Cracking the Code of Spy Movies!

  What makes a spy movie great?  Are they built with common elements? Dan and Tom decode the blueprint that most spy movies use in creating their story.  From the protagonist, the villain and a variety of other essential elements we look at how to build a spy movie. What do we need if we want to build a spy movie? Some of the things decoded include: Obviously a spy movie needs a protagonist or spy...

HOGAN'S HEROES – a comedy spy WW II TV series "Hogan's Heroes" was a comedy series in the US from 1965 to 1971. But it was a spy, espionage and sabotage show as well – with plenty of violence.   It was based on a group of prisoners of war in World War II who were assigned to Stalag 13.  On this show, spy missions rule!  Decoding this show, we will show you why! Dan and Tom tunnel their way into th...

THE HEROES OF TELEMARK – Decoding a movie about real World War II heroes In this episode, Dan and Tom decode a movie about some real World War II heroes, namely, the movie THE HEROES OF TELEMARK .  This movie stars Kirk Douglas, Richard Harris, Ulla Jacobson, and Michael Redgrave.  Plus, many supporting actors in this movie have appeared in other spy movies.  We call some of those out for you THE...

MY SPY: THE ETERNAL CITY - Is it worth your time?   MY SPY: THE ETERNAL CITY is the much-anticipated follow-up to the 2020 action-comedy MY SPY . It reunites a wonderful cast led by Dave Bautista and Chloe Coleman. The movie takes us on a feel-good adventure set in some of Europe's most storied destinations.  In this episode, Dan and Tom decode this movie, while not revealing any spoilers.  The go...

Build-A-Bond – What Does The Next Bond Need to Be? Dan and Tom look at how to Build-a-Bond.  In other words, what are the key elements of Bond over the decades that should go into the best Bond?  We will help Eon Productions here as we Build-a-Bond!  What were the positive qualities of James Bond for each of the previous six actors that Eon Productions has cast for the role? What are the qualities...

EYE OF THE NEEDLE – A WW II spy thriller  EYE OF THE NEEDLE is a 1981 spy thriller starring Donald Sutherland. In it, one key plot point exposes one of the acts of deception that we discussed in our episode "OPERATION BODYGUARD - Behind the Spies in Movies and Novels" .   In this episode, Dan and Tom decode EYE OF THE NEEDLE , discussing the high-level plot and 10 good reasons to watch it. The dec...

OPERATION BODYGUARD AND DECEPTION IN WORLD WAR II   Your field operatives, Dan and Tom, talk with author and historian Rick Beyer about the deception techniques used in the war.  Operation Bodyguard and its sub-operation, Operation Fortitude, which helped win the war, are highlighted.   Operation Bodyguard was an overall deception operation to assist the Allied Forces in World War II.  It is one e...

3 DAYS OF THE CONDOR – A Fresh Look   The 1975 spy movie, 3 DAYS OF THE CONDOR , is a "reluctant spy" movie starring Robert Redford, Faye Dunaway. Cliff Robertson, and Max von Sydow.  Dan and Tom take a fresh look at this movie, decoding the plot, characters, direction, and more.  What are the influences on 3 DAYS OF THE CONDOR as well as what movies/TV shows may CONDOR have influenced?  What abou...

SPIONE And Its Influence On Spy Movies   SPIONE And Its Influence On Spy Movies is a look at this 1928 Fritz Lang spy movie. And, Dan and Tom fill you in on just how big an influence SPIONE is in the spy movie genre.    Significantly , SPIONE is the first spy movie we've been able to find that isn't based on a war. Not surprisingly, this movie laid out the blueprint for most non-war-based spy movi...

SPECTRE – can this James Bond movie be defended? Dan and Tom bring Vicky back to answer this question. While SPECTRE is not often in a James Bond fan's top 5 list, it is often in a Bond fan's bottom 10 list.  Why is that?  What about this movie turns fans off? Dan, Tom, and Vicky uncover both the positives and the negatives of SPECTRE to try to figure out if it can be defended. Let's Look At The N...

Before you go on to this episode, "You Only Live Thrice, Mr. Bond," if you haven't seen NO TIME TO DIE , there are some spoilers here so you probably should skip this one – NOW!   You Only Live Thrice, Mr. Bond James Bond is dead!  Dead as a door nail.   Dead!  Your field operatives Dan and Tom decode the fundamental meaning of James Bond dying in NO TIME TO DIE and detail the HOW of what Eon Prod...

Dan and Tom decode the 1952 classic spy movie, 5 FINGERS .  This excellent movie starring James Mason is a fantastic espionage thriller, but not an action thriller.  And we think it works quite well that way. 5 FINGERS is based on the true story of Albanian-born Elyesa Bazna, who worked as a valet for the British ambassador to Turkey during World War II and became a Nazi spy. Also, it is based on...

Chicago 007 Fans May 2024 Meetup Dan and Tom held their first Chicago 007 Fans Meetup on May 9 , 2024, at Ma O'Brien's Irish Pub in Chicago. Part of the event was a James Bond trivia quiz and people from all over the world played, including those in the pub. The questions ranged from fairly easy to "nobody got this one". The winning score was 18 out of 25.  Congratulations to William Kanas for the...

John Morris Russell Talks Shaken Not Stirred Dan and Tom interview Maestro John Morris Russell (JMR) about his Chicago Symphony Orchestra concert, "Shaken Not Stirred," musical scores, and James Bond music.  As you might have guessed, the concert's focus is the music of James Bond.   You may know JMR from his work as the conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra for the past 13 years.  Joining JM...

Dan and Tom decode SPY HUNT , a 1950 espionage B movie.  And they don't agree on this one. SPY HUNT was based on the book "Panther's Moon" by Victor Canning. It has espionage, a MacGuffin, a train, a dead drop, escaped black panthers, a budding romance, and quite a few interesting characters. Dan and Tom call out some interesting plot points that may have been influenced by earlier movies such as...

Dan and Tom talk with Matt Sherman about the DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER Las Vegas and OCTOPUSSY Utah filming locations. Besides being a James Bond expert, Matt Sherman leads tours to many different James Bond filming locations – check his website https://bondfanevents.com/ . In this episode, we discuss what we experienced on Matt's tour of two relatively close filming location areas for two movies, DIAM...

SPY x FAMILY CODE: White Review - No Spoilers! Here's our NO-SPOILER review of the new spy movie, SPY x FAMILY CODE: White. This anime movie is the first movie in the SPY x FAMILY franchise.  If you are familiar with the Manga or anime series versions of SPY x FAMILY, you will feel right at home with the movie. EPISODE GOALS Provide you with our no-spoiler opinion of the movie Enhance your viewing...

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 Cavi...

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 fam...

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...

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 locatio...

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: Inven...

"007 Science: Inventing 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. Bu...

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...

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 nov...