Designing 007: Fifty Years of Bond Style Review
Summary: Designing 007: Fifty Years of Bond Style is a true tribute to James Bond and its 50+ years of history.
5
Must See!
Ever wanted to walk onto a James Bond set and not only feel the ambience but hear the classic James Bond theme by Monty Norman playing in the background, than here is your chance. The Melbourne Museum is hosting this amazing exhibition from 1 November 2013 to 23 February 2014 called Designing 007: Fifty Years of Bond Style which is not only a celebration of Ian Fleming’s James Bond but it showcases rare costumes, props, gadgets, photographs and a myriad of amazing items. It has everything that a James Bond fanatic would want!
Jinx (HALLE BERRY) has her first encounter with James Bond in the beach bar in Cuba.
Copyright Notice – © 2002 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved.
Emerging from the sea singing calypso ‘Under the Mango Tree’ Honey (Ursula Andress) is surprised to hear someone taking up the song refrain.
Copyright Notice – © 1962 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved.
Even before you enter the exhibition, the lower floor of the Melbourne Museum is bustling with James Bond memorabilia with the classic 1964 silver Aston Martin DB5 (Goldeneye) on display just before entry not to mention lots more around the exhibition. Another great moment, especially for Bond fans is that when you walk into the exhibition, it’s like walking into a Bond movie with that classic black swirl as the James Bond theme plays in the background. As soon as you walk through the introduction portal, you are whisked away to a world of secret agents, gadgets and classic Bond moments.
Caption – Bond (Daniel Craig) takes in the view of the countryside that he grew up in, the Scottish highlands
Copyright Notice – Skyfall ©2012 Danjaq, LLC, United Artists Corporation, Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All rights reserved.
The first room of the exhibition showcases this amazing replica of actress Shirley Eaton who played Jill Masterson from the James Bond film Goldfinger that saw the nefarious villain Goldfinger send his assassin Oddjob to murder her by covering her in gold. The replica of her lying on the spinning bed in gold is quite uncanny and very realistic. The exhibition showcases a variety of gadgets and props from the films such as Oddjob’s classic hat to a myriad of guns, watches and even a realistic wax statue of Sean Connery as 007… even the teeth of Jaws!
Jaws was played by actor Richard Kiel to great effect. With his dental weaponry of razor sharp steel teeth and towering menace Jaws was a popular character, so much so that his scripted demise at the end of the film was given an alternative ending allowing him to reappear in the next Bond epic Moonraker, in which he is transformed from 007’s adversary to an ally. Kiel reported that the stainless steel teeth were so painful that he could only wear them for five minutes at a time.
Copyright Notice – © 1977 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved.
Those that love costumes will enjoy the exhibition due to the variety of elegant dresses, bikinis and suits from a variety of different Bond eras. It was quite interesting to see the original bikinis worn by Halle Berry as Jinx in Die Another Day (2002) and that of Ursula Andress as Honey Rider in the film Dr. No (1962) as they both highlight the epitome of the perfect Bond woman. The blue trunks of Daniel Craig is also on display.
Another feature of the exhibition was the Casino room that really felt like you were walking onto a James Bond film (Casino Royale) with the lavish costumes and a poker table setup in the middle showcasing various costumes from the diverse franchise. Reminiscent of Casino Royale, this area showcased large video displays from the Bond films that had the Casino theme prevalent. Add in the original spacesuits from Moonraker, Scaramanga’s Golden Gun from The Man with the Golden Gun and the Ice Palace (Die Another Day) and walking through Designing 007: Fifty Years of Bond Style is like living the dream.
Scaramanga’s Golden Gun.
Copyright Notice – © 1974 Danjaq, LLC and United Artsts Corporation. All rights
reserved.
Final Thoughts?
Designing 007: Fifty Years of Bond Style is a true tribute to James Bond and its 50+ years of history. Running until the 23rd February 2014, this is the perfect exhibition to get lost in the movie world, especially seeing the amazing props from the films, the cars, motorbikes, special effects and amazing stories attached to these items.
It’s definitely one of the must see exhibitions of the year!
For more information, please visit – http://designing007melbourne.com/
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