What Casino Royale does well is juxtapose that violence and action with one of the calmer, more dramatic moments that Bond films have featured. The opening parkour chase through a construction site sets the fast, no-frills, raw action for the rest of the film and is then followed up by a great car chase through an airport and then the final moments as a Venetian building collapses around Bond and many villains. James Bond movies have always been about action and spectacle and Casino Royale has that in abundance. That isn’t to say that this isn’t a Bond film though. The first time he puts on a tuxedo for example and then when he uses the most iconic catchphrase of them all. There are moments when Craig begins his transformation into the version of Bond the audience are familiar with and this is when the theme is subtly woven into the soundtrack.

The use of the theme is the smartest tool of all. The hints are subtle but effective Bond doesn’t care how his Vodka-Martini is mixed, Judi Dench’s M let’s the spy know his tenure could be short and most notably of all, the iconic theme is almost completely absent from the movie. It isn’t forgetting what has gone before but lets the audience know that this is Bond’s first mission and he isn’t the character that we have known and come to love. Daniel Craig is a new refreshing type of BondĬraig isn’t supposed to be James Bond yet though and in bringing the character into the 21st Century, the franchise is essentially “rebooting” Bond. This was James “21st Century” Bond and Craig delivers that perfectly. It is as far removed from Pierce Brosnan’s quip ready, innuendo loaded spy and a completely different person to Roger Moore’s silly Bond. At first he doesn’t look very James Bond but his version of the spy is cold, calculated, swift with justice and lacking humour. In this ilk, Daniel Craig is an excellent choice. It was everything the series needed to get back on track and sign-post the franchise’s new direction. From the very beginning of Casino Royale you can see the Bourne influence a violent, brutal struggle of a fight in a bathroom, with broken sinks, a bloodied hero and villain and then a new, fresh take on the iconic Bond opening. Jason Bourne has a lot to answer for. After the disaster of Die Another Day and the success of the Bourne series, a grittier, realistic and much more story focused version of the spy genre, James Bond would have to respond in kind.

Casino royale review