I wish I had come up with the idea for this new documentary. It begins by taking us to Goldeneye, Jamaica in 1952. We see a middle-aged man sitting at his typewriter, typing with a purpose and a passion. He is famed novelist Ian Fleming, the writer who gave us the world's most famous secret agent -- James Bond. In archival footage, we learn from Fleming that he got 007's name from the author of a book about birds.
Then we hear from a group of different real men who have the same name -- James Bond. The group includes a New York City theater director, a helicopter pilot, a computer programmer, a preacher, an oilman and an inmate. One tells us that having the name James Bond is "a blessing and a curse." He wasn't kidding. We see how the name got the theater director a guest spot on David Letterman's late night NBC show and we see how it got a Black man accused of murder. A Swedish man, whose father was German, took on the name in Sweden to deal with the paternal abandonment he experienced in his boyhood.
The stories are all fascinating. We hear from the ornithologist whose name was given to a fictional spy known for his hyper-masculinity and his license to kill. Produced, directed and co-written by Matthew Bauer, this documentary is called THE OTHER FELLOW. This feature takes us on an an interesting and surprising international trip. Some scenes are understandably reenacted or restaged -- like the ones involving a British mother who used the name to help her flee and survive a physically abusive marriage.
We also hear how the Bond name effected news coverage and racial attitudes, especially when fans suggested Idris Elba as a new 007 to follow Daniel Craig.
The cases of mistaken identity, masculine expectations and having the same name as a make-believe super-agent of print and film are often as exciting and intense as an actual James Bond movie. The idea for this documentary is most original. Take a look at the trailer for Matthew Bauer's THE OTHER FELLOW.
THE OTHER FELLOW runs a fast 1 hour and 15 minutes. It's well done, well shot and, musically, well scored. With real men telling their tales of mistaken identity and the drama it caused, THE OTHER FELLOW has a touch of the classic Alfred Hitchcock about it. Bauer's documentary calls to mind the 1950s thrillers that Hitchcock made about men who were the victims of mistaken identity -- THE WRONG MAN starring Henry Fonda and NORTH BY NORTHWEST starring Cary Grant.
THE OTHER FELLOW opens February 17th. It's very good and worth a look.
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