THE MINISTRY OF UNGENTLEMANLY WARFARE Review – No-Spoilers! Here’s the full NO-SPOILER review of the new spy movie, THE MINISTRY OF UNGENTLEMANLY WARFARE. This movie opens in theaters on April 19, 2024. Guy Ritchie’s THE MINISTRY OF UNGENTLEMANLY WARFARE is a dramatization of real-world events that helped shape the outcome of World War II.   Of course, it has an excellent cast starring Henry Cavill, Alan Ritchson, Eiza González, Til Schweiger, and many more.  This review will...

Dan and Tom head out to find the DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER Amsterdam filming locations.   There aren’t many and they are easy to find. But it is very cool to see these sites over 50 years after the movie was filmed. So, join them as they visit Tiffany Case’s house.    Was she home? The Skinny Bridge?   Was that a figment of screenwriters Richard Maibaum and Tom Mankiewicz?  Listen to find out. What famous drink from Ian Fleming’s novels has an Amsterdam bar named after it? What...

RAAZI Is A Spy Movie Worth Watching The 2018 Indian movie RAAZI is a spy movie worth watching. It is one of Tom’s all-time favorite spy movies. Have you heard of RAAZI? RAAZI is a fictionalized drama about a real spy in the 1971 India-Pakistan war.  This is an espionage movie, not an action movie, which we think is a good thing. The central theme of this movie is “What are you prepared to do for your country?” Why is this a spy movie worth watching?   Dan and Tom detail the...

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY - How the Story Came to be FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, the movie, was not the story from Ian Fleming’s short story with the same title.   In this episode, Dan and Tom decode the movie to see how the story came to be. Some of the characters from the movie, and some of the plot points were adapted from Ian Fleming’s 1960 short stories “For Your Eyes Only” and “Risico”.  Plus, the locations of the 2 stories and the movie are all different. People’s names have changed.  The...

Who is Chris Corbould? Chris Corbould OBE has worked on 15 James Bond movies, THE DARK KNIGHT Trilogy, 2 Superman movies, and he won an Acadamy Award for his work on the movie INCEPTION.  Chiefly, his specialty has been visual effects, leading the team on many of these movies. Dan and Tom had a chance to chat with Chris in Chicago at the press event prior to the opening of the “007 Science: Inventing the World of James Bond” exhibit.  This fantastic exhibit is at the Museum of...

“007 Science: Inside the World of James Bond” is a new exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Dan and Tom became big fans of this exhibit while attending the Press Day viewing.   They take you inside and highlight many of the items displayed. And they let you know why you will want to attend this exhibit. What's in the exhibit? We won’t give everything away. But there are screen-used gadgets from the James Bond movies. These are some of the most...

Steve Oxenrider is One of the Biggest James Bond Memorabilia Collectors! Are you a James Bond memorabilia collector or interested in James Bond items? How big is your collection?   Well, in this episode, Dan and Tom talk with Steve Oxenrider, whose name you have  seen -  as he is credited on some of the “Making of” James Bond documentaries and has contributed images for numerous books and articles. In case you didn’t know, Steve is auctioning off his over 30,000-item collection of...

THE HILDEBRAND RARITY and LICENCE TO KILL Ian Fleming published the short story “The Hildebrand Rarity” in 1960.  In it, he created the character of Milton Krest.  James Bond movie fans will recognize Milton Krest from 1989 movie LICENCE TO KILL.   In this episode, Dan and Tom decode how this character from the short story landed in this movie.  They also talk about how his character from the novel changed in the movie. And how some of his traits were split between the characters...

In Defense of Quantum of Solace  Dan and Tom provide a defense of the James Bond movie QUANTUM OF SOLACE, looking at the pros and cons of this oft-maligned movie.   Revealed: What does Quantum of Solace even means!    QUANTUM OF SOLACE was not the critical success of its successor, CASINO ROYALE. That’s even with it being a direct continuation of the CASINO ROYALE story.  There were numerous problems, many stemming from the writer’s strike at the time. But, there were also some...

Gadgets in THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS and LICENCE TO KILL Dan and Tom break down the gadgets in THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS and LICENCE TO KILL – the two Dalton James Bond movies. Are these gadgets believable?  Flashy?  Dalton changed the tone of the character of Bond and to some extent the gadgets in the movies. For instance, could the milk bottles really do that?  What about the remote keychain?  And there is also the X-Ray camera, Broomstick Radio, night-vision binoculars, the rocket...

Alfred Hitchcock’s Storyboards with author Tony Lee Moral Dan and Tom bring back author Tony Lee Moral to discuss his latest book Alfred Hitchcock’s Storyboards. We focus on Hitchcock’s spy movies in today’s discussion. Unquestionably, Hitchcock was notorious for his use of storyboards and his practice has been emulated by many directors.  We read an advance copy of the book prior to its February 6, 2024, release.  Tony’s book is an excellent look at why Hitchcock used storyboards....

ARGYLLE– A No-Spoiler Review In this episode, Tom gives you his no-spoiler look at the latest Matthew Vaughan movie, ARGYLLE.  As with all of our no-spoiler reviews, our goal is to give you our thoughts as to whether or not this latest spy movie is worth your time and money. We don’t cover the plot because our goal is to not give it away. But, we will say that the plot is pretty complex. You need to pay close attention. There are a lot of twists and turns in ARGYLLE. And it has...

Hitchcock's TOPAZ – is it a gem? Hitchcock’s movie TOPAZ received mixed reviews when it was released.  Some people love it while others don’t like it at all.  Why is that? Dan and Tom mine what works and what doesn't in this Hitchcock spy movie.  And there is a bit of both here. That said, TOPAZ is a spy movie with a lot of espionage.  It isn’t an action movie with some spy elements as we often get in today’s spy movies. The setting for TOPAZ is 1962 at the height of the...

In 2035 we will see James Bond in the public domain.  What does this mean for the franchise?  Not just for the movies, but the novels, and marketing.  George Simpson, Senior Film Reporter at the Daily Express joins us to discuss the article he wrote about this impact on the franchise. He explains what public domain means and why it is so important for James Bond but not for other franchises like Sherlock Holmes and The Marx Brothers.  Their material is already in the public domain. Eon...

Character Spotlight: Rosa Klebb played by Lotte Lenya in FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE! In a continuation of our Character Spotlight series of episodes, Dan and Tom look at the evil character Rosa Klebb in FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE.  She may be small in stature, but she knows how to take control of almost any situation. Lotte Lenya gives an amazing performance bringing this character from the Ian Fleming novel to the big screen. Here we examine Rosa Klebb’s character in each scene and how...

Why Are Spy Movies Still Popular? Dan and Tom look at the popularity of spy movies and shows, with a focus on James Bond.  They give you their reasons for why they believe the spy genre is so popular. They also look at influences on spy movies.  Superheroes is one big influencer for spy movies and have helped spy movies’ popularity. But superhero movies are also in competition for the viewer’s money.  So, what is it about superhero movies that are similar to spy movies? Also,...

A spy, a mole, maybe 2 moles, lots of violence, a love story, and a bit of history twisted and thrown in for good measure. These are some of the things you’ll see in the just-released spy movie, DEVIL: THE BRITISH SECRET AGENT. So, is this movie worth your time and money? Tom gives you a no-spoiler look at what works and what doesn’t work.  And much of it does work. The movie is from India so there are some cultural differences for a non-Indian audience that Tom also discusses. ...

What Makes GOLDENEYE a standout James Bond movie? GOLDENEYE came out after a 6-year hiatus for the Eon Productions James Bond movie franchise.  It followed LICENCE TO KILL and introduced us to the fifth actor to take on the role of James Bond. In this episode, Dan and Tom decode the success of GOLDENEYE. They do this by diving into the top 8 reasons for its success. They squeeze out why it is so well respected, how it helped revitalize the James Bond franchise along with some franchise...

OBLITERATED – A No-Spoiler Review discusses this hot new Netflix spy comedy series.  We liken it to a 1980s teen comedy.  It is raunchy and touches on a few hot topics.  While it isn’t for everyone – is it for you?  It is a spy series at its core! Is OBLITERATED worth your time? We’ll give you enough information here to help you decide if you want to watch OBLITERATED.  Will it be worth YOUR time? Given that this movie is raunchy and hits on a few hot topics, we’ll dig into the...

What makes FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE So Good? And how has it stood up to the test of time? FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE has a 97% Tomatometer rating on Rotten Tomatoes.  Dan and Tom give you 10 reasons why they think this movie is so good.   See if you agree! Possible reasons: Is it the story?  This was one of Ian Fleming’s novels.  How about the acting? Or is it the characters? Could it be the sets? Maybe it is the action sequences?  Or do they just like the fight in the Gypsy camp? Maybe it...

Rick English talks KINGSMAN stunts with Dan and Tom on their show Cracking the Code of Spy Movies.  Rick is the award-winning stunt performer who doubled Colin Firth in the first two KINGSMAN movies.  He’s been doing stunts in movies for over 23 years.  RICK'S ROLE AS A DOUBLE So, what is it like to double a star? How much of the stunt work did Colin Firth do, versus Rick? Was Rick hurt doing any of the stunts?  What is the role of wirework in his scenes? How many cuts did the church...

Rick English stunt performer talks spy movie stunts with Dan and Tom on their show Cracking the Code of Spy Movies.  If you’ve seen at least three spy or action movies in the last two decades, you’ve likely seen Rick’s work in at least one of them.   Rick is an award-winning stunt performer who has been involved with the James Bond, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE, BATMAN, and KINGSMAN franchises.   He was also in INCEPTION, The 355, FAST AND FURIOUS, and many more movies over his 20+ year career.  ...

Was ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE good?  That is a question that Bond fans have been arguing since its release.  In this episode, Dan and Tom walk through the top 10 reasons why they think ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE is a good movie.  Then they look at it from the other side with the top 10 reasons it is criticized.    Some things they examine are:  George Lazenby  The score  The action  Telly Savalas’ portrayal of Blofeld  The emotional...

James Bond can survive, can't he? “Come on Bond, where the hell are you?” M pleads near the end of NO TIME TO DIE.  Let’s talk about that.  In this episode, Dan and Tom have fun coming up with some ways that James Bond can survive after the debacle at the end of NO TIME TO DIE.     Some of their ideas make some sense, some are based on how other fictional characters have survived their demise and still others are just outright wacky. Where are you James Bond? We have a shout-out to...