Casino Royale was a hugely successful return to a darker, grittier Bond in tune with Ian Fleming’s original vision.

Its sequel is even more of a throwback – to the extent that one major character’s death scene in Quantum Of Solace is a direct visual quote from Goldfinger’s most iconic shot. It’s all deliberate.

Gemma Arterton: ‘I couldn’t move, I couldn’t see, I couldn’t breathe or hear because the oil went in my ears. It was unpleasant, but it’s something I’ll always remember and it will be an iconic part of the film’

The success of Casino Royale gave Daniel Craig a deciding voice in the direction of the next two films, and he pushed for a creative team who would take Bond back to the early days of the franchise, when legendary production designer Ken Adam oversaw the sets.

Out went several Pierce Brosnan-era personnel, to be replaced by, among others, director Marc Forster and production designer Dennis Gassner (who Craig knew from The Golden Compass and Road To Perdition).

Marc Forster: ‘I wanted the action to be simple and real. I used as little green screen as possible. The Bond films I love are the early ones with Connery – Dr No, Goldfinger. In Quantum you have the girls and the villains, but I kept it very low-key with the gadgets. I wanted to keep it more on a psychological, emotional level.

‘I have a moment with Bond on a payphone, and I love that image – it’s one of the things I enjoyed from the old films that I sprinkled in this movie.’

Daniel Craig: ‘This film has been about pushing myself physically and getting my face on camera as much as possible. Because that’s how Bond used to be. I think audiences know when it’s for real and when it’s not.’

Producer Barbara Broccoli: ‘The template was the early Sixties films, the original Bond. For instance, for the fight scenes our inspiration was From Russia With Love – the train fight with Sean Connery and Robert Shaw.’

Gemma Arterton: ‘Agent Fields is deliberately old-fashioned. We wanted everything about her to be typically Fleming – a throwback to the old Bond. At the same time, we wanted her to be a bit naughty.’

Source: Mail Online