'Quantum of Solace': Shortest Bond Film Ever

The runtime of Quantum of Solace was today confirmed by IGN and Cinematical as 106 minutes, making it the shortest James Bond movie ever.

Director Marc Forster has been adamant from the movie’s early stages of production that Solace would clock in at under two hours, the first Bond pic since 1997’s Tomorrow Never Dies to do so.

Quantum of Solace is a direct sequel to Casino Royale, the longest Bond film in the series, with a runtime of nearly two-and-a-half hours.

Marc Forster told Cinematical, “…you know, like in the middle of Casino [Royale] they had a very long card game which, which was, was … and in this movie it’s shorter and doesn’t have that type of card game where you sort of reflect more because the story didn’t require it. So the movie is, you know, a little over an hour and forty minutes, so it’s much of a more compact emotional intense journey than Casino, which, I think, had more reflective moments maybe.

Quantum of Solace is due for release on 31 October in the UK and 14 November in the US.

Keep your browsers on CommanderBond.net for the most up-to-date James Bond news on the web.

Michael G. Wilson Comments On 'Chitty' Remake Possibilities

Back in March of this year, news emerged that a remake of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the classic adventure featuring a magical flying car and created by James Bond author Ian Fleming, was being discussed.

Now, Michael G. Wilson, who produces the 007 films along with Barbara Broccoli and co-owns the rights to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, has commented on the news. ‘There may be a new film of Chitty, we will have to see,’ he told the Sunday Telegraph.

In the March ’08 article, an unnamed Eon Productions executive stated that the remake, which would likely go into production in 2009, would feature ‘big-name stars, a multi-million pound budget and cutting-edge special effects’. Johnny Depp’s name was brought up as a possibility.

The original Chitty Chitty Bang Bang debuted in theatres in 1968, starring Dick Van Dyke, Sally Ann Howes and Lionel Jeffries.

Produced by Albert R. Broccoli, the production also featured several cast and crew members from the Bond films, including actors Gert Fröbe, Desmond Llewelyn, a screenwriters Richard Maibaum and Roald Dahl, associate producer Stanley Sopel, production designer Ken Adam, art director Harry Pottle, and many others.

Barbara Broccoli then launched a stage performance version that ran from 2002 to 2005 at the London Palladium and became a massive hit, earning more than &pound70 million.

‘I wasn’t surprised by the success of the show because so many people came up to me and said they had the original video,’ she stated.

‘In Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Fleming created some perennial characters. The car and the whole idea of flight is something that appeals to kids of all ages. The show was wonderful. The number of grown men who were reduced to tears at the sight of that flying car was amazing to me.’

CommanderBond.net will keep you updated as more information regarding this Chitty Chitty Bang Bang remake becomes available.

Stay tuned to the CBn main page for all the latest James Bond-related news.

New 'Quantum of Solace' Poster Artwork Revealed

A listing for the official Quantum of Solace soundtrack has appeared online at Amazon.com and accompanying that is artwork that will likely turn out to be the new poster for the film.

This newly released artwork features Daniel Craig’s James Bond and Olga Kurlenko’s Camille standing side-by-side in a moody desert setting (much like that featured in the two teaser posters). The two characters are given equal space on the cover, while Dominic Greene’s headquarters can be seen in the distance.

As earlier reported on CommanderBond.net, David Arnold’s Quantum of Solace score will be released on Tuesday, 28 October by J Records. 007 fans can currently pre-order the soundtrack from Amazon.com.

• Order the Quantum of Solace soundtrack from Amazon.com

Tracks are yet to be announced.

What are your thoughts on this brand new artwork? Sound off here on the CBn Forums and we’ll keep you updated on the main page as more details are announced.

The Name's Bond… Period.

Almost every single James Bond film to date has had it’s share of traditions that carry on from one entry to another: the exhilarating pre-credits sequence, the main titles, a briefing from ‘M’, and so on.

Two such traditions that fans have become accustomed to are the famous ‘Bond, James Bond’ introduction and the order for a ‘shaken, not stirred’ martini. Both have appeared in almost the complete roster of 007 films, with the former bringing Daniel Craig’s debut in Casino Royale to a close.

Just don’t expect either of them when Quantum of Solace hits the silver screen next month.

The Independent reports that both of the popular catchphrases have been dropped from the 22nd Bond film.

‘There was a “Bond, James Bond” in the script,’ said director Marc Forster. ‘There are several places where we shot it as well, but it never worked as we hoped. I just felt we should cut it out, and [producers] Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson agreed, and Daniel agreed, too. It’s nice to be open-minded about the Bond formula. You can always go back to them later on.’

These changes should likely come as little surprise to Bond fans since Casino Royale already proved that the filmmakers are not afraid to shake up the formula in the Craig era.

‘It’s nice to be open-minded about the Bond formula.’ – Marc Forster

Graham Rye, editor of 007 Magazine OnLine, stated that Craig’s debut as Bond was much closer to Ian Fleming’s original vision of the character.

‘The Bond films had become tired and needed reinvigorating,’ he said. ‘Rather than going away from Fleming I think the producers have gone back to him.’

Mr. Rye went on to make the point that characters of Q and Miss Moneypenny (who will also both be absent from Quantum of Solace), only made occasional appearances in Fleming’s novels.

He continued: ‘His announcing of himself had become a bit corny. Casino Royale gets back to the spirit of the books, rather than all the silliness.’

Ajay Chowdhury, editor of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang magazine, said this news was unlikely to upset the 007 community.

‘The producers have been mixing and matching the famous Bond tropes–such as the theme song and the gun-barrel sequence,’ he said. ‘But this time there is a theme song by Jack White and Alicia Keys. If this line of script is not in there it’s not going to undo the foundations of Bond. The fans didn’t miss Moneypenny or Q. Bond is the only British character with worldwide resonance now, apart from Harry Potter. The producers are paying more attention to psychology and relationships, as well as adventure. Quantum of Solace picks up from Casino Royale, which was a really good thriller first and a good Bond movie second.’

What is your take on this news? Voice your opinion here on the CommanderBond.net Forums.

Keep your eyes on the CBn main page for most up-to-date and complete coverage of Quantum of Solace.

Final Cover Art For 'Polestar' James Bond Collection

The final cover artwork that will accompany Polestar, the latest addition to Titan’s James Bond collection, has been released online at Amazon.co.uk.

This new Titan collection, due for release in November in both the UK and US, will bring together five James Bond adventures in total. In addition to the title story, the collection will include Flittermouse, The Scent Of Danger, Snake Goddess and Double Eagle.

Bond girl Valerie Leon, who had appearances in both The Spy Who Loved Me and Never Say Never Again, will provide the introduction. As a result of the numerous stories to be featured this time around, the Polestar collection will showcase the work of writer Jim Lawrence and artists Yaroslav Horak and John McLusky.

Flittermouse was first published immediately before Polestar and the two stories together represent the final section of Series Five that was first serialised in the Daily Star.

The next three stories, The Scent Of Danger, Snake Goddess and Double Eagle, complete Series Five and represent the final entries of Titan’s James Bond checklist. These strips were syndicated in non-UK newspapers. Mclusky worked with Lawrence on The Scent Of Danger, while Horak returned for the final two stories, Snake Goddess and Double Eagle.

The legend continues! Stand by for more adventures with the world’s greatest and most famous secret agent, James Bond, as some of his most thrilling missions are collected for the first time ever in a deluxe collectors’ library edition! This bumper action-packed volume collects ultra rare Bond stories that have not been seen since their original syndication: Flittermouse, The Scent of Danger, Snake Goddess, Double Eagle and Polestar! Plus a new introduction by Bond girl Valerie Leon (The Spy Who Loved Me), features on Ian Fleming’s home “GoldenEye” and a look at the rarely seen Bond Zig Zag comics series, this latest explosive volume is not to be missed!

To order the Polestar collection, scroll down to the links provided in the CBn checklist below.

Stay tuned to the CommanderBond.net main page for complete coverage of all the latest Titan James Bond releases.

'Another Way To Die' Digital Download Now Available To Purchase

Jack White and Alicia Keys’ new James Bond song, Quantum of Solace‘s “Another Way To Die”, is now available to purchase for digital download worldwide, excluding North America.

The track was released on iTunes stores yesterday, while the digitial download will be made available to North American 007 fans on 23 October.

James Bond fans hoping to attain a hardcopy version of the song will have to be quick; the 7″ vinyl single – the only hardcopy release of “Another Way To Die” – will hit US stores on 30 September and UK shops on 6 October. The single is limited to just 6,000 copies worldwide. The single is available to pre-order from Amazon.com.

The first duet in James Bond soundtrack history has stirred fevered discussion among James Bond fans on the CommanderBond.net Forums. A poll started just two days ago has already garnered 252 responses. Nineteen percent of respondents “love it”, while 24 percent “like it”. Another 19 percent think “it’s okay”.

Fourteen percent were “not impressed” by the song, while 18 percent proclaimed it “God-awful”. Just five percent of respondents are undecided on their thoughts on “Another Way To Die”.

If you just fancy having another listen of the song, you can stream it directly from the Third Man Records website.

Keep watching CommanderBond.net for the most up-to-date James Bond news on the web.

'Bond Bound' Ian Fleming Centenary Companion Book Available Online

Great news for literary 007 collectors. The Bond Bound: Ian Fleming and the Art of Cover Design companion book that has been featured exclusively at the centenary exhibition of the same name is now available to order online.

K1Bond007 notifies us that the catalogue was added to the online store at the official Ian Fleming Publications website.

This 166-page, full-colour catalogue is published by the Fleming-Wyfold Art Foundation to accompany the ‘Bond Bound: Ian Fleming and the Art of Cover Design’ exhibition. It charts the 50+ year-long history ‘of artists in creating and defining the Bond look and features book covers, film posters, letters and previously unseen archive material.’

The catalogue includes an introduction by Selina Skipwith, curator of the Fleming Collection and a foreword by Corinne Turner, Manging Director of Ian Fleming Publications Limited. Retail price is £22.50.

• Order the Bond Bound: Ian Fleming and the Art of Cover Design catalogue at IanFlemingPublications.com

The ‘Bond Bound: Ian Fleming and the Art of Cover Design’ exhibition has so far opened in London and Edinburgh. It will next stop at New York’s Bonham Galleries in October and Los Angeles the following month. Click here for the full schedule and press release.

Keep visiting the CBn main page for the most up-to-date and complete coverage of all the 007-related events going on throughout the Ian Fleming centenary year.

'Quantum of Solace' Level Design Video Preview

GameTrailers.com have gotten their hands on another video preview of Activision’s upcoming James Bond video game, Quantum of Solace.

Featuring an interview with designer Brian Douglas, this featurette looks specifically at the development of the levels that 007 will navigate throughout the storyline.

Included here are film and concept artwork comparison shots of several locations from Casino Royale, including the construction site that featured in the Madagascar opening of the film and Mr. White’s villa from the closing sequence.

‘Everything from the movie that the player is going to recognize, we put in the game,’ says Douglas.

Click below for the complete interview:

Keep your eye on the CommanderBond.net main page for the most complete and up-to-date coverage of Activision’s Quantum of Solace.

Quantum of Solace will be released on 31 October in the UK and 4 November in the US on the following formats: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Playstation 2, Nintendo DS and Windows PC.

Samantha Weinberg To Make First US Appearance At 'Bond Bound' Exhibition

James Bond author Raymond Benson has provided fans with a terrific update on his website, revealing that his 007 omnibus, James Bond: The Union Trilogy (comprising High Time To Kill, Doubleshot, Never Dream of Dying and the previously-unpublished full version of the short story, Blast From the Past), will be launched at the New York opening of the “Bond Bound” exhibition at Bonhams Gallery.

Bond fans might be particularly interested to learn that Samantha Weinberg, author of the terrific Moneypenny Diaries trilogy, will be making her first United States appearance at the October 18 launch.

Weinberg’s first book chronicling the adventures of the famous secretary was published in the US earlier in May. All three novels have been released in the United Kingdom.

Also appearing at the event is Henry Chancellor, author of James Bond: The Man And His World.

The “Bond Bound” exhibition looks at five decades of cover art of the James Bond novels.

Benson also announced that he will be making a number of appearances throughout October, November and December to promote The Union Trilogy. The Chicago area book launch will occur on 25 October, with other Chicago area appearances scheduled.

The author will also appear in St Louis, Missouri, for the first time in December. Additionally, Benson will possibly have an appearance in Italy at the end of October.

In other Raymond Benson news, the author has signed on alongside Christa Faust, James Reasoner, David J. Schow, Nicholas Kaufmann and Charles Ardaito, to write one novel in a series of six centring on adventurer Gabriel Hunt. Benson’s Hunt Through Napoleon’s Web is the last book in the series.

For more Raymond Benson news, visit his RaymondBenson.com.

Keep watching CommanderBond.net for the most up-to-date James Bond news on the web.

Looking Back: Raymond Benson's James Bond Short Stories

The CommanderBond.net ‘Looking Back’ series concludes the Raymond Benson era with an examination of his three short story contributions to the literary James Bond canon: Blast From The Past, Midsummer Night’s Doom and Live at Five. Published in 1997 and at two different points in 1999, respectively, these elusive short stories provide readers with another look at Benson’s take on Bond.

CBn takes a look back at the three Raymond Benson James Bond short stories (plus a fourth, unpublished one)–included are publication details, the original blurbs and trivia notes.

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“Blast From The Past”

Who’d want to kill James Bond’s son? After a bomb blast, a car chase and an encounter with an old enemy, 007 finds the deadly answer.

First published in the January 1997 issue of Playboy magazine, Blast From The Past represents the true beginning of Raymond Benson’s literary 007 era, preceding the publication of his first Bond novel, Zero Minus Ten (which hit bookshelves in April of that year).

The story concerns a revenge-driven Irma Bunt, who still hasn’t forgotten about Bond’s climactic confrontation with Ernst Stavro Blofeld in Japan, targeting 007 and those who matter most to him.

Trivia

Until October 2008, the January 1997 issue of Playboy was the only place fans could track down this short story, making it one of the most difficult titles in the literary 007 canon to come by. It will be included in the upcoming James Bond: The Union Trilogy: Three 007 Novels omnibus, to be published by Pegasus Books in the US and UK, and also including Benson’s novels High Time To Kill, Doubleshot and Never Dream of Dying.

Benson has previously mentioned that due to spacing issues, roughly one-third of Blast From The Past was edited out of the Playboy magazine editions. The full version of the short story has been published in French and Italian and will finally be made available in English in the 2008 James Bond: The Union Trilogy omnibus.

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“Midsummer Night’s Doom”

Five minutes into the briefing, M turned her chair to face him and asked, ‘What do you know about Playboy, 007?’

James Bond blinked. ‘Ma’am?’

‘The magazine, 007, how much do you know about it?’

Bond shrugged and said, ‘Only that some people have been known to read the articles, and that I need to renew my subscription.’

Midsummer Night’s Doom continued the James Bond/Playboy relationship first started in Benson’s previous short story, Blast From The Past. This story was included in the January 1999 issue, release during the same year as High Time To Kill, The World is Not Enough novelization as well as his third short story, Live at Five

Assigned by ‘M’ to attend a Playboy party at Hugh Hefner’s mansion, this light-hearted and whimsical story finds Bond investigating the suspected sale of human eye technology to the Russian Mafia.

Trivia

Like Blast From The Past before it, this Playboy publication was–and remains–the only place fans can find this Bond short story. The January 1999 issue it was included in celebrated 45 years of the Playboy company.

Benson has since stated that this particular story was written more for fun and is not meant to be taken as seriously as some of his other Bond adventures.

Real-life Playboy playmates Victoria Zdrok and Lisa Dergan, in addition to Hugh Hefner, feature in the storyline.

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“Live At Five”

Live at Five: A 007 short story written exclusively for TV Guide readers.

Raymond Benson’s third short story, Live at Five, differed from his previous two in that this one featured in a November 1999 issue of TV Guide rather than the Playboy magazine.

Included as part of the issue’s ‘Totally Bond’ celebration to mark the then-upcoming theatrical release of The World is Not Enough, Live at Five represents the shortest of all the 007 short stories to date.

Set in the present day, but with a flashback to before the collapse of the Soviet Union, Live at Five concerns James Bond assisting in the daring defection of Russian ice skater Natalia Lustokov to West.

Trivia

Live at Five was included in the 13-19 November 1999 issue of TV Guide and, like Midsummer Night’s Doom before it, has yet to be republished anywhere else.

Two editions of this particular TV Guide were produced: the first was the standard publication and the second was an oversize magazine-style version that included accompanying artwork by Steve Chorney for the Live at Five short story. Both editions retailed for $1.99.

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“The Heart of Erzulie”

You’re forgiven if this is the first time you’ve heard of this one.

First reported on exclusively by CommanderBond.net back in 2004, The Heart of Erzulie represents the fourth and currently, unpublished short story by Raymond Benson featuring James Bond.

The author revealed to CBn that he had written this voodoo-themed story on spec during his Never Dream of Dying and The Man with the Red Tattoo novels.

Said Benson: ‘It wasn’t very good. I did it on spec, just for something to do during the off months between the outline and research trip for Tattoo. It was called The Heart of Erzulie, and it took place in Jamaica. IFP [Ian Fleming Publications] thought it was too much of a Fleming pastiche. I guess I agree. Oh well, it kept me busy for a month.’

Several literary Bond fans hope that we’ll one day see this story included in a Benson omnibus or similar collection. Time will tell…

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Release Timeline

• 1997: Blast From The Past
• 1999: Midsummer Night’s Doom
• 1999: Live at Five

Your Own Opinion On Raymond Benson’s 007 Short Stories

Want to share your thoughts and opinion on Raymond Benson’s James Bond short stories? Feel free to discuss them by visiting this thread and give your personal ratings in this thread on the CommanderBond.net Forums.