Review of Casino Royale (2006) by John H — 19 Apr 2013

This film kept me glued to the screen from start to finish. From the free-running in the opening sequence to the heartbreaking finale in Venice, the film is beautifully and brilliantly shot, acted and scripted.

The Bond franchise has been running for fifty years and although I am a Bond fan, I found some of the films prior to Casino Royale were weak and too saturated with product placement opportunities. I thought Daniel Craig's portrayal of 007 in this film was engaging, intense, witty, refreshing and let's be honest, the man is damn handsome too.

Bond is sent to Madagascar to spy on a terrorist, Mollaka. He subsequently investigates Mollaka's terror cell, a task which takes him to various exotic locations beginning with the Bahamas. There he encounters Dimitrios and his girlfriend Solange and comes closer to finding the terrorist finacier Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen). When Bond hears that Le Chiffre will be playing in a high-stakes poker game at Montenegro's Le Casino Royale, M (Judi Dench) sends "the money" agent Vesper (Evan Green) to assist Bond in attempting to win the game.

I won't spoil the ending for those who few who haven't yet watched the film but suffice to say that the closing scenes in Venice are brief but thrilling and make for a stunning ending to a hugely enjoyable film.