Filmonic » Quantum of Solace

15 movies in the running for the 2008 Visual Effects Oscar

Liam — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 22:18:33 +0000

Last years winner was The Golden Compass

As well as announcing Hugh Jackman as the new host for next February’s Oscars, the Academy have revealed the 15 movies in the running for the 2008 visual effects Oscar.

Here is the list in alphabetical order:
Australia
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
Cloverfield
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Hancock
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
The Incredible Hulk
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Iron Man
Journey to the Center of the Earth
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Quantum of Solace
The Spiderwick Chronicles

This award is probably the one people care about the most, seeing as though this category contains movies people actually see.

In early January the list will be narrowed down to 7, then on January 15th members of the visual effects branch will watch excerpts from the movies, and the list will be narrowed down to 3.

Which movie do you think deserves the Oscar?

Bond Was Nearly A Father!

Liam — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:50:36 +0000

Here is another of those movie ‘what if’ scenarios. Quantum of Solace director Marc Foster revealed to New York magazine that he had one or two disagreements while making the film. The first was the product placement (he wanted it in the background not in your face) and another was a plot twist written by screenwriter Paul Haggis.

“Haggis had an idea they weren’t fond of, and I didn’t know if it would work or not,” says Forster. “The idea was that Vesper in the last movie, maybe she had a kid, and there would be an orphan out there. It wasn’t anything to insult the franchise. But they felt it wasn’t particularly Bond — him looking for the kid. I think Paul thought he just leaves the kid, he doesn’t deal with it. But [the producers] thought that would be really nasty, too, because Bond was an orphan himself. If he would find a kid, would he just leave it? They were so vehemently against it. That was the only time I saw, really, ‘No, we can’t do that.’ They said, ‘Once he finds the kid, Bond can’t just leave the kid. It’s not right.’”

Bond can never have a kid…never! This was one of the major complaints Superman fans had when Clark had a kid in Superman Returns. On the one hand you think he is cool because he is off fighting bad guys and saving the world, but then you think ‘he’s not looking after his kid, what an asshole!’.

It’s not good when people think the leading man is an asshole.

Quantum of Solace Breaks Opening Records

Liam — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 21:14:50 +0000

Over the weekend Quantum of Solace was busy breaking all kinds of records. In the UK Bond took £15.5 million ($25.3 million), breaking the three-day launch record held by Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Meanwhile in France it took $10.6 million, topping the five-day mark of Casino Royale by 16%. And the $2.7 million Swedish opening was the fourth-biggest ever.

The reviews may not be as golden as Casino Royale’s, but it’s making a helluva lot more money! I wonder if it will break any records when it opens in the US on November 14th.

Quantum of Solace Sets Product Placement Record

Liam — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:39:11 +0000

According to The Scotsman, various company’s have spent a massive £50 million ($79 million) on placing their products in the latest Bond film, Quantum of Solace.

It seems 007 now has more than a licence to kill; he has a licence to sell, and a very lucrative one. Quantum of Solace, the 22nd “official” outing of Britain’s best known secret agent, released this week, has reportedly earned a record £50 million from manufacturers for “product placement”, as these subtle, and sometimes not so subtle, adverts are known. It tops the previous record of £44 million for Die Another Day, a film so laden with plugs for 20 products that it sometimes resembled a big-budget Argos advert and was retitled by critics “Buy Another Day”.

If you are thinking of going to see the film, look out for:

Ford Motor Co., Heineken beer, Smirnoff vodka, Omega watches, Virgin Atlantic planes, Sony Ericsson cell phones and other Sony electronics.

Aston Martin Lake Accident Nothing To Do With Solace

Liam — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 01:41:38 +0000

Back in April an Aston Martin DBS crashed into Lake Garda in Italy, and many thought it was a Quantum of Solace stunt gone wrong. Well it turns out the accident had nothing to do with the film, as director Marc Foster told wenn.

“The car wasn’t owned by the film company or related to us. It was an engineer from Aston Martin driving the car to a press conference. He was on his way to breakfast in the morning and drove the car into the lake.
“We were shooting across the lake and, because the car was an Aston Martin, it was linked to us – but it had nothing to do with us.”
He adds, “There was an accident during a car chase sequence and the stuntman was immediately taken to the hospital. He is now almost recovered.
“Apart from that, there was a tiny little thing in the last week of shooting where Daniel (Craig) cut a very deep cut on his finger during a fight sequence. He lost a little bit of skin.”

Guillermo del Toro And Alfonso Cuaron Cast In Quantum of Solace

Liam — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 23:41:09 +0000

Director of The Hobbit Guillermo del Toro and Children of Men director Alfonso Cuaron will be surprise additions to the Quantum of Solace cast list, according to AP.

“Quantum” director Marc Foster tells the newspaper El Universal in an interview published Wednesday that he knows both directors and asked them to portray members of a fictional Bolivian army.
Del Toro, whose films include the “Hellboy” movies and “Pan’s Labyrinth,” does several voices. “Children of Men” director Cuaron will perform the speaking part of a helicopter pilot.

I wonder if del Toro will let Marc Foster do a voice in The Hobbit. A dwarf with a German accent perhaps?

One Bond Is Enough For Marc Foster

Liam — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 17:09:52 +0000

Quantum of Solace director Marc Foster spoke to FirstShowing yesterday and revealed that he is not considering returning to direct the next Bond movie.

“They offered me the next one, but at this point the pressure is so intense — it’s a year of not having a life. And I don’t know if I want to do that again. It’s literally not having a life, and I mean that, it’s not exaggerated. I feel like life is short, you have to find a balance.”

I guess this means that after Quantum of Solace has been released the hunt will be on for another director. Considering how good Casino Royale was I would happily have Martin Campbell back. However, i’m sure the producers will have a list of names down already.

Quantum Of Solace Reviews

Liam — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 15:53:06 +0000

The reviews are pouring in for Quantum of Solace, and here is a run-down of what most of them are saying:

BBC

It’s a film that feels like the second part of a trilogy, with this being the bleaker second act.
For a lot of the movie Bond is a particularly unsympathetic character, and often it’s only Craig’s performance along with the shifting morality of Bond’s legion of enemies that forces the audience to root for him.

Empire 4/5 Stars

A pacy, visually imaginative follow-up. If it doesn’t even try to be bigger than Casino Royale, that’s perhaps a smart move in that there’s still a sense at the end that Bond’s mission has barely begun and he’ll need a few more movies to work his way up to destroying the apparently undefeatable Quantum organisation. The only real caveat is that while it’s exciting, it’s not exactly anyone’s idea of fun. To keep in the game, perhaps the next movie could let the hero enjoy himself a bit more.

Totalfilm 3/5 stars

The action is loud and proud, but the story feels disjointed and muddled, with some uneven flecks of comedy. Still, Craig’s presence keeps the edges from fraying too far and Forster just about nails the extra levels or artsiness and melancholy.

Times Online 4/5 Stars

The director, Marc Forster, has absorbed the lucrative lessons discovered in Martin Campbell’s Casino Royale. He has also managed to pace his sequel much better. Royale felt slightly wheel-clamped by one too many longeurs. If anything, the crunching chase sequences in Quantum of Solace are even more magnificently dangerous. And the daredevil leaps and tumbles through glass roofs are just as sensational as the splintering high-speed pyrotechnics.
But it’s the amount of heartache and punishment that Craig’s new Bond absorbs that makes him look so right for our times.
Bond is no longer a work in progress. He is now the cruel, finished article.

The Independent 3/5 stars

Quantum Of Solace doesn’t seem like a major entry in the Bond canon. Well under two hours long, it’s shorter and more frenetic than most of its predecessors, and an often-jolting experience to watch. Loose ends about. What it does have, though, above all, is vigour. The franchise hasn’t run out of juice quite yet.

The Guardian 3/5 stars

Quantum of Solace isn’t as good as Casino Royale: the smart elegance of Craig’s Bond debut has been toned down in favour of conventional action. But the man himself powers this movie; he carries the film: it’s an indefinably difficult task for an actor. Craig measures up.

And while were all ‘Bonded up’ here is an 1 minute long TV spot that is currently being shown on UK TV.

Quantum Of Solace Clips

Liam — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 21:02:27 +0000

Two clips from Quantum of Solace have appeared online. The first shows Bond talking to Mathis about Vesper Lynd, and the second clip shows Bond talking to M, also about Vesper Lynd. From the sounds of things the score hasn’t been placed on the clips so it seems a little quite, although I’m sure everything will be fully completed when it is released in a few weeks.

Quantum of Solace Sony TV Spot

Liam — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 23:33:04 +0000

Daniel Craig stars in a new, super-cool, television ad to promote Quantum of Solace and Sony HD TV’s. Whilst bullets fly, glass shatters, explosions erupt and buildings destruct around him, Craig stands tall pouting during the special effects orgy.

The TV spot is designed to show off the benefits of high-definition and the greater level of detail it provides, as well as Daniel Craig’s blue eyeballs.