SOLD! One Aston Martin DB5

Although the original James Bond Aston Martin DB5 – heavily customized – for Goldfinger (1964) and Thunderball (1965) – cost its former owner around $12,000 back in 1969, the tricked out classic sold today for a whopping $4.1 million US. Proceeds from the sale will go to charity, but the lucky owner now has an icon of film history, not to mention an auto handcrafted in 1963.

Here are some detailed pictures of the pretty car, as well as a BBC report on its sudden reappearance after decades, and its sale today. A related piece on Yahoo News features more pictures and video footage.

Man, I wish I had that toy car with the rotating license plates, rocket launchers, trick passenger seat, bullet shield, and more.

Since we’re talking Bond, I have to direct you to Illustrated 007, a colourful blog with many book covers and publicity art that many Bond fans may never have seen before. The German paperback books are particularly striking, since they don’t focus on star mug shots; they’re about style, mood, and the tease of sex and violence.
Worth visiting, because with MGM currently in the financial crapper, it’ll be a while before a Bond film hits the screens. I’d just hate to think the last 007 hit we had to settle for was 2008’s Quantum of Solace.

Blacch!

It offered no solace. Not one ounce.

Mark R. Hasan, Editor

KQEK.com

The Quantum of Bourne?

Those who didn't get a chance to see the latest Bond film in theatres will undoubtedly take a peek at The Quantum of Solace on DVD, but it's a got some major stylistic differences from Casino Royale (pretty much the first of a two-part revenge tale that has James Bond going after the culprit responsible for mucking up another attempt at love).

But even on TV, most might notice the editing in Quantum's first half is very oppressive, and mercilessly chews through simple dialogue scenes that need their own distinct tempo. An action scene is a living thing; it has its own pacing and cutting style that creates peaks and valleys, and is balanced by periodic rests before the next big chase.

Variable editing style is what's used in Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight, Paul Greengrass' United 93, and even Michael Bay's vapid The Rock, so why does The Quantum of Solace, the shortest Bond film ever at 107 minutes, feel like a retread of The Bourne Supremacy (Bourne II)?

Read on, and remember: I like creative editing.

I like the fast-paced stupidity and over-pitched melodrama of Armageddon, the satirical advert cutting in Slogan, the bizarro structure of Death Laid an Egg, and the espresso-driven montages of Tinto Brass. The reason Quantum is a mess stems from myopic producers and editor(s) who believe audiences won't absorb character and plot if it's not presented in millisecond edits. With that idiotic philosophy at play, Quantum may well be the most divisive film for Bond fans.



- MRH