Casino Royale
Directed by: Martin Campbell
Starring: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen, Judi Dench
An origin story for MI6’s very own 007, centering around a high stakes poker game, and a woman named Vesper Lynd.
Plot:
Screenplay by: Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Paul Haggis
An origin for everybody’s favorite spy. Casino Royale introduces us to newly minted 00 agent James Bond. As he and M discover a financier of worldwide terror, and track him down to a high stakes poker game held at the Casino Royale. Along the way Bond meets and falls for the beautiful and charming accountant Vesper Lynd. Whose existence leads to the heart stopping finale in Venice Italy. All of this is done with sharply written dialogue, some of the best character exploration of Bond in any film in the franchise, all the while reinventing Bond for a new audience. Some fan’s may be put off by the focus on dialogue over action, with the majority of the second act being light on action. But this is absolutely for the better. The plot is simply better and more coherent than any Bond film before or after, and brilliantly pays respects to the character while simultaneously reinventing him. Near the end we get one of the most emotional Bond scenes of all time setting up the final scene of the film. On another note it has one of the best Bond is captured scenes in the whole franchise. I honestly don’t have a single negative thing to say about the plot. So I shall end this segment by simply saying, the plot is damn awesome.
Cinematography:
Director of Photography: Phil Méheux
Edited by: Stuart Baird
The film’s visuals have you from the get go, where it starts brilliantly in black and white before switching back to color for the rest of the film. The action sequences are well shot, the film bookended by two great set pieces, a breathtaking on foot chase sequence to start, and a firefight in a crumbling building near the end. In between this action we get a long and fabulously intense poker game between our hero and our villain, which works as it should. Overall the film looks great, has some breathtaking sequences and is just a well shot piece of cinema.
Characters/Acting:
Making his debut as Bond, Daniel Craig is magnificent. An edgier take on the titular character, Craig plays it a little more brutish, and rough around the edges. This isn’t your father's Bond. “Shaken or stirred?” “Do I look like I give a damn?” At the same time he is effortlessly charming when need be, and has a sharp wit to boot. Overall he gives the best Bond performance this side of Sean Connery.
Eva Green as Vesper Lynd, is quite great herself. More than a verbal match for Bond, she sizes him up almost immediately and refuses to back down from verbal sparring. She is far from the most kickass lead woman in a Bond film, but she is by far one of the best when it comes to matching wits. Her performance here should go down as one of the better ones.
Mads Mikkelsen as Le Chiffre is great himself. Delivering a fine performance as the rather quiet villainous banker. Arguably one of the least intimidating Bond villains, he compensates for this by matching wits with Bond rather than fists. Becoming one of my favorite Bond villains in the process.
And as always Judi Dench is fantastic as M, more than a match for Bond she lectures him the entire movie as she rightfully should, She is absolutely in charge and in control, and is a joy to watch.
The rest of the supporting cast works as they should, doing what they need to without stealing the show from our leads.
Music:
Composer: David Arnold
The film’s score is complementary to what happens on screen, it is not distractingly bad nor distractingly amazing. It simply does it’s job while it needs to, and leaves you once the film ends. It works just fine.
Overall:
Casino Royale is an excellent film that unlike most other Bond film’s would be just as excellent if you replaced Bond with an entirely different character. The best film to ever hold the title of Bond, it draws you in from the start and never lets go. With a fantastic cast, solid music, good visuals, and incredible writing. You have to see this film...no you have to own this film it is worth all of the money, every penny of it.
Verdict: 4 and a half out of 5 stars
