Not James Bond.

Rating: Null/10 (4 December 2006)

A very good movie, at times a great movie. But it's not James Bond. James Bond - the character - both from the books and the previous movies, has class. The character in this movie has no class. That's it. Besides, it's too physical and almost no "tricks", and a real James Bond wants it shaken not stirred no matter what. Daniel Craig is very good, but his acting and figure personify well just this character's part: no class. Just an angry, smart, physical, effective secret agent. Nothing wrong with a character like that, but it's not James Bond.
Like all James Bond movies that try to do more, by "going personal", they overdo, and they are not good Bond movies: "On Her Majesty's Secret Service", where he gets married and his wife dies, "License to kill" where he leaves the agency seeking revenge, "Die another day" where he gets captured for 18 months, expelled from service, goes solo, back in service (although that was still well balanced and Brosnan really did embody Bond's character), and then this one, "Casino Royale", where he is basically on his own and with behavioral issues. When they write a character or a story "going personal" on the Bond character, they go over the line, trying to do something sensational or different, and instead it's a disappointment. It's just not James Bond.
When are we gonna get a standard James Bond movie, with 007 doing his job against the cold war counterpart (or nowadays equivalent), to get back some piece of equipment, something that actually has to do with espionage? The last great one like that is "For your eyes only". He had to get back a decoder machine. The competitors were the Russians and the bad guys were their allies. Good love story. Adventure. Period. We need another real James Bond movie like that. Come on, writers, what are you waiting for?