Review of Casino Royale (2006) by Kai82 — 06 Jan 2021

The twenty-first James Bond movie and awesome debut of Daniel Craig. Today it seems unbelievable but there were huge resentments for Daniel Craig and even a petition to remove him. Then came the movie and he silenced all critics.

He plays a younger, rougher and more unpolished James Bond that even sometimes shows emotions behind his facade. It is canonically the first movie in the timeline shortly after he received his license to kill and became a 00 agent.

There is also the theory that James Bond is not one person and it is just the code name of whoever becomes 007 (Plausible but debunked in later movies. Still an interesting idea and fun topic to discuss).

It is actually the third adaptation of Casino Royal the first James Bond book by Ian Fleming. There is a parody staring David Niven from1967 that is a bit of obscure James Bond trivia and a nearly unknown TV adaptation from 1954 that barely is recognizable.

This is however easily the best movie and a good adaptation. They actually improved the book or modernized it. After the intense and well filmed intro (that I wont spoil) James Bond is send on an errant to stop Le Chiffre who can be described as banker of villains.

He is currently vulnerable as he made some bad investments and sets up a poker tournament to get money as soon as possible before his clients target him. James Bond is accompanied by Vesper Lynd from the HM Treasury.

The story works amazingly in combination with the characters. It has intense moments, character development and twist that will get you immediately immersed. It has a strong cast and I think I start with Daniel Craig.

He was just amazing. He plays a new and different kind of James Bond. He is younger and a bit rougher on the edges but also shows more emotions and becomes more relatable because of it. He silenced all critics and is now a valid choice for best James Bond actor.

Then there is Eva Green as Vesper Lynd. Forget all tropes about Bond girls. She is smart and no damsel in distress. She even counters James Bond attacks in conversations (I think she won). I think she equally delivers and impressed me too.

There is the statement that a hero is only as interesting as his villains and here we get one of the best in recent years. Mads Mikkelsen as Le Chiffre delivers an awesome performance. He nails the role of villain and being driven into a corner.

From the rest I always praise Judi Dench as M who has smaller roles but always nails it and Jeffrey Wright as Felix Leiter who became a favorite side character. Again both deliver with excellence. Then there are the action scenes.

All are intense, immersive and you feel the impact. The choreography was amazing and set a standard for the franchise. After “Die another Day” they wanted a more grounded approach so there are no gadgets or huge effect scenes.

It works well and I think they revitalized the franchise. For the soundtrack I think they did a good job even if I am in the minority. You know my name delivers to the movie and theme of a new era. Overall this was an amazing experience and it is one of the best movies in the franchise.

A must see that I would even recommend to non James Bond fans.