No matter how impassioned the debates get among film fans about who is the best James Bond actor — Sean Connery tends to come in at No. 1 — most moviegoers agree that the spy series is one of the best secret-service depictions going. While author Ian Fleming introduced the suave MI6 agent to readers in 1953 with his Casino Royale, Bond didn’t make the leap to the screen until 1962, when Connery brought him to life in Dr. No. Since then, six actors have played the iconic character — Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig — each bringing their own interpretation to the role, for better or for worse.
This summer, Santa Barbarans have the chance to see James Bond through the decades when UCSB’s Arts & Lectures presents its annual free Friday film series at the Courthouse Sunken Gardens — which screen at Campbell Hall on Wednesdays. I recently spoke with Roman Baratiak, A&L’s point person for the screenings, about why James Bond is this year’s theme.
Why did you decide on James Bond this summer? Just to cover something fun. It seems like there are a lot of things that people are wrestling with these days and maybe needing an escape.