My name is Bond, James Bond (Casino Royale [2006] (DVD))

Name: Ailran

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Product:	Casino Royale [2006] (DVD)
Date:	15.11.06 (407 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Gritty, realistic, modern. Direction, stunts, look & more!

Disadvantages: slight story, not very menacing villain

Everyone knows of James Bond and if they have not seen one of the films in the cinema or on TV they at least know of their existence. There have been so many Bond films and they are such a staple of British TV that very few people can not have seen at least one of them.

Casino Royale is the newest, latest Bond film, the one to reinvigorate the franchise, the one to bring Bond up to the levels of the major blockbusters of recent years. It is also the first one to star Daniel Craig (Munich, Layer Cake) as Bond, James Bond. Craig is unlike any previous actor to play Bond, for a start he is fair haired, secondly he doesn’t have the same pretty boy looks that have been a staple of Bond for 3 decades. He is much more akin to Connery’s Bond; he has a much harder edged look to him than anyone since Connery departed the role.
He hasn’t been a popular choice for the role; press and fan reaction to his appointment was good. True he may not seem an obvious choice (Clive Owen would have seemed a much better one looks wise) but he is a very accomplished actor and taking Bond away from the good looks of Brosnan and in a different direction seems like the way to go in this modern action movie era.

Casino Royale takes Bond back to the basics, reintroducing and reinventing the character in the same way Christopher Nolan did with Batman in Batman Begins. It introduces a new generation to Britain’s super spy by showing him at the beginning of his career. While not quite forgetting the previous films (Judi Dench is still ‘M’) you feel as if you are in at the beginning of something rather than jumping in 40+ years down the line. We are joining a new Bond, in more than just the fact it is a new actor playing him. This is a Bond for the new generation of fans as well as the long time ones. A Bond for the real world, there is no Q giving him gadgets that somehow are just what he needs during his mission and there isn’t even the customary interaction with Miss Moneypenny (who doesn’t appear at all!).
There are the over the top stunts just like the old days, no Bond film would be right without them but this time they are a lot more realistic, even the climatic scene is kind of plausible! Of course it is full of action, fights, stunts, car crashes et al, the producers aren’t completely crazy, but there are believable. After one long fight Bond is covered in scratches and wounds.
The opening fight/chase, which incorporates the visual joys of free running (jumping over walls tables, roofs etc to take the quickest route to your destination… best shown by District 13 or the BBC ad where the guy runs across the roofs of London to get to his TV), surely the best thing to come into action movies for years, you realise what a joy it is to see actual real men doing the stunts and not noticing it is all done by CGI rubbish. The makers of Bond revel in the fact that they did everything for real and you can tell what a difference it makes. The free running chase takes your breath away as you watch it.
It has to be said that the story for Casino Royale is not the greatest. It is a very lightweight one involving Bond trying to track down the money source for a group of terrorists. Tracing the man, Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelson – Pusher, Wilbur Wants To kill Himself), is easy stopping him from being a banker/financier for terrorism is another thing altogether. Le Chiffre is organising a poker competition with a $10 million entry fee to raise desperately needed funds after a previous plan went wrong, thanks to Bond. If Bond can get in on it and win, or at least stop Le Chiffre from winning, then MI6 will have made major dent in terrorist organisations ability to get money and the world will be a safer place.

That is the basis of the story and while it is very slight the dialogue more than makes up for it, no wonder seeing as Paul Haggis (the first man to win back to back Oscars for writing (Million Dollar Baby and Crash) was involved in polishing it up, it is full of great lines, without any of them being really stupid, corny one liners. Seeing as it is a Bond film and we know he isn’t going to do they manage to instil a lot of tension in some of the scenes. The poker table confrontations between Bond and Le Chiffre are very tense, you could hear a pin drop during them.

Question everyone wants to know is ‘Is Craig any good?’ I have to say, even though I am a big Brosnan fan, yes he is. He is a different Bond to all the others. With them I always felt that the suave, debonair, sophisticated man was the real one and he resorted to violence as a last resort, something he would do if he had to. Craig is the other way round… the sophisticated side of him is the act and the violent side is the real man. This makes a real difference when it comes to the fight because you get the feeling he really likes it! In many ways this Bond is not a likeable man, but he is a believable spy.

The female interest is Vesper Lynd, played by Eva Green (Arsene Lupin, Kingdom of Heaven) a French actress who has done very little. Vesper is the accountant, money woman for MI6 who is there to keep an eye on Bond, and for once is more than a match for him. She is a great foil for Bond, she is as witty, intelligent, sexy and sassy and Green plays her incredibly well. She is the kind of modern woman that we are not really used to seeing in a Bond film and she is a big part in making it such a good film.

He only real downside to Casino Royale is the villain. He is very non descript and doesn’t exude any menace at all. He doesn’t feel like a threat and never comes across as a challenge to Bond at any stage, except over the poker table. This is no fault of Mikkelson who does look great and acts the role with a certain style. It is just the kind of villain he is. I guess though you don’t send a new 00 agent after the most dangerous villains first time out!

As a final note the opening B&W scene setter showing you how Bond got his 00 status which segues into one of those wonderful opening credit sequences that only Bond could get away with makes a spectacular beginning, it even keeps the old gunshot pose down the barrel of a gun.

Casino Royale is a great film, it may not be one of the best films of the year but it sure is extremely well made, it looks great, the photography of the scenery is beautiful, the direction is top notch and the fight scenes sure get your adrenaline rushing. It is probably the best out and out action movie you will see this year (and I love MI3) and will probably be in my top 10 of the year entertainment wise.

Welcome back Bond, it’s good to see you again!

Summary: A fantastic restart to the Bond franchise.