CASINO ROYALE (Martin Campbell, 2006) ***1/2

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2007)

Against every conceivable odds, the 21st James Bond adventure is one of his best: the highly unpopular choice of leading man (with die-hard fans of the series) paid off in spades as blonde Daniel Craig - who had previously impressed more for his restrained acting than his animal magnetism in both ROAD TO PERDITION (2002) and MUNICH (2005) - lends the character a determination, temerity and, most importantly perhaps, vulnerability missing since the earlier Sean Connery incarnations. The fact that he was faced with the burden of playing one of the screen's most iconic characters and encountering such overwhelming opposition at first, seems to have merely aided in making Craig's characterization of James Bond as, ironically, more believable than perhaps ever before.
This is not to say that the spectacular stunts and action sequences - not to mention Bond's enviable way with a witty line or prowess in the bedchamber - have been jettisoned or diluted in favor of realistic minimalism but, the fact remains that more time than usual is dedicated here to delving into the various characters appearing in the story instead of previous upping-the-ante tactics which necessitated numerous climaxes seeking to upstage not only the ones seen in previous films but even those within the film itself. The relationship between Bond and his partner Vesper Lynd (the luscious Eva Green) is one of the most emotional and satisfying in the entire series and, despite my initial misgivings prior to watching the film, Mads Mikkelsen's Le Chiffre is a terrific opponent with a subtly effective make-up to go with his intense performance. The supporting cast is also worth mentioning: apart from Judi Dench (who is by now filling in impeccably for the formidable Bernard Lee) as M, we have Jeffrey Wright's bemused Felix Leiter and Giancarlo Giannini's reptilian Mathis, a welcome ally to Bond as he steps into the spider's lair that is the Casino of the title but, as usual with these spy sagas, loyalties - to say nothing of love - cannot be taken at face value.
At 144 minutes, this is also the longest James Bond vehicle so far but as I mentioned earlier, CASINO ROYALE is easily the best of the series in 25 years (at the very least). Frankly, I've only been able to take Roger Moore's overtly tongue-in-cheek James Bond persona in small doses, have had little use for Timothy Dalton's glumness and only been wholly satisfied with Pierce Brosnan's take in TOMORROW NEVER DIES (1997). It is, therefore, very refreshing to see, for once, a James Bond film whose plot is not only exciting but, free as it is of the ingenious but distracting gadgets which proliferated in previous outings, also quite absorbing. The black-and-white introduction is a nice touch, the rather harrowing torture sequence is possibly a first for the series and, among the handful of action highlights, the crumbling of a Venetian edifice towards the end is as spectacular as they come.