What Is the History of the James Bond Gun Spiral?

The James Bond gun spiral sequence, or gun barrel sequence, is the key opening that all James Bond fans have come to expect at the beginning of every James Bond film.

Many James Bond fans might not be aware, but there is a very interesting back story associated with the history of the James Bond gun spiral:

• This sequence was first used in for the first James Bond film Dr. No, which was produced in 1962.
• The infamous sequence that has become synonymous with the James Bond film enterprise was created for this first film by Maurice Binder.
• Originally Binder had planned to film the sequence in an entirely different way, but due to some technical difficulties from preventing him from getting the shots that he wanted, he decided to create a pinhole camera to capture the angles that he needed in order to film this sequence.

Creation of the Gun Spiral Sequence

Many people tend to believe that the shot took meticulous planning, especially back in 1962 when the movie industry and producers did not have the benefits of computer generated graphics. However, the sequence was actually created on a whim and the idea behind it was thrown together in just a few minutes because Binder was late to a meeting with producers at the time.

What made the scene so unique and amazing is that Binder used his pinhole camera to actually film the scene through the barrel of a real gun. 

Appearance of the Gun Spiral Sequence

Throughout the years, this sequence has been used in all of the James Bond films ever produced. Although it has been shot many different ways over the years, the premise behind the sequence remains constant and unchanging.

• The opening sequence of the gun barrel spiral sequence begins by showing the angle of an assassin’s point of view as he or she is looking for Bond with a gun.
• Bond then walks onto the screen only to notice the gunman, take aim, and fire.
• Once this shot is fired, you see blood trickle down the screen and a wipe effect is then done to start the movie.

While this sequence has remained relatively consistent, some changes have occurred over the years.

• From 1962 through 1964 the original sequence was used.
• After this point, slight changes were made to the way the James Bond character takes his stance to aim, the way the bullet is shot, and the effects of the blood on the camera.
• The only other thing that has changed is the position of the actor playing Bond himself when he pulls the gun and shoots the potential assassin.
• In almost every sequence from the original to the new digitally enhanced version where a silhouette is used, Bond holds the gun one handed. However, one character who portrayed Bond in the third version of this sequence that was filmed held the gun with two hands while taking aim on the assassin. 

So, now you know the history of the James Bond gun spiral, which is perhaps one of the most famous movie sequences of all time.