The location filming in Brecon Beacons National Park would have needed Welsh government approval

Continuing the Broke Bond story, er, I mean the Budget Cut story from last week this item from the BBC seems to add credence to the earlier story. It appears Team EON once again were flirting with local leaders to get favors and permission granted only to walk away at the last moment. This has happening often enough in Spyfall to raise more than few questions about the production.

A movie production firm has pulled out of location filming in the Brecon Beacons that sparked speculation it was shooting for the new James Bond film.

The film company, which has not declared its identity or details about the film, had asked to use Mynydd y Llan near Llandovery.

“Logistical filming factors” have been blamed for the company pulling out.

The park authority, which had fast-tracked the planning request, said it was “incredibly disappointed”.

There had been speculation the filming would have been for the new James Bond movie, Skyfall.

The unnamed film firm had told the park authority’s planning officer’s that it intended to bring in 200 people for the production near Myddfai, Carmarthenshire.

The agent for the film company involved had said it could spend up to £1.4m locally.

It has said it was looking for access to the land for a period of three months, along with permission to create a chapel and manor house. Filming would take place over three weeks.

Any location work would have needed the approval of the Welsh government but that approval is no longer required.

“Of course we are all incredibly disappointed but we always understood that we were just one of many locations the film company was considering.A spokeswoman for Brecon Beacons National Park Authority said: “We have been informed that the area of Mynydd y Llan will not be used as a film set in early 2012 due to logistical filming factors.

“From the very early stages of scouting right through to the planning application, our officers have worked particularly hard to make this project happen.

“We hope to encourage more filming opportunities like this in the near future, so we wish the film crew every success and assure them of a warm Welsh welcome should they come back to the Brecon Beacons to film.”

Some understandable criticism for Bond 23′s mimicking of a real life funeral ceremony has erupted. Not to treat this situation too lightly, we do not know how it will appear in the movie, and after this public drubbing it may well never see the light of day.

Discuss this in our forum: Bond faces criticism over ‘cynical’ funeral scenes

truthdive.com

Sam Mendes, the director of next James Bond flick Skyfall, is being condemned for including scenes of military funeral repatriations apparently inspired by a town in England, Royal Wootton Bassett.

The scenes, which feature the bodies of eight servicemen killed overseas being repatriated and driven in a funeral cortege past hundreds of mourners lining the streets, worry the Royal British Legion, the Telegraph reported.

“The last thing we want is a glitzy film,” said Royal Wootton Bassett spokesman.

“Attending the repatriations started as a pure and simple tribute. How are the mothers and fathers of the fallen soldiers going to feel when they see this on the big screen? It is cashing in on people’s grief and is just cynical.”

James Gray, the MP whose North Wiltshire constituency includes Royal Wootton Bassett, asserted that the scenes have been inspired by the town.

“Prior to the Iraq war, soldiers were buried in the countries where they fell,” he said.

“When the repatriations started passing through Wootton Bassett is when great crowds began to attend.”

Roger Smith, a funeral director brought in to participate in the scenes, said that he was shocked by the filmmakers’ ignorance.

“The annoying thing was that the directors didn’t seem aware of the protocol for English funerals,” he said.

“They wanted to do a Wootton Bassett-type scene, but had no master of ceremonies in front of the cortege to give the right speed. It was a real shame, a missed opportunity,” Smith added. (ANI)

I'm looking for Commander James Bond, not an overgrown stunt man. -Ian Fleming

New controversy has fans upset with the 50th anniversary Blu-ray advisement, namely the lack of Sean Connery who defined the role of James Bond 007. To answer your question first, yes we did notice the lack of Connery the other Bonds in the advert when we first posted the Blu-ray set news. However as we have learned when we are the first to highlight something of this nature we are tared and feathered for being insensitive to a certain overgrown stuntmen That and we have become accustomed to the Classic Bond series (as defined by Sean Connery) being snubbed by the powers that be at EON and the studio.

In a certain light the snub makes sense for the studio/EON productions, seeing as Craig is the “Bond” they are trying to flog on the public. However for the 50th anniversary it boggles the mind why the man who originated the role (and his successors) are not give a more favourable viewing. On the other hand if the public gets to used to see James Bond 007 looking and acting, well lets put it plainly as he should, they might begin to wonder at the current incarnation of Her Majesty’s most faithful of servants.

Discuss this in out forum; Sean Connery snub leaves fans shaken

Movie icon Burt Reynolds weights in on James Bond. Once considered by the studio & Guy Hamilton as a replacement for Sean Connery. Burt talks to GQ about Cubby Broccoli approaching him for the role, his refusal and later regret.

In Bond lore there is another legend about Cubby resisting the studio’s pressure to hire Burt.

DCinB Forum Burt Reynolds on Bond & Craig

 

GQ: Also, you were offered the role of James Bond? Who, according to Archer, was inspired by him?

Burt Reynolds: Yes. It was in my infinite wisdom that I said an American couldn’t play that. It was then that they got George Lazenby, and I was proven right.

 

I should’ve done it. I wish I had, but my life would be so different now. My fear about doing it was that the public wouldn’t accept me. But I think they would have, because while it’s pretty hard to dress me up that good, Connery was as far from Bond as anyone, he was right out of the coal mines, and he was maybe the best Bond. And Roger Moore, whom I know very well and adore, he is that kind of guy. He knows how to order wine better than anyone at the table, and he is so effete, and yet very, very likeable. But at the time, I was doing Dan August, who was a completely American cop. So Cubby Broccoli came to see me and asked me to do it, and this was when they were having an argument with Connery over money, and they got Lazenby, and that was a disaster, and then they got Connery back, then a lot of other guys.

 

GQ: Yeah, who knows what the public reaction might’ve been—given that when Daniel Craig was picked, some people were outraged that he was a blond. Though, he is a much more rough-hewn kind of Bond.

Burt Reynolds: Very much so. I always get the feeling that Craig is saying, “Don’t judge me by this.” He doesn’t seem to be the happiest Bond in the world. Whereas Sean had some trepidation about it, he still gave it that twinkle in his eye when he was doing it, and I think that’s the secret to successful Bonds. Even Roger, as unphysical as he was, he was absolutely wonderful at the other part of Bond. Craig is a damn good actor, I just think if you’re going to do a part, don’t do it with one eye saying, “I really don’t want to do this, but I’ll do it.” [laughs]

— Dennis Tang

‘Highly places sources’ are telling The Mirror Bond 23 (AKA Spyfail) is facing major budgets cuts, so much so they’re canceling all location shoots except for Turkey.  Remember all the talk of exotic locals like India, South Africa, China, Bail? Well not so much, if the Mirror is to be believed Turkey is it. It appears Ms Broccoli and Mr Wilson visiting Istanbul to shake hands with the mayor still carries some weight.

We had asked questions about the Bond 23 budget long before now. Many insiders believed the Bond budgets would have to be greatly reduced to make it profitable for troubled MGM. Quantum of Solace cost Sony $400 million to make and market (in comparison Die Another Day & Casino Royale had total costs of $242 million & $270 million respectively),  considering the studios actual share of the gross Quantum did not make money at the Box Office.

Which is why everyone believed Bond 23 would have a more reasonable budget as opposed to the bloated Quantum, however Michal G Wilson (@ the Bond 23 presser) denied any there were budget cuts. Leaving people to assume Bond 23 Budget was $230 million, todays news begs a new question; was MGW:  lying, simply mistaken, or has Bond 23 already spent the lofty sum of $230 million?

Thanks to ‘Thunderpussy’ & ‘Omega’

DCinB Forum Bond Budget Cuts

The Mirror

A source said: “To say some of the cast and crew are a bit gutted is an understatement.

“Originally six different countries were selected to film certain scenes but after several technical and financial problems, it was decided to scale back and just use Turkey as the sole foreign location.

“As well as Pinewood’s incredible facilities, the UK has an array of amazing, untapped resources, and some stunning beaches particularly along the south coast and parts of Wales.

“While Bognor is hardly the most exotic of locations, it is important for the franchise that they support British industry

Hollywood Reporter

January 13th, 2011

The last two Bond films each have grossed about $600 million worldwide, but given the cost and profit participations to the Broccoli family and others, the movies do not throw off profit on the order of a Transformers or Iron Man.

…………….

Sony was open-handed, spending $200 million on the latest film and nearly as much to market it worldwide.

As reported earlier MGM/FOX will be release an anniversary set containing all 22 of the EON Bond series. So far only the complete set has come up for pre-order on Amazon.com ($199) and Amazon.co.uk (£89.99 )

The UK release data according to Amazon.UK is October 1st.

Presumably information about the single movies release will become available in the coming weeks. Of interest to those hoping to complete their collections.

Discuss This In Our Forum

Deadline.com

MGM And Fox To Package All 22 James Bond Films On Blu-ray

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor| Tuesday January 10, 2012 @ 4:04pm ESTWhen you consider how important gadgets are in James Bond lore, it makes sense for MGM and 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment to use the 2012 International CES to announce plans to release all 22 movies in a boxed set of Blu-ray discs. This will be the first time that all of the films — from Dr. No to Quantum Of Solace – have been offered together, and that nine of the films will be available in HD. The package celebrating 007′s 50-year film career also will include 130 hours of bonus features. The set will be available this fall for about $240, but fans can pre-order on Amazon starting today. The announcement will be made at a panel about the Bond films featuring directors John Glen (For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, A View To A Kill, The Living Daylights, and Licence To Kill), Martin Campbell (GoldenEye, Casino Royale) and Michael Apted (The World Is Not Enough). Also appearing will be actresses Olga Kurylenko (Quantum Of Solace) and Caterina Murino (Casino Royale). Last year, Fox used the CES platform to announce sales of its Star Wars Saga set of Blu-ray discs.

New Rumour is that David Arnold is out for Bond 23 composer (AKA Spyfail ) , Thomas Newman is rumoured to be Arnold’s replacement. We had wondered how Arnold would balance his duties at the 2012 Olympics with his previous commitment to Bond, apparently he can not, or was not asked back.

Discuss this in our forum.

Thanks to Thunderpussy for the original post

Thomas Newman Might Score The Next Bond Movie, Skyfall

Author: Eric Eisenberg @ Cinema Blend

For the last 15 years David Arnold has been the go-to-guy when it comes to scoring James Bond films. Brought on for Tomorrow Never Dies in 1997, he has written the music for all of the 007 adventures since, including The World is Not Enough, Die Another Day, Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace. But just like all of the other Bond composers, Arnold’s time has ended and now his replacement has apparently been named.

James Bond fansite MI6 is reporting that Thomas Newman has been brought on board to write the score for the Sam Mendes-directed Skyfall. A ten-time Academy Award nominee, Newman’s previous work includes films such as Wall-E, Finding Nemo, and The Good German. The news isn’t too surprising, as the composer has worked on all of Mendes’ previous films, with the exception of Away We Go. Should the story be true, Newman will be only the ninth different person to write music for a James Bond film. The others include Monty Norman, John Barry, George Martin, Marvin Hamlisch, Bill Conti, Michael Kamen, Eric Serra and the aforementioned David Arnold.

Arnold has done a great job over the last decade and a half, but it will be interesting to get new blood into the mix. Obviously it helps that he has such a close connection with Mendes, but considering the director has never made a movie like a James Bond adventure before, so I must wonder how their approach will change.

Perhaps the second worst  kept secret of Bond 23 since the title is Ralph Fiennes role allegedly as the new “M”.  Suspected by fans since he was cast, apparently confirm by MovieWeb. No secret Judi Dench (who we do love) has been keen to leave the series for quite some time now, and Bond 23 has been long rumoured to be her last film.

All Fines has said in recent interview is he is a “government agent”. So there may be some truth to this.

Thanks to BJ for the original post.

Discuss this in our forum

Ralph Fiennes’ Secret New James Bond Role Is…

January 3rd, 2012 1:59pm EST | By: NextMovie Add to My News
The shroud of secrecy surrounding the upcoming James Bond film “Skyfall” has been so dense, you’d almost think Christopher Nolan or Ridley Scott were directing it, but now the first real spoiler has just hit the internet… and this one is about as big as they come.Forget spoiler warnings; you’re going to need a bomb shield for this one, because your head is about to explode. First, let’s set the stage by going over what we already know about “Skyfall.” The third installment in the current Daniel Craig iteration of the venerable spy franchise, “Skyfall” was delayed — and nearly cancelled outright — due to legal wrangling by the studio. Now it’s finally in full swing, with director Sam Mendes (“Revolutionary Road,” “American Beauty”) preparing the film for a Nov. 9, 2012, release.

Until now, though, all we really knew about the plot is that it heavily involves M, James Bond’s boss, who has been played by Judi Dench since 1995′s “Goldeneye.” Or should we say, had been played?

Yes, it’s a shocker: According to MovieWeb, “Skyfall” will be the last film for Dench as the movie will detail M’s retirement as well as the training for her replacement — and the new M will be none other than Ralph Fiennes.

“Ralph Fiennes plays a government agent, which we never get a name on, because he is set to play the new M,” the bombshell from MovieWeb reads. Dench’s “past forces her to leave as head of MI6, and find a new M. The board of MI6 then turns to a government agent (Ralph Fiennes) to take over. M (Dame Judi) is now forced to train the new head of MI6.”

There’s no question that the franchise just won’t be the same without Dench. But will fans warm to Fiennes in the role the way they have embraced John Cleese as Q? Or will the thought of the world’s freedom being in the hands of Lord Voldemort be too much? Either way, it looks like this time, Chicken Little was right, because the sky really is falling in the 007 universe.

We’ll miss you, Judi.

MovieWeb

Early today, Ralph Fiennes revealed some meager character details about his role in the upcoming James Bond adventure Skyfall, offering this small hint.“I’m allowed to say that I’m a government agent.”Now, an insider at EON Productions has slipped a few more story details our way, and, look out, this is a MAJOR SPOILER!It seems as though Ralph Fiennes is actually going to replace Judi Dench as the new M. This will be Dame Judi’s final 007 appearance, with Fiennes set to carry on the character into the unforeseeable future.This is what we were told.

“Ralph Fiennes play’s a government agent, which we never get a name on, because he is set to play the new M.

Skyfall centers around M (Judi Dench) where her past forces her to leave as head of MI6, and find a new M. The board of MI6 then turns to a government agent (Ralph Fiennes) to take over. M (Dame Judi) is now forced to train the new head of MI6.”

While this news has yet to be confirmed, it does come from a quite reliable source inside the studio.

Skyfall comes to theaters November 9th, 2012 and stars Ralph Fiennes, Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Naomie Harris, Judi Dench, Simon Russell Beale, Rhys Ifans, Helen McCrory. The film is directed by Sam Mendes.

From all of us here at DCinB.

Twas the night before Christmas…  Alright I admit it… I am a little late updating the front page however it is not too late for those Bond fans looking for a commercial free movie marathon.

25 DAYS OF BOND ON EPIX
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1st – 25th

EVERY NIGHT AT 10PM ET

*Nothing says the holidays like exotic locations, fast cars, beautiful women, crazy gadgets and vodka martinis shaken, not stirred… And that’s exactly what EPIX has on tap when it presents a James Bond film every night at 10pm ET December 1 – 24 PLUS an all-day marathon Bond movies on Christmas day. So take a break from the holiday rush and escape with Agent 007 in films like Goldfinger, The Spy Who Loved Me, The Living Daylights, Tomorrow Never Dies and many, many others!*


SCHEDULE

Thursday, December 1 Casino Royale

Friday, December 2 Dr. No

Saturday, December 3 From Russia With Love

Sunday, December 4 Goldfinger

Monday, December 5 Thunderball

Tuesday, December 6 You Only Live Twice

Wednesday, December 7 The World is Not Enough

Thursday, December 8 On Her Majesty’s Secret Service

Friday, December 9 Diamonds Are Forever

Saturday, December 10 Live And Let Die

Sunday, December 11 The Man with the Golden Gun

Monday, December 12 The Spy Who Loved Me

Tuesday, December 13 Moonraker

Wednesday, December 14 For Your Eyes Only 

Thursday, December 15 Never Say Never Again 

Friday, December 16 Octopussy 

Saturday, December 17 A View to a Kill 

Sunday, December 18 The Living Daylights 

Monday, December 19 License to Kill 

Tuesday, December 20 Goldeneye 

Wednesday, December 21 Tomorrow Never Dies 

Thursday, December 22 The World is Not Enough 

Friday, December 23 Bond Girls Are Forever 

Saturday, December 24 Goldfinger


An all-day Christmas marathon

7am ET The Spy Who Loved Me 
9:15am ET From Russia with Love 
11:15am ET Dr. No 
1:15pm ET On Her Majesty’s Secret Service 
3:45pm ET Goldfinger 
5:45pm ET Thunderball 
8pm ET Live and Let Die 
10pm ET You Only Live Twice

For more information about EPIX, go to http://www.EpixHD.com. Follow EPIX on Twitter @EpixHD

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