The next James Bond movie, Skyfall, promises the usual action, exotic locations, scheming villains and beautiful women. For fans of the original novels by Ian Fleming, there's more: a journey into the troubled psyche of the iconic spy.

After all, the director of the 23rd film in the franchise, which spans half a century, is Sam Mendes, whose cinematic studies of personalities in emotional turmoil and even meltdown include American Beauty and Revolutionary Road.

"You always go back to the Fleming because the character Fleming created over a number of novels was incredibly complex," Mendes said Sunday at a news conference in Istanbul, where the crew of Skyfall has filmed.

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Sam Mendes became attached to Skyfall so long ago, back when it was called Bond 23, that you might have been forgiven for thinking he would never actually get to make it. But while MGM sorted out its money troubles and Skyfall found its way back on its feet, Mendes and star Daniel Craig were busy planning-- even if they weren't supposed to be.

"We were in continued conversations once Sam agreed to do it," Craig admitted at the press conference at the Ciaragan Palace in Istanbul on Sunday. "We weren't supposed to be talking about it, but we did. It snowballed, really."

Craig wasn't the only one who was helping Mendes shape the film while we all thought it was simply lying dormant. Mendes contacted Javier Bardem early on to ask him to play the villain, Silva, but Mendes says he knew that a standard Bond villain wouldn't be good enough to entice the Oscar-winning actor.

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The Sonoma International Film Festival, which runs April 11-15, will host the U.S. premiere of Sir Billi, the first full-length animated feature produced entirely in Scotland. The retired Sir Sean Connery voices the title role, a skateboarding grandfather and veterinarian trying to save the last beaver in Scotland with the help of his goat Gordon, voiced by Alan Cumming.

Sascha Hartmann directed the CGI project from a screenplay written by his wife Tessa Hartmann. John Fraser produced the film, with Connery serving as executive producer. Oscar-nominated Scottish composer Patrick Doyle (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) created the film’s music score, and Dame Shirley Bassey performs the song “Guardian of the Highlands."

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Away from the stage, actress Judi Dench is dealing with a troubling script: a story line that runs in her family and slowly destroys eyesight.

The Hollywood star, and James Bond's boss in recent 007 movies, has macular degeneration, an incurable eye disease that damages central vision, the part of the eye responsible for tasks such as reading small print. More than 2 million Americans 50 and older have an advanced form that can lead to severe impairment. Numbers are expected to rise to 6.3 million by 2030 as Baby Boomers grow older, says the American Macular Degeneration Foundation.

"I do not wish for this to be overblown," she said in a statement to Reuters. "This condition is something that thousands and thousands of people all over the world are having to contend with, and it's something that I have learnt to cope with and adapt to — and it will not lead to blindness."

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The cast of the new James Bond film Skyfall took over the streets of London for an action packed day of shooting that included police officers armed to the nines.

As the crew swarmed a neighbourhood in Whitehall, they focused the cameras on Javier Bardem.

The Spaniard made his first appearance in the film today as the villain Silva who turned up disguised as a member of the Metropolitan Police.

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Javier Bardem says starring in the new James Bond movie is a dream come true for him.

The Spanish actor plays the villain in the 23rd movie about the suave spy, entitled 'Skyfall' and he says he signed up because he wanted to work with director Sam Mendes and he's always been a big fan of the films.

He told the Independent newspaper: "I was born watching James Bond movies and there are many reasons to do this - the cast, the script, the story, the role and, of course, Sam Mendes."

Javier - who has a 14-month-old son, Leon, with wife Penelope Cruz - also revealed how he likes making political statements with his work.

He said: "Movies are powerful. But I think everything is political. When you put gas in your car you are making a political statement, because you are supporting the empires that control and continue the destruction of some countries. What I mean is that of course there has to be a relationship between politics and film.

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The James Bond novels by Ian Fleming will be re-released through the Random House Group this summer after the publishing company acquired the rights for the books.

The print versions of the books had previously been published by Penguin Books and the e-books were released by Ian Fleming Publications Ltd., a company run by family of the author. Now Vintage Books, a Random House imprint, will publish both for the next 10 years, according to the new agreement.

The Bond series was first published in 1953 through Jonathan Cape, also a Random House imprint.

“We are delighted to be reuniting James Bond with his original publisher," Corinne Turner, the managing director of Ian Fleming Publications Ltd., told Reuters.

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Naomie Harris said today she had never dared dream of becoming a Bond girl when she was starting out in acting.

The 35-year-old British actress stars alongside Daniel Craig, Dame Judi Dench and Javier Bardem in the new James Bond film Skyfall, currently in production.

Harris revealed at the First Light Awards 2012 at the BFI Southbank: "I never thought it was a possibility, so it's hugely exciting to be a Bond girl."

She added: "I'm loving it. I love Sam Mendes. He's a fantastic director. And Daniel Craig is incredible to work with, so I feel incredibly lucky."

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"Skyfall," the latest installment in the blockbuster spy franchise, will debut simultaneously in IMAX theaters when it hits screens next fall -- the first Bond film to hit the really big screen format.

To be released in IMAX internationally on October 26, and domestically on November 9, 2012, "Skyfall" centers on Bond's efforts to track down and destroy a threat to his boss, M.

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British spy James Bond is set to jump back behind the wheel of an Aston Martin for the upcoming 007 movie, Skyfall, due in cinemas in November.

The iconic British sports car brand confirmed to Fairfax Australia that Bond will again drive an Aston Martin, as he has in most of the 22 Bond films to date.

Already British media have spotted the world's most famous spy behind the wheel of the legendary Aston Martin DB5 - first used by Sean Connery as Bond in Goldfinger from 1964 - but it appears he could also drive a newer version of the British supercar.

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Bond enthusiasts have been left flabbergasted by what seems to be an overlooking of Sir Sean Connery’s contribution in the success of the multi-billion dollar franchise.

He appears on screen for fewer than five seconds of a 105-second advert for the launch of the Bond films on Blu-ray.

Daniel Craig, with just two 007 hits under his belt, gets a whopping 22 seconds, compared with Sir Connery’s ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ moments in the MGM promo.

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Knowing what sort of domestic set-up to expect at the home of a former Bond Girl is a tricky one, especially when that Bond Girl is Lana Wood — a woman who seems to have gone through life collecting lovers in a way that makes even 007 look like an amateur. Obviously, there won’t be any of her former husbands hanging around her California home, since four of those marriages ended in divorce and one was annulled. Or was it five marriages, and two annulments? History is unclear, and even the lady herself can’t tidy up the confusion. ‘One wasn’t really a marriage, but a nasty little thing,’ she says, vaguely.

There was a fling with Sean Connery — he was Bond to her Plenty O’Toole in Diamonds Are Forever in 1971. Alain Delon, once described as the most beautiful man on the planet, was a former squeeze. Then there was Warren Beatty

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To mark the 50th Anniversary of one of the most successful movie franchises of all time and as James Bond prepares for his 23rd official outing in Skyfall later this year, I have been tasked with taking a retrospective look at the films that turned author Ian Fleming’s creation into one of the most recognised and iconic characters in film history.

The sixth film in the series was to be inspired by Fleming’s 11th novel, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (OHMSS). Following the excesses of You Only Live Twice, the decision was made to take Bond back to his roots and make a faithful adaptation of Fleming’s original story with less reliance on gadgets and an emphasis on the love story at the heart of the novel.

The first edition of Ian Fleming's Casino Royale is priced at £28,000 and is the most expensive book at the annual event.

It is one of 4,728 copies of the first run of the book, which was printed in 1953.

The two-day fair, which has been held since 1975, is expected to attract about 2,000 to 3,000 people to see the collectables at Oxford Brookes.

Organiser Peter Hill said: "Increasingly people buy books online but these fairs give people the chance to meet knowledgeable dealers and like-minded collectors.

Daniel Craig is back as James Bond, and though details of his next adventure, "Skyfall," are being kept closely under wraps, Sony did reveal a few tantalizing clues in an official plot summary released this week.

"In 'Skyfall,' Bond’s loyalty to M (Judi Dench) is tested as her past comes back to haunt her," the summary reads. "As MI6 comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost."

Sounds like Dench will have more to do this go-round than simply deliver ultimatums to her skirt-chasing protege.

The complete James Bond is coming to Blu-ray -- all the gear, girls and crazy action from all 22 movies -- Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment president Mike Dunn announced Tuesday at the world’s biggest consumer electronics event in Las Vegas.

The disk set is available for pre-order today, although pricing and the actual ship date of the kit have yet to be announced.

Why Blu-ray?

“Details matter,” Dunn said, “from sound quality to scenery.” The new high-definition film format showcases all the nuance that goes into the films, and to take a closer look at those nuances.

The wait is finally over and BOND IN MOTION is now open. With fifty vehicles on display, BOND IN MOTION is the largest official collection of original Bond vehicles the world has ever seen. On display until December 2012 at the National Motor Museum, this could be your only chance to see these vehicles on display together.

2012 marks the 50th anniversary of the James Bond film series and the 40th anniversary of the National Motor Museum (and the 60th anniversary of Beaulieu opening its doors to the public) and what better way to celebrate than with the biggest exhibition of James Bond vehicles ever staged?

Alongside the most famous vehicles like the Aston Martin DB5 and the Lotus Esprit S1, there is a host of treasures dating back to From Russia With Love including the elegant Fairey Huntress Speedboat, Goldfinger’s 1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III, the buzzing autogyro from You Only Live Twice and Octopussy’s screeching Acrostar Jet alongside cars, bikes, trikes, sleds and boats.

"It's very difficult in France to get access to castings when you don't have any relationships," she told Empire.

"I totally heard by chance that they were doing the casting for a James Bond movie, and that one of the auditions was taking place in Paris. So I tried myself to contact every name involved in the movie I could possibly find on the IMDb!

"I finally managed to get the first audition in Paris, then I did the second in London with Sam Mendes, and then the third was with Sam and Daniel Craig, again in London. And then I was cast!"

The 35-year-old actress - who portrays field agent Eve in new 007 movie 'Skyfall' - explained she wouldn't be able to play a one-dimensional action woman, and is thrilled to be able to become a "new kind of Bond girl".

She said: "To be honest, I don't think I'd be very good at such a role. What drew me to this was the opportunity to play a new kind of Bond Girl.

"It's not just the women who have changed. James Bond himself has changed and Daniel Craig has been a very big part of that. He's brought depth and humanity to the role. He's so layered in a way that other Bonds just weren't, because nothing seemed to touch them. Daniel's Bond is very much touched by his relationships.

"In 2012, there's a need to have female characters who are equal to that. Otherwise it would be totally imbalanced and no one would care about the relationships Bond has. I love the way it's developed in that way.