Bond #1 laid the groundwork for one of cinema's most enduring franchises, with 007 (Sean Connery) and his mean streak, sent to Jamaica to investigate the murder of another double-O agent. Here he hooks up with CIA agent Felix Leiter (Jack Lord) and a gaggle of sexy ladies who either need dispatching or romancing. Naturally there's a super villain with an impossibly expensive lair to be infiltrated (the first of at least a dozen of these that he'll do time in) and a take-over-the-world plot to be foiled. Unfortunately the plot is not one of Bond's absolutely most memorable (the title sequence is particularly tragic), though it has all the elements we've come to expect. Entry #2, From Russia with Love, would refine the formula a bit, leading up to the series' most memorable entry of all, Goldfinger. Still, essential viewing for any Bond fanatic.

Bond #1.