Review of Casino Royale (2006) by Dillinger P — 18 Nov 2015

After the near franchise suicide that was "Die Another Day", the powers that be behind the Bond series had a mammoth task ahead of them. It would have been easy to give up then and there, no one would have batted an eye lid, but after a much needed rest, James Bond was recast and rebooted.

"Casino Royale" finds James Bond going back to his roots, stepping back to before the worlds biggest spy became a double o agent. Bond is reckless, fresh and for once in his entire career, in serious trouble, as he finds himself on the trail of a huge organisation, layered with many contributors.

One such contributor, La Chiffre, a deadly business man who has invested his partners money in shares, recklessly playing the stock market and finding himself in a world of debt and desperation. La Chiffre attempts to settle his debt by winning a poker tournament at The Casino Royale, however James Bond and MI6 have other plans, leading to one of Bonds biggest challenges yet.

Returning to Bonds debut book and placing the charge in Martin Campbell's, director of "Goldeneye", hands, the James Bond franchise fires back into life, with all the impact of an atomic bomb.

Gone are the ludicrous gadgets, over the top quips and most importantly an immortal Bond. Daniel Craig totally destroys all previous efforts, dating back to Connery, as our hero James Bond, he is a reckless killing machine, charming and chiseled, with an abundance of class, Bond has never been played so well and it shows.

In fact all of the cast deliver a sterling performance, Mads Mikkelson is one of the best Bond villains ever to grace our presence, Judi Dench is ferocious as M, Eva Green is a powerful and formidable assistant for Bond, even Giancarlo Gianni is magnificent as Bond's middle man, Matthis.

The entire cast hit all the right notes, which is formidable enough, however Casino Royale's writing is a cut above a vast quantity of Bond outings. Characters are rich and complex, the film is vast and weighty and the new direction never feels stale or lost.

That's not to say that everything James Bond has ever been is gone, he's hardly a shadow of his former self, however Campbell strips Bond back, makes it dangerous and takes some risks. One such risk is Casino Royale's main set piece, unlike previous outings, most James Bond films would contain a plethora of action sequences, culminating in one outstanding spectacle, here however the writers and Campbell take a different approach, allowing the meat of the piece to be the card game itself, lasting almost 45 minutes of screen time, Campbell makes every hand just as tense and riveting as the action set pieces before and after it, its a welcomed change of tact, allowing fans to venture outside their comfort zone and experience something new, that's not to say Campbell's venture doesnt crank up the violence or stunt work, quite the opposite, the first hour of Casino Royale is littered with some of the best action Bond has ever undertook and what makes it more memorable is the fact that Craig forces his character to get hurt, to make mistakes, this arc makes every fight, every explosion feel threatening.

Casino Royale continually feels fresh, throwing convention to the wind and looking outstanding doing so. There are a few hiccups, some dialogue is laughably atrocious, luckily these porkers are placed far away from each other, the ending feels like the entire engine is running out of fuel, it still rivets but never outshines the wonderful card game, and we are left with an ending that clearly baits for a sequel.

None of these factors hinder the overall experience, "Casino Royale" is tense, well crafted and the best outing Bond has seen since "Goldeneye", Craig is perfect as Bond and his supporting cast deliver some of the most memorable performances from the entire franchises history.

Although a huge departure from previous installments, some fans may miss franchise regular hijinks and the stupidity of some of the more flamboyant Bond moments and Casino Royales gas does start to run out in the final act, Campbell and Craig deliver something new and exciting, leaving us with a much needed revitalization that seemed impossible years prior.