James Bond News - Page 2
Limited Edition Replicas of Goldfinger Homer Gadget
Factory Entertainment, who previously released a limited edition golden gun replica, have now produced 500 replicas of the homer tracking devices used in Goldfinger. The pieces cost $379 each and will be released for sale on October 16th.
Devised by Q, the two homers could be tracked on the GPS dashboard of Bond's Aston Martin DB5. Bond hid the large silver homer in Auric Goldfinger's Rolls Royce, and used it to track him on his journey to Switzerland. The smaller gold companion was hidden in the heel of Bond's shoe, so that he could be tracked by Felix Leiter at the CIA.
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Book Review: True Believers
True Believers, the latest novel by Kurt Anderson, was sent to us for review by Random House. The marketing material highlights the heavy influence of Ian Fleming and James Bond on the storyline, so we feel our review must be two fold: giving details on the book in isolation, as well as it's relevance to Bond fans.
True Believers follows attorney Karen Hollander, who is looking back over her life and writing her memoirs. She remembers a time in her youth when she reenacted James Bond missions with her lifelong friends Alex and Chuck. The pair become concerned when they discover that Karen plans to tell the truth about where their adventures led them, and they try to dissuade her from publishing.
The story is set in sixties America and although it's larger than life, it is convincing and flows nicely. The way the story switches between the past and the present adds an extra dimension to the narrative. There is an element of suspense too, as...
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James Bond and The Queen at the Olympics
James Bond was the star of this Friday's Olympic opening ceremonies, with Daniel Craig having the privilege of escorting the Queen to the Olympic stadium, in a pre-filmed sequence directed by Danny Boyle. Her guest appearance in the short film was actually the Queen's first ever acting role, a joint celebration of her 60 years of rein, and Bond's 50th anniversary in film.
The sequence featured 007 arriving at Buckingham Palace in a black taxi. Walking through the palace halls, past two Corgi dogs, he entered the Queen's study. The Queen, getting up from her writing desk, greeted Bond with her only line in the film, "Good evening, Mr. Bond".
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Picture of Ben Whishaw as Q in Skyfall
Although it was reported last year that Ben Whishaw was to play Q in the upcoming Bond film Skyfall, his role has only just been officially confirmed. Producers Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli announced the news a few days ago, and were happy that the much beloved character will be making a return.
The quartermaster, affectionately known as Q, has been providing Bond's gadgets and weaponry for 50 years, and was first played by Peter Burton in Dr. No. Peter was followed by Desmond Llewelyn, who played Q in 17 films, a record number of appearances for any actor in the series. John Cleese appeared as Q's assistant, R, in The World is Not Enough, and was promoted to Q for his last role in Die Another Day.
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Lindy Hemming Talks Bond Style
Fashion blog Clothes On Film has conducted an exclusive interview with Lindy Hemming, the Academy Award winning costume designer who has worked on five James Bond films, including Casino Royale and all of Pierce Brosnan's outings. She is also curating the Designing 007 exhibition at the Barbican this July.
Hemming has given some insights into the exhibition, which will include both original and recreated costumes, sets, gadgets and cars from the Bond series. In co-operation with producers Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, Hemming has put together an extensive gallery of items, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the series.
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Designing 007: Fifty Years of Bond Style
The Barbican Centre, a Grade II listed building that is the largest performing arts centre in Europe, is set to host an exhibition to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the James Bond series. Located in central London, the Barbican is known as the home of the London Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
The organisers are co-operating with EON productions, and have been allowed unprecedented access to the James Bond archives. The event will include John Stears designed gadgets and weapons from the films, as well as artwork and production storyboards. There will also be a costume display including names such as Armani, Brioni and Tom Ford.
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Audio Books of all the Ian Fleming James Bond Novels
Ian Fleming Publications will be joining in with the 50th anniversary celebrations of the James Bond film series. This coming September, they will be launching an audio book series of all 12 original Ian Fleming novels, read by some notable British figures. As of yet, it doesn't look like Ian Fleming's two short story collections will be included.
Among the readers are Kenneth Branagh, who will be reading The Man With the Golden Gun, Toby Stephens, who will be reading From Russia With Love and Bill Nighly who will be reading Moonraker. The titles will be available for individual pre-order starting August 1st, and will be available via download or CD purchase from September 6th, 2012.
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Book Review: The Men Who Might Have Been Bond
There is no shortage of James Bond books in circulation. From production notes, to biographies of the actors and crew, to encyclopedic tomes, there is something for everybody. However, these works often have a lot in common. The same stories are retold from the point of view of a director, a stuntman, an actress, and a researcher. While it's very interesting to get an in-depth coverage from every realm of the production, it's sometimes nice to read up on a fresh topic.
Craig Robinson's The Men Who Might Have Been Bond is just that. Rather than focus on the more well known aspects of the Bond universe, Robinson delves into the group of actors who turned down the part. Most fans like to imagine what would have happened if Sean Connery had stayed on longer, or if Timothy Dalton's third Bond film had escaped production hell. This book proposes the more interesting question: what if Sean Connery had never been Bond at all, and someone else had taken the role?
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Daniel Craig to Open the Olympics
Director Danny Boyle, best known for his films Trainspotting and Slumdog Millionaire, will be creating a short film to open the Olympic ceremonies on July 27th. Titled The Arrival, the short will feature Daniel Craig as Bond as he visits Buckingham Palace for a mission brief. Rumored to include a cameo by the Queen, it will be revealed that 007's latest mission is to open the Olympic games.
As the film is playing, three choppers (one housing Craig) will be flown down the Thames to the Olympic Park, ducking under London Bridge on the way. Then, Craig will climb down a rope ladder and land in the stadium in true Bond style, with the James Bond theme tune playing.
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Skyfall Teaser Poster and Trailer Released
The first official teaser poster for the upcoming Bond 23 film Skyfall has been released, along with a 1m24s trailer. The poster features Daniel Craig affront a backdrop of a view through a gun barrel. The poster is obviously trying to go back to the roots of James Bond, for the 50th anniversary of the series.
Bond began in 1962 with the first film Dr. No that opened with the infamous gun barrel sequence. The sequence, showing the view through the barrel of an assassin's gun following Bond, before Bond quickly spins around and shoots him, has become a tradition, appearing in every official James Bond film.