Bond is back in one of my favorite Bond adventures to date. I’m a fairly new 007 fan and have not seen all of them yet. I typically enjoy the more realistic installments like FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE and FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. So this Bond reboot back to its espionage roots is greatly welcomed.
The film begins with a black and white segment showing us how James Bond (Daniel Craig, LAYER CAKE) reached 00 status. After some stylishly animated opening credits, we meet up with Bond in the midst of him tracking a bomber, which ends in a reckless Bond embarrassing the British government. His boss M (Judi Dench, SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE) wants him to back off, but he goes out hot in pursuit of the bad guys, which leads him to terrorist financier Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen, KING ARTHUR).
As the plot thickens, Bond ends up in a high stakes poker game with Le Chiffre, which if he does not win, he will have helped the British government fund terrorism. The beautiful Vesper Lynd (Eva Green, THE DREAMERS) represents the bank that is putting up the money for the game. A flirtatious rapport quickly grows between the sexy spy and the attractive accountant. Helping Bond is agent Mathis (Giancarlo Giannini, HANNIBAL) and mysterious card player Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright, BROKEN FLOWERS).
The first question that must be addressed is whether Craig is up for the part. Yes, he is. He’s a skilled actor, who brings rawness that the younger James Bond should have. This is an origin story and Bond shouldn’t be “Bond” yet. Craig develops a cocky, young agent, who hasn’t learned the full ramifications of his actions yet. The suave spy is there; he’s just rough around the edges. Green is a wonderful partner for Bond that brings in the smarts that characterizes the best of the Bond girls.
All the action sequences in the film are first rate. From the pacing to their visual look to their choreography, they drive the plot forward with excitement. It’s amazing how many actions films grind to a halt when they get to the action, because it’s boring and/or pointless.
Director Martin Campbell, whose GOLDEYE is credited as reinvigorating the franchise previously, has done so again. He balances the action and character moments well. The extended character section right before the third act is filled with subtle tension, because of the nature of the genre and because Martin allows time to make us care about Bond and Lynd. We don’t want something to happen to them, but we just know it’s coming. Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and Paul Haggis’ screenplay balances a gritty realism with the iconic cool of the franchise well. They often weave the signature lines in with either humor or poignancy.
Much like how BATMAN BEGINS spun that franchise away from the cartoony path it was on, CASINO ROYALE has done the same with this longstanding franchise. This is the best Bond in ages, thanks to a good script, skilled director and Daniel Craig — he’s Bond and don’t doubt it.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
