Yes, Olavsvern has been sold. Olavsvern is in Ramsfjord, where the "marinejeger" unit train and live. Marinejegers are the Norwegian naval special forces and the only special forces unit in the world with their HQ north of the polar circle. "We live where you come to train."
Thanks for the kind words about the pictures I posted. I really hope architecture becomes more fun in bond movies again.
Yes and no (just to make it clear ) ) They are good locations, but we have seen them so many times on TV and film they almost don't feel exotic anymore. Perhaps the way the British feel about New York or California?
Some of you might have noticed that I wouldn't mind seeing Norway as a location in a Bond film. But do I really think Norway will be used in Bond 24? Honestly, not really ...
Why? Sometimes movie or TV companies make a call and express interest in filming in Norway. It happened for DAD and it happened when HBO was planning 'Vikings'. "What insentives are there in Norway for TV or movie productions?" The reply is always the same: "We have no economic insentives." Then the producers say thank you, hang up and call Ireland or Iceland.
Norway has deep coffers, so we paid ourselves out of the banking crisis. Iceland is slowly working themselves out of it, partly because they just let their banks sink or swim on their own.
Norway is a very expensive country to live and work in. Since most other countries are cheaper and give serious tax cuts or cash support to film productions and we dont, foreign moves are almost never made in Norway.
Considering how many people a film production employs - a significant portion of whom are hired locally from extras to carpenters, cooks to drivers - and the amount of money that's spent on hotel accommodation, meals, vehicle hire, petrol, supplies etc, I am always amazed that more countries/cities don't encourage production companies from filming there. Not to mention the benefits of tourism if it's something truly successful, such as LOTR for New Zealand.
Some countries never incentivised, but others did the opposite and slapped on all sorts of permit fees or hidden fees (ie back-handers). Egypt is a classic example of a country that screwed themselves out of serious money by making it prohibitively expensive and difficult to film there (and that's before the recent turmoil). What was the last major movie shot in Egypt? Now compare that to Morocco which seems to have everything shot there.
Norwegian politicians aren't half bad if you go by UN statistics. But it's hard to understand why they don't help foreign filmmakers who want to film in the country. I know the producers of LoTR are planning a huge budget trilogy about the viking king Harald Hardråde. He has been in Norway for location scouting and the government is considering insentives, but will they do it and will it be in time not to let this oportunity slip?
Getting things back on track, one good idea for a formidable but plausible villain lair is a Quantum paramilitary training ground that trains bad guys but is managed as a legitimate security firm (conjuring up the spectre of Al Qaeda and Blackwater, the real life bad guys from last decade).
'Alright guard, begin the unnecessarily slow moving dipping mechanism...'
I agree. Private security companies/mercenary armies are great villans. Besides, QUANTUM would need one.
most proper private UK security companies ,certainly ones who went to Bagdad ect employed ex British army and police,
there where Met fire arms guys that jacked it in and went and a good few R.M.P. guys also ,they don't all employ trigger happy gun nuts,
I'm glad my idea of Quantum running PMCs has been better accepted this time round, in a older thread some other posters tried to blow off the idea mercenary contractors and assume a secret, well connected confederation of corporations like Quantum would operate in tiny cells of street level gunmen and bombers.
If private military contractors replace the jogging henchmen in red jumpsuits, the super yachts (like Abramovich's Eclipse) could also replace the volcano lairs (Quantum bigwigs going around in super yachts contrast with a lower ranking Quantum middle man like Le Chifre having a modest yacht as his mobile base of operations). A plausible retake on Carver's stealth boat and Largo's high tech for the time yacht as well.
'Alright guard, begin the unnecessarily slow moving dipping mechanism...'
Agreed. But the private security company must be more than a mercenary outfit. I picture a company who "does security" on places like military bases in Afghanistan, Google HQ and the Department of Foreign Affairs. that would make a formidable opponent for Bond.
Yeah and Dominic Greene mentioned to the crooked general that his forces in Bolivia would supported by security contractors.
And ironically enough the Quantum owned security firm could also be a prison contractor (a remote high tech prison owned by the baddies is another good idea for a location).
'Alright guard, begin the unnecessarily slow moving dipping mechanism...'
Maybe the security company can own and run a CIA/MI6 "black site" prison? "No, we have no connections with this facility, " states the MI6 spokesperson, "It is on Egyption territory and it's own by a private company".
If a Quantum dummy contract company runs the CIA/NSA prisons in remote parts of the world on one hand then training terrorists gunmen/bombers on the other, it is feeding both sides of the War on Terror. I like that idea.
And so far it excels at subverting minor but key members in Her Majesty's Treasury and Secret Intelligence service, with one Quantum chairman at the heart of the UK government, maybe Quantum could have the ways and means to hijack NATO nuclear weapons facilities as well to orchestrate a global coup, if you want to go down the route of Quantum behaving like Blofeld or Stromberg of old in a more plausible 2010s fashion.
'Alright guard, begin the unnecessarily slow moving dipping mechanism...'
I would like to see the villain have a bigger plan, a hero is only as good
as the villains he has to fight and I think it's about time Craig's Bond
came up against a more classic style nemesis, but with a contemporary
style. No stroking white cats etc. )
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
Quantum as global organisation appears to be more like a very corrupt confederacy of corporations playing both sides of either the War on Terror and War on Drugs, etc, rather than eccentric madmen seeking to change the world. Though there could be a build up to a world domination plan (but it could be Quantum seizing control of all aerial combat drones, Carver style media manipulation, Silva style cyber attacks for less petty reasons, and rigging American elections, etc).
'Alright guard, begin the unnecessarily slow moving dipping mechanism...'
I couldn't have said it better myself. Holding the world to ransom with one or more atomic bomb would make everyone aware of them and amke everyone hunt them. Quantum are more subtle and modern.
Comments
Thanks for the kind words about the pictures I posted. I really hope architecture becomes more fun in bond movies again.
... is to Ken Adam's scetch for MR.
As an exciting location ?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11386699
Why? Sometimes movie or TV companies make a call and express interest in filming in Norway. It happened for DAD and it happened when HBO was planning 'Vikings'. "What insentives are there in Norway for TV or movie productions?" The reply is always the same: "We have no economic insentives." Then the producers say thank you, hang up and call Ireland or Iceland.
Norway is a very expensive country to live and work in. Since most other countries are cheaper and give serious tax cuts or cash support to film productions and we dont, foreign moves are almost never made in Norway.
Some countries never incentivised, but others did the opposite and slapped on all sorts of permit fees or hidden fees (ie back-handers). Egypt is a classic example of a country that screwed themselves out of serious money by making it prohibitively expensive and difficult to film there (and that's before the recent turmoil). What was the last major movie shot in Egypt? Now compare that to Morocco which seems to have everything shot there.
But let's keep it Bond. {[]
there where Met fire arms guys that jacked it in and went and a good few R.M.P. guys also ,they don't all employ trigger happy gun nuts,
If private military contractors replace the jogging henchmen in red jumpsuits, the super yachts (like Abramovich's Eclipse) could also replace the volcano lairs (Quantum bigwigs going around in super yachts contrast with a lower ranking Quantum middle man like Le Chifre having a modest yacht as his mobile base of operations). A plausible retake on Carver's stealth boat and Largo's high tech for the time yacht as well.
And ironically enough the Quantum owned security firm could also be a prison contractor (a remote high tech prison owned by the baddies is another good idea for a location).
And so far it excels at subverting minor but key members in Her Majesty's Treasury and Secret Intelligence service, with one Quantum chairman at the heart of the UK government, maybe Quantum could have the ways and means to hijack NATO nuclear weapons facilities as well to orchestrate a global coup, if you want to go down the route of Quantum behaving like Blofeld or Stromberg of old in a more plausible 2010s fashion.
as the villains he has to fight and I think it's about time Craig's Bond
came up against a more classic style nemesis, but with a contemporary
style. No stroking white cats etc.