6 Spy Movies Better Than James Bond

There is no bigger spy movie character than James Bond. Based on the novels by Ian Fleming, 007 made his big screen debut in 1962, with Sean Connery donning the tuxedo in Dr. No. Over the last six decades, Bond has also been played by George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig. There have been some great Bond movies, like Goldfinger, GoldenEye, Casino Royale, and Skyfall, but as thrilling as they are, there are six spy movies that are even better.

1

‘North by Northwest’ (1959)

Image via MGM

We’ll start with Alfred Hitchcock‘s North by Northwest. Cary Grant plays Roger Thornhill, an ad exec from New York who is mistaken for a spy and chased across the country by corrupt secret agents, led by Phillip Vandamm (James Mason), out to stop him. Along the way, he meets Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint) and falls madly in love with her. Is she a friend or foe?

It’s easy to see that North by Northwest inspired what was to come with James Bond and Mission: Impossible. It takes a lighter tone at times, going for more fun than serious, like the early, playful Bond films. Hitchcock’s action thriller is a masterpiece in suspense, with one twist after another, and truly mesmerizing shots, such as when Thornhill is hanging off the side of Mount Rushmore, or when he’s chased by a crop duster plane through an open field.

2

‘The Manchurian Candidate’ (1962)

Image via United Artists

While the 2004 Denzel Washington-led reboot of The Manchurian Candidate is pretty good, it can’t hold a candle to the 1962 original. Directed by John Frankenheimer and based on Richard Condon‘s 1959 novel, the film stars Laurence Harvey as Sergeant Raymond Shaw, a brainwashed sleeper agent activated to do something diabolical. He’s accompanied by a phenomenal performance by Angela Lansbury as Shaw’s mother, Eleanor, and crooner Frank Sinatra as Major Bennett Marco, the only man who knows the truth and can stop Shaw before it’s too late.

Although filmed in black and white, The Manchurian Candidate is a colorful satire with a lot to say about the features of McCarthyism. Over 60 years later, its message is still so very important. It’s a film that’s more than a warning, though. It’s Shakespeare meets spy thriller, where the enemy is within, and paranoia reigns supreme. In 1962, with the Cuban Missile Crisis leaving everyone on edge, this one was just as much a horror movie as a thrilling spy flick.

3

‘Three Days of the Condor’ (1975)

Image via Paramount Pictures

Robert Redford knew a thing or two about political thrillers with important movies like All the President’s Men. For a spy movie, though, you can’t do any better than Three Days of the Condor. Based on James Grady‘s novel Six Days of the Condor and directed by Sydney Pollack, Redford plays CIA analyst Joe Turner, who goes by the name Condor. When he returns from lunch to find all of his co-workers murdered, Turner must find who is responsible before it’s too late.

Three Days of the Condor is accompanied by top-notch supporting performances. Faye Dunaway is great as Turner’s lover, photographer Kathy Hale, and Max von Sydow is riveting as the assassin Joubert. The conspiracy thriller is led by Pollack’s impeccable directing and Redford’s easy coolness. Joe Turner is low-level in the CIA, but it won’t stop him from uncovering the truth at any cost. This movie didn’t need to depend on an abundance of car chases and gunfights. Words are the real weapons.

4

‘The Bourne Ultimatum’ (2007)

Image via Universal Pictures

Matt Damon became an action hero as Jason Bourne in 2002’s The Bourne Identity. The first sequel, The Bourne Supremacy, is just as good, but the final chapter in the original trilogy, The Bourne Ultimatum, is among the best spy movies ever made. Directed by Paul Greengrass, Bourne, learning more about his mysterious past, continues to be chased by the CIA. This time, when a journalist is killed, Bourne makes it his mission to find out more about Operation Blackbriar, part of the secret Treadstone program that created him.

The Bourne Ultimatum isn’t interested in being overly flashy. It uses handheld cameras to get up close, putting the audience in the action, thus creating a raw realism. It’s a smartly written and well-plotted espionage thriller that never slows down once it gets going. Damon is great as always, playing the cool and calm hero fighting in the chaos. The movie was another huge hit for the franchise, not just at the box office but at the Academy Awards as well, where it picked up Oscars for Best Film Editing, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing.

5

‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’ (2011)

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Based on John le Carré‘s novel of the same name, and directed by Tomas Alfredson (Let the Right One In), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy stars Gary Oldman as George Smiley, a retired spy during the 1970s Cold War who returns to track down the mole who has infiltrated the British intelligence agency known as The Circus. As he interviews everyone who could be a part of it, Smiley begins to find out that the real enemies are closer than he could ever know.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a more complicated film that the audience must give their full attention to. George Smiley is not a cool, catchphrase-spouting super spy. This isn’t James Bond, but a highly intelligent man who captures bad guys with his mind. Smiley gathers his information in what could be dull ways, whether it be reading documents or putting together bits of conversation. However, rather than boring, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a mind game built on a non-linear structure and an A-list supporting cast made up of Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, Mark Strong, and Benedict Cumberbatch.

6

‘Mission: Impossible — Fallout’ (2018)

Image via Paramount Pictures

The Mission: Impossible film franchise started in 1996 with a series of hits and misses. It reached its peak in 2018 with the sixth film, Mission: Impossible — Fallout. Written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, Tom Cruise is back once more as IMF spy agent Ethan Hunt. Here, Hunt and company are tasked with stopping the Apostles, a group of terrorists planning to set off a series of nuclear attacks in Europe.

As per usual, Mission: Impossible — Fallout is filled with stunning visuals and stunts, including Cruise himself participating in a HALO jump and a stomach-dropping scene from a helicopter. At two-and-a-half hours, the movie risks being way too long. Instead, it makes the most of every minute, with a phenomenal action movie mixed with exciting intrigue and plenty of twists. James Bond is the epitome of cool, but he could never pull off what Ethan Hunt is capable of.