Fleming - The Man Who Became Bond - DVD

Film: London, 1939: Although the young securities trader Ian Fleming (Dominic Cooper) can afford a pleasantly high lifestyle through his work. But he is not really good at his job. When he gets the opportunity to work for the Royal Navy's intelligence service, Fleming seems to have finally found his true calling. Although Second Officer Monday (Anna Chancellor), his superior's secretary, senses from the first meeting that Fleming's hot temper and difficulty in acknowledging authority will cause him some trouble down the road. But his unconventional methods and sharp instincts quickly make him one of the intelligence service's best agents. And so, in the turmoil of the Second World War, he becomes a key figure in British intelligence and experiences unexpected adventures. When he tries his hand at writing a few years later, he draws inspiration from his experiences to create a hero of a novel that will soon become the world's most famous spy: James Bond, Agent 007!

Fleming does not set out to be an absolutely true-to-life biography of Bond author Ian Fleming. Rather, the film skillfully bridges the gap between fact and fiction, between the writer and his world-famous creation. Even the opening sequence is clearly a reminiscence of old Bond films and the music of John Barry. And even otherwise, there are always references to typical Bond set pieces, such as the obligatory phone call from the secretary during, of all things, a booty call. The screenwriters John Brownlow and Don McPherson have cleverly intertwined Fleming's very interesting biography with fictional elements, so that in the end an extremely entertaining agent thriller is created, which tells in an exciting and entertaining way about the birth of 007.

Neben the for a TV production really very good set and camera work convince especially the actors, especially Dominic Cooper as Ian Fleming. The mixture of arrogance, coolness and charm with which Cooper mimes the agent and later writer provides a high entertainment value, especially in the somewhat lighter moments of the mini-series. The women at his side, especially Anna Chancellor and Lara Pulver, don't just degenerate into pretty accessories, but take on very important and central roles in the story - and thus in Fleming's life. Certainly, these relationships have also been altered in favor of dramaturgy, but that doesn't change the fact that their realization in the series works very well.

Anyway, simply not too much emphasis should be placed on authenticity. After all, Fleming is primarily a spy thriller, with action, intrigue, adventure, a cool hero and beautiful women. So if you were expecting a more documentary look into Fleming's life, if you want to see a historically one hundred percent authenticated story, you will certainly be bitterly disappointed. But if you are simply looking for good entertainment with a lot of suspense and a pinch of romance, this is the right movie for you. Admittedly, in the course of the three-hour running time of the four-part series, there are already minor lengths here and there. But these cloud the consistently positive overall impression admittedly only very marginally.

Therefore applies: Should you be interested primarily in the life of Ian Fleming and his work for the secret service, Fleming is perhaps not the best work to quench the thirst for knowledge. However, if you want to see an entertaining interpretation of the origins of James Bond and learn where Ian Fleming might have gotten the inspiration for his characters and stories, this well-crafted, first-rate mini-series can be warmly recommended. Worth seeing!

Image + Sound: Right from the opening sequence, it's clear where the strengths of the mini-series' visuals lie: the image is absolutely clean and clear, the colours powerful and atmospheric, and the contrasts are also very coherently realised. The audio is in a decent stereo mix, which presents the dialogue in the German version a bit very central, while in the original English version it is much more harmoniously integrated into the action. In addition to the dialogue, the music and some good sound effects ensure that there is also a little movement in the tonal events. Good!

Extras: Except for trailers, the DVD unfortunately has no extras to offer.

Conclusion: Fleming tries to bridge the gap between reality and fiction, between the life of Ian Fleming and his creation James Bond. Dominic Cooper proves to be ideally cast as the somewhat arrogant but also charismatic secret service agent and novelist after just a few minutes. The production has some nice references to the Bond films to offer, which makes the mini-series absolutely worth watching for fans of 007 despite some script weaknesses and unnecessary lengths. The DVD presents this biopic mixed up with fictional elements in good picture and sound quality. Only the lack of bonus material clouds the positive overall impression a little. Nevertheless, there is in the end a very clear: Recommendable!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp