Born is Bond, James Bond

Rating: 9/10 (5 December 2006)

Casino Royale opened in my country on Dec 1st. I've been waiting for this movie with so much anticipation. The last movie i was this excited about was Peter Jacksons Lord of the Rings: RoTK back in 2003! Here are my impressions: First off, i was convinced from the start that Daniel Craig would be a great Bond. i don't know why i had faith in the guy. Everyone else certainly didn't, and its not like i'd seen anything else he had done before. I suppose its the 'loving the underdog' part to my personality, but anyway, i liked the look of him, and if what the makers were saying was true, then we needed a new Bond to usher in a new era for the franchise. And boy, does DC deliver!! The premise of Casino Royale is a clever one. Its the first book by Ian Fleming, and with the introduction of a new James, it was a really clever idea from the film makers. They use the back story of Bond as a backdrop to presenting DC, the more beefed up, blonde super agent. The story revolves around exposing La Chiffe (King Arthurs' Triston, Mads Mickelson) as a terrorist funder, and so Bond gets sent to Montenegro to play La Chiffe in a poker game. Introduce, 2006 Bond girl (technically the FIRST ever bond girl), Vesper Lynd (portrayed by the wildly beautiful Eva Green, who played Sybilla in Kingdom of Heaven) who provides the cash stakes James uses to buy into the game. I have to say, i loved the writers' job here. This story revolves not only around how Bond becomes a 007, but also why he's the seducer of many but lover of none after Vesper. The backbone of this story is about love. Bond falls in love, and its the betrayal of that trust which gives rise to the James we all know.
The opening Black and White sequence is great! You get into the story by getting a glimpse at how Bond achieved his infamous "licence to kill". Immediately we jump into a breathtaking action sequence.. letting us know right off the bat, this DC was no ordinary Bond, and like nothing we have seen in the last couple of Brosnan outings. Here was a physical, rugged, sweaty male lead who bled and hurt just like the rest of us. I really liked that he wasn't perfect, and in many ways, was just a trainee who still made a heck of a lot of bad judgment calls. He's driven by his ego and need to succeed, and that is a weakness both 'M' (D. Judi Dench) knows about, and Vesper exposes. Bringing me back to DC. The man's body is something to behold. Its easy to see how hard he must have worked out in order to look that good. The stunts were real and believable and its one thrill after the next.
The story is paced well, moving from action to drama and back to action again. The scenes between DC and EG are wonderfully done. Vesper is not your typical bond girl. Here is a woman with a story of her own, and has more than enough self restraint, and respect for herself, to not be another notch on Bonds bedpost. The movie is also littered with great visual scenes between the two, where no words are needed in order to communicate the complexity of the characters and the emotional upheavals. The "shower scene" pops to mind here, the scene where James fights to free Vesper from her cage and finally where he embraces her dead body. No dialog, just raw emotion. For any bond, thats a really unique challenge. The writers wrote about a human, not just the secret agent. Great lines run abundant as well. The witty banter between James and Vesper, the sarcasm apparent with La Chiffe and the comical run-ins with M.
My only regret is that Vesper's reasons for betraying James is nothing but a voice-over / phone call from M. We learn she was being blackmailed to save a former lover (whom we never meet or know whether he is still alive), despite the fact that she has let go of him because of her love for James. Its a great testament to James's feelings when he utters, "The b*tch is dead". M manages to let him know Vesper saved his life in the end.. but its too late.
Born is Bond, James Bond. *goosebump moment*
DC is in my opinion the best choice they could have made. Brosnan was good, but this is a new era for the super agent, and i am left with no doubts that DC will bring a new life to the character.
What an excellent movie. 8.5/10