A second evil empire: the James Bond series, ''Red China'', and Cold War cinema

“Red China” became a prominent player in the James Bond films of the 1960s. Recent Cold War scholarship has highlighted the pivotal role of cinema in shaping Western conceptions of the Communist threat during the Cold War period. The James Bond series, in particular, has played an important part in transforming the image of “Red China” from a regional to a global threat in the cultural imagination of the Cold War. This article explores the ways in which the theme of “Red China” entered Western cinema as part of the cultural Cold War, as well as the significant role cinema has played in shaping competing images of China during this conflict.