It is 11 days until the No Time To Die Gala Premiere at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 28th September. This year proved to be the most difficult year to get tickets for what surely must be a once in a lifetime event, saying goodbye to Daniel Craig's run as James Bond.
In a stunning move, the producers have set the bar high and made it possible for health care workers to share in this incredible event by including them in premiere events around the UK as well as fittingly, proceeds from the premiere will benefit current and former members of the services protecting the United Kingdom.
Fortunately, No Time To Die will be going general release in the UK and Ireland 2 days later from 30th September 2021.
Introducing the new Agents of ‘No Time To Die’ Featurette
We are 17 days away from seeing Daniel Craig's last outing as James Bond in No Time To Die. Fans hopes and expectations have been sent awry due to Covid delays, but we are, as they say, in the end, game now for what surely should be an explosive climax to Craig's finale as Bond.
On the heels of the final, final trailer released last week, earlier today we received a heads up on a featurette introducing Bond’s new allies agents Nomi (Lashana Lynch) and Paloma played by Ana de Armas.
‘Being James Bond’ Daniel Craig’s 007 adventure to stream for free
Bond fans Can Stream the Special Film as a Free Rental on the Apple TV App Only from September 7 through October 7 Ahead of the Theatrical Release of ‘No Time To Die’
Sam Mendes' James Bond follow up to Skyfall - SPECTRE is just over a month away from smashing into UK cinemas on the 26 October 2015. Even though we have been following the production it feels like its imminent release kind of snuck up on us.
Since seeing Skyfall we have been positively hanging to see what Sam Mendes does with Bond 24 or SPECTRE as it is now known. But it has been a bit of a bumpy road - what with Bond screenwriting duo Neal Purvis and Robert Wade confirming they would be leaving the franchise just as Skyfall became its biggest success. Thankfully they did a turnaround. Sam Mendes hinted he may not return after Skyfall but again after some persuasion he has, unfortunately master cinematographer Roger Deakins has moved on despite being nominated for an Oscar for his stunning work on Skyfall.
Their efforts on Skyfall resulted in an all time high for the Bond franchise.
Skyfall, the 23rd James Bond film, was a worldwide box office phenomenon, opening #1 in 70 territories around the world, taking over $1.1 billion worldwide and setting a new all-time box office record in the UK by becoming the first film to take over £100 million.
Not to mention the critical acclaim.
The 23rd Bond Film Wins More Than 30 Awards. As well as breaking international box-office records and being named in the “top 10 films of the year” lists by over 90 globally renowned film critics, SKYFALL’s cast and crew also won a number of prestigious filmmaking awards.
For the first time ever a Bond film, that is Sam Mendes' Skyfall was nominated and won the BAFTA Award for Outstanding British Film at the 66th British Academy Film Awards.
It had been 31 years since John Glen's For Your Eyes Only received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song in 1981 and 47 years since a Bond film was nominated for anything other than a sound related Oscar with Terence Young's 1965 Thunderball being nominated and winning the Oscar for Best Visual Effects at the 38th Academy Awards.
In total Skyfall racked up 5 Oscar nominations; Best Score, Original Song, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing and Cinematography. That is just slightly less than the 7 Oscar nominations that all the other 22 Bond films combined.
Since Daniel Craig exploded onto screen as James Bond in Martin Campbell's 2006 rebirth of Bond - Casino Royale the Bond franchise has slowly been building upwards in both Bond's character growth as well as success. But how do you top Skyfall?
Well I think Esquire Magazine has for the most part covered this in their exclusive interview with SPECTRE lead and co-ProducerDaniel Craig:
We did have the conversation: it’s got to be bigger and better,” Craig says. “The stunts, the action, every department.” He holds out his palm, flat. It’s shaking. “I’m all jangly at the moment because it’s over. Sam has to lock the picture off for 7 September, so he’s got fuck-all time, basically. That’s it. Can’t go back and do it again. Tough shit.”
He doesn’t want to jinx it but, “I feel like we’ve all done our absolute fucking best and that’s a good feeling. Whether that makes a better movie we’ll see.”
Is the “classic Bond” ethos still in place, I wonder? “Times 10!” Craig almost shouts, momentarily revelling in his role as hype man. He repeats it when I laugh, holding his beer in the air. “It’s Skyfall times 10!”
And that is a point he is keen to make. For all the soul searching, he says, Spectre is “a celebration of all that’s Bond”.
Reading the synopsis for SPECTRE it looks like the Bond team are again delving into the personal story of the man behind the mythos, how James Bond becomes 007 as well as slowly bringing more of the formulaic elements to the fore. But with some certainty all we can expect is the unexpected as the story rolls out and hopefully puts elements into play that push out into Bond 25 and beyond, bringing the same team together again to make some magic.
We are less than two months away from Sam Mendes' SPECTRE, the 24th cinematic outing of Ian Fleming's James Bond, exploding on to screen in the UK - on 6 November. In the run up to SPECTRE's release Sony have a little surprise for Bond fans and released a Bond inspired advert for their new Xperia Z5 smartphone and compact RX100 IV Cyber-shot camera. To create the advert they asked Danny Kleinman – the man behind many of the legendary Bond title sequences to direct and Miss Moneypenny herself - Naomie Harris to take the lead in the 60 Second advert highlighting the advanced functionality of both the Sony Xperia Z5 smartphone and compact RX100 IV Cyber-shot. All set to the iconic backdrop of Bond's home - London.
Naomie Harris stars in a 60 second campaign film, as she fights to deliver Bond’s must-have Xperia mobile phone
Sony's new campaign film from Sony features brand new technologies that have been ‘made for Bond’
Set against a backdrop of London’s South Bank, Moneypenny uses Sony’s RX100 IV camera to capture super-slow-motion surveillance as a drama unfolds with an intense chase to deliver Bond’s Xperia Z5 smartphone
Directed by Danny Kleinman – the man behind many of the legendary Bond title sequences
So a little while back a friend and I were discussing the music of James Bond over a Jameson at The Ham Yard Hotel. The week prior in anticipation of Bond 24's SPECTREexpected confirmed production kick-off I had dragged him along to see the West End musical Made in Dagenham with music by David Arnold and starring amongst others Ms Gemma Arterton. With the involvement of Bond alumni, the conversation naturally veered towards the music of Bond.
Firstly regarding Made in Dagenham I liked the bold brassy Britishness of it, the clever set design, my associate liked Mark Hadfield's incredibly hilarious and surreal turn as Harold Wilson and we both loved the dips into Monty Pythonesque political satire & the surprising powerfulness of Gemma Arterton's voice.
We are both from the Roger Moore Bond era and agree on most of the themes and music, but whilst my associate leans towards the Roger Moore female vocal era like; Carly Simon (Nobody Does It Better), Shirley Bassey (Moonraker), Sheena Easton (For Your Eyes Only), Rita Coolidge (All Time High) - whilst I have a strong leaning to the classic Bond sound where it felt they were forging the legend, Shirley Bassey, as well as the incidental music of James Bond.
That is the music in the less exposed moments of the films where the musicians can explore, experiment and bring their personal visions of the film to life - particularly David Arnold's work and Eric Serra's work on GoldenEye. Whilst researching this post I have to say I fell in love with the Roger Moore female vocal era all over again.
Not to stray too far but David Arnold and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra will be bringing A Night at the Movies: David Arnold Live in Concert to London, specifically the Barbican tonight Thursday 18 June 2015. And will be playing a selection from his scores including music from; James Bond: Casino Royale, The World Is Not Enough, Tomorrow Never Dies, Die Another Day, Quantum of Solace, Sherlock, Made in Dagenham, Independence Day, Godzilla, Stargate, Last of the Dogmen, Paul, Music from the London 2012 Olympics and more. For more info on David Arnold's tour dates follow David Arnold on Twitter: @DavidGArnold
With the SPECTRE theme announcement imminent and sadly the Bond SPECTRE boats finally leaving their mooring at the Imperial Wharf Marina this week, presumably signalling the end of the Bond Westminster part of filming. I thought I would highlight some of the lesser-known alternative, demo or rejected James Bond theme songs that quite possibly many may have never heard of - but are occasionally discussed amongst Bond aficionados.
The list is ordered chronologically, starting with:
Yesterday not only did we get a long overdue official James Bond Spectre clapperboard update from the set of Spectre shooting at Blenheim Palace - back here in the UK. We were also promised the first official behind the scenes footage of Spectre today at 7am.
Yes! Op delivered! And along with the first behind the scenes 007 vlog footage from the Spectre location at Sölden, Austria we also got to see our first look at Daniel Craig as James Bond in Spectre.
On a side note: if Bond was looking to revitalise its British roots you don't get more British than the Blenheim Palace, the ancestral home of Sir Winston Churchill.
As you must no doubt be aware there is much excitement in the capital as filming of Bond 24SPECTRE is continuing in London with the action taking place back on the Thames yesterday, Camden Locke the day before and that evening in Notting Hill.
The Bond team seem to be burning the candle at both ends trying to complete filming in London as quickly as possible before moving on to other locations. Probably in an effort to minimise spoilery leaks in the capital, but at the same time - to give you some insight into how us Londoners feel about having *arguably* Britain's greatest literary and cinematic spy back on home ground, in London read the tweet below from the Camden location.
Sadly the fallout from the Sony hack is continuing at an alarming rate and whilst some news outlets seem to be scraping the bottom of the bucket to wring out anything that might still be newsworthy from it. In an eery turn that could have been lifted straight out of the pages from Skyfall - it looks like the rumours of the leaked James Bond script SPECTRE are now confirmed.
In response EON Productions have come out strongly and in a statement released on the official James Bond website http://www.007.com/ and made it very clear where they stand.
As we did with Skyfall - when we heard, via our sources that the Bond production team were ramping up for the first on-location SPECTRE shoot outside of their Pinewood Studios 007 Stage. We immediately dispatched one of our top men - Hemingford Grey to the scene, keen to hear what he could uncover.
As it turns out quite a lot (I can't get him to stop talking) he has sadly taken an oath of secrecy on some very exciting bits but he certainly did not learn enough to give any indication to the larger world of SPECTRE. I should warn you that even though there is much wild speculation in and amongst what we know reading this may - potentially spoil a very cool scene fromSPECTRE. Over to Hemingford.
Very often while watching an old film I would think something to the effect of Wow! It must have been really special to be around when that was made. Naturally being a confirmed Bondophile it happens a lot when watching Bond's escapades.
Visiting or seeing a film location in real life brings one a little closer to the magic of film beyond the screen. And in some small way allows you to capture a little bit of the magic. Sitting around with the great-grandkids one day when the old James Bond classic SPECTRE comes on TV, being able to say "Yea I saw that in real life" is quite special, hell it's even special for me to be able to say right now.
And again we take some pride in the fact that we can bring you some news & photos that are hot off the press for Bond fan eyes only.
Albert R. Broccoli's EON Productions, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios and Sony Pictures Entertainment will in about 25 minutes via LIVE broadcast from the 007 Stage at Pinewood Studios announce details of Bond 24.
The broadcast will start from around 10:50am GMT (2:50am PST; 5:50am EST). You can watch the announcements on one of the many James Bond fan pages, the official jamesbond007 YouTube channel here! Or further down on this very page.
The title and cast of the 24th Bond film will be revealed, marking the start of principal photography on Monday 8th December.
I will also add details below as they are announced (remember to refresh) in between sipping on my Martini.
Get the cocktail shaker out! Kicking off at 11:00am GMT (3:00am PST; 6:00am EST) this Thursday 4th December Albert R. Broccoli's EON Productions, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios and Sony Pictures Entertainment will present a live announcement and photo call from the 007 Stage at Pinewood Studios.
The title and cast of the 24th Bond film will be revealed, marking the start of principal photography on Monday 8th December.
A global audience will be able to watch the announcement live via a web stream at www.007.com
The announcement will also be live-tweeted via the official James Bond handle @007
James Bond is the longest running, and one of the most successful franchises of all time, with twenty-three films produced and the twenty-fourth about to go in production.
Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli succeeded Albert R ‘Cubby’ Broccoli and have produced the past seven Bond films together, including the highly successful, Casino Royale, Quantum Of Solace and Skyfall. All of the James Bond films have been made in collaboration with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios or United Artists, its predecessor.
T he third and final part of my write up from my brilliant day at the Bond in Motion exhibition at the London Film Museum. There are many more pictures from the day over here! and part 1 of my write up can be found here! and part 2 here!
Moving past the Tomorrow Never Dies display I find the The World Is Not Enough display with a model BMW Z8 driven by a Pierce Brosnan Bond doll and the King Industries Buzzsaw helicopter as well as the BMW Z8 from the film. I've never been a particular fan of BMW's car design but being up close to the BMW Z8 I was reminded of its retro stylings and beautiful curves all very reminiscent of the gorgeous 50s 507 BMW, it is possibly the most beautiful production car to come out of BMW from the last couple of decades.
Bond Production Designer Peter Lamont & BMW Z8 from The World Is Not Enough @ London Film Museum Covent Garden
The Establishing Shot: BOND IN MOTION - BMW Z8 FROM THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH @ LONDON FILM MUSEUM COVENT GARDEN
C continuing my adventures at the Bond in Motion exhibition at the London Film Museum. Beyond the first room in the cavernous underground level - the museum has been expanded and walls have been put in to divide the underground into displays areas by Bond film. But two distinct grouped display areas have also been created - one for marine vehicles and the other housing mainly non car vehicles, with the large remainder of the exhibition spread out along the sides of a walkway categorised by film. There are many more pictures from the day over here! and part 1 of my write up can be found here! and part 3here!
Further still, a restaurant area with smaller models on display, a museum shop and still being constructed on the day I visited a dedicated games room.
The Establishing Shot: BOND IN MOTION - BOND PRODUCERS MICHAEL G. WILSON AND BARBARA BROCCOLI AT THE LONDON FILM MUSEUM
I'm guessing when the exhibition is open to the public it would make sense to walk along the right side along the walkway the entire way round as the car & model displays are on either side, or navigate via the audio guide I stick to the right side to check out the Die Another Day vehicles; James Bond's Aston Martin V12 Vanquish or Vanish as Q calls it, Zao's Jaguar XKR and the Bombardier MX Z-REV Ski-Doo.
The Establishing Shot: BOND IN MOTION - ASTON MARTIN V12 VANQUISH OR VANISH FROM DIE ANOTHER DAY @ LONDON FILM MUSEUM COVENT GARDEN
A couple of weeks back I was privileged to attend an absolutely brilliant preview of the outstanding Bond in Motion Exhibition right in the heart of London at the London Film Museum. I'm trying not to lay it on too thick but as a Bond fan - the day was a definite Bond milestone for me personally and the Bond in Motion exhibition is absolutely magnificent! As much as I dislike it I have had to split my write up over 3 posts, sorry, I hate it when other people do it so I know how it feels but I wanted to fit as much in as possible. There are many more pictures from the day over here! and part 2 of my write up can be found here! and part 3here!
Earlier that morning full of anticipation I headed out into the sunny but crisp morning crossed the bridge, swerving out of a little Chelsea square into King's Road, pushing fast up Sloane Street pointed in the direction of Covent Garden. As usual I passed 22b Ebury Street, today this had extra significance, as I made my way into Central London - the space between Covent Garden and Strand to be exact. Once I located the fairly discrete (by London standards) London Film Museum at 45 Wellington Street - I paused to savour the moment.
The Establishing Shot: BOND IN MOTION - BOND PRODUCTION DESIGNERS PETER LAMONT & SIMON LAMONT ARRIVE AT THE LONDON FILM MUSEUM
I have a long relationship with the London Film Museum, I was a regular visitor at their previous Waterloo location and for a few hours I could be lost in the magical world of film that I love, find inspiration, be blown away by the varied and incredible props on display or just relax with a coffee next to a piece of film history next to me as well as on occasion bump into one of my heroes browsing the museum. For any film fan it is a must visit. Seriously I don't want to bang on about it but, the guys behind the London Film Museum deserve serious kudos and thanks for turning a film lovers fantasy world into a reality everyday. When I heard that Bond in Motion was coming to the London Film Museum I was over the moon finally I could immerse myself in the world of Bond at an accessible location.
I knew it was being billed as the largest (and most up to date) official collection of original James Bond vehicles (cars, bikes, sleds and boats), miniature models, action sequence boards, vehicle concept art and props from all of the James Bond films on display for the first time in London - but I had not looked into too much detail of what delights the Bond in Motion exhibition had in store for me - so as not to ruin all the surprises. But I did have chats lined up with four Bond luminaries that would be visiting to support the launch of the Bond in Motion exhibition. You can read my chat with Bond stunt precision driver Ben Collinshere!, my chat with special effects master Chris Corbouldhere! and my chat with legendary stuntman Vic Armstronghere!. During the chats whenever a Bond film scene is referenced any I try show pieces from the Bond in Motion collection so you'll get an idea of what to expect.
But wait Craig that's only 3/4 chats I hear you say. Yea I also had a chat lined up with Ms. Caterina Murino the first Bond lady of the Daniel Craig era - or Solange Dimitrios, from Casino Royale. But as the day wore on I finalised a decision that pained me and may well haunt me moving forward. I decided not to chat with Ms. Murino, the reason is simple I am a huge Bond fan, I love delving into the elements behind the magic. The craftsmen & women that turn fantasy into screen reality but I now draw the line at ruining the mystique of the Bond Ladies, for me they are for the most part still rare, exotic, complicated creatures, that add depth and weave to the story, throw wrenches in the works, or sometimes sadly just devices to move the narrative along, or break hearts or have their hearts broken. And for now that is how Caterina Murino / Solange Dimitrios will stay for me - forever etched as an ethereal fantasy. But you can catch more of Caterina Murino in XIII: The Series currently on Sky 2.
The Establishing Shot: BOND IN MOTION - CATERINA MURINO OR SOLANGE FROM CASINO ROYALE AND HER HUSBAND'S ASTON MARTIN DB5 WHICH HE LOST TO JAMES BOND PLAYING TEXAS HOLD 'EM
For my third and final interview with the legends behind James Bond I chat with Mr. Vic Armstrong. Pretty much every film geek knows his name. But even if you aren't familiar with his name you have most certainly seen his work, as Vic Armstrong is possibly the world's greatest stuntman (if you don't believe look at the title of his autobiography . If you have ever seen Blade Runner, Return of the Jedi, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Live and Let Die, Raiders of the Lost Ark or Temple of Doom. You have seen Vic Armstrong in action as he was the guy doubling for the lead actor when the going got tough or the insurance premiums became too high.
As his name would indicate - of course there is a lot more to a legend like Vic Armstrong, his name is synonymous with Bond stunt work as well as high quality productions that require a man to do the impossible and creatively find away to defy death, not only does he double for A-listers but he has planned and over seen the stunt work for 100s of films - too many to list but you have seen them. He received an Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema BAFTA in 2002 and a Taurus Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008 (which is the Oscars of the stunt world). He is known for creating customised stunt devices & equipment that changes the way stunts are done.
As well as directing his own films; he is also assistant director or second location director on many films including; Gangs of New York, Mission Impossible 3, I Am Legend, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, The Amazing Spider-Man, Thor, Blade: Trinity, The League of Extraordinary Gentleman, The World is Not Enough, Tomorrow Never Dies and Die Another Day. Armstrong is now a full fledged director with 2 upcoming films scheduled for released. Also he still says bloody in casual conversation – the man is a living legend!
His first listed production credit on IMDB is "Special Effects Assistant" on Ken Russell's Tommy, Chris Corbould has since then he has added 52 more credits with the most recent being "Special Effects Supervisor" on J.J. Abrams's Star Wars: Episode VII.
In between he has worked with almost every major talent in the film industry, he has worked on almost every film worth mentioning and most definitely the ones we rate, we aren't the only ones who think so as he (and his team) have been nominated for many awards and he went home with an Oscar for Best Achievement in Visual Effects on Christopher Nolan's Inception. He has worked on 13 Bond films, overseeing the special effects from GoldenEye onwards, he has worked on the Superman series, The Dark Knight Trilogy, a Highlander film, Willow, Nightbreed, Alien3, Lara Croft, Shadowlands, John Carter, X-Men: First Class to give some depth to the breadth of Chris Corbould's work. He is very well known for pulling off impossible effects in camera, that is without the use of computer generated imagery. So you will understand if I was daunted going in to chat with man himself.
I could talk and probe Corbould's mind for a whole day discussing just one of the films he has worked on, how on Earth was I going to fit a salient conversation, with one of my heroes into a couple of minutes, with the world's press breathing down my neck surrounded by legends from across the Bond films?
Some say he has precision skills that can only come from being cast from a mould made from melted parts of an Autobot (that was immediately broken afterwards), some say he is half human half machine, some say he was rebuilt from the parts left after the original T-800 was decommissioned but we say Ben Collins is as dapper as they come and possibly one of the few people on earth that understands vehicles like they are people.
Earlier today I went along to a preview of the Bond in Motion exhibition at the London Film Museum Covent Garden, it's going to take a little while for me to process all of the raw awesomeness of the day but thought I would start by getting this post up first. I had the opportunity to have a quick chat with Ben Collins Stunt driver on Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace and Skyfall. Of course for any lover of cars, particularly film cars or advance driving skills will know that Ben Collins is much more than the Stunt Driver on Bond films.
Long before he became celebrated as the anonymous and helmeted Top Gear driver known only as The Stig, he was a notable and legitimate racing car driver that competed across the board from Formula Three, Nascar, GT racing and stock car racing. Since Top Gear he has commandeered the cars for their stars on 10 blockbusters including; Quantum of Solace, The Dark Knight Rises, Fast & Furious 6, Skyfall, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit , John Carter of Mars (what now? I hear you say, I come back to this later) as well as upcoming features The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Matthew Vaughn's The Secret Service.
If you are a regular reader of The Establishing Shot you will know that I am a Bondophile or Bond aficionado and that like a child in a candy store I obsessively take any opportunity to delve and immerse myself into the world of Bond including the many Exhibitions and events that the great city of London has to offer.
That is noticeably apart from one exhibition that I have not had the opportunity to visit as yet - the Bond in Motion exhibition at The National Motor Museum. Bad luck, bad timing as well as a lack of energy required to plan a day trip out of town to visit the museum have all conspired against me.
However it fills me with great pleasure to report that Bond in Motion is coming to central London. More specifically Bond in Motion is coming to the London Film Museum Covent Garden adding another must do experience to the great cities already marvellous portfolio. And I for one am over the moon.
Bond in Motion London Film Museum Skyfall AgustaWestland’s AW101 helicopter arriving at the London Film Museum ahead of the Bond in Motion exhibition, opening 21st March at the London Film Museum on March 2, 2014 in London, England. ZOOM
Truly a memorable occasion and a Bond milestone for me. London Film Museum are clearly ahead of the game when it comes to Bond. Well it looks like the London Film Museum are continuing with some film magic and bringing Bond in Motion to central London for locals and visitors to enjoy.
It may have been a foregone conclusion, despite the protestations from both EON Productions and Sam Mendes’s camps, but finally we can breathe a sigh of relief as it is now official Sam Mendes will be back for Bond 24. But it's not all oeufs en cocotte and Taittinger as Mendes has his work cut out for him.
After the phenomenal success of Skyfall the Bond team are going to have to pull a rabbit out of the hat to please audiences again. With all the twists and changes brought on by Skyfall it would be all too easy to revert to the dire formulaic Bond that does nothing for the its 51 year legacy.
Hopefully the franchise will continue focussing on story and characters supported by beautiful cinematography, art and locations rather than making Bond and the gadgets the focus of the films. Also Skyfall got a pass but please rethink the dull humour and terrible puns - this isn't the 80s (and even then it was dire).
