Watch a Russian Army Choir Cover Adele's "Skyfall" Tune

This has to be seen to be believed! MI6 (the James Bond fansite, not the spy agency) discovered this astounding video from a recent St. Petersburg morning show of a male Russian army choir performing the theme from Skyfall. Wearing the same sorts of uniforms that they wear to exchange gunfire with 007 in Octopussy and The Living Daylights and GoldenEye no less. Who could have imagined such a bizarre sight as a Russian military choir covering a James Bond theme song thirty years ago? It's not merely notable for its bizarreness, though; they actually do quite a good job! (Though I think that crazy Brazilian cover of "Live and Let Die" performed on toy instruments is still my favorite strange Bond song cover video.)

Judi Dench's M's Name Revealed

This is interesting! When the Bond movies introduced a new female M in 1995's GoldenEye, played by Judi Dench, the literary 007 rights holders (then Glidrose Productions) decided that it was time for a female M in the books as well. Author Raymond Benson named this character Barbara Mawdsley, but the books have always held a separate life than the movies. (None of the continuation novels to date has been turned into a film.) The female M of the films was never named. Even when Pierce Brosnan left the role, Dench remained as M in the franchise reboot Casino Royale (2006), opposite Daniel Craig. There's one scene in that film where Bond almost speaks her name (hinting that it begins with an M), but she cuts him off snapping, "Utter one more syllable and I'll have you killed." Even in Skyfall (2012), which focuses more on Dench's M than any other movie, her name is never spoken aloud. But, apparently, it is revealed... if you have sharp little eyes. ComingSoon (via CommanderBond) recently had the opportunity to examine up close some props from that film, and discovered that one prop displayed prominently on screen lists M's real name. MAJOR SKYFALL SPOILERS FOLLOW: The inscription on the box containing the porcelain bulldog bequeathed by M to 007 (itself a sly nod to Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) reads, "Olivia Mansfield bequeaths James Bond." So that answers that, then! Fascinating.

New Spy DVDs Out Today: James Bond and Beyond!

Today is a huge day for spy DVD and Blu-ray releases! The celestial body around which all of these releases are orbiting is, of course, Skyfall (review here). The 23rd official James Bond movie is available on DVD and Blu-ray from MGM and Fox. Special features include two audio commentaries (perhaps to make up for none on Quantum of Solace?), one featuring director Sam Mendes, the other with producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson and Production Designer Dennis Gassner, an hour-long making-of documentary called "Shooting Bond," a featurette on the premiere, a 1-minute spot advertising the soundtrack, and the film's theatrical trailer. The film is presented in a 2.40:1 widescreen aspect ratio, which is somewhat controversial because it could be seen in two different aspect ratios theatrically. Personally, I preferred the taller 1.9:1 presentation seen in IMAX theaters. Mendes and cinematographer extraordinaire Roger Deakins shot with both formats in mind, but claimed not to have framed specifically for one or the other. The 1.9:1 version cut off some information on the sides of the frame, but the 2.40:1 version cut off some information at the top and bottom. To my eye, the IMAX image looked more natural. But the difference is really negligible enough that it's not worth dwelling on this much; I just wanted to let people know which one is on the disc. Had they provided both options, I might well end up so paralyzed with Hamlet-like indecision every time I put the movie on that I would never end up actually watching it, and that would be a tragedy! Skyfall is a wonderful Bond movie, and it really goes without saying that it belongs in every Bond fan's library. Retail is listed as $39.99 for the Blu-ray and $29.98 for the DVD, though both are already significantly discounted this week on Amazon and at other retailers. Amazon also has the Bond 50 Blu-ray collection on sale this week for just $129.99, and that's even got an empty slot reserved for Skyfall. So if you held off buying it last year, pick it up now and you'll have all 23 official 007 movies to date in one convenient, attractive package!

Also out today (though pre-orders have been shipping early), and making its high-def debut, is Twilight Time's Blu-ray of In Like Flint. Last month the specialty label released its predecessor, Our Man Flint on Blu-ray, and the sequel comes just as loaded with special features as that one was! And like on the first release, I'm on some of them (under my actual name, Matthew Bradford, and billed as a "Spy Film Historian," which is certainly accurate), discussing the impact of the Flint movies and their star, James Coburn. I'm in these ones a lot more, in fact, than I was on Our Man, so if you're among the millions and millions of fans buying these for me rather than Coburn, you're in luck! Bonus material on In Like Flint includes an audio track featuring Jerry Goldsmith's complete isolated score, an audio commentary with Cinema Retro's Lee Pfeiffer and film historian Eddy Friedfeld, trailers, a rare screen test, and the featurettes "Derek Flint: The Secret Files," "James Coburn: The Man Beyond the Spy," "Designing Flint," "Flint vs Zanuck: The Missing 3 Minutes," "Puerto Rico Premiere," "Future Perfect," "Feminine Wiles," "Spy School," "Musician's Magician," "Spy Vogue," and "Take It Off." That last one is a vintage featurette that seems to be promoting the movie to women(?) while at the same time insulting them (?), and doing it via a weight-loss advertisement. If you manage to make it all the way through its interminable running time, I sincerely doubt you'll ever revisit that one, but it's still nice to have, of course, as a weird, unwatchable time capsule. Fortunately, the rest are all fascinating! Some of these are retained from the previous DVD edition, but some are brand-new documentaries created exclusively for the Blu-ray release by John Cork, co-producer of those wonderful documentaries on the James Bond Special Editions. Sadly what's missing from this release that was on the DVD edition is the attempted Seventies TV revival of the character, Our Man Flint: Dead On Target, starring Eurospy leading man Ray Danton as the irrepressible Derek Flint. It's true that the TV movie is far from essential (in fact it bears little resemblance to the Sixties films, and Flint himself is a mere private eye, not an international playboy superspy) and that poor Danton (who was excellent in some of his Eurospy work) struggles to fill Coburn's large shoes... but as a spy completist I still want to own it. That means I'll have to hang onto my DVD set despite buying these new Blu-rays. Oh well. The new special features on Twilight Time's edition certainly make this Blu-ray a must-buy for Sixties spy fans even without the TV movie! Seriously, this is sure to be one of the major spy releases of the year. The region-free Blu-ray is a limited edition of just 3,000 units, and retails for $29.95 exclusively through Screen Archives Entertainment. These limited editions do sell out, so be sure to order soon!

Also timed to piggyback on Skyfall's release is BBC's DVD of the Top Gear special 50 Years of Bond Cars. The special, presented by Richard Hammond last fall to tie in with the theatrical release of Skyfall, is one of the best James Bond TV specials I've ever seen. It's a must-see for fans of Bond cars especially, and I'm so glad that it's getting a DVD release because it's one I definitely want to own for posterity. Not only does Hammond interview a number of 007 production personnel (including Guy Hamilton, Roger Moore and Daniel Craig) and test drive some original Bondmobiles, but he also pilots an actual working Lotus submarine car! Top Gear's version is based on an Excel rather than an Esprit, but unlike the production version(s) used in The Spy Who Loved Me, this one actually functions as both a street car and a submarine! Seriously, this is one you want in your Bond collection. Best of all, it's a real steal with a bargain SRP of just $9.95... and it's even less than that on Amazon.

What's this doing on here? Avengers fans, take note! Six years after the first two seasons of The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries came out from Universal, Shout! Factory is releasing the third Hardy Boys season, sans Nancy this time, on DVD today. Why is this of particular interest to spy fans? Well, the show does sometimes deal in espionage, and in this season the Hardy men have graduated college and are official government agents themselves. In one two-parter, they even help a Soviet defector wishing to relocate to Hawaii... but that's not why I'm mentioning it. Not specifically, anyway. No, I'm mentioning it because Patrick Macnee (who celebrated his 91st birthday last week) turns up as a guest star in the episode "Assault on the Tower" playing a debonair, bowler hat-wearing British agent identified only as S. This was just a year after The New Avengers went off the air, so fans of John Steed will probably want to add the DVD to their library. (Well, completists, anyway, like myself.) The 3-disc set retails for $24.97, though it can be ordered through Amazon for significantly less.

I know I've been remiss on my weekly spy DVD alerts lately. So later this week I'll do a post rounding up all the spy releases so far this year. Stay tuned!

James Bond Parody Video Featuring an Aston Martin

One of the moments that gets the biggest crowd reaction in Skyfall is the look on Daniel Craig's face when something bad happens to his beloved Aston Martin DB5. It's a great look. But some people take issue with 007 showing more visible reaction to what happens to his car than he does to the fate that befalls a woman he beds earlier in the film. It's certainly a moment ripe for parody. And my friends Brad Hansen and Athena Stamos (huge Bond fans both) at Crave Online have seized that moment and produced an excellent parody video, "The Spy Who Loved His Car!" But it's a parody with serious production values. Not only do they have some pretty cool effects (I love the moment Bond drives through the invisible wall in the parking garage), but they have an actual vintage Aston Martin! (It's a DB6 and not a DB5, but it's still the right color and it's still beautiful and it's still an Aston Martin... so that works just fine.) This is awesome. Check it out:

Skyfall Becomes the Highest Grossing Movie of All Time in Britain

Deadline reports that Skyfall surpassed Avatar yesterday to become the UK's highest grossing movie of all time. That's pretty impressive! In 40 days of release, it's earned £94,277,612, or $151,795,059, in the United Kingdom. The 23rd James Bond film has earned more than $245 million so far at the U.S. box office, and more than $870 million worldwide, all of which makes it a massive hit. The press has been calling it the biggest Bond ever, but since they're not adjusting for inflation, that's really not true. Thunderball was even bigger in 1965! (In 2012 dollars, it did pass $1 billion.) But Skyfall's making a mint, and has a chance at crossing the elusive billion dollar mark globally. In the global market, however, it should be noted that it's nowhere near Avatar's record of $2.8 billion.

Skyfall Blu-ray/DVD Artwork Unveiled

Amazon has a pre-order listing up already for the latest James Bond movie Skyfall on DVD and Blu-ray. Special features haven't been announced, and neither has a release date, but retail is listed as $39.99 for the Blu-ray and $29.98 for the DVD, though both are already significantly discounted on Amazon. What has been revealed is the cover art, which uses the ubiquitous final U.S. 1-sheet artwork. Looks great in Blu-ray dimensions!

Could Skyfall Be a Legitimate Oscar Contender?

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences can be a fickle bunch, and has been notoriously dismissive of the James Bond series over the years despite the deserving contributions of many artisans in many different fields. But there's a chance Skyfall could change all that. Not because it's the best Bond film ever, but because it's a very good one that has come along at the right time. A few years ago, the Academy expanded the number of possible Best Picture contenders from five to ten, largely in response to the critical and audience favorite of 2008, The Dark Knight, getting shut out of a nomination. Ostensibly the number was increased for exactly this purpose: to give deserving big-budget, crowd-pleasing studio films a chance to compete with the indie darlings, historical epics and art films that typically dominate the awards season. Personally, I definitely think Skyfall is one of the best films I've seen in 2012 (and likely to remain so even by the end of December), and that it's deserving of a nomination in a field of ten. But then, I thought that about Casino Royale, too. But back then there were only five nominees, and, crucially, Sony didn't put a large Oscar campaign behind the film. In this altered Oscar climate, it might be that a serious studio campaign makes all the difference. Deadline's resident awards expert Pete Hammond indicates that we may see just such a campaign for this film. He points out the legitimacy of potential support in such categories as Best Director (Academy Award-winner Sam Mendes), Best Cinematography (9-time nominee Roger Deakins), Best Supporting Actress (Oscar-winner Judi Dench), Best Supporting Actor (Oscar-winner Javier Bardem) Best Original Score (10-time nominee Thomas Newman), and for the 15-time nominee (yet to score a win) for sound mixing, Greg P. Russell. To that list I'd certainly add Daniel Craig as a potential Best Actor. Even in a world where a Bond film might score a Best Picture nomination, I can't imagine the Academy recognizing an actor for playing 007 (sadly), but, still, Craig's stellar performance is certainly worth pushing for. Again, I'm not saying that he's the only Bond actor deserving of such a nod, but in this more enlightened age, he might be the first one who even has a shot! I hope that Hammond is right and Sony does campaign for this film, because it would be an incredible experience to hear the James Bond Theme played repeatedly during an Oscar broadcast, wouldn't it?

SKYFALL DAY!

The day is here at last! The 23rd James Bond movie, Skyfall, opens wide today in North America. Of course, many fans have had the opportunity to see it already, thanks to midnight shows and IMAX screenings a day early. And fans in various countries around the world have been watching it for a few weeks now. But now, all of America can see it... and they will. Skyfall is going to be huge here, just like it has been in Britain, where it's shattered box office records. Personally, I love the film. You can read my review here, and I will probably write even more about the movie soon. I've seen it twice more since writing that review, and am seeing it a fourth time in a few hours. I've seen it in real IMAX, fake IMAX and on a standard screen. Personally, I prefer the expanded "open matte"-style IMAX experience. While cinematographer Roger Deakins claims to have composed with both the 2.40:1 scope image (seen in traditional theaters) and the 1.9:1 image (seen in IMAX theaters, affording more picture at the top and bottom of the frame, but still not filling an IMAX screen entirely) in mind, to me the IMAX version (which is ultimately closer to what you'd see on a 16x9 television set) looks better. Frames in the traditional version seem artificially cropped at times. Others disagree, and feel strongly that the 2.40:1 version is preferable. Personally, though, I'd recommend seeing it on an IMAX screen if you have access to one. Otherwise, you're not missing out; Deakins' photography looks gorgeous on both version and you'll never notice the difference unless you watch the two versions back-to-back, as I did the other night.

Technicalities aside, though, this is a great Bond film and good looking enough for Deakins to be a strong Oscar contender, despite the Academy's long-held prejudice against Agent 007. So... enjoy!

Click here to read my review of Skyfall.

WARNING: Comments here on this post may include SPOILERS. Feel free to post your unedited reactions to the film below!

Los Angeles Spy Fans: See Skyfall for Free Tonight at AFI Fest

Skyfall has been announced as tonight's (up until now) "secret screening" at the AFI Festival in Hollywood. It will screen tonight in the historic Grauman's Chinese Theater at 9:15. Tickets are free, but available only at the AT&T box office at the festival, located on the fourth floor of the Hollywood & Highland shopping center. Even then, I don't think a ticket guarantees entry, so if you plan on attending, be sure to arrive plenty early to line up.

Of course, Skyfall also opens tonight at midnight in IMAX locations around the country! 

Read my generally spoiler-free review here.

Movie Review: Skyfall (2012)

A note on spoilers: I will not spoil any of the things that shouldn’t be spoiled about Skyfall. However, it’s not possible to write a good review without discussing some plot points of a film, so I will be doing that. If you want to remain completely virginal and you’re avoiding all reviews, avoid this one, too, until after you’ve seen the film. But if you just want to avoid the big actual spoilery spoilers, then you needn’t fear. And those things are worth discussing, so I may well revisit Skyfall once the film has opened in North America on November 9, but until then I shall refrain from discussing such things, and I would appreciate it if commenters from territories where the film has already opened also avoid doing so until then. There's plenty to talk about besides!

There’s already been ample hype and hyperbole touting Skyfall as “the Best Bond since Goldfinger!” or “the best Bond movie ever!” and whatnot. Is it that? Well, obviously such judgments are in the eye of the beholder, but most likely no. I mean, there have been a lot of good Bond movies over the years, right? So I’m not going to leap straight to such ecstatic claims, but I am going to say that this is definitely one of the good ones; Sam Mendes has made a damn fine Bond film! It offers up heaping doses of classic 007, along with plenty of exciting new things we’ve never seen in a Bond movie before in nearly equal measure—which is no mean feat. And it feels thoroughly satisfying in the end, which I’d say guarantees numbers in America to match those we’ve already seen in Britain. Skyfall is going to be huge. And deservedly so. But I was by no means certain of any of that as the film began.

All of the good reviews that I had read or heard, all of the hype, all of the fantastic trailers… that all went out the door as soon as the film began. Because it began, like Quantum of Solace before it, without a gun barrel. I said it all before when I reviewed that film, but apparently it bears repeating: to me, the iconic gun barrel sequence, the dripping blood, and accompanying music are thrilling in their own right. They get my blood pumping for that perfect blend of unequaled action and unrivaled globe-hopping glamor sure to follow. They tell the audience, “You are watching a James Bond movie, so fasten your lap-straps!” That’s why the gun barrel comes up front, not at the end of the movie or in the middle or upside-down or inside-out. There are certain aspects of Bond that no filmmaker should mess with, and that is one of them.* Without a gun barrel sequence, you could be in for an off-brand imitation like the ’67 Casino Royale; with a gun barrel you know you’re in EON’s capable hands, expecting brand-name Bond and guaranteed a good time in the theater. And audiences expect that promise up front. I certainly do. So when I sit down for a Bond movie and it fails to deliver on that expectation, I’m instantly disappointed. Consequently, in those opening seconds, director Sam Mendes undid all of the goodwill I brought with me to this movie. He dug a hole for himself that he would have to work hard to get out of. Marc Forster did the same thing in Quantum of Solace, and he never managed to get out. He never won me over. Luckily, Skyfall is not Quantum of Solace (not by any means!), and Mendes did manage to win me back fairly quickly with a rousing, Istanbul-set pre-title sequence that surely ranks among my favorites of recent vintage. (Even so, though, even as I was watching action I loved, I was still rankled in the back of my mind by the lack of gun barrel. Hopefully that won’t affect me upon a second viewing, and hopefully this warning will alleviate similar discomfort in other viewers.)

I’ve discussed my love of Istanbul as a spy film backdrop plenty of times before (most recently in my Taken 2 review), and Mendes makes the best use of the city I’ve seen in a long time. Remember that cool but somehow somewhat underwhelming foot chase along the rooftops of the city’s grand bazaar in The International? Well, now imagine it on motorcycles. It’s no longer underwhelming in the least! And, happily, Mendes directs the action in such a way that (for the most part) you can tell exactly what’s going on. And editor Stuart Baird (Casino Royale) cuts it in such a way that you can tell what’s going on. There’s none of the muddled confusion that plagued all of Quantum’s setpieces. Furthermore, this opening sequence, like the one in GoldenEye, depicts 007 working in tandem with a fellow agent rather than on his own or with sexist after-the-fact female assistance ala Thunderball or A View to a Kill. And, personally, I like seeing that. It also involves M more integrally than ever before in a pre-title sequence (even Tomorrow Never Dies), setting up a greatly expanded role for Judi Dench in the film to come.

By the time the now-familiar opening notes of Adele’s theme song kick in (by the way, Movieline has an in-depth, must-read analysis of said song), I was fully on board with this Bond outing. Daniel Kleinman’s title sequence is also first-rate, a real return to form after the lackluster job MK12 did on Quantum of Solace. Like Kleinman's work on Casino Royale, this isn’t a straightforward Maurice Binder pastiche; he brings in fresh elements appropriate to the story while retaining essentials of the past. And the movie that follows does that as well.

In a way, Skyfall is so schizophrenic that it almost shouldn’t work—but it absolutely does work. It’s torn between the past and the future, parading all sorts of classic Bondian elements dating back to the Sixties (some of which haven’t been seen in quite a long time) only to then tear them down with deconstructionist lines reminiscent of Daniel Craig’s “Do I look like I give a damn?” when asked in Casino Royale if he wants his vodka martini shaken or stirred. But then, after rejecting them, it somehow builds these classic elements back up again. Mendes desperately wants to have it both ways—and he gets what he wants, and makes it work. Somehow, the 50th Anniversary references to past Bond movies end up working amidst all the deconstruction. (There was, however, one throwaway line of this sort about Q gadgets that almost made me cry as well as laugh because I miss the gadgets so!) At times I worried that by playing on fans’ nostalgia for the series’ classic elements (like one sequence that combined The James Bond Theme and an Aston Martin in such a way as to arouse audible cheers from the whole audience), Mendes risked damning the whole series to Trotsky’s dustbin of history as much as celebrating it. Bond movies shouldn’t rely too heavily on nostalgia, but Mendes and screenwriters Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and John Logan are clearly well aware of this, and always auto-correct. The mixture of nostalgia and post-modernism, in fact, is almost as thrilling and suspenseful to watch unfold as the action on screen. I kept gasping in fear that the film would veer too far in one direction as it came precipitously close, only to then clutch my seat as it suddenly careened the other way.

The actual action is equally thrilling, but comes in surprisingly spare doses. There are lengthy stretches where Mendes gives full attention to other aspects of Bond, like the spycraft (including more le Carré-esque bureaucracy and politics than we’ve ever seen in a Bond movie before—and even a subtle visual reference to Tomas Alfredson’s film of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) or the scenic travelogue shots, which in the more-than-capable hands of master cinematographer Roger Deakins look more beautiful than they have since the Sixties. The only classic Bond element that, perhaps surprisingly, isn't really played up is the sex. Despite Craig’s Bond sleeping with more women than he did in either of his previous outings, Skyfall is more interested in Bond’s professional relationships than his intimate ones, and boldly gives them precedence. The gamble pays off.

Performances are quite good across the board. Sam Mendes is an actors’ director, and, sure enough, he coaxes the best out of his stars. Cubby Broccoli is oft-quoted as saying that it takes three films for Bond actors to really come into their own, and I think history bears him out. Thanks to the reboot aspects of Casino Royale, Daniel Craig has had a slightly different journey than his predecessors, but Skyfall marks his most comfortable performance as 007. (In part this is thanks to the welcome return of the series’ trademark humor, largely absent from the last two outings.) He's fantastic. With more to work with than ever before, Judi Dench rises to the challenge and delivers her best turn to date as M. Is it possible that she could actually score an Oscar nomination for acting in a Bond film? I think it is. After a decade of appropriate histrionics as arch-villain Voldemort in the Harry Potter films, Ralph Fiennes delivers an unexpectedly subtle (and quite impressive) performance as a government bureaucrat. I was somewhat dubious about Bond Girls Bernice Lim Marlohe and Naomie Harris (I'm not sure why), but ended up really liking both of them quite a lot. (Neither of their roles proved to be what I had expected, either.)

Javier Bardem relishes his villainous turn as the mysterious Mr. Silva (displaying notable shades of Walken and Brandauer in the pantheon of Bond Villains), but his character proved the most frustrating to me. If Elliott Carver owed something to Rupert Murdoch, then Silva’s closest real-world cousin is Julian Assange, which is certainly topical and timely, but the flashes we get of backstory for him prove ultimately more frustrating in their fleeting nature than rewarding. In the end, he feels like a sketch of a great villain rather than a deeply-nuanced Caravaggio painting of one. A small part played by Albert Finney also proved frustrating, but for an entirely different reason, and certainly no fault of Finney’s. The role seemed so clearly written for Sean Connery as a sweet 50th Anniversary nod that it was frustrating not to have him actually playing it! That would have been priceless. Oh well.

Overall, all of Skyfall’s well-fleshed-out characters, rich performances, beautiful photography, exotic locations, visceral action, Komodo dragons (yes! I said Komodo dragons!), and equally entertaining nods to the past and future alike add up to a pretty incredible Bond film. If Quantum of Solace owed a debt to the Bourne movies (which, in turn, of course, owe a tremendous debt to Bond), then Skyfall’s debt is to Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies (which, in turn, also owe a huge debt to 007; as Craig says, “That’s the circle of life.”). This will no doubt be widely remarked upon, but the real debt owed here, as with both Bourne and Batman, is to James Bond himself. Sam Mendes may have seemed a somewhat unusual choice to direct a Bond film, but he proved to be just the man for the job, and it’s his avowed love of this series’ past that makes this movie work so well, and, by the end, sets the series on a clear course for its future. When the final credits role (accompanied by Thomas Newman’s entirely satisfying score, which I’ll no doubt write more about in the future), Bond fans will likely feel an intense satisfaction. I know I did. Skyfall is a very gratifying movie, and an excellent course-correction after the disastrous Quantum of Solace. Everyone should see it. And trust me—I haven’t even mentioned the best stuff!

*The one exception is in the 2006 Casino Royale, which, being an origin story, has its reasons for situating the gun barrel elsewhere. And even then, it’s still near the beginning! But for some reason the one-time success of tinkering with the gun barrel position has led EON to believe it bears experimentation every time.

Another New Skyfall Trailer!

With only a little over a week left until its UK opening, Sony have released another new trailer for Skyfall:

Listen to Three Tracks From Thomas Newman's Skyfall Score

You can now sample three tracks (totaling nearly seven minutes) from Thomas Newman's eagerly anticipated score to Skyfall. Newman's effort marks the first James Bond score by anyone other than David Arnold in 15 years, and the series newcomer has some large shoes to fill. It will take more than three tracks for me to form an opinion, but if you've formed one already, please share it! Listen here:

A View To A Clip... From Skyfall

Among all the official videos released online today to mark Global James Bond Day, this one might be the most tantalizing, because it offers us 30 seconds of continuous footage from an action scene in Skyfall! It can be tough to judge action scenes from trailers, since they're all cut up. (For instance, who would have guessed from the excellent Quantum of Solace trailers that the action scenes would be even more cut up in the movie itself?) 30 seconds might not be much, but it's the best chunk of footage we've yet laid eyes on to judge how Sam Mendes handles action... and I like what I see! It's also our first definitive chance to hear new composer Thomas Newman's take on 007, and, again, I like what I hear! (It's kind of hard to judge because it relies heavily on the Bond Theme, but I'm happy to know that he does use the Bond Theme in action, as historically not all 007 composers have!) This clip comes from the pre-credits sequence, so it doesn't contain any plot spoilers, and the major stunt is one we've already seen in the trailers, so I deem it pretty safe for all but the most squeamish about spoilers.

New Skyfall Videos For James Bond's 50th Anniversary

Two new official videos have been released today in celebration of Global James Bond Day. The first is another videoblog from the official 007 website with Broccoli, Wilson, Craig and other Skyfall production personnell discussing the anniversary. The second is a much more in-depth, 10-minute video examining "The Secrets of Skyfall." While it doesn't actualy give away any major plot points, it does give a much clearer picture of the film as a whole than any of the trailers have, so if you're hoping to go in fresh, you might want to hold off watching that one. However, if you simply must ingest every bit of Skyfall you can get your eyes on before the movie premieres, then you'll be in 007th heaven.

Listen Now to Adele's Skyfall Theme Song!

The wait is over! Global James Bond Day comes early for American fans (insert Christmas Jones joke here), since the midnight(ish) release on Adele's website was timed for 0:07 British Standard Time, which is eight hours ahead of Pacific Time. Thanks to a French radio station that jumped the gun, I've been listening to this song continuously for the past four hours... and it's really grown on me. I wish it had more of a hook; I wish it had a tad more bombast, but it's still clearly one of the good Bond songs. I'm definitely not covering my ears in disgust like Madonna made me do. "You Know My Name" is in no danger of being supplanted as my favorite title track of the past decade, but I like what I'm hearing from Adele. I can't wait to see it synced up to a Daniel Kleinman title sequence! "Skyfall" will be available to download from Amazon and iTunes as of midnight tonight.

Adele Confirmed For Skyfall Theme Song

Today the worst kept secret of the past year was finally officially confirmed: Adele will perform the theme song for the latest James Bond movie, Skyfall. Adele first hinted as much nearly a year ago and it's been persistantly rumored ever since, but for some reason EON has waited longer than ever to make the official announcement. The song will officially debut on Friday, October 5 (Global James Bond Day, and the day of the Bond music event at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles), at 0:07 BST on Adele's website. (That's 7:07pm, October 4, Eastern Time in America.) But, inevitably, clips have already leaked out. I imagine links will disappear quickly, but keep popping up until Friday's unveiling. Adele is possibly the biggest recording artist in the world right now (her last album, 21, was the bestselling album of the last two years), so this song seems to have a good chance of making the biggest Bondian impact on the charts since Madonna's "Die Another Day" in 2002. There's no word yet on whether there will be a physical CD single (fingers crossed, because I'd hate to curtail my collection of Bond singles!), but the digital download can already be pre-ordered on iTunes.

Final U.S. Skyfall 1-Sheet Poster

The final U.S. 1-sheet poster for Skyfall has been unveiled on the official James Bond Facebook page, using the same artwork as the UK quad, but configured slightly differently. (I prefer the quad—though it is interesting how little of the gun barrel is required after so many years to convey the 007 logo.) The more prominent dust (free from a credits block) on this one does make the reclining Daniel Craig seem more in action than at rest, which is good. All in all, it still strikes me a an odd pose to go with for the film's main campaign, but I do like how it recalls one of the silhouettes used in the 1980s Berkley paperback line of Bond books (the one used on Goldfinger).

New James Bond Coke Zero Commercial

Once again, Coke Zero is a promotional partner for the new James Bond movie. There's no new footage of Skyfall in this new Coke Zero commercial, and there's no sneak preview of the new theme song (the last one utilized an instrumental version of Jack White's song prior to its official debut, much to the singer's annoyance), but I kind of love this ad. It's for more creative than the Quantum of Solace-era tie-in, and it succeeds better than most that have gone this route in celebrating Bond fandom rather than Bond.
(via MI6)

Daniel Craig to Host Saturday Night Live

Deadline reports that Daniel Craig will host the third Saturday Night Live of the new season on October 6 with musical guest Muse. That's... awesome! I've wanted to see Craig host SNL since he became Bond, but figured it was pretty unlikely. Will there be a Bond sketch? Pierce Brosnan didn't do a Bond sketch... but he did quite memorably fight a trident-bearing Will Farrell during a job interview. And for those doubting Craig's sketch comedy chops, remember this Catherine Tate sketch and his hilarious reading of the line "crazy" with regards to what kind of straw he prefers!

Skyfall UK Quad Revealed

Seenit has the first look at the new UK quad poster for Skyfall. It's not the best of the Skyfall posters we've seen to date, but it's still pretty cool. Personally, I prefer this artwork as a giant theater standee, which is also out there. As a flat poster, it kind of looks more like Daniel Craig is relaxing rather than in action. But I still like it, nonetheless.