From Russia With Love reference guide

The evil SPECTRE organization has hatched a plan to steal a decoder that will access Russian state secrets and irrevocably unbalance the world order. It is up to James Bond to seize the device first, but he must confront enemies that include Red Grant and the ruthless Rosa Klebb - a former KGB agent with poison-tipped shoes. Even as Bond romances a stunning Soviet defector, he realizes he is being lured into a deadly trap, and he will need all of his courage, ability and cutting-edge technology to triumph over the forces that seek to destroy him. (Written by Robert Lynch)

Quick facts

Produced by Albert R. Broccoli & Harry Saltzman

Directed by Terence Young

Screenplay by Richard Maibaum, Johanna Harwood

World Premiere 10th October 1963 (London, England)

US Release Date 8th April 1964

Worldwide Box Office $78,900,000 US

Budget $2,000,000 US

Running Time 116 Minutes

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Locations

SPECTRE Island; London; Venice and Istanbul plus a number of locations on the Orient Express through Yugoslavia that include Belgrade and Zagreb heading for Trieste.

Bond, James Bond

Bond does not use his trademark introduction in From Russia With Love.

Behind the scenes

Once again Bob Simmons is James Bond in the gunbarrel sequence, not Sean Connery.

In the original shoot of the pre-title sequence when Donald ‘Red’ Grant had killed the 'impostor' 007 and took his mask off, the man underneath still looked remarkably like Sean Connery. To avoid this a distinctive moustache was added.

Bond is never seen gambling in From Russia With Love, he never orders a "Medium dry, Vodka Martini, Shaken not Stirred" but instead drinks medium sweet coffee.

The actor intended to play Captain Nash, whose place Grant takes at the Zagreb train station, didn’t actually show up for filming. Location manager Bill Hill performed the role instead.

The wife of producer Harry Saltzman is leaning out the window of the Orient Express next to the window containing Robert Shaw as it leaves the station.

The scene in the sewers where Bond, Kerim Bey and Tatiana Romanova are chased by hundreds of rats was quite a challenge. English law stated that wild rats could not be used in film production. White tame rats were used, instead, but coated in coca powder! However, the rats didn't last this way for long, as they licked each other clean. The scenes were finally shot in Madrid, where the rats were gathered by a local rodent collector. §

Selected behind the scenes information courtesy IMDb.