Bond 23 News/Key Release Dates

Sony Pictures and EON Productions held a Press Conference in London yesterday to officially announce the 23rd Instalment in the James Bond Franchise, now confirmed as being titled Skyfall. The film will be directed by Sam Mendes and stars Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Benenice Marlohe, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw and Albert Finney. 

Shooting for the $230 million production has now begun in London for a scheduled release date of November 9th, 2012. For more details about the project, including an official synopsis, you can visit the James Bond Official Twitter account, or for for a video from the Skyfall Press Conference, visit the Facebook page.  

Fans of Lars Von Trier will be pleased to learn that his newest film Melancholia, a psychological disaster film which won Kirsten Dunst a Best Actress Award at Cannes, will now open in Australian cinemas on December 15th, and not the 26th as previously scheduled. Boxing Day, as usual is stacked, with The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn, Happy Feet 2 3D, War Horse, We Bought a Zoo, The Skin I Live In, The Iron Lady, Albert Nobbs and Tower Heist scheduled for an opening.

Other key dates to take note of are January 12th - Hugo, The Descendents, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and The Muppets, and January 19th - Martha Marcy May Marlene Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy and Young Adult. 

There have been some other significant changes to the Australian release schedule also. 50/50, a critical hit in the United States last month, has been pushed back until the 8th March 2012, instead of being originally slotted in for next week (November 10th). Australian audiences will still be able to see The Artist before the 2011 Academy Awards, but not until the 2nd February - pushed back from January 19th.