Daniel Craig as Bond? You better believe it!!

Rating: 10/10 (13 December 2006)

If you've never seen a James Bond film, don't see this one first. If you do, the rest are going to seem like cartoons. This one is grittier, darker, and thankfully more realistic than any of its predecessors. Rather than turning Bond into some kind of superhero, Casino Royale does the magnificent job of returning him to the role that he deserves...a spy. Not since the days of Sean Connery has Bond been more alive. Mr. Connery is still my favourite, but only because I can't give that title to Craig based on 1 performance. But since he has already signed for 2 more, Mr. Connery's reign as champ is in serious jeopardy. Casino Royale has something for everyone - incredible action sequences, realistic and poignant dialogue, a moving love story, and cool (yet not ridiculously over the top) gadgets. But what sets this movie apart is the consequences. Death is not a minor occurrence and too many Bond movies spray death around and no one seems to care. Rather than brush it off because he is too cool for that (Connery), not bat an eye because he's too busy killing a dozen more people in a Rambo-style shoot-em up (Brosnan), or not noticing that people are dying Cu you're trying not to fall over (Moore), Daniel Craig shows us a Bond that has depth, emotion, and most of all fallibility. It is technically Bond's first mission so it was good to see him make mistakes. All I can say is that this movie opened on a Friday. I went to see it on Saturday and went Back to watch it again on Sunday. I have never gone to see a movie in the theaters on consecutive nights before and I plan on watching at least 2 more times before it goes to DVD. Tip of the cap to everyone involved in this one. Awesome job.