Mar 7, 2008

Random Intelligence Dispatches For March 8, 2008

(Young) James Bond Will Return In...

By Royal Command. That's the title of Charlie Higson's fifth and (for now, anyway) final "Young Bond" novel, according to the source for news on the series, Young Bond Dossier. The Dossier also confirms that Higson has finished the novel. By Royal Command doesn't conform as neatly to the rigid Bond title formula Ian Fleming Publications have previously adhered to (SilverFin, Blood Fever, Double or Die, Hurricane Gold), but it does evoke what turned out to be one of Fleming's most resonant titles, On Her Majesty's Secret Service. And it seems like an appropriate title for the final novel in the series (aimed at young adult readers, but offering plenty of enjoyment for adult Bond fans), as it seems to foreshadow James' ultimate career path and dedication to Queen and Country. By Royal Command comes out in hardcover in England September 4.

Jack Bauer Will Return In...

...a 24 TV movie this fall, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The movie, like Sci-Fi Channel's Battlestar Gallactica TV movie last year, will bridge the extraordinarily long gap between seasons, serving as a prequel to Season 7, now set for broadcast in January 2009, minus creator/showrunner Joel Surnow. And it should serve to keep Kiefer Sutherland's dour mug in the public conscience, lest Jack Bauer be forgotten. The article says producers are trying to secure the whole cast, but doesn't go into specifics. It's unknown whether the TV movie will follow the show's trademark real time formula, or if it will take advantage in the break from routine to utilise a more traditional narrative structure. That would definitely be cool to see (as the show sometimes becomes a slave to its gimmick), but I was pretty excited for the oft-mooted 24 theatrical movie to be the first instance we see Jack Bauer out of real time. There's also something to be said for a real time mission that takes only 120 minutes to crack rather than a whole day. There could be a lot of urgency in that, and hopefully it would work out better than when Johnny Depp tried it in Nick of Time... Presumably, Fox Home Entertainment will push for a quick sell-through on DVD for the feature, probably in December so as to suitably whet the public's appetite for Season 7.

Michael Caine Returns

... to Sixties heist movies this month! It may not be a new spy film, but fans of the Ipcress File actor will likely be as excited as I am about his return not only to heist flicks, but to one set in the Sixties, recalling his iconic roles in movies like Gambit and The Italian Job (1969)! Caine teams up with star/producer Demi Moore (who also produced the Austin Powers movies, of which Caine was in a particularly awful example) for a diamond heist tale set in what the press materials refer to as "Swinging London," but the trailer tells us is actually 1960, still several years before London started to swing. Still, it's Michael Caine, it's the Sixties and it's a heist. I'm there. And if you don't want to wait until March 28 to trek to the theater, Flawless will premiere earlier as video on demand on HDNet Ultra. In fact, it already has! If you get that service, you can go ahead and check it out now.

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