This week, Daniel Craig talks to Earl Dittman about Quantum of Solace and when James Bond will finally bed more women, have more fun and maybe hit the slopes.

Also: Special edition DVDs of The Odd Couple and To Catch a Thief, plus a family of high-flying swindlers, all after the jump.

DANIEL CRAIG: JAMES BOND SLIDES DOWN A HILL ON A PLATE

Were you surprised that Quantum Of Solace was going to be the first direct sequel to a James Bond movie?

“It just seemed to me when it came down to it, and we all agreed, that to my mind at the end of Casino Royale, it was the beginning of the story as opposed to the end of one. He had fallen in love, had his heart broken, and this organization they discovered they have started peeling back the onion skin. To do another movie and just go ‘Oh, there was this chick once,’ seemed to be the wrong thing to do. It just fit, and that’s it. I don’t know when the idea came up really.”

Was it a great acting challenge to portray Bond as a much more emotionally shut-off guy instead of the gregarious, witty and suave Sean Connery type 007?

“I would never do that, because I would never copy somebody else. I would never do an impression of anybody else or try to improve on what they did. That would be a pointless exercise. I had to find out how I was going to do this. These two movies have tied that in for me. I’m not in a situation where I think we’ve wrapped up all the loose ends. We solidified the relationship with M, we solidified the relationship with Felix Leiter, and we can do anything now. I think he’s going to be probably a little more relaxed in the next movie. He had a deal to do—a business to do.”

How much fun are you having as James Bond?

“These movies are—this is a world that needed doing anyway—fantastic. These movies are an amazing experience to shoot. They are an amazing experience to work with the people I work with. The whole collaborative effort of making a movie like this, it’s a big deal. It’s a really, really big deal. There are a thousand people that work on this movie. At any one time, I would be working with two to three hundred people. We shot this for six months. It was a huge journey. But, I think you can see it in the movie. I think it’s all there.”

So, could the next Bond film travel more into the world of fantasy?

“We could, I know that’s going to be printed now that we are.”

And, Bond could sleep with more women?

“I could, yes.”

Would you like to try doing a skiing action sequence?

“I’m not a very good skier, Jesus. I think my Bond, actually, slides down the hill on a plate. I don’t think there is a lot of that going on.”

You allegedly made a couple of jokes in the press that Quantum of Solace would be funnier than Casino Royale, more like one of the Roger Moore 007 movies.

“I’m sorry, I probably say stupid things in interviews sometimes. I am not nailing anything down. People kind of want to know what exactly is going to happen in the next movie, and I don’t know. Is there more comedy? Yes, there is room for more comedy.”

Do you find that people just don’t get your British sense of humor?

“I think that is the same for everybody. The thing is I’m not that complicated, I don’t think. I’m a pretty open book. I make gags, and if people don’t get them I can’t blame them.”

Would you like to continue on in the Bond franchise for another 20 years?

“I haven’t got that in me, Jesus Christ. There will be someone else to do it by then. I will do them as long as I can. I can’t see beyond another movie. If they ask me back to do another movie then I would be thrilled.”

Quantum of Solace is now available on Blu-ray and 2-Disc DVD: Both versions include seven featurettes, theatrical and teaser trailers and the “Another Way To Die” music video featuring Jack White and Alicia Keys. And, just released on Blu-ray: Goldfinger, Moonraker and The World Is Not Enough.

Other DVDs now available:

The Odd Couple • To Catch A Thief: Paramount Centennial Collections

It’s great when old movies receive the DVD (or Blu-ray) makeover—digital frame-by-frame restoration and digitally-enhanced sound. It’s even better when they are truly classic films that deserve to be seen and heard the way they were intended. Neil Simon’s quintessential buddy comedy The Odd Couple and the Alfred Hitchcock romantic thriller To Catch A Thief certainly fit the bill. Available in separate 2-Disc DVD collections, The Odd Couple will remind you just how dynamic and airtight the comedic chemistry between Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau really was; and, if you’ve never realized it before, as you watch To Catch A Thief, it’s evident why Grace Kelly was labeled the epitome of natural beauty. Better yet, she’s a great actress, too. Both DVDs are overflowing with a bounty of historical, behind-the-scenes featurettes and interviews, but Grace Kelly and Cary Grant devotees, and “Alfreanados” (hardcore Hitchcock fans) will definitely fall head-over-heels for the mini-documentaries about the iconic actors and the groundbreaking filmmaker.

The Riches: Season Two

In these tough economic times, watching a family of modern-day con artists and gypsies using their wits and age-old confidence schemes to scam their way into a life of luxury is a true guilty pleasure. Filled with richly dark humor, intricate plot twists and realistic family drama, the second season of The Riches (and sadly, its final) finds our lovable swindlers, the Malloys, scrambling to keep their elaborate ruse of adopting the identities and lives of a wealthy couple about to be exposed. Perfectly cast as Wayne and Dahlia Malloy, cross-dressing, English funny man Eddie Izzard and British beauty Minnie Driver deliver sensational performances and are crucial in making some of the show’s more outrageous, over-the-top story lines and insane plot devices believable. Although The Riches failed to find a large TV audience (hastening its demise), its incredibly clever writing, flawless performances and ballsy approach to stealing the American dream should help to garner it a well-deserved cult following on DVD.