James Bond has been entertaining us in films since 1962, when Dr. No was released starring Sean Connery. The franchise is still going strong today, on our channels and on Netflix. The sexist yet charming agent 007 remains one of the giants of action cinema: he gets out of tight spots and survives danger like a virus. Saving the world is what is a constant struggle for all. There are all kinds of threats: nuclear, terrorism, diseases, war, environmental disasters, which was the topic in Quantum of Solace (2008) with Daniel Craig. Worst villains are doing their best at killing millions of people and creating a new world order, which progress seems to be reality now. They say, you are judged by the strength of your enemies, says Bond. Infiltrating and playing nice is also strategy of the enemy. Also MI6 seems clueless of how deep infiltration goes and who can be trusted.

Photo by Henna Timanttimetsä Olin kävelemässä kotiin. Kadunvarren mainoksesta minua katsoi James Bond. Heitin häntä lumipallolla. Osuin olkapäähän. 2011 / I was walking home. James Bond was watching me from a roadside ad. I threw a snowball at him, I hit his shoulder. 2011

Personally, I like the beginnings of Bond films the most. The movies usually open with a mission Bond has been sent on, or some other key plot element that cleverly sets up suspense and thrill right from the start giving clues. I’m not even nostalgic about Bond, because the legacy is still very much alive and Bond doesn’t feel old and done. The political tensions between Britain, the United States, and Russia are as relevant as ever. The world of espionage, the pursuit of global power, the destruction of powers and enemies, and the eternal battle between good and evil — this is what we enjoy watching on screen, asking are we the good guys surviving? What kind of world gets made?

One of my favourites is in For Your Eyes Only (1981) with Roger Moore where Blofeld lures Bond into a helicopter and thinks James can’t win controlling the aircraft from a rooftop in a wheelchair, only to end up being dropped down a chimney by Bond. The idea of someone in a wheelchair being so evil and coming up with such a twisted ending for himself and his cat is, in a way, quite ingenious. Film making at its best. Blofeld begging for mercy and thinking of buying a deli in stainless steal for Bond if he spares his life sounds like a plan for a British agent. Flying the remote control airways wasn’t as simple as Blofeld thought. Stunts are of course the fun part, hanging on the rails of a flying vehicle is career choice like no other. Anyway helicopters, submarines, tankers, fast cars etc. make watching Bond films a fun experience. Lure is the innovativeness, change, variety and speed. I don’t get bored or think Bond movies don’t have diversity, because they do and character, characters which in espionage come handy.

The charm of these films lies in the fact that viewers can try to guess which parts could actually be true and which are pure fiction, how Bond films impact to the real world and the real to Bond movies. Bond movies, like other action films, give us a sense of safety while at the same time reminding us how turbulent the world really is, if the news don’t do that, and how little the average person knows, let alone what saving the world requires and how possible it is. In the end, we know very little and our options to influence politics seems few. Judging by how fragile and naive Europe has shown itself to be in relation to Russia, the flood of immigrants and refugees, and the resulting cultural collisions and clashes, it’s clear that the Cold War tensions between East and West have not disappeared. They have simply been lurking beneath polite pleasantries and treaties meant to secure energy supplies and peace on the continent. Russian wealth has been welcomed for decades in Europe, so we all look like Putinists. In this light rejecting Russia now is a bit hypocritical, don’t you think? Russia has been allowed to act maliciously quite freely, as many other countries as well, so it’s a clusterfuck and a mindfuck.

James Bond may be more up to date than ever, and the demand to change his attitude towards women seems of rather minor importance. In Bond films, women balance out the testosterone: they are active on both the good and bad sides, thinking for themselves or being airheads the same as men disposable. The villainous women in particular come across as powerful — both physically and mentally. They test Bond and lure him into trouble. I don’t know whether that’s sexism or simply reality. Secret services have long used female agents and their sex appeal in operations. Although it is rare women leading crime syndicates. Bond movies show that both sexes are capable of good and evil, like Communism and Capitalisn fighting for world dominance, and in that sense they already treat men and women as equals. These are exactly the kinds of stories that draw many people in — myself included. Battles between the sexes and the development therein, choosing sides, both wanting power and money sounds about right, regardless the ideologies.

The fun lies in the fact that some form of justice is served: Bond survives, and despite the expected twists, the film franchise remains thoroughly enjoyable action. There isn’t too much blood splashing around, and the whole thing feels both realistic and unrealistic at the same time. I believe every rumor I hear about the CIA, Mossad, MI5, and other intelligence agencies. Human cunningness and need to make things worse is what is very real. Espionage lies at the very core of global power plays, and every person feels it in their bones, we are being watched and listened to. Hanging on a thread and on the edge, death is near and anything can happen. Finland for example wasn’t ready for drones coming over the border couple of days ago on our side carrying explosives. Through Bond movies we only catch a glimpse of what goes on in the world of politics and we can imagine the glamourous facade is just a show. Work of uncovering the truth and delivering justice in the world is tricky business. At the moment we truly hang on and glide a slipery slope or in a speeding car with no brakes.