Whip it Out Wednesday: Sir Roger Moore

In honor of last night's Quantum of Solace benefit premiere, featuring Daniel Craig and his diamond-cutting blue eyes, let us pause and revel in the class and elegance that is Sir Roger Moore, the second James Bond, who may be older than God (OK, older than Jesus) but still exudes British charm.

Right.
Now that we're done with that...

At the London premiere of Quantum of Solace, Moore told Reuters that he was distressed with the "violent" turn that the 007 franchise has taken. (Was he expecting a Care Bears movie?)

“I am happy to have done it, but I’m sad that it has turned so violent,” Moore said.

He recalled being appalled at the violence in “A View to a Kill,” the 1985 movie which was the last of the seven in which he played Bond. “That wasn’t Bond,” he said.

While making “The Man With the Golden Gun,” director Guy Hamilton wanted Bond to be tougher and had him threaten to break Maud Adams’ character’s arm to get information, he writes. “That sort of characterization didn’t sit well with me, but Guy was keen to make my Bond a little more ruthless.

“I suggested my Bond would have charmed the information out of her by bedding her first. My Bond was a lover and a giggler, but I went along with Guy,” the British actor said.

Moore perfectly illustrates a common sentiment in Hollywood: it seems to be perfectly OK to depict mind-blowing (literally, mind-blowing) violence with illegal automatic weapons and no remorse or repercussions (Quantum of Solace is rated PG-13), but Gods forbid a woman takes her bra off...well, instant outcry and "R" rating! (And you'll sooner get hit by lightning than see a full-frontal male scene with a PG-13 rating)

Still, Moore makes an interesting observation: Sean Connery is viewed as the quintessential James Bond (it's the brogue, methinks) because anyone can see the tempered rage stewing just beneath the surface. Daniel Craig was accepted by Bond fans nearly immediately because he, like Connery, has the presence of cold-rolled steel (and those eyes, dear Gods!). Even Pierce Brosnan, the most recent Bond, had an air of a quiet storm. But Timothy Dalton's Bond was forgettable, mostly because he was so bland, and only the staunchest Bond fan will know the words "George Lazenby."

One look at Moore's Bond, however, and you can instantly see the template which Michael Meyers used for Austin Powers. Oy.

But never let it be said that Roger Moore is ungracious. Of Daniel Craig, Moore said, “Daniel has done one Bond and he was in ‘Munich’ and … he’s done a lot of stuff, but his face, after one Bond film, that’s all he needs. He is Bond.”

New Movie Tuesday: Quantum of Solace!

Hey PCMers...

Just got back from the Tribeca Film Institute Benefit Screening of Quantum of Solace, the new James Bond escapade starring Daniel Craig as Agent 007!

Be sure to check the main page for exclusive photos from the premiere, as well as a write-up of the awesome night!

And let me say...Daniel Craig...


...SWOON!

New Bond Girl: Fingers Galore?

Meet Gemma Arterton. She's beautiful, statuesque, British, and the newest Bond girl to grace the silver screen (you'll see her in Quantum of Solace in November, opposite Daniel Craig as Agent 007).

She was also born with extra fingers.

"It's my little oddity that I'm really proud of," she said to Esquire magazine. "It makes me different."

Different indeed.
The condition, called polydactyly, occurs in 1 of every 500 births.

Don't bother looking for additional digits in the film, though. As a child, the surplus digits were "tied," which causes the boneless protrusions to fall off with time. She still bares bumpy scars where her extra appendages once were.

Earlier this year, she revealed that she was also born with a crumpled ear, which was surgically corrected in childhood. "I was born with lots of deformities," the 22-year-old actress told the British press.

She seems to be doing OK now, though...

Stuntman injured on James Bond site

A stuntman filming an action sequence for the new James Bond film was seriously injured Wednesday. He and another stuntman crashed during a car chase on a winding lakeside road in Northern Italy.

The London-based production company for the film, "Quantum of Solace," said the experienced stuntman who was driving an Alfa Romeo at the time was still in the hospital in serious condition. Marco Girardi, a spokesman for the town of Limone sul Garda and a liaison to the production company, said the driver suffered serious head injuries in the crash. Another driver in the same car also suffered less serious injuries.

Girardi said the crew had been filming for two weeks when the Alfa Romeo crashed into a wall while filming a car chase with a truck and James Bond's Aston Martin. A helicopter on standby during the filming took the seriously injured stunt driver to Verona where he had surgery.

Girardi also said that filming was scheduled to conclude Wednesday, soon after the crash occurred. It was the second accident on the movie set in the past four days. On Saturday an Aston Martin was being delivered to the set when it skidded off the road and into Lake Garda due to heavy rain and poor driving conditions. There were no injuries and the car was later recovered.

Director Marc Forster and star Daniel Craig were not on set at the time of the accident. The production company closed the set on Thursday and workers and officials declined to comment to the press. Barring any more on-set incidents, "Quantum of Solace" will be released in the UK on Halloween and in the U.S. on 7 Nov.