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June 30th, 2008

First glimpse of new James Bond movie, “Quantum of Solace”

Posted by: Bob Tourtellotte

james-bond-3.jpgOne prefers his martinis in a glass and the other drinks his whisky straight from the bottle. They could not be more opposite, but this Wednesday movie superhero Hancock (Will Smith) and superspy James Bond (Daniel Craig) will be paired together when the first versions of a promotional “trailer” for upcoming Bond flick “Quantum of Solace“roll out alongside the premiere of “Hancock.”

will-smith-2.jpg“Hancock” tells the story of a self-loathing, hard-drinking superhero who is given a chance to redeem himself. It is widely expected to become a box office hit, and leading up to its debut, the movie has been heavily promoted. (That’s Will signing autographs at the U.K. premiere of “Hancock.”)

Film footage of the upcoming Bond flick, however, has been kept top secret. Not anymore. The promotional trailer, which is essentially a long commercial, began playing on Monday in the U.S. and Canada on Web site AOL.com and internationally on MSN.com.

james-bond-2.jpgThe trailer begins with a flashback to the drowning of Bond’s love, Vesper Lynd, in 2006’s “Casino Royale,” and it continues with scenes of plane and car chases, a speedboat crashing into a larger boat and plenty of acrobatic fighting.

Bond appears to be bent on revenge over Lynd’s death, and his boss M (Judi Dench) seems angry at her top agent for allowing his emotions to get the better of him. “I think you’re so blinded by uncontrollable rage that you don’t care who you hurt,” M says.

Perhaps borrowing from the “Bourne” action movies starring Matt Damon, the “Quantum of Solace” trailer also hints at Bond becoming an outsider at his own spy agency. “Restrict Bond’s movements, put a stop on his passports — find Bond,” Dench’s character says in another voice-over.

“Quantum of Solace” opens in the United Kingdom on Oct. 31, in the United States on Nov. 7, and in various countries around the world throughout November.

June 25th, 2008

“Hancock” offers mortgage rescue to one lucky family

Posted by: Bob Tourtellotte

rtx73ch.jpgCaught up in the mortgage crisis and looking for a helping hand? “Hancock” could come to your rescue. 

Columbia Pictures, the Hollywood studio behind upcoming action movie “Hancock,” is holding a contest to pay off the mortgage debt of one family — taking its cue from the flawed but good-hearted superhero played by Will Smith in the movie.

The studio will pay up to $360,000 of mortgage debt for the family that wins a 200-word essay contest explaining why they deserve the grand prize.

It’s a pretty slick publicity stunt by a Hollywood studio which, for a big-budget film like “Hancock,” will spend tens of millions of dollars on marketing. The amount is not small, especially if you’re a family up to you’re neck in mortgage debt and unable to pay it off. But for a multi-million dollar marketing campaign, $360,000 is a relatively cheap deal if it draws a lot of attention to the movie.

The promotion does seem appropriate to the film. In “Hancock,” Smith plays an angry, drunken superhero with a serious case of self-loathing, but for reasons unknown to him he can’t stop himself from tossing crooks in jail. His bad attitude seems to cause more harm than good and most everyone in his hometown of Los Angeles seems to hate him. Hancock is in serious need of an image makeover when he meets up with a savvy public relations man played by Jason Bateman who, himself, is looking to do some good in the world.   

Columbia’s contest, called Hancock’s Helping Hand Mortgage payoff, begins immediately and runs through July 6. “Hancock” opens on July 2. Good luck.