Casino Royale (2007, UMD)

The Decision

In the spirit of complete disclosure, I must confess that I have never been a Bond fan. Of all the books my dad left lying around the house during my childhood, the Ian Fleming paperbacks were the only ones I left untouched. Over the years, I ve watched very few of the movies, usually at the behest of friends and, more recently, my 9-year-old nephew who has a thing for Halle Berry.

However, Casino Royale came highly recommended by an acquaintance who claimed it s nothing like the usual formulaic Bond movies. It s different? Ergo, it must be good. And as for the new Bond, she had nothing but breathless praise indeed, Peter O Toole and Omar Sharif were mentioned in the same breath.

Who is this unlikely, paradoxical paragon? With nothing else in mind but the interests of epinion readers everywhere, I set out to investigate, accompanied by an eager hubby who, having suffered at my usual movie choices, was surprised and delighted at this one.

The Verdict

Having watched Casino Royale's Daniel Craig strut his stuff across the silver screen, I am, a week from the event, still this close to swooning. The scene of him emerging from the ocean like a Greek god version of Ursula Andress turned all the women in the theatre, this one included, into sighing, quivering masses of jelly.

For the naysayers who claimed that a blue-eyed blond could not possibly play Bond, I have nothing but contempt. I can only imagine the naysayers are eating their words, the women while in mid-swoon themselves. Sure, he's not as beautiful as the young Sean Connery, not as suave as the urbane Roger Moore, not as playful as the delightful Pierce Brosnan, but Daniel Craig has a physique that Connery himself (a body-builder in his younger days) would kill for, plus rugged good looks, and the most intense and brooding expression that would knock your for six if you possess a pair of X chromosomes.

Women who like bad boys, meet the baddest of them all--he's scary mean, wicked hot, and he's just been licensed to kill. If Daniel Craig as Bond doesn t get your juices going, ladies, there s something profoundly wrong with your system and it s time to pack it all in. As for the male viewers, I detected nothing but eyes glued to the screen, bums poised on edges of seats, and grins plastered on faces. Lack of new gadgets notwithstanding, Casino Royale has chases, fistfights and explosions aplenty more testosterone than you can shake a clenched fist at.

The Plot

In this prequel to all the Bond movies of yesteryear, Daniel Craig plays the iconic James Bond, just given 007 status by a reluctant M (played by Dame Judi Dench) who is not at all certain Bond is ready for his role. The setting has been updated from the Cold War to a post-911 era where international terrorism is rife. From the shocking opening sequence that establishes Bond s newly-established 007 status, to the vertigo-inducing foot chase sequence that features a slippery bomb-maker (an extremely agile Sebastien Foucan as Mollaka) and establishes Bond s courage, rashness and sheer insanity, the audience is treated to a new persona tough, brutal, and with attitude to rival your surliest teen.

That s not to say the usual formula s been abandoned far from it. There are the usual lush and exotic locales (from Uganda to the Bahamas to Venice to Montenegro). There are the beautiful and exotic women: Caterina Murino as Solange--a Penelope Cruz look- and sound-alike, and the beautiful Eva Green (who would be even more beautiful without all that make-up) as Vesper Lynd. There s also the token villain Le Chiffre (played by Mads Mikkelsen) who funds the terrorists and gambles with his dangerous clients money. As a villain, Le Chiffre is less than inspired. He sports an unfortunate slicked-back hairstyle that screams Me baddie! and uses an inhaler that I was convinced would somehow feature in the plot, and when it didn t, left me with a strange sense of non-closure and a stranger urge to apologize earnestly to asthmatics everywhere.

The plot goes something like this: Bond's first 007 mission takes him to Uganda where his over-zealousness in capturing a bomb-making terrorist causes M to give him a stern warning. But Bond being Bond, he decides to investigate independently of MI6 and follows a lead to the Bahamas where he learns that Le Chiffre, banker to the world's terrorist organizations, is planning to raise money in a high-stakes poker game in Montenegro at Le Casino Royale. MI6 assigns Bond to play against him, knowing that if Le Chiffre loses, it will ruin him. Under the watchful eye of the intelligent and beguiling British Treasury representative Vesper Lynd (with whom Bond engages in delightful, witty and revealing repartee), the longest poker game in the world takes place. Interrupting the never-ending poker game are various events, including a poisoning attempt on Bond that s literally heart-stopping.

Conclusion

Ladies, you owe it to yourselves to go watch Casino Royale. For one thing, the opening playing card-themed graphics is a joy to watch on the big screen. Sure, yawn at the slow bits, glance at your watch when the end s nowhere in sight 90 minutes into the movie, but when Daniel Craig lights up that silver screen, give thanks to the movie gods (and the right-thinking casting agent) that Bond is finally fleshed out by a man who can not only act, but act the part, flawlessly. Giving the most realistic portrayal of the iconic 007 ever to grace the silver screen, Daniel Craig is rightfully Bond, James Bond.