Not so unlike other Bond films

Rating: 8/10 (19 November 2006)

Before I went to see this last night, I did my homework on IMDb. The recurring themes from most posters seemed to revolve around pointing out the vast departures from previous Bonds or Bond films. I do not, however, concur.
First off, Craig is nothing short of excellent as James Bond. My point of reference, as with most Bond aficionados, is Sean Connery. Craig may even pull off the combination of suaveness and grittiness a little better.
Next up - the Bond girls. The first one (Catalina Murino playing Sorange) that appears is a character right out of most of the other Bond films - the sultry wife of the bad guy. Now the second Bond girl - Eve Green playing Vesper Lynd - is an entirely different story. We actually get some character development, a great script, and a little insight into Bond's character as well.
And what would a Bond film be without the gadgets? Reading the posts, I was under the impression that this would be an entirely gadget-less Bond film, which would qualify as a vast departure. However, there are plenty of gadgets - just no "Q" in the secret lab - and nothing bordering on ridiculous.
Now for the reason I rated it an 8 and not higher. It was a little longer than it needed to be. And it still had a classic campy Bond scene with a Bond girl riding a white horse on the beach.