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Written by Robert W. Butler
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Friday, 17 November 2006 |
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.jpg) Casino Royale
Three stars [out of 4]
Daniel Craig, Eva Green
PG-13, 144 min
A lot of the elements that have made James Bond movies James Bond movies are missing from “Casino Royale.”
No cheesy puns.
No Q with an arsenal of high-tech toys.
No queue of pliant young women eager to fall into our hero’s arms.
In compensation we get something 007 movies haven’t delivered for nearly 40 years: A sense of discovery.
While introducing the excellent Daniel Craig as the new Bond, this wildly successful franchise (second only to “Star Wars” in worldwide popularity) has reinvented itself.
“Casino Royale,” though set in the present, finds us at the start of 007’s career. This reboot gives us a Bond who’s feeling his way, who’s learning to deal with a secret agent’s life of betrayal and solitude, who hasn’t yet developed his ultra-cool persona.
A Bond who, in the words of the dour M (Judi Dench), is a “blunt instrument,” too crude for her refined tastes but undeniably effective.
The film’s new change in direction is immediately obvious. Bond movies have often looked like studio-produced travelogues — overlit, studiedly lush, smugly slick.
“Casino Royale,” on the other hand, has a sweaty, lived-in feel. It’s crawling with atmosphere — the black-and-white opening sequence in which Bond eliminates a traitor has the dark shadows and grittiness of classic film noir, and a couple of scenes set in Africa are thick with dust, mud and humidity. | Only registered users can write comments.
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