Movie Response about SPECTRE (2015 FILM) directed by Sam Mendes

Introduction

Spectre (2015 film) is a movie directed by Sam Mendes and produced by Eon Productions. The Columbia Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer are major distributors of this film starting from 2015 when it was released in the United Kingdom.  The budget for producing Spectre was estimated as $245 million; thus making it the most expensive film in the world (007, 2015). This paper presents a critique of Spectre (2015 film) based on its pre-production, production, distribution, exhibition, marketing, and release strategies.

SPECTRE is an acronym of Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge, and Extortion, which was an organization that began disputes in 1961 between Kelvin McClory and Ian Fleming over Thunderball film copyrights. After the dispute had been settled in 1963, Fleming stayed with film rights hence permitting the Spectre group and its affiliated characters to proceed to appear in the production. By 2013, McClory and Eon Productions had acquired the full copyright film production rights; thus, reintroducing the continuity of series that led to the change from SPECTRE to Spectre (IGN, 2013).

During the preproduction of Spectre film in 2014, Sony Pictures Entertainment was the primary target for the movie. However, it emerged that hackers had exposed the confidential emails between high-profile film projects and Sony executives, by claiming that the film had an exaggerated budget. The Eon Productions confirmed the leak and later issued a statement stating it as “an early version of the screenplay” (The Guardian, 2014). The inspiration of Spectre 2015 is drawn from various story collections including Octopussy, the Hildebrand Rarity, and the Living Daylights. For example, in Octopussy story, Oberhauser is a background character named in the film taking the role of temporary official guard of the young Bond. Besides, the film integrates together the story strands of Skyfall and Quantum of Solace (Slashfilm, 2015).

Spectre casting and filming took place in several distinct locations notably London, Mexico City and Rome (Kodak, 2015). In particular, the actions scenes involving Range Rover Sport and Land Rover Defender took place in Austrian Alps, and the Car chase was centered along Tiber River banks, as well as through the streets of Rome. In Mexico City, the film’s opening sequence is featured in the scenes such as the Day of the Dead parade (Collider, 2015), while in London’s city hall, the film featured stunt scenes of Seydoux and Craig (James Bond) on a speedboat (BBC, 2015). The explosion scenes in the spectre film took place in Morocco, which is credited with the biggest explosion scenes in the cinematic and film history (Guinness World Records, 2015). The variety of locations used to cast and film the Spectre film reveals its originality, continuity, and comic stunning scenes in the entertainment industry.

The Spectre film marketing strategies involved promotions by two out of DB10 strategies unveiled by EON before commencing on filming. Promotion comprised of video blogs, as well as images of clapperboards posted on the Eon’s Official websites and social media accounts such as tweeter (007, 2015). Besides, several members of the crew and cast appeared in a sketch, especially on the behind the scenes cast during the Spectre filming (Independent, 2015). Moreover, the film trailers followed with the first teaser trailer released in March 2015, followed by the melodramatic preview in July, and the last preview that featured on October the same year. Consequently, Spectre film was officially released to the world on 26th October 2015 in London at the Royal Albert Hall (The Guardian, 2015).

References

007 (2015). Sam Mendes On Spectre. . Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from:  http://www.007.com/sam-mendes-on-spectre/

BBC (2015).James Bond fans see filming of Spectre on River Thames in London. Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from:  http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-32777018

Collider (2015). SPECTRE Opening Chase Sequence Revealed: Read a Full Description. Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from: http://collider.com/spectre-opening-sequence-description/

Guinness World Records (2015).Latest Bond adventure Spectre sets record for Largest film stunt explosion ever. Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from: http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2015/11/daniel-craig-accepts-certificate-for-largest-film-stunt-explosion-in-latest-bond-405307

IGN (2013). MGM, Danjaq Settle James Bond Rights Dispute With McClory Estate. Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from: http://ca.ign.com/articles/2013/11/16/mgm-danjaq-settle-james-bond-rights-dispute-with-mcclory-estate

Independent (2015). Red Nose Day 2015: Daniel Craig and Sir Roger Moore to star in James Bond Comic Relief sketch. Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from: http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/red-nose-day-2015-daniel-craig-and-sir-roger-moore-to-star-in-james-bond-comic-relief-sketch-10105624.html

Kodak (2015).Film Capture Powers the Visually Stunning SPECTRE. Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from: http://motion.kodak.com/US/en/motion/Blog/Blog_Post?contentId=4294991985

Slashfilm (2015).‘Spectre’ Teaser Trailer: James Bond Harbors a Dark Secret. Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from:  http://www.slashfilm.com/spectre-trailer/

The Guardian (2014). Draft script for James Bond film Spectre leaked in Sony hack. Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from: http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/dec/14/james-bond-spectre-film-script-leaked-sony

The Guardian (2015).Spectre trailer: watch the first full-length trailer for the new James Bond film. Retrieved on 23^rd February, 2016 from: http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jul/22/spectre-trailer-watch-the-first-full-length-trailer-for-the-new-james-bond-film
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