When the legendary James Bond faced enraged monks in Meteora



[ad_1]

James Bond had, has and probably will have many enemies in the future. Mysterious personalities. Criminal characteristics. Envious minds. People of the underworld. Gangsters Unscrupulous killers …

The darker the character of the famous super agent’s opponent, the better for the story plot.

However, there is an opponent that James Bond probably did not anticipate. He did not see it coming towards him, as the young man says. This opponent did not have state-of-the-art weapons, nor did he display various sophisticated war gadgets to take out the charming agent.

Exactly when he wanted to fight him, he used … tarps! You’re confused? Reasonable. Let’s start from the beginning.

For the needs of the filming of the movie “For Your Eyes Only”, James Bond, who at that time was playing the great Roger Moore, had also arrived in Greece. Some of the most intense scenes in terms of suspense and agony of the play would be shot here.

Part of the shooting would take place in Meteora. And the enemy με appears with whom we confused you before.

In Meteora, the monks thought that the filming of the movie would cook the Holy Monasteries and they started their own battle.

The Holy Monastery of Barlaam in Meteora

Those who were lucky enough to be in Meteora at some point are delighted to see or better admire the Barlaam Monastery, which is built on a high and steep rock.

The monastery was created in the early 16th century by two brothers, Nektarios and Theofanis. It took its name from the ascetic Barlaam, who was the first to settle on the top of the rock two centuries earlier.

In 1563 the imposing tower of the brizon was built, while in 1541 the katholikon of the Monastery was dedicated, which is dedicated to Agios Pantes. The oldest of the hagiographies that exist in the Barlaam Monastery dates from 1548 and its creator is the main representative of the post-Byzantine school of northwestern Greece, Frango Catelano.

Today it is one of six monasteries that continue to function normally, while since 1988 it has been included in the list of UNESCO world heritage sites.

Tough opponent for James Bond …

“Confidential”

From 1962 to the present, the legendary British intelligence agent 007 has starred in more than 25 cinematic adventures. However, he could hardly imagine the opponent who would emerge in the fall of 1980 during the filming of the movie “For Your Eyes Only”, part of which took place in Greece and specifically in the Ionian and Meteora.

It all begins in the turquoise waters of the Ionian Sea, where the bad guys sink a spy ship that’s packed with electrical surveillance systems and more. The most important of the systems is saved. A coding brain that ends up in the hands of the “evil” Christ.

Impressive battles ensue for the “good guys” to regain their brains. Christatos finds refuge in Meteora and specifically in the Monastery of Barlaam. James Bond is on his trail. She is chasing him and all parties are preparing for the final match against the backdrop of the mighty Meteora.

And somewhere the “phase” goes wrong!

The rise of the monks

And where everything went well, the undercover MI6 agent faced an “enemy” he did not have. The Ministry of Culture could have given the corresponding permission, however, the monks reacted strongly as they said that the film includes scenes of robbery, violence and sex and this brutally insults the sanctity of Meteora.

The monks hoped that this reaction would cause the shooting to not take place. However, when they saw the television crews preparing the cameras and scenes, they realized that filming was going to take place and decided to take more drastic measures.

At the forefront of the relentless fight against James Bond were four monks who barricaded themselves inside the convent, baring anyone from entering and threatening to burn alive anyone who tried to get close, especially Roger Moore.

When the production company decided to continue creating fake scenes for the shooting to continue, the monks threatened to burn them as well.

Also, to avoid shooting from the monasteries in the film, they tried to spoil the shots by hanging tarps, sheets and flags while spreading clothes with underwear on the sides where they understood the shooting was taking place.

As the last weapon against the film, the then metropolitan of the area presented an accusation requesting the immediate cessation of filming.

James Bond’s unexpected allies

And where things seemed to be going wrong for the production, James Bond acquired an unexpected ally that was none other than the locals who apparently understood how good publicity it would be for their place to have footage of Meteora in a coffret-breaking film.

But that was not all. Production, technicians and actors were a total of 240 people who would stay in the wider area for 45 days and this would obviously bring income to the entrepreneurs.

So they organized a large demonstration in Kalambaka where they asked that the filming of the film continue normally and smoothly, they opposed the monks and threatened that if they continued with this tactic they would be forced to occupy the monasteries.

In particular, it is worth mentioning that some neighbors, according to reports at the time, denounced the (strange (as they characterized) the monks’ obsession with this film, since they themselves had not raised the slightest objection when they returned there a fourth before the films “Our agent in Greece” and “The horsemen of the sky” where the first had a clearly erotic mood and the second harsh scenes of violence. They said, in fact, that they not only raised no objections but allowed that the actors had access to the “basket” of Meteora.

Regardless, the James Bond movie shoot ended normally with Meteora embellishing the scenes, while the climbing scene was filmed normally (the stuntman who replaced Roger Moore slipped four times, causing many hearts to beat faster ). and finally offered moviegoers 10 minutes of killer action.



[ad_2]