Sam Mendes which began transmission in early 2013. In April 2016 he was named as the President of the Jury for the 73rd Venice International Film Festival. On 5 January 2010, news broke that Mendes was employed to direct the 23rd Eon Productions installment of the "James Bond" franchise. The film, "Skyfall", was subsequently released on 26 October 2012, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Bond films. Mendes had been employed as a consultant on the film when it was in pre-production, and had remained attached to the project during the financial troubles of MGM. The film was a major
James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me "as much action as anyone could take." In their guide "The Bond Files", Andy Lane and Paul Simpson say Wood's novel "counts as a decent Bond novel in its own right, and is certainly more stylish than many of the later volumes." That said, fan reaction to the novelization has been largely positive, with many fans claiming it to be one of the better James Bond continuation novels. James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me is the official novelization of the 1977 Eon "James Bond" film "The Spy Who Loved Me", which was