One of the best loved movie series of all time and popular with generation after generation of cinema goer are the James Bond movies and the release of Casino Royale last year has shown that the film series remains as popular as ever.

From Sean Connery to Daniel Craig, every actor to have stepped into the shoes of the world's most famous secret agent has his own dedicated followers, and while each actor's films maintain elements that we now associate with the Bond movies, the style of the films has changed radically on several occasions.

The early years

The first two Bond films starred Sean Connery, who remains the most popular actor as James Bond. Physically looking the part, he brought both toughness and a sense of humour to the role, something that the literary character had always lacked. Plot wise these films – Dr No and From Russia With Love – were little different to the books of Ian Fleming, but by the time of the third film, Goldfinger, the filmmakers decided to start introducing over the top gadgets, this time in the form of the Aston Martin DB5 with ejector seat.

After Goldfinger came Thunderball, and although it remained close to the book, it too had a whole host of gadgets, from underwater breathing equipment the size of a cigar tube to a hydrofoil that splits in two.

Fleming abandoned

After Thunderball came You Only Live Twice, but rather than base the script on the book, it was decided to write an original story using Fleming's characters and location. The film is over the top in every way, with more gadgets - including Little Nellie, the autogyro - a less plausible story and an over the top villain. The film was a success although it was also advertised Sean Connery's last outing as James Bond.

On Her Majesty's Secret Service came next, staring George Lazenby as Bond. It was his only time in the role and allegedly difficult to work with, but he decided to retire from the role before On Her Majesty's Secret Service had even been released on the advice of his agent! The film once again returns to Ian Fleming and is the last Bond film to stick rigidly to its literary original.

Comedy Bond

Sean Connery was persuaded to return to the role of James Bond in the following film, Diamonds Are Forever. However, Fleming was again abandoned in favour of an original story that started to see much more comedy, including a huge car chase in which half the Las Vegas police force seemed to be written off.

This comic trend continued with the introduction of Roger Moore as the films slid further away from the spirit of Ian Fleming and a raised eyebrow was all it took for the Bond girl to fall into bed with him.

Live And Let Die, The Man With The Golden Gun and The Spy Who Loved Me became less and less plausible, with sillier gadgets and more laughs, but after Moonraker the filmmakers decided they needed to plant Bond's feet back on the ground.

The result was For Your Eyes Only, probably the best of the Roger Moore Bond movies, playing a tougher, more ruthless 007 with less reliance on gadgets and comedy. Unfortunately this didn't last – Roger Moore's last two films, Octopussy and A View To A Kill, are perhaps the low point in the series.

The Dalton years

Timothy Dalton's debut as James Bond, The Living Daylights, saw a mixture of styles. On one hand the filmmakers wanted to return to the books, although by now all the novel's titles had been used; on the other they just couldn't leave the gadgets and comedy out of the film.

The result was a film that was head and shoulders above most of Roger Moore's films, but would have been be even better if the moments of stupidy had been left out. One scene that springs to mind is when Bond fires two missiles from his Aston Martin to destroy a truck in his path followed by a scene when the car enters a wooden shed, which he then drives about on a frozen lake. How Ian Fleming would have turned in his grave.

Dalton's second and final film was License To Kill. Bond fans tend to be polarised into loving or hating it, and although the title is original some of the scenes were taken from the book Live And Let Die. Bond was hard, dark, unsmiling… and boring. Dalton's contract was for three movies, but the series was put on hold while the producers went to court over a rival Bond series and when they were ready to film again Timothy Dalton decided not to continue.

The shadow of Roger Moore

Pierce Brosnan's Bond was introduced in Goldeneye, which abandoned the dark side of Bond for what some people have dubbed "Roger Moore-lite". With gadgets and humour, the films are a long way from Ian Fleming although it should be noted that his third film, The World Is Not Enough does include some elements from the books. Tomorrow Never Dies, the second film, is instantly forgettable and Die Another Die, while reasonable good in the first half, has too much science fiction, including an invisible car.

A return to Fleming

After Die Another Day the producers saw that the series needed a shot in the arm and looked to move the next film in a different direction. One of the results of the court action was that they had the rights to make Casino Royale, the original James Bond book to which Ian Fleming had sold the film right independently to the other titles. Deciding to reboot Bond they released that they'd need a younger actor, eventually picking Daniel Craig for the part.

Although Daniel Craig attracted much criticism when filming began, he confounded all but his harshest critics and turned the film into a huge box office success. Bringing a physicality that had been missing since Sean Connery hung up his shoulder holster, Casino Royale drops most of the gadgets and all but the subtlest of humour; the film effectively brings Bond back to his roots and while the story has been expanded from the book, there is much that is faithful to Ian Fleming.

Brosnan's films saw the pre-title sequences (PTS) getting longer and longer – around 20 minutes in Die Another Day – which are just too long, especially compared with what many consider to be the classic PTS in Goldfinger - but in Casino Royale it seems much too short, leaving you wanting more.

From Dr No to Casino Royale, the James Bond series has been phenomenally successful and despite changing with the times and to suit the actors, it appears to have turned full circle. With Bond 22 currently in the planning stages we can only wait and see what the next instalment in the saga holds for us.

Here's some interesting facts and history about James Bond written by Chad Koch. One thing to note this is obviously written before the new Bond, Daniel Craig was chosen to go forward with the James Bond legacy from the very capable hands of Pierce Brosnan who in my opinion was born to play the part. Brosnan Retires .

James Bond
By Chad Koch

“He’ll light the fuse on any explosive situation” – Miranda Frost

NOBODY DOES IT BETTER

James Bond, the world famous super spy. Complete with the gadgets, cars, style and women. Everyone woman wants him. Every man wants to be him. Perhaps the best-known movie hero, more than half the world knows of James Bond. Couple that with the longest running movies series of all time and you have an unmatched superhero.

ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE

To be James Bond, you got to be convince us you’re British. George Clooney and Brad Pitt don’t have a chance in Hades of pulling that one off, no matter how good their accents are. Pierce Brosnan nails it, cause he at the very least, already had an accent, granted it was Irish. Plus he’s tall, at 6’ 2’’ he’s the same height as the quintessential Bond, Sean Connery.

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

Seems Brosnan has at least one more, if not two more, Bond films to go before hanging up the tux, so who might take on the role after his departure? Could be Hugh Jackman. He wouldn’t be the first Australian to play Bond, George Lazenby was also from the land down under.

JAMES BOND, JR.

Back in the early 90’s a cartoon spin-off emerged. This go around was with James Bond’s teenage nephew taking on super villains the world over. The younger Bond, took on some his uncle’s more famous foes, including Dr. No and Jaws.

GOLDENEYE

After returning from serving with British Naval Intelligence during World War 2, Ina Fleming retired to Jamica and built a house he dubbed, “Goldeneye”. In this house is where he first took up writing full-time and created the character that would make him famous. He wrote most of his novels in wearing shorts and flip flops.

BIRDS OF A FEATHER

Fleming got the name “James Bond” from a real-life ornithologist in Philadelphia who was named “James Bond”. He had a copy of his book: "The Birds of the West Indies" and took a liking to the name. In “Die Another Day”, Bond poses as an ornithologist while undercover.

THE REAL JAMES BOND

Ian Fleming supposedly modeled the character of James Bond after a real life person named, Merlin Minshall. Minshall had worked for Fleming during World War 2, as a spy. Some believe he took up writing the Bond stories as a clever way of divulging classified information.

JAWS VS. JAWS

Riding his gargantuan success with Jaws, Spielberg wanted to make a Bond film in the late seventies. His buddy, George Lucas said he had something better for him to do and thus Indiana Jones was created. The original draft of Raiders of the Lost Ark script had Indy in tuxedo doing his lady’s man routine, but it was removed and later appeared to some extent in Temple of Doom.

SCOTLAND FOREVER

Sean Connery has worn a toupee in every Bond film he has ever been in on account of the fact that he started loosing his hair at the age of 21. In the majority of his other films and off-screen he goes all out natural. He also has two small tattoos on his right arm, one reading, “Scotland Forever” and the other, “Mum and Dad”. He acquired the tats at the age of 16, while in the British Navy.

SECRET SERVICE

Once worked as a coffin polisher and milk delivery man. He even modeled naked for an art class at Edinburgh Art College, rumor has it that some of those paintings still survive today. If you prefer not to go topless, there is no better way to deliver the milk, than by wearing a 007 t-shirt from http://www.t-shirtking.com/

ABOVE THE LAW

Connery was injured during martial arts training for his role in Never Say Never Again. He made his instructor made, who in return broke his wrist. However, Connery didn’t know it had been broken and lived with the injury for some years. The instructor was Steven Seagal.

THUNDERBALL REDUX

“Never Say Never Again” was essentially a remake of “Thunderball” Connery starred as Bond in both of them, however the second go around was during the Roger Moore days. So why did this happen? Apparently, Kevin McClory who was the producer and co-writer of “Thunderball” won a legal battle with Ian Fleming that allowed him to make his own Bond film. The only stipulation was that it had to be a remake of “Thunderball”.

NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN

Connery couldn’t refuse once again donning the tux and the remake title for “Thunderball” came from Connery’s wife. After doing, “Diamonds are Forever” he told her he’d never play Bond again. Of course, that wasn’t true now and her response was for him to “never say never again”. There are some differences from this and other traditional Bond films, the theme song, the gun barrel sequence, the 007 gun logo and the trademark opening sequence are all missing. James Bond aslo doesn’t drink a martini - shaken not stirred. Instead he orders, Vodka on the rocks.

MOVIE TRIVIA

Just as every actor to play Bond had a natural accent, so have all the film directors, including Irvin Kershner , who directed “Never Say Never Again” right after directing “The Empire Strikes Back”.

WARHEAD 2001

In 2001, McClory was attempting to make another Bond film, this time in conjunction with Sony Pictures. However, after he was forced to make public the details of his controversial Bond film, his efforts were blocked and all Bond rights fell solely to MGM. Unfortunately, we will never get to see what McClory’s vision of Bond could have been.

LICENSE TO KILL BILL

Quentin Tarantino has stated he’d like to one day make a Bond film.

"Someday I'm going to get the rights to do 'Casino Royale,' the first James Bond novel, and do it the right way. I really wanted it to be my followup to 'Pulp Fiction' and do it with Pierce Brosnan, but have it take place after the events of 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service' - after Bond's wife, Tracy, has been killed." I want Bond to be in mourning when he falls in love with Vesper Lynd, the woman in the novel. From what I know of Brosnan and read in interviews, I think he'd want to go in the direction I'd want to take Bond, though I'm not certain producers of the series would agree." If he does it, he’d be the first American director to helm a Bond film.

PARTING SHOTS

James Bond: “You know you’re cleverer than you look.” Q: “Better than looking cleverer than you are.”

"I always make it a rule never to look back. Otherwise, I'd ask myself how I could write such piffle and live with myself, day after day." – Ian Fleming

Reported last words, to the ambulance attendants: "Awfully sorry to trouble you chaps." – Ian Fleming

To read more articles by Chad, visit the American Pop Culture Encyclopedia at: American Pop Culture Encyclopedia.

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