Casino Royale Review

November 19,2006

New Bond in town!Four years after Die Another Day,the last movie with Pierce Brosnan as James Bond ,the successfull franchise returns ,but this time to the beginning.To the beginning of Bond as a 00 agent.

This movie may be regarded as a reboot to the series.Daniel Craig takes the lead role,previously portrayed by Sean Connery.Roger Moore,George Lazenby,Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan (maybe the best Bond,judging from the 007 movies I’ve seen).This choice caused a lot of controversy from the first moment it was announced. Some fans were against this choice and some said that they would even boycott the movie.To be honest,I didn’t like Craig as a new Bond.I definitely preferred P.Brosnan.When you see the movie,at first, the impression is mixed.However,as the movie progresses Craig proves that all the skepticism about him was wrong.His portrayal of Bond is actually very good.A Bond certainly different from the previous movies.



The movie takes a more realistic,more “raw” path.Bond is more human than before,more violent and to some point emotional.All this change is justified from the fact that,as said before,we see the early days of Bond.
The actors that stand out in Casino Royale are Daniel Craig and from the women side,Eva Green.One strong point of the movie are its well-written lines.This fact helps the actors,mainly Craig , in their performances.Eva Green is something more than a simple Bond girl,she’s the woman J.Bond falls for.Her performance is also exceptional.
Two other positive things are the directing and the intensity of some scenes(for example the scene of the poker game against Le Chiffre in Casino Royale).

However,there are some flaws.First flaw ,the villain:Mads Mikkelsen as Le Chiffre is not bad but he’s just too bland.C.Murino’s character (Solange ) is understated,”decorative” maybe and some action scenes last too long.

Casino Royale is very good movie and so is Daniel Craig,despite the doubts about him.This time the “formula” worked,but will it work next time?The fact that when you see Craig you may still have second thoughts about him as Bond, is it a drawback?(it seems that it is decided that D.Craig will reprise his role in Bond 22 as ign.com reports).

UPDATE 11/2008:A few days ago,i watched Casino Royale again (i watched the Blu-Ray,great transfer).I have to say that,while my opinion hasn't changed,i liked the movie even more.It's entertaining,action-packed,yet complex and moving.After some point,it's a tragic love story.It's probably the best Bond movie that i've seen.As for the flaws i mentioned in my original review,i think that Mads Mikkelsen is actually very good as the villain and the chase scenes are one of the pros of the movie.I don't have second thoughts for Daniel Craig anymore.He's very good as Bond and the reviews for Quantum of Solace say the same thing for his perfomance in it too.Is he the best Bond?He's certainly different from the previous ones.