A visual disaster!

Rating: 1/10 (28 November 2007)

This new Bond film is one mighty ugly film, almost rivals LIVE AND LET DIE and DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER as the ugliest 007 movie of the series. If there was one thing you can rely on with James Bond movies, it is their production values: the cinematography, the sets, the lighting, etc. They are, for the most part, visually arresting films even if the content is basically the same and shallow. Ken Adams created some of the greatest cinematic sets ever made for many 007 adventures. Those films were often shot by some of the best cinematographers. So when I watched a HD broadcast of CASINO ROYALE on my HD TV I couldn't believe how visually ugly it was.
The cinematography is your typical super-slick over-processed one so popular with music videos or disposable direct-to-video films and oddly enough, with films produced by SONY. The lighting had a constant golden hue and I quickly got tired of looking at it. The massive close-ups of the actors didn't help much. The sets were, for the most part, horrendous and repellent from beginning to end. M's bedroom set is the funniest bedroom set I've ever seen anywhere, on film or in real life. Seriously, does anyone really believe M sleeps in a bedroom like that? When I saw it I thought it was a joke and I laughed out loud. Then there are the actors, almost all homely with zero star quality, including the new buff guy playing 007. His pouting was really distracting. And the Bond girl, well, the less said the better. The only tip I'm going to give her: get some Proactive. The soundtrack tried to emulate John Barry's style but missed it by a mile.
The story is awful and the tone attempted to be humorless, gritty and realistic but someone should clue the current producers that the James Bond series didn't last over 45 years because of their seriousness or realism.
All in all, awful on every level. Please do not let Martin Campbell direct another Bond film.