James Bond, the "Duke of Wellington" and the Dr. No Theory
by Travis Simpkins
A famous scene in Dr. No (1962) shows James Bond passing through the villain's lair, and recognizing the stolen 1812 portrait of the "Duke of Wellington" by Franciso Goya. The painting had been stolen the year before the film was made, and producers thought it would be an interesting visual innuendo for the stolen masterpiece to make a cameo. That brief sighting of "The Duke of Wellington" had a deep impact on the way Art theft has been perceived from then on. It conjured up the concept of the crooked wealthy art collector, commissioning thefts of art for personal gratification, hiding away stolen masterpieces in a private underground room. It is known in the study of Art Crime as the "Dr. No Theory."
Although not based on the actual first book in the 007 series by Ian Fleming, Dr. No was the first "James Bond" film adaptation. Directed by Terence Young, Dr. No established many of the iconic elements now associated with a typical "James Bond" movie... from the famous cocktail, to the sexy ladies. Filmed on a relatively modest budget, the film was a huge financial success and inspired 22 additional Bond films, as well as countless imitation Spy movies and spoofs. The cast is excellent, including Sean Connery as the preeminent and iconic James Bond, Ursula Andress as the first "Bond girl" and Joseph Wiseman as Dr. No, the title character and first Bond villain.
When a fellow British agent is killed in Jamaica, ultra-suave 007 agent James Bond (Sean Connery) is sent to investigate…
Sean Connery: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Bond discovers sexy ladies...
Sean Connery: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
dangerous intrigue...
Sean Connery: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Stolen art…
Goya's "Duke of Wellington": Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Goya's "Duke of Wellington": Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Goya's "Duke of Wellington": Dr. No. James Bond, 007
The theft of Goya's "Duke of Wellington": Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Goya's "Duke of Wellington": Dr. No. James Bond, 007
as his search leads him further into mystery…
Sean Connery: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
He encounters the enchanting Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress)...
Ursula Andress: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
and the obstacles and fights they must overcome as they get closer to the truth...
Sean Connery and Ursula Andress: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Sean Connery and Ursula Andress: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
leading Bond to the island fortress of Dr. No (Joseph Wiseman), and a plot to disrupt a planned rocket launch to the moon...
Dr. No: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
danger abounds...
Sean Connery and Ursula Andress: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
as Bond sets forth to save the day...
Sean Connery and Ursula Andress: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Sean Connery and Ursula Andress: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Sean Connery: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Dr. No: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Sean Connery: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Ursula Andress: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Sean Connery: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Sean Connery and Ursula Andress: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Sean Connery and Ursula Andress: Dr. No. James Bond, 007
Directed by Michael Hoffman, and written by Joel and Ethan Coen, Gambit (2012) received dismissive reviews upon it's release… but is actually quite good in many regards. In terms of Art Crime films, it is certainly one of the better comedic efforts in recent years, with genuinely funny moments running throughout. The story concerns a pushover British curator who schemes to bilk his domineering boss, a wealthy collector of Impressionistic paintings, out of 12 million pounds by selling him a fake Monet. With the help of a Texas Rodeo queen posing as the painting's owner and a talented forger recreating the work, he may just pull it off… with some major bumblings along the way. The reproductions of artwork are actually pretty decent by movie standards. The forger has some interesting scenes in which he recreates a Jackson Pollock action painting and a Neoclassical David masterpiece, but Claude Monet is the star artist… particularly his colorful haystack works. Cameron Diaz steals the show as the free-spirited sexy Texan, PJ Puznowski. Colin Firth is good as the hapless curator. Alan Rickman is great as the art-loving bully. The supporting cast is good as well, including Stanley Tucci and Cloris Leachman.
Colin Firth: Gambit
Cameron Diaz: Gambit
Monet: Gambit
Alan Rickman: Gambit
Colin Firth: Gambit
Colin Firth and Cameron Diaz: Gambit
Colin Firth: Gambit
Cameron Diaz: Gambit
Colin Firth: Gambit
Cameron Diaz and Colin Firth: Gambit
Cameron Diaz: Gambit
Colin Firth and Cameron Diaz: Gambit
Colin Firth: Gambit
Cameron Diaz, Alan Rickman and Colin Firth: Gambit
