'The World Is Not Enough': Thirteen Years Ago...

When Electronic Arts acquired the rights to develop and publish video games based on the James Bond franchise, they've started with adapting the storyline for Tomorrow Never Dies into a PlayStation game in 1999, the same year that The World Is Not Enough has hit the theaters. They made many spectacular Bond games that had the fans satisfied utterly, with the most notable one being Nightfire in 2002, which was the best way to mark the 40th Anniversary of Bond's cinematic existence. However, back in 2000, it was believed that The World Is Not Enough was going to be adapted into a game, as well. But, this time, for many platforms instead of just one, scheduled to be release in a Christmas time later that year.

Electronic Arts chose five platforms and four developers to take care of the adaptations and the ports of the game, but the publisher itself will personally deal with the script and the dialogues. BlackOps Entertainment was chosen to handle the development on the PlayStation version of the game, reverting from their Third-Person view as occurred in Tomorrow Never Dies to First-Person view, to recreate the success of Rareware's GoldenEye 007 on Nintendo 64, a platform which was also chosen to be part of EA's gaming market, with Eurocom taking the helm of that branch of the project. EA Redwood Shores studios was on to work on a version which was going to be ported on both PlayStation 2 and Windows PC, and 2n Productions was picked to develop a children's handheld game based on the title, namely GameBoy Color.

PlayStation version on the left and the Nintendo 64 version on the right.

At the time, EA was also busy with another project called 007 Racing which was being developed by Eutechnyx. Unlike the other games in the series, this one was a racing game incorporated with 12 levels, featuring many vehicles and cars from previous Bond movies making their way back to the screen. All being gadget-laiden. What interesting part of EA's projects were that they switch and cut or replace many parts of the development with newer ones. 007 Racing itself survived a few major rewrites! One notable thing about the game was that in EA's 007 canon, this product served as a sequel to The World Is Not Enough, revealing that Zukovsky, one of Bond's allies, wasn't actually killed but heavily wounded.

Screenshots from the PC version of the game.

However, in September 2000, two months before its release date, the PC and PlayStation 2 version of The World Is Not Enough was cancelled by the publisher, due to lack of enough time to finish the development or fix the bugs. This one has made many fans upset (including myself!) at the time. However, the other two major console versions were released on 1st November 2000 world-wide, with the Nintendo 64 version gaining positive reviews from critics while the PlayStation version was slammed due to lazy development. It's true, actually, I couldn't blame them for criticizing the latter. The GBC version for kids was released a year later.

A screenshot captured during a cutscene in which Bond makes his epic escape from Renard's trap.

It was rumoured in early 2001 that Electronic Arts are currently working on a sequel to 007 Racing, which was not confirmed by the publisher at all. But, ultimately, they revealed a brand new title during E3, stating that Bond would be "going back to its roots", meaning it would reflect the same aspect as GoldenEye 007 on Nintendo 64. The title of the game was revealed to be Agent Under Fire, written and scripted by Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo, the people who brought us one of the most unforgettable TV Series, Viper, in which Max Payne's James McCaffrey had a leading role. They were also known for adapting The Rocketeer into a film. Back on topic, Agent Under Fire is said not to be based on any previous or existing Bond adventure, but carries an original storyline. It was set to be released on PlayStation 2, Xbox and GameCube. The game is developed on Quake III Arena engine, and is remade from their previous The World Is Not Enough development. But, the PC version remained in the pages of history. In fact, it features many locations that are identical to the ones occurred in the film.

Promotional renders featuring Bond's exotic cars from 007 Racing.

Promotional image for 007 Racing featuring Bond driving his BMW 750il during a mission.

Many old screenshots of the PC version released online told the fact that it was going to be more similar to the Nintendo 64 version rather than the PlayStation version. Character render 3D images featured the real-life actors who played the role have lent their likenesses to their respective characters, and it was likely to have Pierce Brosnan and the rest of the crew voicing them, as well. But, many secondary character models were later re-used for Agent Under Fire, as there was no point in re-designing them at all. As for the storyline, the main two villains are truly similar to the ones in The World Is Not Enough, for instance, Adrian Malprave has a company of herself with her surname, accompanied with a henchman called Nigel Bloch, a bald henchman, a mercenary. And this duo share similarities to Elektra King and Renard, with the former having a company of her own family name, and the latter being her loyal henchman.

3D character render for James Bond, based on Pierce Brosnan's likeness, data retrieved from the PC and PS2 version of The World Is Not Enough.

The World Is Not Enough 3D character models from the PC/PS2 version.

 Adrian Malprave on the left, and her henchman, Nigel Bloch on the right from Agent Under Fire.

In Agent Under Fire, Bond is portrayed by Andrew Bicknell instead of a previous actor who played the role, respectively in the films.

As for the rumoured 007 Racing sequel, it was revealed that Agent Under Fire will feature driving elements, meaning there's no racing game in development but rather some racing levels attached to the the First-Person Shooter game. In early footage, Bond is shown to be carrying the same weapon, Walther P99, with the same design as he wielded in The World Is Not Enough screenshots, even the mid-Summer video footage showed the very same elements along with the GoldenEye 007-type HUD to be used. But, in the final release version, a brand new HUD was created for the game, and Bond's weapon is suddenly changed to a Smith & Wesson SW99, still under the same pseudonym as in the original game, 'Wolfram P2K'. SW99 itself is Smith & Wesson's own approach to Walther P99, but it turned out to be a weaker firearm.

Gameplay footage from The World Is Not Enough on the left, and early Agent Under Fire on the right.

Final release version of the game features a SW99 as the main sidearm.

Racing levels from Agent Under Fire, with Bond behind the wheels of a DB5 and a BMW Z8 Roadstar.

Overall, I still think either The World Is Not Enough or Agent Under Fire should have been released on Windows PC platform, because the engine that both games were developed on was Quake III Arena, an engine which was specialized for personal computers rather than consoles. Even if the final product was to be released on PC, the fans would've been able to recreate The World Is Not Enough mod on the same engine, probably finding some files within the game's data and give it a full-time resurrection. It's a shame that did not come true at all.

Nintendo Power magazine published a pre-release information regarding to that of in Agent Under Fire, featuring James Bond on the front cover.

Feel free to express yourself in the comments and thank you for reading.

'Transporter 4' is happening! But is Jason Statham coming back?

I know, I know. The news seems to be a bit old, but still, I am able to speculate all about the project that's already in development, which is announced by Luc Besson, the creator of the franchise. Likewise, the film will be financed and funded by EuropaCorp and Fundamental Films, with the locations, according to IMDB, are chosen to be France and China. Meaning, there already is a script penned by either Besson, or his colleague, Robert Mark Kamen, or even probably someone new whose name is yet to be revealed. We've been told also that two other installments in the series. But, we are uncertain if this is going to be a total reboot of the franchise, creating a brand new canon. People are still questioning whether Jason Statham will return to reprise his role as a retired former SAS operative, Frank Martin, who's also known as "The Transporter". He hasn't signed on officially to play the role, at least not yet.

The latest entry in the Transporter chronology, was Transporter 3, which didn't perform well at the box-office, and wasn't critically well-received either. Luc Besson, the creator of the series, has given up since then to write yet another script involving the same character. Instead, he decided to focus on a new franchise called Taken, unsurprisingly using the same brand of cars such as BMWs or Audi cars, Beretta 92F pistols among many things. Meanwhile, another crew acquired the screen rights temporarily to make a TV Series based on Transporter and its main character, Frank Martin. Besson didn't interfere with its development, but took the credit for creating the series along with Kamen. The series picks up where it was left-off with the movies canon, with only one recurring character showing up, who's none other than Francois Berleand in the role of Inspector Tarconi, one of Martin's cop buddies. This time, Frank Martin is played by Chris Vance, who appears to have suited into the role somehow, but still didn't manage to outshine Jason Statham by far!

                                The transition between the two incarnations of the character.

Now, the TV Series wasn't appreciated by the fans of the films, either. They weren't pleased with Vance's portrayal, but I still accepted it the way it was. As long as the character is an alpha male, then it's spot on! Similar thing happened to Batman's butler, Alfred Pennyworth in Beware The Batman computer-animated series when the character was portrayed as more-than-just-butler retired MI6 agent. Well, some people just don't know how to appreciate decent products, these days. Take Sylvester Stallone's action flicks, for instance. I personally am not able to understand their hatred over exaggerated actioners, it's what boys and men loved until a decade ago. Still, Jason Statham is an appreciated action star, which is good.

Now, if Statham does not return, we are going to have a brand new actor in the leading role, save it for Chris Vance, as he won't be starring in a Transporter movie. But, a renewed series with a second season would definitely recruit him back. As for the movie, it could be a total utter reboot without chaining any connection with Statham's own trilogy. If it ends up being a reboot, would the filmmakers keep the traditions in their respective places? Such as Frank Martin making the rules...or breaking them, and then driving a black Audi, with a James Bond themed accessories equipped within the car itself, or wearing the same black suit as always. Most probably, I'd say. But, here's another interesting point. The idea of making The Transporter in 2002 actually came from a miniseries sponsored by BMW, using cars from their own brands, which Frank Martin also used in the first film before switching to Audi in the second installment. The miniseries was known as The Hire, which starred Clive Owen as 'The Driver', without his real name being mentioned, getting hired by various people to be a sort of transport for their vital needs. This is the series that spawned Besson's franchise, as both the protagonists share the same profession, similar style of driving, and not to mention, being expert in hand-to-hand combat, and thus, they are extremely professional no matter what the cost of their situation would be during the assignment.

'The Hire', the miniseries that inspired 'The Transporter'.

Let's say, it would be really good to see a film adaptation of The Hire, or probably hire the same actor to play a different "transporter" if Statham isn't coming back. As for the storyline, we haven't been informed yet what the movie is going to be about. But, we know that it's going to have high-octane car chases, sensational fistfights, larger-than-life villains, over-the-top plots, and mindblowing MacGuffins. This is what Transporter was about. And to make them "realistic" (the word that Hollywood actually means "street incidents, low-life people's typical day stories, and sissy characters" by using it) isn't Besson's cup of tea, nor its the way of treating his own franchise. Of course, like James Bond (classic ones only, 1962-2004), the movie is going to have at least one irresistible lady. In the first one, the beautiful Shu Qi took the part as a good girl, but the second one had a bad girl instead, which was played by Kate Nauta. The third one had a mixture of both, but eventually a good girl, played by Natalya Rudakova, a Ukranian sensational girl herself. However, the TV Series had bunch of girls, but the leading female role was given to Andrea Osvart, who played a former CIA agent organizing Frank Martin's assignments, and besides, she's the man's love interest. Delphine Chaneac also takes a major part in the series, whose character is a French DCRI agent investigating 'The Transporter' network, and as a cover, she stands as a lovely neighbour of Martin's.

Recurring cast of characters from 'Transporter: The Series',

from left to right: Delphine Shaneac, Chris Vance, Andrea Osvart and Francois Berleand.

So, eventually, we are most certainly having Francois Berleand back to play the infamous Inspector Tarconi, chief of police station in Nice, France, who aids Frank Martin throughout the entire mission of his. But, other than that, nothing is really clear about the project that Besson is setting the outlines for. We only know that three films are going to be produced, either as sequels to both the films and the TV Series, or a reboot. But, then again, continuation stories would be a lot better these days, because rebooted stuff always disappoints the fans of the original series, and recruits other newbies who always seem to prefer the modern takes over the original, much like the case is with the James Bond films, now.

There might be very good imitators or spectacular successors to a certain material, but hadn't been Jason Statham playing the role, the series would have ended up settling down in the pages of history. However, my suggestion is, that Transporter 4 should have Frank Martin involved with the lines of extreme espionage, leading him to chase a super-villain intending to gain the role of world domination, or start a World War III threats spreading all over the international countries, using Weapons of Mass Destruction to take over the planet Earth by all himself. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol did the same thing, designing a throwback storyline occurred in the media marketing from the 1960's to the 1990's. Fans might complain about Frank not being a spy, and will want a reason to take the job of a secret agent, but let me remind you that in the 1960's, Roger Moore (who later became James Bond in 1973) played Simon Templar, a former thief and a public enemy turned into an adventurer, doing the good for the people, much of the episodes beginning with the second season of his show, The Saint, involved plots of superspy flicks, leading the newbies to think he's a secret agent himself, and that would be great to see in Transporter 4, even if it would happen once. One thing that people should prevent from happening is having a "character-driven" story written for the movie, which should never ever happen. These kind of films, action films, need comic book styled electrifying moments that people call "cartoony" these days. What's more exciting than having a superman-like character in the lead, instead of manic depressive victim? Both Luc Besson and Jason Statham wouldn't do a "character-driven" movie, but only over-the-top action films, which every true action movie loyalist expects.

Seeing that Transporter 4 really is happening, I personally hope Jason Statham would return to reprise his role as Frank Martin, sitting behind the wheels of a black Audi and chasing down the villains in unstoppable positions while delivering incredible performances along with cracking jokes and one liners. Are you excited?

'Danger Girl' to make a debut appearance on the screen!

In 2011, it was reported that a film adaptation of a popular comic book series, Danger Girl, is in the pipeline, and it could be getting a close of starting production any time soon, by then. However, it's been two years since the report was submitted, but nothing officially came out of the resources. Not even the creators of the franchise, J. Scott Campbell and Andy Hartnell have been informing the media about the project's current status. Although, IMDB (The Internet Movie Database) has listed the project as "in development". It's believed that JC Spink will be producing the flick.

Danger Girl Artwork

For the first time, Danger Girl made its debut on the surface of the media through the comic book market in 1998, with J. Scott Campbell and Andy Hartnell writing and illustrating the miniseries altogether, with a little collaboration came from Bruce Campbell himself. Danger Girl features three female operatives in the field, and the atmosphere comes from a combination of both elements borrowed from Indiana Jones series when it comes to the supernatural bits, and the James Bond franchise when it comes to the main characters and their line of work along with their way of operating business. So, it's a mixture of spy flick with exotic adventures taking place within the MacGuffin (plot device, for those who do not understand). The leading role goes to a former thief called Abigail "Abbey" Chase, who is recruited by a mysterious man known only by his codename "Deuce", to the a freelance operations limited agency named "Danger Girl". Another regular agent who often refers to herself as a "female 007" is an Australian beauty named Sydney Savage.

Abbey Chase on the left, and Sydney Savage on the right.

When it comes to the third agent, there are only two people who had the honour to take the part. The first one was an ex-KGB officer, Natalya Kassle, who, throughout the first series, turned out to be a traitor and was eventually killed by the newly recruited Abbey. The second one, however, gets involved with the team unintentionally, later switching sides due to finding Danger Girl convenient organization to work for. And that agent is Sonya Savage, Sydney's younger sister. A youngster agent, a computer geek, is also featured throughout the series, a teenager named Silicon Valerie, a computer genius with an interesting background. She keeps wondering about her first day in the field of action, dreaming to become a Danger Girl operative herself.

    Natalia Kassle

Deuce, however, is the unnamed head of the agency who formed the organization by himself. A little of his background was mentioned. He was a MI6 agent on her majesty's secret service, used to fight the world's most threatening terrorist organization, until he was retired by the end of the cold war. But, he was called back in to form a group of unstoppable mercenaries in the nineties, because another evil organization named HAMMER has been formed by former members of the rogue Nazi party. Instead, he formed an espionage agency and named it "Danger Girl". The reader has always thought Deuce is James Bond himself from the 1960s, since that is his favourite decade. It's been said that the character is modeled after Sean Connery in both his youth days and the current age he is at the moment.

    Deuce explains Abbey how he survived.

    Deuce, the mysterious secret agent from the 1960s.

    
Back to the film adaptation topic, it was rumoured that Milla Jovovich, Kate Beckinsale and Sofia Vergara were attached to the project, with their roles remained unspecified. But, this casting was turned to be false rumour. Production company known as BenderSpink secured the rights to Danger Girl, and are eager to produce this flick. Personally, I myself back them up, but only if they would have done it properly without turning the franchise into another pathetic Christopher Nolan/Jason Bourne movie. Seriously, The Dark Knight Rises along with its two prequels were disastrously godawful. From the main character (sissy Bats) to the last bit of the complicated storyline. Anyway, it looks like Danger Girl will be based on the first series which were consisted of eight comic issues. Previously, a loose adaptation of the first series was produced as a video game, but it didn't do any justice to the product because of its lame gameplay, receiving negative reviews from critics. The blurb tells the reader the following:

"A beautiful adventuress joins forces with an all-female spy agency as they race around the world to recover a trio of powerful relics".

The blurb itself clearly sounded like the very first eight-issue miniseries. Now, a possibility of a cast I have made on my own, featuring different actresses in the leading roles. Here's who have I cast for each character that appears in the first series:

1-Pixie Lott as Abbey Chase

Personally, I see Pixie Lott as the perfect contestant to earn the role, because her performances are somewhat very similar to Abbey's own reactions. Plus, it will be her chance to start a side career next to her music career, which would be acting. She deserves a spotlight in this line of media business, as well. And also, before anyone complains about the "couldn't act" thing, I'd be gladly able to remind you that this is not some Shakespearean stage play to show people if they can act superior or not. This is the action media arena, and if it's Danger Girl, we want sensationally-looking ladies to pick up the roles.

2-Kate Beckinsale as Sydney Savage

 

I leave it as it is, because the choice of Kate to play Sydney is a very good idea. She's no stranger to the action genre at all, having appeared in the numerous action-horror movies, the Underworld series, among many others, such as the most recent Total Recall where she played the role of a rogue agent.

3-Angelina Jolie as Natalia Kassle

Ever since I started reading the series, I always have imagined that Natalia Kassle was modeled after Angelina Jolie herself, and besides, she can play the role of a traitor/villainess very well, she has what it takes to deliver a performance out of Kassle.

4-Sam Neill as Deuce

Sam Neill is one hell of an actor himself, and previously in the mid-1980s, he was in the run-ups to play the role of James Bond, in contest with Pierce Brosnan and Ian Ogilvy, which eventually went to Timothy Dalton. Neill's screen-test was a scene from From Russia With Love which starred Sean Connery as Bond himself, and Neill picked a similar performance to Connery's during the screen-test, and was praised by the fans and the crew. My point is, I would have gladly picked Connery if this was two decades ago, but come on, the man's already 83 years old and even retired from his acting career. And Neill would make one hell of a choice for Deuce, an unnamed James Bond as we, Bond fans, credit him.

5-David Bateson as Secret Agent Zero

David Bateson, the most underrated actor I have ever known, who is the infamous voice behind Hitman's Agent 47, the ICA operative who's job is to clear the shoes of corrupted politicians, policemen, military officers and high-ranking government officials. And as for Secret Agent Zero, every historian knows he's Diabolik. Heck, they share everything but the name due to copyright issues. However, Zero mentioned that once he was working for the evil side, but decided to defect to the good side and changed his trademark, which explains why his name differs from Diabolik.

6-Ian Somerhalder as Johnny Barracuda

Well, I have never been a fan of Barracuda myself, as he was somewhat in a wrong entry. Ladies like the Danger Girls do deserve competent and alpha male agents as their companions, such as Marvel's original Nick Fury from the 1960s, or Connery's Bond himself, or DC's John Stone. But, Barracuda? I really want him out of the series, personally, but as his presence is important, to keep the storyline from damage, he has to be cast and portrayed like he is. The reason why have I cast Ian Somerhalder in the role, because it somehow suits him, he can play someone who's arrogant and delivers bad jokes perfectly. No other reasons listed.

7-Dolph Lundgren as Major Maxim

Well, who could be as menacing and as awesome as Dolph Lundgren in the role of the unstoppable Major Maxim? Simple. Nobody. We don't need more detailed reasons for that one.

8-Mia Wasikowska as Silicon Valerie

While that is not originally my choice, I've definitely found Mia the ultimate actress to play Valerie. As she has a very similar appearance to the character, it would be good to have her in the role, sharing geek-like jokes with Abbey and laughing at it.

9-Benedict Cumberbatch as Donavin Conrad

Probably there should be some customization within Conrad's character, transforming him into someone more competent and haunting than being a silly idiot like he was in the comics. Benedict Cumberbatch definitely has the look for the part, and he could deliver some extreme villainous menace throughout his screentime.

10-Peter Dinklage as Kid Dynamo

Well? Who's perfect for the part of Kid Dynamo other than Peter Dinklage himself?

11-Lee Byung-Hun as Assassin X

Byung-Hun has previously played a ninja in G.I. Joe movies, so I guess it won't hurt if we have him as a rogue ninja warrior in here, as well. He's too tough to defeat, too.

12-Christopher Walken as Doctor Kharnov Von Kripplor

You want someone insane at a very old age, you want an actor to play an insane German doctor? Well, Christopher Walken is the perfect choice for that, and thus, he's still a big name even up to date.

Interesting choices, I suppose. Now, it's up to you to use your own imagination to express your perspectives about the project, the atmosphere, and the cast. And I personally suggest Lee Tamahori to helm the project as he's a master of over-the-top action flicks.