James Bond News

The Drink's Vodka, Belvedere Vodka

Tue, 16 Dec 14 08:38:33 +0000

Belvedere Vodka, the premium vodka for those who know the difference, is now the official vodka brand of James Bond and the upcoming film Spectre. In an exclusive gentleman's club in Knightsbridge, London, President of Belvedere Vodka, Charles Gibb, and Head of Mixology, Claire Smith, discussed the partnership and talked about the evolution of the martini and its relationship with James Bond.

Before James Bond gave the martini its glamorous reputation, most were made with gin and stirred. Bond's influence on popular culture created a shift toward the vodka martini, shaken not stirred. Belvedere President, Charles Gibb, said "James Bond is recognized as the most admired and influential tastemaker in the world. We're delighted that Belvedere will be partnering with SPECTRE, our largest global partnership to date."

Interview with Skyfall Comic Artist Josh Edelglass

Mon, 18 Feb 13 16:11:26 +0000

Today we have an interview with comic writer and artist Josh Edelglass, who recently published a hilarious series of comics parodying Skyfall and James Bond. The series was part of his project Motion Pictures Comics, which Josh aptly describes as "A boy and his robot mysteriously gain the power to jump in and out of movies. Hilarity ensues."

Q: Tell us a bit more about Motion Picture Comics. How did you come up with the idea of having a man and his robot morph in and out of various films, making fun of them as they go?

Motion Pictures has had a lot of permutations. Back when I was in college, I drew a daily political cartoon for the school paper. After I graduated, I started contacting syndicates. I didn't have much luck with the political cartoon, but I got a few nice responses from people who said if I ever came up with any new ideas, I should try them again. OK, great, all I needed was a new idea!

Book Review: James Bond 50 Years of Movie Posters

Sat, 27 Oct 12 16:17:54 +0000

The 50th anniversary of James Bond has brought forward a wealth of new publications. While some focus exclusively on Skyfall, many have taken the opportunity to give a deep retrospective on the entire series. One such book, James Bond: 50 Years of Movie Posters, was published on September 3rd by DK, who were kind enough to send a copy for review.

50 Years is ordered chronologically, with a chapter covering each film from Dr. No through to Skyfall. It is also very text light, with 90% of the space being pure posters. Each film gets an introduction and each poster has a short comment or piece of trivia. Other than that, it is posters galore.

A lot of time and effort has been spent on the layout, which minimizes wasted space. High resolution portrait posters typically get a full page to themselves. Landscape posters on the other hand are either two-page spreads, two to a page, or mixed together with smaller lobby cards and odd shaped foreign posters...

Skyfall Full Theatrical Trailer

Sat, 20 Oct 12 18:50:08 +0000

A full 2 minute trailer has been released for Skyfall, the final version before the film's opening day on October 26th. The trailer contains segments from earlier teaser trailers, but also includes some new, previously unseen footage.

Skyfall, directed by Bond newcomer Sam Mendes, will feature Spanish actor Javier Bardem as villain Raoul Silva, an ex-MI6 agent who is seeking revenge against the service. The star-studded cast also includes Ralph Fiennes as Mallory, Naomie Harris as Eve, Albert Finney as Kincade, and Bérénice Marlohe as Sévérine.

With early critical praise, it has been speculated that Skyfall may be the first 007 film to bring in over $1 billion at the box office...

Press Reviews for Previews of Skyfall

Sat, 13 Oct 12 16:47:32 +0000

The press reviews for Skyfall are in, and the results are glowing. The exclusive media preview was held yesterday, Friday 12th October, by EON Productions, and garnered over 1600 reporters.

The Independent says that director Sam Mendes has "...gone back to basics: chases, stunts, fights. At the same time, he has subtly re-invented the franchise, throwing in far greater depth of characterization than we're accustomed". After mentioning the disappointment of Quantum of Solace, they go on to say that Skyfall is "...certainly one of the best Bonds in recent memory", and end with "At the age of 50, there is no sign at all that Bond is finished yet."

Limited Edition Replicas of Goldfinger Homer Gadget

Sat, 13 Oct 12 16:20:34 +0000

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.

Book Review: True Believers

Mon, 27 Aug 12 17:43:58 +0000

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...

James Bond and The Queen at the Olympics

Sun, 29 Jul 12 15:14:21 +0000

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".

Picture of Ben Whishaw as Q in Skyfall

Sun, 15 Jul 12 20:02:12 +0000

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.

Lindy Hemming Talks Bond Style

Sun, 17 Jun 12 18:25:28 +0000

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.