Sunday, July 20, 2014

Flick Pick: Casino Royale

Casino Royale
(Columbia, 2006)

Nearly 40 years after it was originally done by another production company, the Bond franchise producers acquired the rights to it and revisited this story. After a string of comparatively lackluster to outright dopey recent offerings, with Pierce Brosnan having hit 50, they brought in Daniel Craig as their sixth incarnation of 007. Once his casting was announced, the catcalls and protests started immediately; once audiences and critics saw him in the role, it became obvious to everyone that he didn't just inhabit the character, he crushed it. Little time was spent on off-the-cuff quips, and a lot more on elbow smashes and mayhem. This Bond works for a living. Eva Green was stunning, the villains all properly sinister, and the emphasis was on character, plot, action and stunts, rather than gadgets and gags. This is one of the best films in the series, if not the best.

1 comment:

RandyGC said...

My only problem with Daniel Craig is that to me he bears a striking resemblance to Vlad Putin.

Of course, maybe that is a secret of 007's success, the ability to look right at home in the halls of the KGB?