Welcome back Bond

Rating: 8/10 (3 March 2019)

This review contains spoilers.
Casino Royale is an action spy movie that premiered in 2006. The movie is directed by Martin Campbell and is based on the book Casino Royale by Ian Fleming. The movie stars Daniel Craig as James Bond. James Bond starts as an a MI6 agent that earns his license to kill. James Bond becomes involved in a high stakes poker game that a criminal organization uses to recouperate lost money.
Casino Royale is very much a movie that moves James Bond into the modern era. This movie is a departure from the older James Bond movies. There are no fancy gadgets from the Pierce Brosnan era of Bond. These are spies given the best equipment possible which are only networks equipment and a gun. This can seem like a disappointment to anyone that looked forward to interesting gadgets. Casino Royale makes up for this with much more electric action than its older movies. The movie feel more like the Bourne series rather than the older Bond movies. The movies simply have similar action scenes. The movie does have some returning features from the previous movies like Bond's preferences. This has some twists to them.
The casting choice of Daniel Craig, as Bond is mostly a good choice. It feels like Daniel Craig brings forth a more grounded Bond. I personally did not like this but it is fitting for the movie's plot. Bond is beginning his career as 007 here and the audience sees him vulnerable and fallible. I enjoyed watching Pierce Brosnan's bond partly due to the pulpiness of the series. Pierce has a more careless reaction as everything seemed to be easier to Brosnan's Bond. The portrayal of Bond by Daniel Craig felt much more like Jason Bourne than a suave spy. The movie at least has James Bond go through a journey that makes Daniel Craig's portrayal more authentic.
The action in this movie is incredibly well-done. The movie has well-shot action where the audience can follow every tense moment easily. The movie has many action moments that are well paced out by the movie. The movie also made poker seem more tense and thrilling than it should be. The action and tension did not feel contrived and the movie had good reasons for every action scene.
The story in this movie is different from other James Bond movies. The movie has a long-spanning story arc that does not end in this installment. The movie has a promise to continue the story arc that the cliffhanger conclusion in this movie has. Both Mr. White and Le Chifre have a good screen presence in the movie which pervades a sense of mystery. This made the move more engrossing to watch.
I would recommend 'Casino Royale.' The movie is a solid start to the new Bond series.
Grade: B