Official Partner Of 007 Elements Announced

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Jaguar Land Rover is the official partner of 007 Elements – a state-of-the-art installation in Sölden, Austria – it was announced today.

007 Elements, located at the top of the 3,050m Gaislachkogl peak, offers visitors a chance to immerse themselves in the world of the iconic secret agent in a new mountain-top location next to the ice Q restaurant used as the Hoffler Klinik in Spectre. Interactive displays featuring Jaguar Land Rover technical content along with the Land Rover Defender and Range Rover Sport SVR used for filming SPECTRE will form part of the experience.

Visitors will also see the latest Jaguar Land Rover technology, with the artificial intelligence systems and 90kWh lithium-ion battery from an electric Jaguar I-PACE performance SUV used to power a wireframe model of the C-X75 concept car that starred in a spectacular car chase through Rome in Spectre.

Jaguar Land Rover vehicles have appeared in nine Bond films since Octopussy in 1983, when Roger Moore made a dramatic escape in a Range Rover Classic driven by Bianca (Tina Hudson).

007 Elements will open to the public on 12 July 2018. For further information visit www.007elements.com

Focus Of The Week: Live And Let Die

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With Sean Connery deciding not to return after Diamonds Are Forever, Cubby Broccoli and Harry Saltzman worked with United Artists President David Picker to look for a new 007. Jeremy Brett, Julian Glover and David Warbeck all auditioned yet ultimately the producers cast Roger Moore. The actor was Ian Fleming’s choice to play Bond in 1961 and, as Simon Templar in The Saint, played a character who shared many traits with Bond — debonair, adventurous, and unflappable.

For Moore’s first adventure, the filmmakers chose Live And Let Die, the second Fleming novel written in 1954. Tom Mankiewicz updated the novel’s plot about smuggling 17th Century gold coins to something more contemporary. Dr. Kananga, president of San Monique, under the guise of gangster Mr. Big, is flooding the USA with two tons of free heroin to put the competition out of business leaving him free to control the drug’s supply. Investigating the death of three British agents, Bond travels from New Orleans to San Monique where he foils Kananga’s plot and rescues voodoo priestess Solitaire.

A tour of the Caribbean embellished the script, the research uncovering voodoo ceremonies in Haiti and a large crocodile farm whose gate bore a sign ‘Trespassers will be eaten’. The farm’s owner Ross Kananga, impressed the production team and his facility was used not only as the location for a major action sequence but he agreed to double for Bond and run across the backs of three crocodiles — after the first take, the crocodiles started anticipating Kananga’s movements and one of them actually bit the heel of his shoe. The producers also liked his name and Mr Big’s alter ego became Kananga instead of Jakata.

To play Kananga, director Guy Hamilton picked rising star Yaphet Kotto (Across 110th Street). Producers Harry Saltzman and Cubby Broccoli chose Jane Seymour, a big star in BBC TVs The Onedin Line, as Solitaire. Choreographer Geoffrey Holder was cast as voodoo chief Baron Samedi, a role he originated in Truman Capote’s 1954 musical House Of Flowers — he also staged the distinctive San Monique dance sequences in the film. Holder suggested the film ending on the character riding on the front of Bond and Solitaire’s train, the man who cannot die.

Filming began on Friday October 13 1972 in the Irish bayou in Louisiana shooting the boat chase between 007 and Mr. Big’s henchmen, the most complex chase of its kind ever conceived. 26 boats were used in all — stunt driver Jerry Comeaux set a world record leaping a Glastron GT-150 150ft over a road — with 17 boats destroyed in the action. Filming moved in late 1972 to Jamaica utilising some of the same locations as Dr. No. Some scenes were also shot adjacent to Goldeneye, Ian Fleming’s residence where he penned the novel.

Regular Bond composer John Barry was unavailable to compose the score so Broccoli and Saltzman sought out Barry’s friend George Martin, the producer of The Beatles. Martin worked with Paul McCartney and Wings to create the memorable theme, which became the biggest Bond song to date reaching No. 2 on the US Billboard chart and No. 7 on the UK chart. It also received an Oscar nomination.

Live And Let Die was a huge success, outperforming the two previous Bond films overseas. But perhaps most significantly, it introduced Roger Moore as the natural successor to Sean Connery, a role he would make his own for the next 12 years.

Focus Of The Week: Skyfall Underground Chase

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One of Skyfall’s (2012) standout stunt sequences is a chase through London’s underground system. After Silva (Javier Bardem) escapes from MI6’s new subterranean HQ, Bond pursues him through an underground station, running through ticket areas, corridors and platforms before leaping onto a speeding tube train as the criminal mastermind, disguised as a policeman, evades him.

Prior to the main unit shooting on the sequence’s climax on April 3 2012 on the 007 stage at Pinewood, both the main unit, directed by Sam Mendes and second unit, led by Alexander Witt, shot interiors at Charing Cross Station. Here the crew captured the moment where Silva slides down the escalators and Bond follows suit.

“We came up with this sliding rig that made it much easier for the actors and we could put the camera close to them,” recalled stunt coordinator Gary Powell. “Javier and Daniel went down on the rig, then Daniel did the slide by himself which was great because it gave us more options for the camera and gave us so much more energy to the scene.”

007 finally catches Silva at gun point in a service area just as the criminal detonates a hole in the roof. A tube train comes crashing through allowing Silva to escape. The stunning sequence was the brainchild of special effects and miniature effects supervisor Chris Corbould.

“During pre-production, Sam rang me and said, ‘We’ve got the great chase in the underground of London but I feel we are short of one spectacular set piece,’” recalled Corbould. “That night I dreamt about a train crash. I mentioned it to Sam and it evolved from there. I didn’t realise how big it would become. It turned into a monster.”

Corbould and his team fitted an overhead track like a rollercoaster with two full-sized carriages hung underneath and linked to a powerful truck and cable system. This allowed the two 60 ft long carriages to get up to speed and then dip down into the set. With the vicinity cleared of crew personnel for safety reasons, ten remotely operated cameras covered the crash from practically every conceivable angle.

“We were concerned about stopping it,” recalled Corbould. “The carriages weighed something like 15 tons and we only had a small area to stop it in. I think it stopped about an inch before it hit the side of the water tank on the 007 Stage. It was one-off and it worked a treat.”

Focus Of The Week: Domino Derval

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Domino Derval, played by Claudine Auger, is the partner of SPECTRE No. 2 Emile Largo (Adolfo Celi). She is trapped in a loveless relationship until she meets 007. She becomes drawn into Bond’s mission to foil a nuclear extortion plot.

Domino grew up in France, sharing a close bond with her brother François (Paul Stassino), a Major in the Armée de l’Air serving with NATO. It is through François that Domino meets Largo and the pair begin an affair. Despite living a life filled with riches and luxury, Domino is unfulfilled by life with Largo, only feeling real closeness with her brother.

Domino has been in Nassau for three weeks when she meets Bond while snorkelling. Although she is attracted to him, she cannot act on her desires due to the ever-watchful eye of Largo. She spends time with Bond at the Café Martinique and begins to open up about her disenchantment. The flirtation continues and Bond reveals that Largo killed her brother and stole two atomic weapons.

Filled with vengeance, she helps Bond kill Largo’s henchman Vargas (Phillip Locke) and takes a Geiger counter camera on board Largo’s yacht, the Disco Volante, to discover whether the missing bombs are on board. Largo catches Domino with the gadget and interrogates her, leaving her in a state of shock. She is untied by scientist Ladislav Kutze (George Pravda) and goes up to the bridge, catching Largo holding Bond at gun point. She shoots Largo in the back, saving 007’s life and avenging her brother’s death. Largo falls onto the wheel of the yacht, jamming the controls. Domino and Bond leap overboard as the Disco Volante runs aground and explodes. The pair are subsequently rescued by the CIA and lifted into the air by a sky hook.

Focus Of The Week: Terence Young

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The director who introduced Bond to film-goers, Terence Young added style, wit and class to three 007 adventures, all infused with fast-paced action and thrills.

“In a Bond film, you aren’t involved in cinema-verite or avant-garde,” he once said. “One is involved in colossal fun.”

Shaun Terence Young was born in 1915, the son of an English police commissioner in the International Sector of Shanghai. He was educated in England, studying at Cambridge University. His love of cinema led him to get a summer job at BIP Studios and he later came to the fore as a screenwriter with melodrama Dangerous Moonlight (1941) starring Anton Walbrook and Sally Gray.

His film career was interrupted by World War II, serving with the renowned Guards Armoured Tank Division. Following the end of the war, he returned to screenwriting and became an assistant to such legendary filmmakers as Jacques Feyder, Alexander Korda, Josef Von Sternberg and King Vidor.

Young made his own directorial debut with One Night With You (1948). His next film, Corridor Of Mirrors (1948), starred Lois Maxwell, who went on to play Miss Moneypenny in the Bond series, and won the Best Film Of The Year Award in France. The Red Beret (1953) proved to be significant, becoming his first collaboration with Bond producer Albert R. Broccoli and screenwriter Richard Maibaum.

With an established reputation as an action director. Young was the perfect choice to bring James Bond to the screen with Dr. No (1962). Many believed he embodied the same qualities as 007, particularly a knowledge and understanding of the finer things.

“Terence Young could have played James Bond,” said DR. NO editor Peter Hunt. “It was his style and his schooling of Sean that really made James Bond James Bond.”

Young encouraged Connery to wear Saville Row suits at night even insisting the actor sleep in a suit and tie so he would wear it with ease and nonchalance. Young also guided Connery through the fine wines and menus in expensive restaurants.

With Dr. No a huge success, Young directed the next Bond film From Russia With Love (1963), which he believed was “the best of the Bond pictures. Not because I directed it, although I think it’s well directed, but because it was the best subject for a Bond film.” Developing the character further while maintaining the style and tempo of Dr. No, Young’s work found favour with fans and collaborators alike.

“Terence Young was a phenomenal character,” observed special effects supervisor John Stears. “He would just absolutely get into your mind what he was thinking. You’d do things for Terence without thinking — you’d just do it because you knew that was what had to be done.”

After taking a break for Goldfinger (1964), Young returned to 007 with Thunderball (1965), his final Bond adventure. Young continued to work consistently over the years directing Wait Until Dark (1967), Mayerling (1968), Red Sun (1971), The Valachi Papers (1972), Bloodline (1979), Inchon (1981), The Jigsaw Man (1983) and Run For Your Life (1988). In 1994, while preparing a movie in Europe, he fell ill and died of a heart attack in hospital at Cannes, France.

Focus Of The Week: Quantum Of Solace Boat Chase

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The Quantum Of Solace boat chase was shot at the harbour area in Colón, Panama standing in for Kings Quay, Haiti over a four-week period starting 25 February 2008.

Simon Crane was Second-Unit director for the sequence in Panama. For the first part of the shoot, Crane worked with stunt performers — Wade Eastwood, Lee Morrison and Ben Cooke doubling for Bond, Nikki Berwick and Teresa Arteaga doubling for Camille.

“This was a complex shoot,” recalled Crane. “It was like a car chase but on water but there were so many variables.”

Crane utilised the Ultimate Arm, a gyro-stabilised remote-controlled camera crane that facilitated incredible close up footage of the chase. This became invaluable to realise director Marc Forster’s desire to make the action look as believable as possible.

“The entire boat sequence was all shot for real,” recalled Forster. “There was no green screen work. When I was working with Daniel and Olga, I had to make sure they were secure with the stunt work, and at the same time we got what we needed action-wise.”

Forster and the principal cast arrived on March 19 for three days of filming. Daniel Craig recalled the logistical challenges of shooting the sequence in a busy working harbour.

“We cornered off an area of the marina and out into the ocean,” he said. “There were huge container ships going through and we were dancing around them while we were filming.”

For Olga Kurylenko playing Camille, there was a sharp contrast between rehearsing the scene and shooting the stunts for real.

“We were going really fast,” she said. “I thought they would fake the speed but they didn’t. When I practiced, I was attached and had a helmet, and lots of protection. I didn’t have any of that while filming. Suddenly I had to keep my stability while fighting and acting.”

 

Focus Of The Week: Goldfinger

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Goldfinger, the third cinematic 007 adventure, sees James Bond (Sean Connery) sent to investigate Auric Goldfinger (Gert Fröbe), one of the wealthiest men in the world, under suspicion for smuggling gold reserves. The mission takes 007 to Miami where Bond meets Goldfinger’s assistant Jill Masterson (Shirley Eaton). She falls for him and pays with her life, smothered in gold paint. Tracking Goldfinger to Switzerland, Bond is subsequently captured by manservant and chauffeur Oddjob (Harold Sakata). He narrowly escapes death on a laser table but his scant knowledge of Goldfinger’s plans save his life. He is taken to Goldfinger’s stud farm in Kentucky and discovers the latter’s plot to create economic chaos by irradiating the gold bullion in nearby Fort Knox. Teaming up with pilot Pussy Galore (Honor Blackman), Bond thwart’s Goldfinger’s scheme with just 0.07 seconds to spare.

Screenwriter Richard Maibaum started adapting Goldfinger, Fleming’s seventh 007 novel, in April 1963 just as From Russia With Love entered production.

When Guy Hamilton came on board as director, he looked to add more humour and swagger. Working with writer Paul Dehn, Hamilton’s approach is perhaps best typified by Bond’s vehicle: Fleming’s Aston Martin DB Mk III was upgraded to an Aston Martin DB5 complete with gadgets such as machine guns and an ejector seat.

When it came to casting the titular villain, Producer Cubby Broccoli brought in German actor Gert Fröbe. Hamilton suggested Honor Blackman, then popular on British TV as Cathy Gale in The Avengers, as Pussy Galore, Goldfinger’s pilot and Bond’s love interest. The director also spotted wrestler Harold Sakata, an Olympic silver medallist who competed under the name Tosh Togo, and cast him as Oddjob.

Shooting began on March 9 1964 at Pinewood. Sean Connery joined the production ten days later as he was under contract to shoot Alfred Hitchcock’s Marnie. The actor’s presence was further missed when Harold Sakata accidentally caught him with a karate chop, forcing the actor to lose a week’s filming.

Officials at Fort Knox were reluctant to give the filmmakers access so, for the climax of the film inside the gold vault, Broccoli declared that he wanted a “cathedral of gold”. Production designer Ken Adam provided a stunning backdrop to Bond’s battle with Oddjob. Other astonishing sets designed by Adam included a drug lab hidden in an oil storage tank, a rumpus room that turns into a strategy centre and the Auric Enterprises Laser Room.

As well as the look of 007, Goldfinger also defined the sound of the series. John Barry wrote the score and theme for the film, the latter sung by the incomparable Shirley Bassey. It became a worldwide hit and propelled the soundtrack to the top of the US charts, dethroning the Beatles from the number one spot.

Just before release, the film fell foul of the MPAA, the US ratings board, who objected to the name ‘Pussy Galore’ as too risqué. Through skilful negotiation, Cubby Broccoli managed to over turn the decision and the film became the fastest grossing Bond film ever released. It also became the first 007 film to win an Academy Award, Norman Wanstall picking up the Oscar for Best Sound Effects Editing.

Special James Bond Collectors Coin Released

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The Royal Mint has revealed a brand-new collection of 10p coins which map out the A-Z of what makes Britain great with B standing for Bond. The James Bond coin features the iconic gun barrel and 007 logo. The entire collection will be rolling out into circulation across the country from today, and will be available at selected Post Offices from this week. A collectors’ folder, and silver proof and uncirculated versions of the 10p coins, will be available to purchase from The Royal Mint website. The coins will also be available to purchase at Bond in Motion, London Film Museum.

For more information visit https://www.royalmint.com/coinhunt/

Lewis Gilbert 1920 – 2018

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British director, producer and screenwriter Lewis Gilbert has passed away at the age of 97. Gilbert directed three Bond films; You Only Live Twice (1967), The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and Moonraker (1979).

Producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli have released the following statement: “It is with great sadness that we learn of the passing of our dear friend Lewis Gilbert. Lewis was a true gentleman. He made an enormous contribution to the British film industry as well as the Bond films, directing You Only Live Twice, The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker. His films are not only loved by us but are considered classics within the series. He will be sorely missed.”

Born into a family of music-hall performers, Lewis Gilbert began his career as a child actor. British producer Alexander Korda offered to send him to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, but he had his sights set on directing. In 1939, he worked as an assistant on Alfred Hitchcock’s Jamaica Inn.

Joining the RAF when WWII broke out, Gilbert was attached to the US Air Corps film Unit where he directed several documentaries. He continued to write and direct documentaries after the war, before directing low budget features. He eventually graduated to bigger productions, making a name for himself with Alfie (1966), which in turn made an international star of Michael Caine.

Gilbert won 2 BAFTAs for Educating Rita (1984) and The Michael Balcon Award (1990). In 1997 he was awarded a CBE and in 2001 he was made a fellow of the British Film Institute.

Focus Of The Week: Skyfall Train Chase

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The train chase was shot in Adana, a modern city in the agricultural heartland of Turkey, close to the Eastern border. The second unit, directed by Alexander Witt, spent one month setting up the action in Turkey and then filmed for two months.

Working on a speeding train, proved both technically challenging and dangerous. Both Daniel Craig (James Bond) and Ola Rapace (Patrice) performed their own stunts attached to safety wires while the train was travelling at 40mph.

As Producer Barbara Broccoli said: “We were in Turkey for the train sequence and I had my heart in my mouth the whole time; he (Daniel) and Ola were fighting on the roof of a moving train and the moves that they were doing were just heart stopping. Daniel’s the reason why the action works as well as it does because he sells it, he’s up there and I think audiences know that.”

The climax of the sequence took place on the Varda Bridge, an hour outside of Adana. The fight comes to an end when Eve, implored by M to “take the shot” shoots Bond instead of Patrice, sending Bond plummeting into the river below.

Focus Of The Week: Spectre’s Rome Car Chase

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On February 19 2015, the Spectre unit began shooting the exciting car chase through the cobbled streets and alongside the river Tiber in Rome.

As Sam Mendes put it, “I loved the car chase being a one-on-one speed battle, a game of cat and mouse between two of the fastest cars in the world, neither of which had been seen before.”

The sequence depicts Bond (Daniel Craig)’s first run-in with Spectre’s imposing hit man Hinx (Dave Bautista). Franz Oberhauser (Christoph Waltz) notices Bond has infiltrated Spectre’s clandestine meeting and sends Hinx to apprehend him. 007 makes his escape and a high-speed duel ensues played out in two unique supercars — an Aston Martin D10 and a Jaguar C-X75 — against a backdrop of historic landmarks.

Director Sam Mendes conceived the sequence with three elements running parallel; Hinx in relentless pursuit of Bond, 007 calling Moneypenny to track down ‘The Pale King’ at Lake Altaussee and a lighter strand of Bond experimenting with the DB10’s gadgets. “Bond steals the car from Q’s workshop without really knowing what it does,” says Mendes. “That just adds another little twist.”

The Rome location raised the challenge of shooting a car chase in one of the busiest cities in the world. Associate Producer Gregg Wilson recalled “Via Nomentana was one of the longest city lock-offs our location department had ever done — it was about three kilometres of main roads entering Rome.” The cars swerve down the Scala de Pinedo steps and onto the towpath of the Tiber. Concrete wedges, disguised as cobbles were placed on the steps as protection and the walls were clad in steel, painted over to look like concrete, to avoid damage from the DB10’s flamethrower. Care was taken to preserve the city’s rich heritage.

With cars jumping and landing at speeds of 70mph the rigours of filming demanded eight Aston Martins and seven Jaguars be on hand. Without the easy option of a factory providing spare parts, three crews worked day and night to keep the cars on the road.

Focus Of The Week: Tee Hee

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A loyal henchman to Dr. Kananga/Mr. Big (Yaphet Kotto), Tee Hee (Julius Harris) earned his name through his constant sniggering but, behind the laughs, lies a ruthless assassin. He has a metal arm, a replacement for the one bitten off by a crocodile named Albert, graced with a set of pincers to cut and claw his victims.

Bond (Roger Moore) first encounters Tee Hee at Kananga’s Fillet Of Soul restaurant in New York. When Kananga’s medium Solitaire (Jane Seymour) divines 007 is armed, Tee Hee reaches into his pocket, picks out the Walther PPK and twists the barrel, making it impossible for use. When Tee Hee returns the out-of-shape gun with a broad smile, Bond quips, “Funny how the least little thing amuses him.”

During another interrogation by Kananga, Tee Hee is ordered to snip Bond’s finger off to see if he is telling the truth. Solitaire confirms that he is and Kananga orders Tee Hee to let 007 go. Instead, Tee Hee knocks him unconscious.

Bond is taken to the crocodile farm, which Kananga uses as a cover for his heroin laboratory. Pointing out the crocodile that snapped off his arm, Tee Hee lures 007 to a small island surrounded by the deadly reptiles and leaves him to die. With no visible means of escape, Bond improvises the crocodiles as stepping stones to get off the island and subsequently destroys Kananga’s operation.

After he thwarts Kananga’s evil plans, Bond and Solitaire board The Crescent Passenger train. Tee Hee smuggles himself on board inside a mail bag and battles Bond in the small cabin. Bond severs the release wires of Tee Hee’s pincer claw, causing his mechanical arm to lock onto the window handle. Bond throws him out of the train window, ripping his metal arm off. When Solitaire asks Bond what just happened, he replies, “Just being disarming, darling.”