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| Pinewood
technicians and construction engineers spent most of April turning Chatham's
historic dockyard into a complete West End Street Market, including neat
little touches such as road signs and black London taxis, all for about
two minutes of screen time in the actual film. Chatham, one of the Medway
towns south-east of London, was chosen because of it's proximity to the
city, and the River Medway is serving as an alternative River Thames.
The scene in question is one where Bond, after having driven his "Q Boat" out of the Thames, pilots it down a busy street full of shoppers. Aided by the rocket booster on the back of the craft, the boat makes short work of dozens of grocery stalls and shop windows. Street sellers watch, amazed, as Bond, dressed impeccably as usual, casually smashes his way through the street in an attempt to catch up with the Cigar Girl, who is way ahead in her SunSeeker. The outrageous scene doesn't last long- but has taken weeks to prepare. Pierce Brosnan was only required for a day for close ups, but Vic Armstrong and his Second Unit have been hard at work for two weeks now pulverizing groceries, and other stunt men and women have been leaping out of the way of the speeding boat, their shopping flying through the air. |
The dockyard has been converted into a veritable "mini London" |
| Vic
Armstrong, Director and ex-stunt man, speaks about his work on the film:
"There are so few Old England looking locations, places with this kind
of fabulous architecture. Shutting down Wapping High Street would be a
nightmare. It's ideal here because we can rent the place. Chatham is becoming
very popular in the film industry as a result."
After a particularly harassing take, he remarks: "But it's just a bit too far and too fast. And the camera angle needs to be below the policeman's vision. Turning back to me he explains how the director views everything from a cinema seat. He adds: "I try to imagine a theater full of stunt men and see the film through their eyes. I want to surprise them-make them think a stunt must have been an accident because it seemed so real or dangerous...the key is to mesmerize the audience while retaining an element of feasibility." |
The
day that Pierce was due on set had the place swarming with security guards.
The Dockyard was declared a closed set by the Production Office, and autograph
seekers and other people eager to catch a glimpse of Pierce Brosnan were
turned away. An Eon spokesperson said "We had to establish Pierce in certain
clips. Because we had to get it all done in one day there was no time for
interviews or signing autographs."
Pierce was on set between 8am and 4pm, and was then whisked back in his private coach to his home. The crew then moved back to the Thames for a bit of last-minute filming, and there is even some talk of filming at a military installation that is being constructed at a secret location. Filming at Chatham is expected to continue until next week, after which the crew will move back to the studios. It is not thought that there will be any more location photography, and the rest of the film will be shot behind closed doors at Pinewood Studios, which means, sadly, no more opportunities to meet the cast or crew. |
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