Tools of Characterization

Characterization in Dr. No

Actions

James Bond is a slick, debonair superspy. He's handsome, tanned, and charming. He must be the good guy.

But he also shoots a man dead, then shoots him again, multiple times, in the back.

Sure, Professor Dent—the one with about eight holes in him if you count entrance and exit wounds—was a bad guy who betrayed Bond, but shouldn't he be, we don't know, taking him prisoner? Turning him into authorities? Anything other than turning the man into lithophysa? (That's a rock full of holes. The geologist would appreciate the reference if he weren't dead.)

This action complicates our feelings about Bond. He appears to have anger management issues, or a fragile ego, unchivalrously shooting Dent in the back only because the man tried to pull one over on him.

Physical Appearances

Dr. No has a race problem. If someone even remotely looks Chinese in this movie, you can assume they're a spy. We have to say looks Chinese because not all of the actors playing Chinese or partially Chinese characters are actually Chinese.

Dr. No, for instance, is supposed to be half-German half-Chinese, but Joseph Wiseman (the least Chinese sounding name ever) had makeup applied to look Chinese. Dent's secretary appears Chinese, and Miss Taro is assumed to be Chinese as well. The Photographer, who has no name, wears a qípáo, a traditional Chinese garment. And Dr. No has two servants named Miss Lily and Miss Rose.

This is either lazy direction—persuading the audience to be mistrustful of someone who might be allied with Dr. No because of a shared racial background—or it's outright racist, making Chinese people seem inherently shady or untrustworthy. You be the judge.

Location

Because Dr. No barely has any screen time, he is mostly characterized by the place he lives. Jamaica is home to gorgeous beaches, crystal waters, and charming bungalows.

Yet where does Dr. No live? On a metal rig in the middle of the ocean. Hmm. That seems suspicious.

Beneath the rig is a huge lair deep beneath sea, complete with viewing windows for fish (aww) and a nuclear reactor (umm). So yeah, the guy is crazy, and not just in a "got a deal for a SuperVillain Lair Makeover show on HGTV" way, but a "legit insane terrorist" way.