With my viewing of the second in the Bond franchise, From Russia with Love (1963), I remembered to do what my spiritual director suggested to do before writing: pray.  This is more than just collecting my thoughts, but sitting and waiting on the Lord as to what He wants to show me about this film.  This one was a little difficult because I could not tell to any great degree how different it is from Dr. No (1962).  It seems to me that the premise of From Russia with Love is basically the same, as should become apparent as we go along.  As for the rest, hopefully what I have to say will show that there is something to glean about God from even the most familiar of spy tropes.

Once more we begin a movie featuring James Bond (Sean Connery) without the main character, though what is happening is not From Russia with Love.  Though we do see James in a tuxedo being killed, it turns out to be a body double wearing a mask to look like the famous 007 of British military intelligence, section six (MI6).  The person who takes down this look alike is Donald Grant (Robert Shaw), and what we see is the completion of his training to be the top assassin for a shadowy organization known as the Special Executive for Counter-Intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge, and Extortion, mercifully shortened to SPECTRE.  We also meet two others working for this organization bent on destabilizing the world.  The first is the mastermind chess grandmaster Kronsteen (Vladek Sheybal).  He has come up with a plot to obtain the Soviet’s code machine, known as “Lektor,” and making it look like the British and Russians are the ones vying for its control.  The person tasked with putting this plan in motion is Rosa Klebb (Lotte Lenya), a former officer in SMERSH, which is something Russian, but is more familiarly known as an office of Soviet counter-intelligence.  She has defected to SPECTRE, but she maintains enough of a clearance to recruit the stunningly beautiful Tatiana Romanova (Daniela Bianchi).  This last bit is important because the person they have chosen to extract the device is our favorite secret agent, James Bond.  The unseen man behind the desk at the head of SPECTRE, credited as “?” (Anthony Dawson) at the end, is counting on his counterpart in MI6, M (Bernard Lee), sensing a trap and sending James in anyway.  As usual, his top operative is in some far-off location pursuing a dalliance, but comes when summoned.  Armed with a new round of spy gadgets, James is sent to Istanbul, Turkey, to rendezvous with the MI6 station chief there, Ali Kerim Bey (Pedro Armendáriz).  He is the one who has learned of the existence of Tatiana, and her desire to come to the West with the precious device.  Aside from her alluring good looks, such a haul would be a major coup for those fighting the Soviet Union during the Cold War.  The meeting, though, is not slated to happen for some days.  In the meantime, SPECTRE has Donald following James wherever he goes while also stirring the animosity between MI6 and SMERSH.  With the latter of these situations, Russian agents and their proxies are tipped off about Ali and James visiting a gypsy camp, thus launching an attack.  In retaliation, Ali and James assassinate one of the top Soviet men in the city, the person who led the raid.  When James returns to his hotel after these ordeals, he finds Tatiana waiting in bed for him.  From here, it is a matter of obtaining a floorplan of the Russian consulate to be able to locate the Lektor, and then devising a way to extract it.  Once she is able to give a rough outline of where the rooms are, Ali assists in using an explosion to divert the attention of the Soviets long enough for James to get in and out with the machine and Tatiana.  They then travel by train into the Balkans, with the idea of linking up with Ali’s sons and then making their way to London.  Unfortunately, Donald is also lurking on the conveyance, and murders Ali before the station chief can give instructions to the locomotive operator to let them off.  Instead, they continue on and eventually Donald assumes the identity of the MI6 operative who is to be their contact and guide back to England.  However, Donald tips his true purpose when James notices the SPECTRE man slip a pill into Tatiana’s drink.  This act also later dispels the fear that Tatiana had been on the terrorist organization’s payroll.  Once Donald is taken care of, it is off the train and using Donald’s escape plan to make their way to Venice, though this takes dodging SPECTRE henchmen literally by land, air, and sea.  Once safely in the city of canals, James is making arrangements to finally bring them to London when they are accosted in their room by Rosa.  James takes her for a regular maid, but knows something is up when Tatiana freezes upon seeing the former SMERSH officer.  Rosa orders Tatiana to take the Lektor and leave, promising to follow.  Instead, Tatiana quickly returns to the room and distracts Rosa long enough for James to finish off the older woman.  We close with James and Tatiana kissing on a boat as they dream of finally being in England.

In thinking about From Russia with Love, I initially considered discussing the portrayal of the Hagia Sophia.  Since much of the film is set in Istanbul, it is hard to miss arguably the most distinctive feature of its skyline.  The reason it excites a Catholic reviewer is that, unlike its function today as a mosque, it was built as a Christian church, serving at different times the Catholic and Orthodox sects.  Yet, the one sequence that takes place inside is rather brief, and a longer discussion of it would not relate to the plot.  Instead, what struck me is something that would have been subconsciously noted by viewers in the 1960s, but is perhaps lost on modern audiences, at that is the spirit of cooperation.  To be sure, MI6 is out to defeat the Soviet Union and its proxies, and the several battles you see here are part and parcel of the Cold War, albeit with neither side knowing that they are being manipulated.  What I would focus on instead is the relationship between James and Tatiana.  Of course, it does not hurt that she is stunningly attractive, and he is what some would call a “skirt chaser.”  All the same, they each take their duty to their country seriously.  There is a Faith connection in this alone, with obedience to God something that everyone should put first in their lives, no matter who you are in this world.  Indeed, this is often described in similar terms, such as doing your “Christian duty.”  More broadly speaking, though, is the care and love that these two people, who should be enemies, have for one another.  You may quibble about the physical nature of their interactions, and while not good for their souls, this, at least, lacks physical violence.  They say that love conquers all, and it is a principal by which Jesus lived His life and instilled in His followers.  These feelings end up saving James in the end, and I am sure he is thankful for it.

Of course, we only have what we see at the end of From Russia with Love to judge James’ thankfulness for Tatiana saving his life.  If kissing your lover, while also throwing potential blackmail against him overboard, is any indication, then yes, he appreciated what she did.  I do not know how much you will appreciate this movie as it can be somewhat silly at times.  Thus, I will neither recommend or caution against it.