The new James Bond film "Quantum of Solace" enjoyed a record opening weekend in Britain, earning 15.4 million pounds ($25 million) at the box office, Hollywood studio Sony Pictures Entertainment said on Monday.

The amount eclipses the previous record of 14.9 million held by "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" released in 2005, Sony added in a statement. It also passes the total set by the previous Bond installment, "Casino Royale," which earned 11.4 million pounds in ticket sales over its three-day weekend opening in 2006.

In Quantum of Solace, the 22nd official Bond film and Daniel Craig's second outing as the suave secret agent, 007 crosses South America and Europe on an action-packed, stunt-filled mission to discover why the woman h

by Tom Hall (November 3, 2008)

Fresh on the heels of 2005's critical hit "Kings And Queen," Arnaud Desplechin is returning to American screens this fall with his new film, "A Christmas Tale" (Un Conte de Noel). Already a hit on the international festival circuit, "A Christmas Tale" is also Desplechin's most successful release to date; international box-office receipts for the film have exceeded $4,000,000. indieWIRE caught up with Desplechin after his recent New York Film Festival screenings to discuss the film and his thoughts on the prospects for commercial success in the United States. The film opens later this month and a retrospective of Desplechin's work begins this week in New York City.

indieWIRE: When we last spoke, you said the following about the process of creati

James Bond easily claimed the top spot at the weekend box office overseas, even though the 22nd installment of the 007 franchise launched in only three markets.

"Quantum of Solace" generated $38.6 million, with the UK accounting for $25.3 million, a record opening for any film in the territory. France chipped in $10.6 million, a record for the spy series, and Sweden $2.7 million.

"No other international release in 2008 has grossed more (playing in) fewer than 27 territories," said Mark Zucker, president of international distribution at Sony Pictures, which partnered on the project with MGM.

Daniel Craig's second outing as the super sleuth will add 57 markets next weekend before opening November 14 in North America

"Milk" is the first great film to look at civil rights from the perspective of the gay movement.

The subject, of course, is the late, charismatic San Francisco gay activist and politician of the 1970s, Harvey Milk, played with extraordinary depth and wisdom by Sean Penn. "Milk" resists bumper-sticker identifications: Yes, it's a biopic, a love story, a civil rights movie and sharp political and social commentary. But it transcends any single genre as a very human document that touches first and foremost on the need to give people hope.

The audience for this film is all over the map but probably modest -- the gay and lesbian community, for sure, and anyone with politics on the brain. And anyone who cares about acting too, not just for Penn but persuasi

Sacha Baron Cohen went undercover as his alter ego Bruno on Sunday by crashing a rally in support of a ballot measure that would ban gay marriage in California.

The British comedian is working on a film based on the fictional character Bruno, a gay Austrian fashion reporter who conducted gag interviews on HBO's "Da Ali G Show."

Cohen, in disguise in a blond wig and preppy outfit, marched with demonstrators who support Proposition 8 while being trailed by cameras in a rally across from City Hall.

When photographers and reporters realized who he was and tried to approach the star, members of his film crew tried to shield him, and he was eventually whisked away in a van.

Cohen, who has made a career out of filming unwitting victims of his fake identitie