Ken Adam at the NFT

Shady Tree

London's The National Film Theatre is hosting 'An Evening With Ken Adam' this week, on Wednesday 14th September, following a screening of Kubrick's 'Dr. Strangelove'. The cost is £11.00, and at time of posting there were still a few seats left. I've just booked one.

I'm really looking forward to this event, as Adam's fantastic production designs were integral to the distinctive aesthetic of Bond in the 60s and 70s; it'll be fascinating to hear him reflect back over his career.

Shady Tree

Tonight Ken Adam was interviewed on stage by Christopher Frayling, in NFT1, following a screening of 'Dr. Strangelove'.

Adam talked about the Bond films and emphasised how little money there'd been on 'Dr. No'. He explained that director Terence Young had had to delegate to him complete conceptual freedom over the design and construction of the key sets of the film, because he (Young) and the producers needed to be away in Jamaica, shooting with the main unit. Upon their return, Young was immediately delighted with Adam's outlandish sets, while the producers were initially less sure (although Adam's style apparently appealed to Cubby Broccoli's sense of humour).

It seems that both Adam and Young simply forgot about the anteroom where Professor Dent collects a deadly tarantula from Dr. No (!) - so this set had to be built hurriedly, overnight, and very cheaply. Frayling commented on the eerie spiderweb grill built into the ceiling of the anteroom, and he pointed out that this design, in particular, reveals the influence of German Expressionism on Adam's aesthetic: think 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'. (BTW, we Bond fans are lucky to be able to count among our number so eminent a film historian as Frayling. If further DVD commentaries are ever commissioned for the classic Bond films, Frayling's the man for the job.)

During the interview Adam explained how Kubrick had approached him to do 'Dr. Strangelove' after having run 'Dr. No' and been impressed by it. Adam also told the anecdote about how, much later on, he had turned to Kubrick for advice on lighting the supertanker set on 'The Spy Who Loved Me'. The pair paid a furtive visit to the 007 stage early one Sunday morning... Kubrick wouldn't have wanted it known that he'd made any contribution to a Bond flick, but he indeed provided Adam with all the lighting solutions needed for the set!

Adam was asked from the floor about his views on CGI. He gave a diplomatic answer in which he said that CGI was a useful tool, and that he himself had made some use of it in recent work.

When he was asked which Bond film is his favourite, he paused and (again diplomatically) said that this was a very difficult question to answer.

All in all, an enjoyable evening - with a few clips from the classic Bonds included, as well as sequences from other famous movies designed by Adam.

Sir Ken, who was as convivial as ever, stayed to sign copies of his autobiography.

Shady Tree

Christopher Frayling now has a book out, 'Ken Adam: The Art of Production Design', although apparently the book is disappointing in terms of its visual content.