“My name is Bond, James Bond.” The iconic line from the decades-long James Bond film series is instantly recognisable, even if you’ve never watched any of the films featuring the deadly British spy. The men in the new Reservoir Docs film, The Other Fellow, have probably heard it more times than anyone else. The topics have one important thing in common with not just one other, but the primary character in Ian Fleming wrote books turned into on-screen performances – that is, their names are all James Bond.
Yes, you read it correctly; these men are from all walks of life and share a common bond: they share the same moniker as James Bond, 007. In a video published today, audiences are introduced to four of the subjects of the Matthew Bauer-led documentary. From a British soldier to a Guyana politician, each of the men tells about the influence that sharing a name with the renowned figure has had on them. We hear from a clergyman who was in the seventh grade when the first Bond film, Dr No, was released, as well as James Lee Bond, an 87-year-old resident of Austin, Texas, who admits to never “caring” about the flicks.
A Swedish 007 super-fan with a World War II history, a homosexual New York theatrical director, an African American Bond suspected of murder, and two tenacious women caught up in it all are all promised in the logline but not shown in the video. Quite a few Bonds, indeed. Bauer, a self-proclaimed Bond enthusiast and director, has created a new feature film that is as captivating as it is inventive, taking viewers all over the world and bringing the men’s tales to life. In an interview with Variety, Bauer explains that his purpose with the film was to focus on how their recognised names have altered the subject’s lives and “pushes and pulls” their worlds “in the most unexpected directions.” To he adds that their names not only link them to the world of the British alpha-male spy but also “bind them together in ways you’d never imagine,” which he says is a major theme of the documentary.
From 1962 until the present, several performers, including Sean Connery, David Niven, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig, have portrayed Fleming’s super spy on screen. With the release of No Time to Die, the 27th film in the series, audiences may be assured that this will be the last time they see Craig ask for his drink to be shaken, rather than stirred. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the film franchise, making it the ideal moment for a film like The Other Fellow to be released. Bauer, Michelle Brndum, and Lesley Posso all contributed to the film’s production, and Posso edited it. The music was written by Alastair McNamara. A date for the publication of The Other Fellow has not yet been announced.