The New 007

Where am I?

In The Village.

What do you want?

Information.

Whose side are you on?

That would be telling.

We want information...

Information...

Information.

You won't get it.

By hook or by crook... 

We Will.

Who are you?

The New 007

Who is 001?

You are, 006.

I am not a Double-O —

I am a free man!

Ho-ho-ha-ha-haha..!!

Evolution of the Gun Barrel Sequence :

1962–1964

Because Binder had designed the gun barrel sequence to feature Bond only in silhouette, with a non-widescreen aspect ratio, he used stunt man Bob Simmons, rather than Sean Connery, to film the scene.4

Simmons hops slightly as he pivots to assume the firing position and, following the blood wash, the dot becomes smaller and jumps to the lower right-hand corner of the frame before simply vanishing.

In Dr. No, the white dot stops mid-screen and the credit line “Harry Saltzman & Albert R. Broccoli present” appears across the dot. The text is wiped and the dot continues the sequence. The sequence is accompanied by a soundtrack of electronic noises and then numerous notes that sound like they are being plinked from a wind-up jack in the box; the latter is cut short by the gunshot. The “James Bond Theme” then plays very loudly, albeit with the first portion, featuring the theme’s plucked electric guitar riff, truncated. The gun barrel sequence in Dr. No segues directly into the credits, a grid matrix of large-scale, bright and rapidly changing coloured circular dots against a black background. This version, without the electronic noises or the Saltzman-Broccoli credit line, was also used in From Russia with Love with more red coloured blood and Goldfinger which fades into the pre-credit sequence.

1965–1967

For Thunderball, the aspect ratio of the films was changed to a Panavision anamorphic format and so the gun barrel sequence had to be reshot, this time with Sean Connery in the role. It is also the first gun barrel sequence in which the white dot segues to the film’s pre-credit sequence, opening up to reveal the entirety of the scene.

Connery wobbles slightly while firing his gun as he adjusts his balance from an unstable position and he bends over to fire. Although the sequence was shot in color for Thunderball, it is rendered in black and white for You Only Live Twice.

1969 (George Lazenby)

With a new actor, George Lazenby, in the role of James Bond for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969), a third sequence had to be filmed. As with Thunderball, the sequence was once again shot in color.

In this rendering, the white dot stops mid-screen and the credit line “Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli Present” appears, much as it did in Dr. No (albeit spelling out “and” instead of using the ampersand). The James Bond theme keeps playing though. As the barrel begins to move and when it stops centre-screen, Bond is walking to position for around a second before turning and shooting as the camera tracks with him, resulting in a “treadmill” effect. Lazenby is the only Bond who kneels down to fire; this is also the only version where the descending blood completely erases Bond’s image, leaving only the red circle. In this version, the gun barrel is awash with prismatic splashes of light.

1971 (Sean Connery)

When Sean Connery returned to the role of Bond for Diamonds Are Forever (1971), the gun barrel sequence filmed for Thunderball was used. As with You Only Live Twice, the sequence was rendered in black and white, but was given a bluish tint. As in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, the barrel is awash with prismatic splashes of light, which this time ripple through it. Unlike On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, the splashes of light are erased by the descending blood. This was the last time the sequence was rendered in black and white until Casino Royale (2006). 

It is also the last gun barrel sequence in which Bond wears a hat.