Venice and James Bond

Just saw "Casino Royale" last night. Very interesting idea of James Bond as an anti-hero.

Upon searching for a bit more information on the film, I found out from trivia on the Internet Movie Database that...
  • "The barrel roll stunt in the Aston Martin DBS broke the world record for the most barrel rolls assisted by a cannon. Originally, the racing specifications of the DBS meant that a standard ramp would not be sufficient to get the car to roll, so the special effects team were called in to install a air-powered cannon behind the drivers seat. This allowed the car to complete seven full rolls."
  • Surprised like I was about the Ford? "The 2007 Ford Mondeo sport model used in the beginning of the film is a special, one-off hand-built prototype vehicle, constructed by hand at Ford of Europe's Design Studio in Cologne, Germany, in January, 2006 and shipped to the Bahamas in secrecy for shooting. Actual production is not due to start until the second quarter of 2007.
  • Authorities in Venice granted producers permission to sail James Bond's yacht, called Spirit 54, along the Grand Canal between the Accademia and Rialto bridges. No-one can remember exactly the last time a pleasure yacht sailed in the Grand Canal, but it's believed to have been several centuries ago.
  • The set interior of the sinking house in Venice measured 45 ft by 40 ft and was 45 ft high. It was built around the existing indoor tank at Pinewood Studios which was increased to 20 ft so the whole set could sink 16 ft."

My good friend Tom's been monitoring the creation of "Casino Royale" for a while now, including the Venice set's destruction by fire!

1 comment:

planet-tom said...

I had read earlier that scenes were shot in the Campo San Barnaba, but I couldn't spot it in the film. Maybe when it comes out on DVD...

I think points have to be given to a Bond movie that has a foot chase and no boat chase in the Venice sequences.

There's a bit in the IMDB trivia section that claims this is the first time in 44 years that it's rained in a Bond film. I don't think that's strictly true... there's a scene in ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE where it rains. But that too is an atypical Bond movie (Bond gets married). But it is interesting that sunshine seems to be the standard in the Bond universe. Not due to any Pollyanna principles, just that a tux or a little black dress don't look fashionable in a drizzle.

I'm a little skeptical about that "no small yacht has been on the Grand Canal in centuries" bit.... That thing wasn't that big.