'Casino Royale': Details on Bahamas Shooting
As the "Palm
Beach Post" today reports in its travel column, a
200-year-old mansion in Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas, is going to feature
in Casino Royale. The villa called "Buena Vista", contains a legendary
restaurant "where waiters in burgundy jackets serve charcoal-broiled lobster and
curried grouper to such illustrious patrons as Nicolas Cage, Michael Caine and
Julio Iglesias".
According to Stan Bocus, who owns the mansion for about 31
years, the old colonial building will be painted to make it look even older when
it is transformed into the embassy, where the new James Bond will take on bad
guys in the upcoming Casino Royale. The article specifies that the “Buena Vista” is going to double for the Liberian Embassy in Madagascar. So are the Bahamas doubling for Madagascar?
It is also said that filming on the Bahamas is not due before February 23. Last month, sources told different news outlets that filming
would commence on January 30 in Nassau. Over the last two weeks, however,
several sources reported that filming starts in Prague, not the Bahamas. There
are also rumours that the 2nd unit already started filming in the insular
state. Hopefully, we will officially know by tomorrow.
The official website of the "Buena Vista" restaurant can
be found here.
Casino Royale is the 21st James Bond film produced
by franchise holders Eon Productions. The MGM/Columbia Pictures production
begins shooting in January and is due for release worldwide on 17 November 2006.
Starring Daniel Craig as James Bond, it will be filmed in the Czech Republic,
the Bahamas, Italy and the UK.