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| Cinema Retro, Vol 10, Issue 28 |
I’m a fan of
Cinema Retro, edited by eminent film historians Lee Pfeiffer and Dave Worrall,
who may be familiar to readers for their entertaining and educating commentary
on The Quiller Memorandum (1966, dir
Michael Anderson, Cinema Classics Collection). Both have edited together and
separately, books on James Bond as well. Typically, the magazine will include
at least one mention of our suave spy. However, in the latest issue, Bond got
two articles and two short mentions. Let’s take a closer look.
Bond On
The Backlot: GoldFinger (pgs 10 –
13)
Aerial maps
of Pinewood Studios anchor the myriad of behind-the-scene black/white and
colour photographs spread over four pages in a pictorial celebration as Goldfinger (1964, dir Guy Hamilton) turns 50 later this year
(September). Sets for Fort Knox and Goldfinger’s mansion and farm were built on
the studio lot and given authenticity with shots captured by the second unit
that traveled to Kentucky during production. The automobiles sported Kentucky
license plates – of course – and it helped that the English studio had good
weather as well, so audience-goers were fooled.
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| Gert and Honor on the backlot of Pinewood Studios |
Pinewood
Past (pgs 48 – 49)
Pinewood
Studios is most closely identified with the James Bond franchise, however the
studio began decades earlier when Charles Boot bought Heatherden Hall in 1934.
A year later, Boot and J. Arthur Rank spent approximately £1 Million, converting the estate
into a film studio – Pinewood, named in honor of the trees growing around the
mansion and to sound like “Hollywood.” Home to spies, aliens, superheroes on
the big screen to the small screen, there have been many peaks of success that
defined Pinewood’s history, however there were some valleys too. This two-page
article spotlights the year 1987 when the studio had to diversify and become a
“four-wall” facility (the article explains it as renting out sound stages and
the filmmakers would bring in their own crew). The headcount was reduced and
Managing Director Cyril Howard recounts how estate manager, Bill Harrison,
pulled in commercials and props to supplement the feature films that were being
shot at Pinewood. From near financial ruin, in 2009 Pinewood Studios received
the BAFTA award for outstanding contribution to cinema.
The
Living Daylights shoots into Raymond
Benson’s Top Ten Favourites for 1987 (pgs 8 – 9)
Benson cited
the chemistry between Timothy Dalton (his first outing as James Bond #4) and
Maryam d’Abo (Kara Milovy) as elevating The Living Daylights (dir John Glen) in the canon of Eon Productions
films. In addition, he felt that Dalton’s portrayal was an accurate depiction
of Fleming’s literary spy that even Craig has yet to match.
World
News: Lotus Esprit Sells at London Auction (pg 6)
Known as
“Wet Nellie” and the only fully functioning white Lotus Esprit automobile
constructed to double as a submarine in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977, dir Lewis Gilbert) was on RM Auctions block
last September. The iconic car sold for £550,000
($822,000).
Visit your
local bookseller to purchase your copy before they’re gone.
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| Honor's not in Kentucky |
