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Melbourne Designing OO7 exhibition
Benny
In the shadowsAdministrator, Moderator
Well I'm very happy to report I took a trip to Melbourne on the weekend to visit the Designing OO7 exhibition at Melbourne Museum. And what a trip it was. An absolute must for any Bond fan, but also hugely enjoyable for the non-fans.
I managed to take a lot of pictures before entering the exhibit, but was sadly told that photography was prohibited. I must say this did sadden me somewhat as what I got to see was astounding. Not least the chance to see my most prized Bond wish list item. The Faberge egg from Octopussy!
There was so much to see, so many costumes, including the white dinner jacket worn by Sir Rog in the back gammon scene in OP, as well as Kamal Khans costume. Many many costumes from DN-SF, gadgets, vehicles, models. The list is endless.
Some of the most interesting for me were the sketches and storyboards. The detail and work that goes into even the smallest detail is absolutely amazing. And the storyboards not only contained many changes from the finished film visually, but also in character names. For example, Kamran Shah was called Ranjit in the storyboards.
The jungle hunt from OP for example was quite different in the storyboard from the finished article. (The Tarzan swing from the vines was always planned though.)
I was even rather shocked at how much my wife enjoyed it, and was for a few hours taken in by the impressive world of Bond. Some of the costumes and the work that went into them appealed to her, but of course the next day the short lived interest in Bond had gone. That's okay, for me it was a joy. So many items to see that it would take me forever to go through them all. Luckily there was a book at the end of the tour that covers all the items that I'd just seen. (Obvious why they don't want you to take photos now) but well worth the asking price.
If you're in Melbourne, or can visit before the 23rd February, than I'd tell you to take the opportunity.
I managed to take a lot of pictures before entering the exhibit, but was sadly told that photography was prohibited. I must say this did sadden me somewhat as what I got to see was astounding. Not least the chance to see my most prized Bond wish list item. The Faberge egg from Octopussy!
There was so much to see, so many costumes, including the white dinner jacket worn by Sir Rog in the back gammon scene in OP, as well as Kamal Khans costume. Many many costumes from DN-SF, gadgets, vehicles, models. The list is endless.
Some of the most interesting for me were the sketches and storyboards. The detail and work that goes into even the smallest detail is absolutely amazing. And the storyboards not only contained many changes from the finished film visually, but also in character names. For example, Kamran Shah was called Ranjit in the storyboards.
The jungle hunt from OP for example was quite different in the storyboard from the finished article. (The Tarzan swing from the vines was always planned though.)
I was even rather shocked at how much my wife enjoyed it, and was for a few hours taken in by the impressive world of Bond. Some of the costumes and the work that went into them appealed to her, but of course the next day the short lived interest in Bond had gone. That's okay, for me it was a joy. So many items to see that it would take me forever to go through them all. Luckily there was a book at the end of the tour that covers all the items that I'd just seen. (Obvious why they don't want you to take photos now) but well worth the asking price.
If you're in Melbourne, or can visit before the 23rd February, than I'd tell you to take the opportunity.
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Comments
I was going to give it a miss but you think it's well worth it so i might go see it.
What props have they got from Dr no?
Storyboards, production drawings, models. It's a must see. I urge you to take a look if you can.
As for Doctor No, I recall seeing Bonds tux and Silvia's red dress from the casino. And the bottle of Dom Peringon '55 (I prefer the '53 myself) prop. Along with Doctor No's jacket and Honey's bikini. There's something from all the films, it would appeal to all.
When I can work out how to do it, I'll post some photos I managed to take, before I was inside the main exhibition. ;)
What i need is a james bond hidden camera to take photos inside. :)
They also have the briefcase from frwl and the golden gun don't they?
More to follow...
http://designing007melbourne.com/
I echo Benny's sentiments. Its the ultimate Bond exhbit. I spent hours and hours at it when it was here. Couldn't get enough of it.
A lot of the older clothing articles though, are perfectly made replicas as opposed to the genuine movie item, ie Honey's bikini, DN's jacket and GF's gold tux, Sean's TB swim trunks, but otherwise the vast majority is the real deal, the authentic on-screen item. If you read the placards that accompany the exhibits, it tells you which items are replica.
I'd like to fly to Melbourne and check it out again(like that's going to happen). We didn't get Jinx's summer dress or the frozen Boris prop.
The Klebb stuff is all replica IIRC. The shoe blade is not quite what we saw in the movie, although I can't recall what the origin of that Klebb shoe prop is, if its not from the movie. ie why would it exist otherwise?
Olga/Camille's little black cocktail dress was one of my favourite costume displays. I spent much time gawking at it. I was fascinated that the little tear in the dress was intact-- the same tear that can be clearly seen on the movie-still, that accompanies the display. Fascinating stuff.
I also liked that Tee Hee's mechanical arm was touchable. I gave it a couple of knuckle wraps. It was quite solid. I wanted to roll Kamal Khan's loaded dice but the security guard was seated right beside the OP casino display. He said no. But if he wasn't sitting in that spot, I would have, as the dice were quite within reach. The guard just always seemed to be sitting there on each visit.
Aside from all the genuine article Bond-girl dresses and outfits, I quite liked both the FRWL briefcase, which was authentic, including "the knife", and the LTK briefcase, which included the whole kit of Q props, including the silly x-ray photo.
The SF prop collection was quite interesting too. We got the gun and its case. Q's mug. The genuine British bulldog figurine and other stuff, fresh from the set.
The place is a paradise for the Bond movie fan, and there's even a Fleming display, including a complete collection of first edition hardovers.
As promised, just a few more stills.
I spent several hours looking through this exhibit, but I could have easily spent a lot longer. The amount of items to view was impressive. And although you can't take any photos, the book that accompanies the tour is well worth it.
If the wife enjoyed it, and she is far from a Bond fan, then you know you've got something worth seeing. I thought the bar at the end, with Bond inspired cocktails was a nice little touch. Wish I'd have taken a photo of the menu now. Drat!
It was like being in a time machine going back in time and seeing the original props used in the films.
Seeing oddjobs hat ,a gold bar from goldfinger (with connerys signature on it to a daughter of someone who worked on the film) and the champagne bottle from dr no were my favorites amongst all the props on display.
They had connerys suit and ursulas bikini from dr no but they were not the original props from the films, just remakes.