-named 1957 novel.Seeking to exact revenge on James Bond for killing its agent Dr. No and destroying the organization's assets in the Caribbean, SPECTRE begins training agents to kill Bond. Their hope is a former prisoner, who is a born killer. Meanwhile, the organization's Chief Planner, a Czech chess grandmaster, devises a plan to play British and Soviet intelligence against each other to procure a Lektor cryptographic device from the Soviets. SPECTRE's Chief Executive, a former Colonel of SMERSH, gets the task to carry out their plan into action. She recruits the beautiful Tatiana Romanova, a cipher clerk at the Soviet consulate in Istanbul, as part of the plan. Tatiana has to lure into the trap the British secret agent 007...This story is very funny, even a pseudo-realistic tone does not make a lot of damage. A crazy adventure of a secret agent, full of sinister characters, passionate plots and political illogicality is pretty amazing. In contrast to the first film (Dr. No), the enemy is precisely defined, while the main cause of danger is a secret mechanism. That magic, created by Istanbul (the city on two continents), Orient Express, secret services, an evening with gypsies, a romance between the West and the East and the constant danger is an excellent bait for the audience.Sean Connery as James Bond is a rough gentleman and irresistible lover. His character has not undergone any major change in comparison to the first film.His support is Daniela Bianchi (Tatiana Romanova) as beautiful and curious young woman. She affects the change in the Bond character in some scenes. However, I think, that her character is a bit neglected. Lotte Lenya (Rosa Klebb) has offered a solid performance as a double agent. Pedro Armendáriz (Ali Kerim Bey) has brought a large dose of humor and tradition in this film. Robert Shaw (Donald "Red" Grant) is quite convincing as a ruthless killer.This story is not intriguing. This is perhaps the biggest flaw of this film. The Russians know how to love. Definitely.

After the success of DR. NO, a film which I personally didn't care for very much, the Bond series becomes a familiar hybrid of hi-tech gadgetry, high-speed chases, explosions, exotic locations, some very impressive stunts and action mixed in with a traditional romance, some cheesy one-liners, and a complex spy plot involving numerous factions. Yep, I enjoyed this film a lot, from the good cast to the well-shot locations and complex characters. This is what a real Bond film should be like.Here, Sean Connery looks and sounds more assured as Bond; indeed he's positively glowing in the role, and handles his action and lines with an easy smoothness. Connery is supported well by a love interest in the shape of Italian Bianchi; a hulking, memorable menace in the shape of the ever-excellent Robert Shaw; and a whole plethora of unusual and eccentric memorable supporting characters. These include Lotte Lenya as the lesbian Rosa Klebb, one of the most nasty little women you'll see (that poisoned shoe spike is a natty little weapon), and Pedro Armendariz who is excellent Kerim Bay, a friend of Bond's. Being filmed in the UK, a number of familiar British faces fill out the cast, including future Hammer starlet Martine Beswick as a virtually unrecognisable fighting gypsy girl. Desmond Llewellyn makes his first appearance as 'Q', handing out a supremely cool and lethal suitcase to 007.Action highlights include a shoot-out at a gypsy camp and a long, but highly tense, train ride in which Bond is stalked by the psychotic killer Shaw. This culminates in a fine one-on-one battle between the pair in a train carriage of all places, which was so good that it was revisited in LIVE AND LET DIE. To top things off, there's an explosive speedboat chase at the film's finale. One thing I liked a lot was the inclusion of more comedy than in the previous adventure, which Bond's one-liners being consistently amusing and lots of little odd touches (like Bond realising that Shaw is an impostor when he orders red wine with fish, of all things). In all, FROM Russia WITH LOVE is an intelligent adventure film for lovers of action and thrillers alike, with a great cast.