Character Analysis
Luck of the British
Imagine not knowing who James Bond is. Today, that's like imagining a world without gravity, a sea without water, or a meal without carbs.
But American audiences in 1962 didn't know Bond like we do today. Sure, there were Ian Fleming's novels, where the character originated, but they weren't ubiquitous. Dr. No the film is what really introduced Bond to the world.
So what do know about him, based only on this movie? Throughout the film, we see Bond as a man who's always put together. We learn that he's slick with women and skilled at fighting, gunplay, and driving. But the very first thing we learn about it, and it just may be his defining trait, is that he's lucky.
Sylvia Trench is the first person to observe this nebulous trait in 007:
SYLVIA: I admire your luck.
Luck follows Bond like a cloud of cologne. As we see, he's equally likely to get himself out of a sticky situation by sheer luck. Sylvia, for example, randomly shows up in his room for a rendezvous later that night. Bond lucks out that Quarrel is allied with Leiter, a CIA agent. And during a high-speed chase, Bond catches a lucky break when a service vehicle blocking the road gives him a handy escape route.
We're not saying that Bond is a complete idiot who saves the day through luck. His luck augments his skill. Sylvia shows up because Bond is such a skillful flirt. Leiter works with Bond because he admires his talents. And during the chase, Bond expertly navigates his car under the truck, which his pursuers fail to do.
Bond's world is a high-stakes one, filled with casinos and villains who gamble with the world's safety, so luck is his greatest strength—one which Dr. No attempts to take away.
DR. NO: You are just a stupid policeman whose luck has run out.
No, No, you're wrong. Bond's luck hasn't run out at all. In fact, Bond is lucky that Dr. No is one of those terrible supervillains who's foolish enough to keep Bond alive. Lucky that No doesn't kill him instantly, Bond is able to use that to his advantage to triumph over the Doctor.
007's 001 Movie
Despite the fact that Dr. No introduces us to the character of Bond, the film isn't an origin story. That's crazy to think about, today when practically every modern movie is an origin story. How many has Spider-Man had at this point?
But Dr. No drops us into a world where Bond already exists. That's how he wants to be seen—as if he were born in a three-piece suit with a perfectly mixed martini in his hand.
However, we do get glimpses into Bond's backstory. At MI6, M reveals that Bond had recently been injured in the line of duty.
M: Maybe not, but it jammed on your last job and you spent six months in hospital in consequence. You carry a double-O number; means you're licensed to kill, not get killed.
M is telling us that Bond's not-so-trusty Beretta is what jammed, a gun that Bond is attached to even though M wants to replace it with a new one. This bit of backstory tells us something else about Bond—in addition to being cool, calm, and collected, he can also be careless and sentimental.
Bond also feels frightened heading into Dr. No's lair, which we learn when Honey tells Bond about his sweaty palms.
HONEY: I'm glad your hands are sweating, too.
BOND: Of course I'm scared, too. So be natural and leave all the talking to me.
Any trait that Bond considers a flaw, like sentimentality or fear, he hides. We only learn about them because others mention it out loud. But these traits help round out what would otherwise be a flat, boring character. Bond's flaws, if you want to call them that, show us that he is—gasp—human.
James Bond's Timeline