- Here's my not-particularly-novel James Bond casting theory: Pierce Brosnan was brought in because Timothy Dalton was perceived as being too chilly and aloof. Dalton's seriousness was intended to correct for the absurdity of late-period Roger Moore. Moore was introduced as a light alternative to the rough-and-tumble Sean Connery. George Lazenby and his film were dull enough that Connery was unretired to spice things up, establishing Connery as the standard by which all subsequent Bonds are judged. Which brings me to Daniel Craig, whose rough manner and unconventional good looks are probably more reminiscent of Connery than any other Bond actor. It's an attempt for the series to relaunch with one familiar-looking ingredient, even as it drops the impractical gadgets and gimmicky henchmen.
- And certainly Martin Campbell's Casino Royale should be viewed as a relaunch, considering that Bond (Craig) doesn't even become 007 until after its memorably stylized opening credits. Instead, he is working as a assassin for the British government who only earns his promotion after two kills, one of which involves that staple of all serious modern action movies: a bathroom fight. In any case, 007's first assignment quickly escalates from surveillance of a bomb-maker (Sébastien Foucan) to a wonderful parkour chase through a construction site to a hostage situation at an embassy, earning Bond an immediate rebuke from M (Judi Dench, the only returning cast member). Although Bond claims to be heading off on vacation after that fiasco, M quickly notices that he's on the trail of a criminal contractor named Dimitrios (Simon Abkarian) and the diabolical criminal financier Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen).
- As the film's title suggests, Bond's investigation inevitably attracts him to a high-stakes card game involving the blood-teared Le Chiffre, undercover FBI Agent Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright), and a collection of suspicious characters (including Tsai Chin from You Only Live Twice!). In Bond's corner are his local contact in Montenegro (Giancarlo Giannini) and Treasury Agent Vesper Lynd (Eva Green), who doesn't exactly appreciate Bond's attempts to use her as a seductively-clad distraction. The dialogue between Bond and Lynd quickly proves to be one of the unexpected highlights of this film as it engages in some of the classic Bond double-entendre without ever crossing over into parody or disrespect. Finally, Bond appears to have met his match with Lynd, although this series isn't famous for letting its romantic pairings live happily ever after.
- Overall, Casino Royale's kinetic action sequences, witty writing, and novel tone easily propel it to heights unattained since the previous great Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me. In terms of acting, Craig is better as Bond than most people would have expected, and Green delivers what is surely one of the more captivating performances of any Bond girl before or since. Still, there are stretches of this film, particularly during the extended card game and the final few scenes, that move quite a bit slower than one would like. And then there's the compulsory explicit torture scene that is required for any film to get "dark 'n gritty" certified. A few minor tweaks would have made this one of the best Bond films of all time instead of merely one of the best in recent memory.
