Introducing A New Feature On Double O Section

It seems that most of the movies I review happen because a new edition comes out on DVD, or there's a special screening or something like that. I've gotten to write about a lot of great movies like that, but it also leaves out a lot of classics. "My Favorite Spy Movies" (and "My Favorite Spy Books," etc.) gives me the opportunity to revisit and review old favorites–and fill in some crucial gaps in my spy coverage like (eventually) The Ipcress File, Billion Dollar Brain, The President's Analyst, and maybe even a few classic Bonds. It will be an occasional feature, and this banner will be reserved for only very special movies. Speaking of the banner, thanks to my friend Josh for creating it! The first movie comes today...

Upcoming Spy DVDs: Fury In Marrakesh R2

"Agente Segreto" at the Eurospy Forum reports that Fin de Siecle Media, the Swedish company behind the fantastic recent release of Secret Agent Fireball, will release the 1966 Eurospy title Fury In Marrakesh (full review here) on Region 2 DVD February 18. Fury In Marrakesh (aka Death Pays in Dollars) is the second sequel to Secret Agent Fireball, but stars Hatchet For the Honeymoon's Stephen Forsyth as secret agent Bob Fleming instead of Richard Harrison, who played the character in the first two movies. Future giallo-meisters Ernesto Gastaldo and Luciano Martino return from Fireball to write and co-direct, respectively. I haven't seen this movie (yet!), but it gets a very good write-up in The Eurospy Guide. According to Fin de Siecle's website, this PAL DVD will feature an anamorphic 2.35:1 widescreen transfer (which will probably be beautiful if Fireball is anything to go by!), English and Italian audio tracks and non-removable Swedish subtitles.

Gatiss: Lucifer Box TV Adaptation Dead... But Sherlock Lives

A cool-looking blog with the great name The Word Is Not Enough (though "word" appears to have become "medium," which is not as cool) reports that Mark Gatiss has revealed that the previously announced BBC adaptation of his first Lucifer Box novel The Vesuvius Club is now dead in the water. According to the Word (er, the Medium), "Mark Gatiss spent a year developing an adaptation of his novels with the Beeb. However, it's been abandoned because 'it went the way I thought it would and became more and more neutered.' So they live no more." Sad, but I can't say I didn't expect it. It seemed unlikely even in the age of Torchwood that the BBC would have allowed Gatiss to faithfully adapt his novel, in which bi-sexual Edwardian spy Lucifer Box takes on a demented transvestite bent on volcanic revenge with the aid of purple zombies. Since Gatiss has already adapted his book into one other medium, I assume the graphic novel gives us an idea of what might have been. But the novel is far superior.

I'd still love to see the Box stories filmed. Perhaps with the BBC deal lapsed, the door is open for a film version? I'd say the second book, The Devil In Amber, lends itself most readily to cinematic treatment. Still, it's sadly unlikely that any Hollywood studios will ever come knocking for a bi-sexual hero.

In the same report, though, the Medium has some good (if not spy-related) news about another upcoming Gatiss project: the author/actor/comedian has teamed up with Stephen Moffat to create a new Sherlock Holmes series called Sherlock. Not to be confused with the two Holmes movies currently in development, Gatiss' series plunks the famed detective, his associate Dr. Watson, housekeeper Mrs. Hudson and apartment at 221B Baker Street down in modern-day London. (Not via time travel or anything; they're now contemporary characters.) Gatiss says that they've taken inspiration from the Universal series of Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce movies, which contemporized Holmes in the war-torn 1940s. Benedict Cumberbatch plays Holmes and The Office's Martin Freeman plays Watson.

The press release says, "Sherlock is a thrilling, funny, fast paced take on the crime drama genre set in present day London." More insightful is a quote from Moffat, who proves he knows the right tone to go for by saying, "Other detectives have cases, Sherlock Holmes has adventures and that's what matters."

Gatiss adds, "The fact that Steven, myself and millions of others are still addicted to Conan Doyle's brilliant stories is testament to their indestructibility. They're as vital, lurid, thrilling and wonderful as they ever were. It's a dream come true to be making a new TV series and in Benedict and Martin we have the perfect Holmes and Watson for our time."

It's true; the modern setting sets off a few alarm bells. There's certainly room to go wrong. (I can't help but think of Steve Coogan's fake show Sherlock Holmes in Miami in Cruise of the Gods). But Gatiss is generally a guarantor of quality, so I have faith. I'm very excited for this!

Upcoming Spy DVDs: My Own Worst Enemy

According to TVShowsOnDVD, Universal has announced that this fall's short-lived Christian Slater spy series My Own Worst Enemy will come to DVD on April 21. All nine episodes will be included on two discs. Artwork and extras (if any) aren't available, but retail is only $29.98. The series was a sort of "Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Bourne," with Slater playing a mild-mannered family man called Henry who doesn't realize that he has a secret superspy alter-ego named Edward. I never saw it, but I heard some good things about the pilot, despite those obnoxiously on-the-nose names...

Reminder: Burn Notice Returns Tonight!

New episodes at 10/9C on USA, as the ad says...

Never Say Never Again Reissue Artwork

Fox has provided the cover art for March's Never Say Never Again Blu-Ray. The artwork is the same on the Special Edition DVD. Interestingly, like the previous DVD edition, the MGM logo is nowhere to be found on this packaging, front or spine. It's the only title I've ever seen MGM issue without their logo. And one of the few discs I've ever seen with no studio logo whatsoever! I assume it must be contractual, in an effort to distinguish this rogue production from the official line of Bond movies... but that seems a bit bizarre since otherwise the artwork is clearly trying to look like Bond and fit in with the currently available packaging. Weird. The last version didn't say "James Bond" or "007" anywhere on the front; this one manages to sneak it on there via an entirely non-subjective Variety quote. Still nothing in the title treatment, though.

Never Say Never Again Revisited On DVD, Blu-Ray

Well, wonders never cease! How things have changed in a few years. I remember asking an MGM Home Video rep if we'd ever see a Special Edition of Never Say Never Again back when the current, bare-bones DVD first came out... and being rather shocked by the vehemence with which he said we were lucky to have any DVD of that movie! He indicated that the producers of the legitimate Bond franchise would much rather see it disappear, and MGM obviously has good reason to want to keep the Broccolis happy. But clearly something's changed since then, as Fox Home Video (who distribute MGM product) announced today that the infamous rogue Bond film starring Sean Connery will indeed see a Special Edition release (and even a Blu-Ray release!) on March 24, the same day that Quantum of Solace and the third wave of official James Bond Blu-Rays come out.

According to the press release, both the Blu-Ray and the DVD will include "commentary with director Irvin Kershner and James Bond historian Steven Jay Rubin, multiple featurettes, the theatrical trailer and photo gallery." I don't know, but I would assume that this means that Rubin is producing the special features, as he did with MGM's other recent rogue Bond DVD, Casino Royale '67. There's an absolutely fascinating story behind Never Say Never Again, so hopefully MGM actually allows it to be told on the featurettes! Those includes "The Big Gamble," "Sean is Back," and "The Girls of Never Say Never Again."

I know Never Say Never Again is a film that divides Bond fans, but personally I love it... so I'm really excited about this release! Especially that Kershner commentary.

New Spy DVDs Out This Week: MI-5

MI-5: Volume 6 hits US shelves today from BBC Home Video. We in America are running well behind the UK on this British show, known there as Spooks. There, the seventh season comes out in February, the eighth will be broadcast later this year, and a ridiculous-looking (but at the same time intriguing) teenage spinoff called Spooks: Code 9 has already aired and hit DVD. Here, though, we're getting Season 6, and that's a cause for celebration. Any new MI-5 is a cause for celebration!

The series has mutated plenty since its tense, down-to-earth debut, but it remains superb entertainment in its new, action-packed, 24-inspired format as well. Volume 6 sees another shift in the 24 direction as MI-5, which (despite a few two-parters and some ongoing character arcs) has generally focused on standalone episodes in the past now embraces the serial model. Beyond the now standard two-part opener, there is an ongoing threat this season for the first time: Iran. There's also an ongoing plotline about a search for one of the MI-5 agents (and series regulars) who goes missing in the premiere. While it's probable this will air on BBC America, DVD remains the only way to get a proper viewing experience of MI-5 in the United States. The TV versions are hacked up beyond recognition in order to fit the commercials.

Massive Network DVD Sale!

You know that awesome British DVD company, Network, that I was raving about only yesterday in my review of their excellent documentary The Saint Steps In... To Television? Well, today they announced a massive sale on their website that runs through January 25, with everything discounted by at least 40%, and often more! This includes their superb soundtrack CD sets as well as their feature-laden DVDs. The DVDs are PAL and mostly Region 2, so if you're not in Europe, be sure that you have the capabilities to play them. (Most people with a DVD drive on their computer and some free software do these days.) The Saint Steps In... To Television, for instance, is reduced from £11.06 ($16.29) to £5.10 ($7.51). For UK customers, the bargain is obvious. For US ones, consider that the current exchange rate is a reasonably favorable 1 GBP = 1.47 USD. That makes the disc just $10.80 including shipping to the United States! I swear, I don't work for Network and I'm not paid to shill for them... I just know a great DVD bargain when I see one and I can't shut up about it!

Among the many other spy-related bargains are:

Mister Jerico starring Patrick Macnee (review here) for only £4.59

The Bulldog Drummond Double Bill featuring both the sublime Deadlier Than the Male and its (somewhat lesser) sequel Some Girls Do plus special features for the unmissable price of £5.10. (If you consider yourself any sort of spy fan at all and you don't own this, then you can't afford not to buy it at this price! Absolutely essential.)

Michael Powell's Espionage for £5.10

The Ipcress File Special Edition (the two-disc one that comes with the Len Deighton book and the John Barry soundtrack CD as well as loads of special features) for just £10.21

The (unintentionally?) side-splitting adventures of the world's smarmiest spy, Gene Bradley, in The Adventurer for £12.76

The Sandbaggers: The Complete Series (the greatest "serious" spy show of all time, featuring a few extras not available on the US versions) for just £15.31--and individual seasons as low as £6.63

The Baron for £20.42

Return of the Saint (the most feature-laden version of this hard-to-find series in the world) for only £22.97

The Prisoner: Special Edition (remastered to the highest imaginable quality with loads and loads of unmissable special features not included on the US or Australian releases), The Persuaders! (bursting at the seams with mouthwatering extras), Danger Man, Department S, Jason King, and The Champions (all ditto) all for just £25.53 each (around 60% savings on some of those titles!)

Even their normally pricey Saint sets (The Complete Monochrome Series is a whopping 18 discs!) are drastically slashed by more than 50%! (Although The Saint is available in sets of varying quality in most countries, Network's is again the one with by far the most special features.)

Also on sale, in addition to DVDs, are the company's many multi-disc ITC soundtrack sets (including The Prisoner, Department S, Man In A Suitcase and two volumes of Danger Man), most ranging from £10 to £15!

When one of the world's largest distributors of spy DVDs has a sale like this, it's an event not to be missed! What are you waiting for? Start bargain-hunting! (That's what I've been doing all night long.) Be warned, though, that the site has been acting really weird all day due to the high volume of traffic the sale's attracted. Hopefully they have that straightened out by now. Also, I sometimes found that I ended up with an even lower price than the one listed after I put an item into my cart. Weirdness.

Next Wave Of Bond Blu-Ray Titles, Art Revealed

On March 24, the same day as Quantum of Solace hits DVD and Blu-Ray, Fox will unleash another wave of classic Bond Blu-Ray titles... but only three this time. James Bond Blu-Ray: Volume Three includes Goldfinger, Moonraker and The World Is Not Enough. The discs will be available individually or in a three-pack, as with the first two collections of Bond Blu-Ray titles. It's not exactly an all-star lineup, is it? A classic and two duds. Of course, there are days when Moonraker is exactly what I'm in the mood for. (Actually, I kind of love it in it's own way.) Even bad Bond is better than most stuff!

DVD Review: The Saint Steps In.. To Television (2008)

Time and again, U.K. company Network has proven itself one of the greatest allies to fans of classic British television. Not only do they release more cult series from ITV’s Golden Era than anyone else, but they do it in style. No other company in Britain or America (or even Australia, where Network’s only serious competitor, Umbrella, operates) regularly produces as many DVD series sets (or CD soundtrack sets) with as many excellent extras as Network. Most of their sets include an embarrassment of archival extras, ranging from original promos to films made out of two-parters to PDFs of scripts and annuals. But Network doesn’t stop there. They often include newly-produced extras, ranging from the excellent commentary tracks and interviews of the sort Umbrella sometimes includes to lavish, newly-produced feature-length documentaries. Each volume of The Saint that the company has released (The Complete Monochrome Series, The Complete Colour Series and Return of the Saint) has contained a documentary in the neighborhood of forty minutes, and the company has gone above and beyond what most of their kind do: they’ve edited the three together into one two-hour-plus documentary feature and released it on its own disc, affording Saint fans worldwide the opportunity to see what amounts to the definitive story of the series without buying (or re-buying) the entire, expensive series!

The Saint Steps In... To Television is comprised of the original, shorter "The Saint Steps In... To Television" (named after author Leslie Charteris’s novel The Saint Steps In), "The Saint Steps In... To Colour" (both narrated by Seventies Saint Ian Ogilvy) and "The Saint Steps In... To the Seventies" (narrated by Roger Moore). Since the three pieces focus on different eras of the character and are edited sequentially, they easily come together to form a cohesive whole that for the most part avoids repetition and proceeds chronologically.

After a brief introduction showing headshots of every actor to play The Saint (from Louis Hayward to Val Kilmer), some background on Charteris with shots of some of the paperback covers and comic strips (featuring Moore’s likeness) and an exciting montage of clips from the show, the first third settles into a series of talking heads. I found myself wondering why they didn’t edit in more clips to illustrate the speakers’ points (that may be an American thing, since we seem to have shorter attention spans than Brits–or it may just be a budgetary issue), but it didn’t really matter because the speakers are all key figures in the history of The Saint. Fans of the series will be so fascinated by what they’re saying that they don’t require clips.

The speakers cover some stories that die-hards will have heard before (like how the Saint came to drive his trademark Volvo after Jaguar stupidly refused to lend or even sell the production an E-Type) but are crucial to the overall story of the show–and many that are fresh. Those interviewed include Moore and Ogilvy, Charteris’s daughter, script supervisor Harry Junkin, guest stars like Kate O’Mara, Burt Kwouk and Alexandra Bastedo, and many key behind-the-scenes production personnel. All share fond, not-so-fond and humorous anecdotes about the making of The Saint. The late Leslie Charteris himself serves as a commentator throughout the entire documentary in the form of his many, many memos addressed to the writers, which are read by the narrators. They are nearly all derisive, berating the producers for ruining his masterful short stories in the adaptation. Particular vitriol is reserved for Junkin, whom the author didn’t seem to realize was very successfully shepherding his character from the page into a wildly popular TV show. ("As usual, this script is fit for Junkin(g)!") If I have one minor criticism of The Saint Steps In... To Television, it would be that they perhaps travel to this well one or two times too many, since the tenor of all the memos is pretty much the same. But then again, they are too amusing to neglect.

Ogilvy has fun narrating the portions on the Moore show, and doesn’t take any of it too seriously. I think it’s the appropriate tone for the subject matter, but I could see the style being a bit off-putting to some viewers. Also, since the narrator isn’t introduced in the course of the documentary, it falls to the audience to know why he gives an exaggerated, comically annoyed sigh every time he says the name "Roger Moore." Then again, if you’re watching this disc, you probably know exactly who Ian Ogilvy is and why he’s doing that! I suppose that was the producers’ assumption.

The comic tone doesn’t just come from Ogilvy; it’s in the script as well–and it keeps the whole 124-minute feature from ever getting remotely dull. There are various snide remarks about some of the actors at the beginning (particularly Kilmer and Jean Marais) and pretty hilarious cigar-chomping portraits used to depict ITV mogul Lew Grade every time he comes up. On top of that, Ogivly does an amusing (and I assume accurate–if exaggerated) impression of the man. (Most of the narrated bits amount to comic relief, as the principal talking heads do a great job of telling the relevant story on their own.) Later on, as the transition to color is discussed–as well as The Saint’s contemporaries and imitators–there’s an amusing series of variations on the famous Saint stickman logo representing each of the other shows mentioned. While most of them are pretty straightforward, the producers slip in a laugh-out-loud hilarious in-joke about The Adventurer. I had to go back and pause the screen to tell what the drawing was, but when my girlfriend and I realized that it was a very short stick figure next to a taller one (and you just know angry about it!)–with a height scale included to drive the point home–we both cracked up. If you’ve ever watched Network’s fantastic extras on their DVD of The Adventurer (or followed this amazing website devoted to the series), you’ll know that star Gene Barry incurred the enmity of all who worked on the show for his refusal to work with actors and actresses who were taller than he was–which was pretty much everyone. Clever, Network, clever!

Certain episodes get singled out for individual attention, including the color highwater mark "The Fiction Makers" (a two-parter combined as a feature for sale in Europe because "there’s always a demand for theatrical product"–or apparently was back then!), the infamous foray into ludicrous, giant ant-driven sci-fi in "The House On Dragon's Rock" and the stellar episode that served as an unofficial pilot for The Persuaders!, "The Ex-King of Diamonds."

Moore takes over narrating duties as the story shifts to the Seventies–and the Saint switches to a Jaguar after all. While some of Ogilvy’s anecdotes are recycled from his interview and commentary on Umbrella’s Return of the Saint set, there’s a lot of fascinating new information here about the revival–which has generally received less attention than Moore's longer-running series in the past. The scenic European location filming that makes the show so good is covered, as well as Charteris’s increased involvement with (and generally increased approval for) this incarnation of his character. Ogilvy and Charteris formed an unlikely alliance, united against the worst of the scripts. Together, they dug their feet in about an episode entitled "The Prince of Darkness" which would have found the Saint fighting vampires. While I can see their point (that that’s way out of the standard realm of The Saint), I personally would have loved to see such an episode! How cool would it have been to see Ogilvy’s Simon Templar wander into a Seventies Hammer movie? Oh well. Missed opportunities.

The documentary concludes a little abruptly with the implicit promise of more to come by briefly mentioning the Eighties version (powered by Simon Dutton) and stating via narration that "that’s another story." I’d heard that Network had abandonned its ambitions to release the Dutton series (which was at one time rumored to also include the misguided 1987 Andrew Clarke pilot which found a mustached Saint bombing around Manhattan in a Lamborghini like a third-rate Magnum), but this tease makes me hope that’s not true! I’d love to see another chapter of this top shelf documentary about The Saint stepping into... whatever he stepped in in the Eighties. I suppose that’s a subjective question, but the producers of this documentary never shy away from the subjective...

The Saint Steps In To... Television is far more than what we’re accustomed to in DVD special features–especially on TV shows. It’s a legitimate, full-fledged documentary on the history of one of the cornerstone Sixties spy shows, and it’s absolutely essential viewing for fans of Simon Templar and Roger Moore. The producers manage to find a way for their documentary to both serve as a good primer on The Saint for neophytes just dipping their feet in, but at the same time entertain and enlighten even the most hardcore halo-heads. Network should be applauded not only for making such an in-depth documentary on the subject, but also for making it available to viewers independently of the show. It’s a Region 0 PAL disc, so anyone with a DVD drive on their computer should be able to play it, no matter what country they’re in. Since A&E didn’t offer any extras on their Saint DVDs, I would recommend it as ideal supplemental viewing to Americans. Even Australians with the Umbrella DVDs should order this Network web exclusive, as it contains completely different, new material.

Network has previously made their Prisoner documentary, Don’t Knock Yourself Out, available independently of the series set. I hope this sells well, and they continue that trend. I’d love to be able to buy their Persuaders documentary next!

Where's The Next Alex Rider Graphic Novel?

Fans of Antony Johnston's comic book adaptations of Anthony Horowitz's bestselling Alex Rider series of young adult spy novels may be worried that the third book, Skeleton Key, didn't appear on shelves last month. (The previous volume, Point Blanc, came out right after Christmas last year.) And there's still no Amazon listing. So is the graphic novel series cancelled? Good news: no, it isn't! Johnston wrote me last fall to spread the word that Skeleton Key had been pushed back by the publisher, and wouldn't be out until September 2009... but somehow I never got around to posting that in the crush at the time. Now that fans might be wondering where the book was, I thought I better go ahead and do that. Rest assured: the series will continue. (I hear it's very popular.) Furthermore, Johnston reveals on his website that he finished the script for the fourth adaptation, Eagle Strike, in November, but doesn't expect it to come out until 2010. So more Alex Rider graphic novels will be forthcoming for some time to come. (As much as I enjoy the adaptations of Horowitz's novels, though, I do hope we get some original Alex Rider comics one day!)

The movies, on the other hand, are another story. I fear The Weinstein Company good and killed that series with their gross mishandling of the first film in this country. Sigh.

The novels, of course, continue. Horowitz, who must have replaced James Brown as the hardest working man in show business--what with his American TV deal, a few more episodes of Foyle's War and a new British show called Collision (whew!)--stated on his own website last month that he's recently begun work on the eighth book, Crocodile Tears. It will be partly set in Kenya. The series is currently projected to total ten volumes.

Tradecraft: Marvel Spies On The Big Screen

Variety reports that Devil Wears Prada actress Emily Blunt is in talks to play Marvel Comics' sexy, catsuit-wearing Russian superspy Black Widow (aka Natasha Romanoff) in Iron Man 2. I'm a huge fan of this character (I cherish my portfolio of mid-80s Paul Gulacy depictions of her), especially in her most recent solo series, which focused far more on her spy side than her superhero antics. For a while, Rebecca Romijn was rumored to be under consideration for the lead role in a Black Widow movie (at Lionsgate, I believe), but I guess this is now scuppered in favor of introducing the character in a supporting part in the Iron Man world. I like Blunt. As long as she looks good as a redhead and can pull off a convincing Russian accent, I think she could be good in the role.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times is reporting that Marvel's other famous superspy, who made a cameo at the end of the first Iron Man, may not turn up in the sequel at all. Jackson, who was expected to reprise the role in a bigger part, told the paper, "There was a huge kind of negotiation that broke down. I don't know. Maybe I won't be Nick Fury. Maybe somebody else will be Nick Fury or maybe Nick Fury won't be in it." He implies that Marvel is being cheap, which sounds in keeping with the recent replacement of Terrence Howard with Don Cheadle, also supposedly after negotiations broke down. So here we go again with the whole "will or won't Sam Jackson be Nick Fury?" speculation that took many twists and turns leading up to the first Iron Man!

Is this all just a negotiating tactic on Jackson's part? Does Marvel want a younger Fury who could hold his own as an action hero in his own franchise? Do they plan to go back to the classic Steranko version of the character rather than the Jackson-inspired Ultimate version? Or is the character, as Jackson speculates, written out of the picture altogether? And, given the proximity of these two Marvel spy stories breaking, as the Hardy Boys would always wonder, "do you think there might be a connection?" Could it be that Fury's job of S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who unites the superhero team that will become The Avengers has been redistributed to Natasha Romanoff? Perhaps without Jackson, director John Favreau has simply decided to use another spy to recruit the heroes to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s cause?

Whatever the case, I certainly hope that a Black Widow appearance in Iron Man 2 at the very least leads Marvel to put out an Essential Black Widow collection of comics!

R.I.P. Patrick McGoohan

It's a very sad day in spy-world today. The Prisoner has been released. The Associated Press reports that Patrick McGoohan, star of the classic espionage series Danger Man (known in the U.S. as Secret Agent) and The Prisoner (as well as John Sturges' 1968 film of Ice Station Zebra) has died at the age of 80 following a brief illness.

McGoohan was a true titan of the genre. Along with Patrick Macnee and Roger Moore, he defined it in the early Sixties. Danger Man debuted in 1960, prior to The Avengers, The Saint, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Mission: Impossible, Dr. No or any of the other big Sixties spy franchises. Thanks to his work in Danger Man, McGoohan was the first actor to become instantly identified with spying, which led to his being considered for both James Bond and Simon Templar when it came to casting those roles. The actor's deep personal faith (he was devoutly Catholic) ended up playing a big part in his career, and it became clear that his aversion to sex and guns on screen would rule him out for either role. Those same personal tastes combined to make John Drake, the titular Secret Agent, a fascinating character in the world of Sixties espionage. Unlike his popular colleagues, Drake rarely carried a gun and never took advantage of the various beautiful women he came across in the course of his career. McGoohan's own moral principals carried over to the character and enhanced it greatly.

While The Prisoner is rightfully regarded as one of the greatest TV series of all time, that distinction causes the show to unfairly eclipse Danger Man, which was a terrific program in its own right. Most of both the initial half-hour series and the subsequent hour-long one was shot in black and white, which seemed appropriate to the stories they told, which were often considerably more grim than those on The Saint or The Avengers. While Drake was undoubtedly a force of good, the lines were more blurred in his world than Simon Templar's.

McGoohan was never content to stay in front of the camera. After directing a few episodes of Danger Man, he went on to be the primary creative force behind the mind-bending The Prisoner, writing and directing many episodes (including the finale, "Fallout," which is as good a TV episode as we're ever likely to see) as well as starring. The Prisoner transcended its spy genre, not only in that it adopted some more sci-fi conventions, but more importantly in that it addressed serious themes of freedom (both personal and civic) and the role of the individual in society. The series is a masterpiece, and McGoohan will always be remembered for it. But that was by no means the entirety of the man's accomplishments.

Whether he was Number 6, John Drake or the Scarecrow of Romney Marsh, Patrick McGoohan brought a glowering intensity to every role he played. He's arresting on screen. You can't take your eyes off him. He combines a piercing gaze with a unique enunciation and carefully punctuated delivery to take absolute command of every scene he's in. That's why it was impossible to break the Prisoner. And that's why Patrick McGoohan will never be forgotten.

But he sure will be missed.

ACTUAL QUANTUM OF SOLACE DVD ARTWORK REVEALED!

Upcoming Spy DVDs

DVDActive reports that Lionsgate will release last fall's incredibly entertaining neo-Eurospy escapade Transporter 3 on DVD March 10. No details yet on extras or artwork.

TVShowsOnDVD has the rear cover art and slightly revised front cover art for Return of the Man From U.N.C.L.E.: The Fifteen Years Later Affair. The revised artwork restores that subtitle, which had been dropped from the last version we saw.

Amazon lists an April 14 release date for Canadian spy drama Intelligence: Season 2 from Acorn Media. Acorn hasn't sent out an official press release yet, so this is all the info we've got at the moment, along with a $59.99 MSRP. I'm glad to learn that more U.S. releases of this series are forthcoming, though!

Finally, U.K. viewers will at last be able to buy OSS 117: Cairo Nest of Spies on Region 2 PAL DVD on February 23. The Amazon listing doesn't offer any clues as to special features that might be included, but one hopes it will at least contain the same ones offered on the American DVD. Thanks to Kees Stam for the heads-up on that one!

Quantum Of Solace DVD Announced

Fox Home Entertainment (and not Sony, as I would have expected) announced today that the latest James Bond film, Quantum of Solace, will hit DVD and Blu-Ray this spring. "The high-octane action of the world's most famous secret agent continues when QUANTUM OF SOLACE explodes onto Blu-ray Disc and DVD this March from MGM and Fox Home Entertainment," blares their press release. Dates vary internationally, but most hover around the U.S. release date of March 24, 2009. Australia gets it first (after being one of the last countries to open the film theatrically) a week earlier, and France and Switzerland have to wait until May. Japan (as the latest theatrical opening) brings up the rear with a June release.

Quantum of Solace will be available in single- and double-disc editions. The single-disc version includes the somewhat lacklustre music video for "Another Way to Die" and the film's awesome theatrical trailers; the two disc set includes all that and adds the following featurettes:

· "Bond on Location" 24-minute special feature
· Start of Shooting
· On Location
· Olga Kurylenko and the Boat Chase
· Director Marc Forster
· The Music
· Crew Files

It's hard to tell how in-depth these features are by their titles, but just reading the list it sounds like more than the initial Casino Royale disc offered. (Still, I'm surprised more of the UK TV specials that aired around the film's opening aren't included. Was that "Bond on Location" a TV thing?) Seeing as there's no commentary track, though, I'd say it's a safe bet to expect a more thorough Special Edition down the road. In that department, I'm sorry that Sony has lost the license. They produced the best Bond DVD ever with their Casino Royale Collector's Edition, and Fox and MGM will have a tough act to follow!

Rejoice, Bond fans; your collections will once again be complete this March! (If you're as obsessive as I am, that brief window following each new theatrical release is a stressful time, knowing you don't have a complete collection...)

INTELLIGENCE CONTEST WINNERS

Congratulations to the following readers, each of whom have won a DVD set of the first season of Intelligence courtesy of Acorn Media. Your discs will be in the mail next week. Enjoy!

Eric Newsom of Troy, NY

J. Kingston Pierce of Seattle, WA

Erik Jacobson of Minneapolis, MN

Thank you to everyone who entered. For those of you who didn't win, I do encourage you to seek this series out if you're looking for... forgive me... intelligent espionage dramas. And take heart; you'll have another chance to win something else soon. Another contest is always just around the corner at the Double O Section!

Reminder: Last Day To Enter Intelligence DVD Contest!

Be sure to enter for a chance to win Season One of the Canadian spy drama Intelligence on DVD if you haven't already! Entries must be received by midnight, Pacific Time tonight. Winners will be announced tomorrow. Good luck!

Return Of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Cover Art

Amazon has posted the final cover art for Paramount's upcoming Return of the Man From U.N.C.L.E. disc, and TVShowsOnDVD has a high-res version. It's very similar to the preliminary art, but an improvement nonetheless. The TV reunion movie, starring original men from U.N.C.L.E. Robert Vaughn and David McCallum as well as fellow Sixties spies Patrick Macnee and George Lazenby, comes out on March 3.

Book Review: James Bond: The Secret World of 007 Third Edition

You’ve all seen this book, because it’s been around in one version or another for nearly a decade now. But with every new Bond movie, DK dutifully releases another updated edition, and what I’m reviewing here is the latest, the Third Edition, sporting the best cover yet: a gold-hued still of Daniel Craig from Quantum of Solace (naturally). If you’ve already got one of the other editions, then you know what to expect. This is a typical DK book; it’s packed with pictures on well laid-out pages overflowing with nuggets of copiously-illustrated facts about 007 and all of his missions. The overall conceit is that Bond and his world are real (there’s a forward by M explaining how all this can be declassified), and the book is clearly geared toward kids. In fact, it’s pretty much the best Bond book a kid could hope for, and I wish it was around when I was that age!

The new edition updates the picture of Judi Dench that accompanies M’s forward and replaces Brosnan with Craig on the "Bond Dossier" page in the front... but after that, it’s the same text and pictures that comprised the old version up through The World Is Not Enough. After sections on Bond’s weapons and fashions (still heavy on the Brosnan), girls, villains, allies and Q, we get to the heart of the book: four to ten page segments on each of the films–or "missions." The information comes–true to DK form–in beautifully laid-out two page spreads with lots of big photographs and illustrations (courtesy of Roger Stewart) and little chunks of text (by author Alistair Dougall or Consultant Editor Dave Worrall–a name well known to most Bond fans). Interestingly, these spreads generally avoid depicting Bond himself, giving the overall impression that Brosnan or maybe Craig participated in each adventure.

The book’s highlights are Stewart’s sprawling cutaway illustrations of vehicles and locations– like the Disco Volante, Atlantis, Piz Gloria and Drax’s space station–and large-scale photographs of Little Nellie, the Acrostar jet, Bond’s underwater Lotus and various Aston Martins detailed with pictures of their gadgets and inner-workings. I repeat: I would have loved this book as a kid! (The James Bond Fact File came close back in those days–but not in such style.) Some of the cutaways require creative extrapolation from what we actually see in the movies. For example, the book details the components of Dr. No’s prosthetic hands and reveals the geography of Scaramanga’s funhouse, something which is difficult to get a handle on in the film. Other two-page spreads detail spectacular chases or battles in Where’s Waldo-like levels of detail. My favorites covered the Aston Martin chase in The Living Daylights and the volcano battle in You Only Live Twice.

The chapters on Die Another Day and Casino Royale warrant more pages (as each one was added to sell another edition of the book), but ultimately less rewarding content. Apparently Stewart didn’t return (other than for some nice details of the Vanquish’s gadgets), so instead of his neat illustrations, we’re treated to familiar publicity stills and occasional production art. There’s also less information available on the new films, as their sections were probably written before the authors even had a chance to see them, perhaps based only on synopses provided by EON. Quantum of Solace only gets four pages (probably all the stills DK had access to at press time), and the descriptions are fairly obtuse, giving few details on what happens in the film. (Try this for ambiguity: "Bond’s journey through a labyrinth of evil led by wicked twists and turns to an apartment in Moscow.") It’s frankly odd to see the more adult-oriented Craig films broken down into DK’s kid-friendly layouts with headings like "Minefield of Treachery" and "To the Limit!" Still, I suppose the pictures would be fun for a kid to look at, even if he or she hadn’t yet seen the film.

Honestly, there’s not much here (beneath the pretty surface, anyway) for seasoned, adult 007 fans. Those seeking a more in-depth, detailed and equally lavish take on the "Bond is real" conceit would be better served by the James Bond Encyclopedia, DK’s adult equivalent to Secret World. Those desiring actual behind-the-scenes information on the making of the films won’t find it in either place, and should turn instead to The James Bond Legacy. But for younger 007 fans, there’s never been a better book than James Bond: The Secret World of 007. If there’s a budding Bond aficionado in your life, this is the book for them! And if you’re like me and you just can’t manage to outgrow cutaway drawings of cars and bases and hovercraft, well then maybe it's for you, too...

Bill Sienkiewicz Draws James Bond

Cult-favorite comic book artist Bill Sienkiewicz, most famous for work on Elektra (but also responsible for an amazing run on The Shadow in the Eighties), has painted a montage of the year's nominated movies to advertise the Critics' Choice Awards, airing this Thursday. The ad runs in the current issue of Entertainment Weekly and serves as the back cover for today's Hollywood Reporter. Sharing space with Indiana Jones, Bruce Wayne, Clint Eastwood and others is James Bond! Since we no longer get painted movie posters, this kind of image (like Francesco Francavilla's retro-style poster) makes me very happy. Sienkiewicz may be best known to spy fans as the penciler of a few really cool, very espionage-heavy Black Widow mini-series a few years back, or for his DVD artwork for The Venture Brothers. He seems to have moved more into commercial art in recent years, and this image has me wishing he'd paint some movie posters! (Then again, I'm always longing for the days of painted posters, especially when it comes to James Bond.) The Daniel Craig pose is clearly based on a widely circulated publicity still, but I prefer Sienkiewicz's version.

Swedish Harry Palmer DVDs

While exploring the Fin de Siecle website last week when I ordered my Secret Agent Fireball DVD, I came across some eye-catching Harry Palmer DVDs.* Swedish company Atlantic Film produces a three-film Harry Palmer box set called "The Ultimate Harry Palmer"... but it's not really that ultimate. You see, the other two films besides The Ipcress File are not the equally excellent legitimate sequels Funeral In Berlin and Billion Dollar Brain, but the mediocre, made-for-TV Nineties revivals Bullet To Beijing and Midnight In St. Petersburg. Still, the individual discs have some pretty cool cover art! (Certainly much cooler than the out-of-print budget North American DVDs.) And if you're a Harry Palmer completist who doesn't yet have these titles (but does have a multi-region player), you can pick them up dirt cheap from Fin de Siecle. I particularly love that Midnight In St. Petersberg cover that boldly states "CAINE" and "CONNERY" across the top without revealing that the Connery in question is actually Jason, son of Sean. I feel sorry for unsuspecting Swedes who thought they were getting a Man Who Would Be King rematch... In keeping with that gleeful spirit of false advertising, the covers for both Midnight and Bullet appear to promise viewers films based on Len Deighton novels, when the author had nothing to do with these productions, and didn't write any such books. Finally, both covers manage to convey a good deal more excitement than the movies do, too!
*Of course, if I'd fully explored every nook and cranny of Kees' Harry Palmer Movie Site, I would have already seen these covers--along with plentiful others, from all around the world. Check 'em out!

Secret Agent Fireball DVD Now Available!

DiabolikDVD now has Fin de Siecle Media's brand new Swedish Region 2 DVD of Secret Agent Fireball (full review here) in stock. (It's listed as Spy Killers.) Secret Agent Fireball (aka The Spy Killers aka Operation Spy Killer aka Le spie uccidono a Beirut) is a highly sought-after Eurospy flick from 1965. It stars Richard Harrison (Ring Around the World) as secret agent Bob Fleming (see what they did there?), Agent X117 (and there?), co-stars Lightning Bolt's Wandisa Guida and boasts a script by future giallo maestros Ernesto Gastaldi and Sergio Martino (Torso, The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh). If you ask me, that's a heck of a pedigree! The film makes its worldwide DVD debut on this new Swedish disc which, according to the incredibly positive buzz on the Eurospy Forum, is beautifully remastered and presented in widescreen with English and Italian audio (and, unfortunately, non-removable Swedish subtitles). Secret Agent Fireball was followed by two sequels, Killers Are Challenged (1966, with Harrison reprising his role) and Fury In Marrakesh (also '66, with Stephen Forsyth, star of Mario Bava's Hatchet For the Honeymoon and co-composer of that unused, alternate Never Say Never Again theme song that Tim Lucas dug up last year). The latter is also due out on DVD from Fin de Siecle later this year.

Americans with multi-region players can now easily order Secret Agent Fireball from DiabolikDVD for $24.99, or directly from Fin de Siecle in Sweden for just 129 kronar (which comes out to under $20 including shipping to the U.S.). I did the latter and had some trouble with the Paypal checkout, but ironed those problems out very smoothly with Fin de Siecle's helpful customer service team. When it arrives, naturally I'll be posting a review... but if you like Eurospy movies and you have the capability to play an R2 PAL disc, you might as well go ahead and order a copy! After all, it's crucial to support companies like Fin de Siecle and Dorado who strive to preserve these obscure Eurospy gems with pristine DVD transfers.

Read my complete review of Secret Agent Fireball here.

NEW YEAR'S CONTEST: Win Intelligence On DVD

Let's ring in the New Year with another giveaway! In my Spy Fans' Holiday Shopping Guide, I mentioned a Canadian spy series called Intelligence that I've talked about before. It's relatively obscure to American audiences, but it's an engrossing, realistic series that plays like a cross between MI-5 and The Sopranos, following agents of Canada’s domestic service (and the criminals they’re spying on) as they attempt to form the nation’s first foreign spy agency. It's a spy show that focuses more on the backstabbing politics of an the Intelligence Community than on shootouts and action, like the earlier seasons of MI-5 or The Sandbaggers. Personally, I find that stuff often more interesting than the fieldwork. Intelligence deserves wider viewership, and to that end here's a chance for three lucky readers to win a set of Intelligence: Season One on DVD! Chances are this is a spy show you haven't seen yet. For a chance to win, simply send an email with the subject heading "INTELLIGENCE" including your name and mailing address to the Double O Section by midnight, Pacific Time on Thursday, January 8, 2008. Winners will be announced in one week's time, next Friday. Good luck!

One entry per person, please. Double entries will be disqualified. Three winners will be drawn at random and announced on Friday, January 9, 2008. Winners’ names will be posted here and they will be notified via email. All entries will be deleted immediately after the contest’s close, and no personal information will be retained or transmitted to any third parties. The contest is open to anyone, in any country, although this DVD is NTSC Region 1, so make sure that you have a compatible player. Unfortunately, the Double O Section cannot assume responsibility for items lost or damaged in transit.

Year End: The Best And Worst Of 2008

Champagne time! Happy New Year to all; here's wishing you a great and spy-filled 2009. But while we're waiting for that to get underway, let's take a look back...

Best Spy Movie: OSS 117: Cairo Nest of Spies

Yes, it was made (and released in French-speaking territories) back in 2006, but this sharp spoof reinvention of the classic Eurospy franchise was still the best spy movie released in American theaters in 2008. I’ve sung its praises many times already, but director Michel Hazanavicius’s film deserves ample praise for pulling off a tricky mixture of smart satire and slapstick pratfalls. It’s a movie I’ve liked more and more on every viewing. Star Jean Dujardin combines deft comic timing and studious obliviousness with an uncanny resemblance to Sixties-era Sean Connery. He’s aided in that latter category by cinematographer Guillaume Schiffman who ably recreates the technicolor look and feel of spy thrillers of the late Fifties and early Sixties, which OSS 117: Cairo Nest of Spies lovingly sends up.

Runner-Up: Burn After Reading

Another comedy was my second-favorite spy film of the year. I’ve already reviewed the movie twice, but the Coen Brothers paid as much attention to detail in their send-up of Nineties and early 2000s spy thrillers of the Tony Scott school as Hazanavicius and his team did of their Sixties forebears–and the results are subtly hilarious. "Subtle" may be the wrong word for a movie that features an elaborate sex toy apparatus and two gruesome murders played for laughs, but it was the subtler details that tickled me most, such as the ubiquitous beeping of the text that identified "CIA Headquarters" in the first shot of the movie, a satellite zoom in from space, or Carter Burwell’s dead-on parody of the standard score for this sort of thriller.

It certainly saddens me that neither Quantum of Solace nor Get Smart, the two spy movies I was most looking forward to in 2008 (and 2007, in Get Smart's case!), even came close to being my favorites. However, they were also far from the worst of the year. They were just sub-par entries in ongoing franchises that are sure to rebound from these troughs. I remain as excited as ever for Daniel Craig’s next James Bond movie–and even hopeful for Steve Carell’s Smart follow-up.

Worst Spy Movie: Eagle Eye

Even this I didn’t hate... but it was pretty bad. Eagle Eye recycled scenes from countless better thrillers, but that wasn’t its crime. It’s crime was treating its audience like idiots. Seldom have I seen a movie–even one cut from the summer blockbuster mold that this one is–talk down to its viewers so much, and hold their hands through very simple steps, then immediately remind them of those steps, not trusting their videogame-addled minds to do that. Still, it makes me realize that 2008 wasn’t quite as dire a year for movies as it seemed when even the worst spy movie of the year was still decently entertaining.

Best Spy DVD (Movie): Casino Royale Collector’s Edition
Runner-Up: The Spy Who Came In From the Cold Criterion Edition

Spy fans were treated to an embarrassment of riches in terms of DVDs in 2008. There were many great releases to choose from, but these two rise to the top. DVD producer John Cork (also responsible for some fantastic collections in 2008, like The Alfred Hitchcock Premiere Collection and The Charlie Chan Collection - Volumes 4 and 5) pulled out all the stops with Sony’s three-disc Collector’s Edition release of Daniel Craig’s James Bond debut. This new edition more than makes up for the previous disc’s failings, retaining all the meager special features of that one and adding a slew more. From the plethora of fact-packed documentaries on all aspects of Casino Royale (and, by extension, nearly all aspects of James Bond, going all the way back to Ian Fleming’s genesis of the character in the early Fifties) to equally impressive–if shorter–featurettes masquerading as things as mundane as "filmmaker profiles" to its very packaging, this is a completely satisfying release. Two fascinating commentaries seal the deal; the Casino Royale Collector’s Edition is quite simply the very best James Bond DVD ever produced. It belongs in every fan’s collection.

Criterion’s new disc of the spy classic based on John Le Carre’s seminal novel, The Spy Who Came In From the Cold, is equally satisfying. The stark, black and white picture quality blows the previous Paramount release out of the water... and there’s a whole disc of truly incredible bonus features. All fans of Le Carre are duty-bound to pick this one up, because between his new, lengthy interview and the documentary on him included here, this second disc forms the most informative look at the author’s career yet put to film. And it doesn’t end there. There are also ample contributions on the filmmakers and the star, Richard Burton.

Worst Spy DVD (Movie): Get Smart (2008)

The movie was no masterpiece, but it certainly wasn’t terrible either. It wasn’t Get Smart, but it was entertaining. But the DVD itself is one of the worst I’ve ever seen thanks to its "62% more laughs" gimmick. I’m not sure what mathematical calculations were used to come up with that percentage, but I would argue that they are certainly faulty. This extremely annoying device (having humongous icons pop up throughout the film which the viewer can click on to see alternate takes or deleted scenes) ruins the movie’s pacing and the comic timing of the jokes, thus rendering the movie (which had nowhere near as many laughs-per-minute to begin with as, say, OSS 117) not only unbearably interminable, but stupefyingly un-funny. I really can’t imagine how anyone could ever get through the movie watching it like this–and I’d hazard a guess that no one actually has. This ploy seems like something that would have been tried (and quickly abandoned) in the nascent days of DVD (when everyone was still "following the white rabbit" on The Matrix), not as a desperate last grasp in the format’s waning years. I like deleted scenes, and find that on comedy discs they can often be quite funny seen on their own–or even (though less frequently) edited into a longer cut of the movie. But there’s no faster way to take all the air out of a joke than to make the viewer jump through hoops to see it. Since there are no other substantial extras on this disc, I would deem it essentially a faulty DVD and not recommend that anyone ever buy it unless you’re content to just watch the movie itself and completely ignore the gimmick. (Unfortunately, the obnoxious "corner flip" graphic on the cover makes that hard to do.) If Warner Bros. ever revisits this title and delivers a legitimate Special Edition DVD without the gimmick and with the ability to watch the deleted scenes independently, then I would gladly buy the movie.

Best Spy DVD (TV): Burn Notice: Season One

Not only is the show itself incredibly fun spy entertainment of the sort we simply don’t get anymore, but Fox also put together an unexpectedly stellar DVD package. In addition to the episodes themselves, we’re treated to deleted scenes, a better-than-average gag reels, some disposable-but-worth-watching featurettes, and–best of all–select commentary from the cast and crew. I like this technique; in only talking about certain scenes, it prevents the commentators from ever becoming dull. Every moment is worth hearing.

Runners-Up: State of Play, Mission: Impossible: The 4th TV Season, Honey West...

(The awesome complete series sets of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and Get Smart don’t count because they have been available for a few years through exclusive outlets.)

There were too many great spy TV releases this year to pick just one runner-up. Paramount continues to release quality presentations of Mission: Impossible seasons, and despite the cast changes and the show’s reputation as declining in its later years, they continue to be fabulously entertaining. Both seasons released this year (four and five) are more than worth the price of admission. The BBC DVD of State of Play finally delivered to Americans the most compelling TV mini-series of the past decade. It’s a taut, well-acted thriller that you won’t be able to turn off after one episode. You’ll blow through them all... and then wish you hadn’t so you’d still have more to watch. And MPI deserves credit for finally bringing Honey West, an American Avengers imitator that entertains almost as much as the real thing, to DVD in this country.

Worst Spy DVD (TV): The Wild Wild West: The Complete TV Series

As with the Get Smart movie, I’m not judging the show itself here, but its DVD presentation. The Wild Wild West is a wildly entertaining series, and one that deserves a place on every spy fan’s shelf. But Paramount handled the Complete Series box set poorly. First, they angered consumers by only including the two Wild Wild West reunion movies in this set, forcing people who had already bought every season of the show in good faith to either re-buy them all... or live with an incomplete collection. (I remain hopeful that the studio will rectify this by releasing these two movies on a disc by themselves eventually.) Second, the packaging itself is simply awful. Instead of fitting all the slim cases from the original releases into this awkwardly-sized and cheaply-produced rectangular box, the discs are crammed into two tiny cardboard "saddlebags," separated from each other only by flimsy paper membranes. It’s next to impossible to easily select the specific disc you’re looking for, and the discs are bound to get scratched and scuffed in attempts to do so. I love "Complete Series" sets, but more thought must go into the packaging. It should be visually appealing and user-friendly. I hope studios go back to the drawing boards on unwieldy collections such as this one.

Best James Bond Book: By Royal Command by Charlie Higson

Runner-Up: The Moneypenny Diaries: Final Fling by Kate Westbrook

(Quantum of Solace: The Complete James Bond Short Stories by Ian Fleming is not eligible because it merely collects previously released short stories... but the presentation of the UK hardcover is awfully nice!)

Charlie Higson concluded his (first?) cycle of novels chronicling the adventures of James Bond as a boy in impressive fashion with By Royal Command–and, physically, the book looked great as well. When the series was first announced, I was as dubious as everyone else about the notion of creating Bond books for children–or exploring 007's youth. But Higson proved the right man for the job, and By Royal Command is evidence of this in the way it strikes the perfect Boys’ Own adventure tone. I was reading Ian Fleming when I was the age that these books are intended for, but reading By Royale Command gave me the same jolt I experienced back then–and even brought back the smell of those old Signet paperbacks I devoured under my sheets at summer camp.

Samantha Weinberg, writing as Kate Westbrook, achieved the same distinction with Final Fling, the finale to her trilogy of "Moneypenny Diaries" novels chronicling the Secret Service of Fleming’s novels from the point of view of M’s secretary. She stays true to Fleming’s characterizations of both James Bond and the staffers at MI6, but fleshes out the latter and makes them her own as well. This series presented an exciting new way to look at Fleming’s world, and a very interesting follow-up to his own novels.

Worst James Bond Book: Devil May Care by Sebastian Faulks

The official Centenary continuation novel (the one that played things straight) unfortunately failed on all accounts to capture the flavor of Fleming’s novels in the way that Higson and Weinberg managed to achieve even in such radically different approaches to the material, making it the biggest spy disappointment of 2008. I feel like I’ve already vented so much about this book that doing so anymore would not only bore readers–but have roughly the same effect as flogging a dead horse. Or firing extra shots into Professor Dent once he’d already hit the floor.

Best Bond-Related Book: My Word Is My Bond by Roger Moore

In any year that a Bond movie comes out, it’s automatically accompanied by a bevy of books cashing in on the 007 publicity. Some are "official," some are unofficial; some are good, some are bad... and some are great. Roger Moore’s long-awaited autobiography falls into that last category. Whether you’re a fan of his take on James Bond or not, any spy aficionado would be hard-pressed not to be won over by Moore’s often hilarious behind-the-scenes anecdotes about making The Saint, The Persuaders and of course his Bond films. You can open randomly to almost any page in the book and find a passage that makes you laugh out loud, but my favorite is probably Moore’s account of a meeting he set up between Sean Connery and Bond producer Cubby Broccoli, attempting to make peace between the notoriously antagonistic parties:

Some years previously, I had attempted to bring Sean and Cubby together at a party at our house in LA, hoping they might settle their differences. I should add that, a couple of weeks prior to the party, there had been a newspaper article in which Sean was quoted as saying that if Cubby Broccolis's brain was on fire, he 'wouldn't piss in his ear to put it out'.

At the party, I sat them both down with a drink. I heard Cubby - who was very much a gentleman Don Corleone - say, 'Sean, did you really say if my brains were on fire you wouldn't piss in my ear? I found that very upsetting.'

'Cubby,' replied Sean, 'I'd gladly piss in your ear any time.'

End of conversation!

As a bonus treat, Moore did a lot of press for his memoir, giving countless interviews that were almost as funny as the book itself. To be honest, I often find actor autobiographies to be dull and tedious. Not so Roger Moore’s! This book belongs on every Bond bookshelf.

Overall, 2008 was an interesting year for spy fans. It was a good year–just not in the ways I had expected it to be good. I was disappointed by both Devil May Care and Quantum of Solace, as well as the promising reinvention of Get Smart, but rewarded by many great DVD releases and a pair of terrific spy comedies in the theaters. I feel like the disappointments weighed heavily on this blog, and made it a bit more negative a place than I ever intended it to be. But I think it’s clear from everything I write that I truly love the spy genre–and James Bond–and often love even those things that disappoint me to some degree. Still, my passion for the subject forces me to be honest about my feelings. But that’s why I decided to include "worst of" entries as well as "best-of" ones for 2008: in an effort to put any such negativity behind me. Now I can dwell fully–and positively–on my hopes for 2009 and beyond. I’ll deal with those hopes in my next post. For now, though, I hope everyone has a happy New Year, and I wish only the best for my readers and the genre we all love so dearly in the coming year!