A new age, a new Bond

Rating: 10/10 (29 December 2006)

Daniel Craig may be blond, but he is the Bond that Ian Fleming wrote for. He is cold, tough, egotistical, and brutal. From the opening sequence, filmed in black-and-white, shows Bond's first two kills: drowning one after a fistfight in the men's room, shooting the other after emptying his pistol. He does so without mercy, emotion, and smart-ass one-liners.
Craig is the Bond who disregards M's direct orders, breaks into her home, and steals her MI6 passcodes. He shoots up an African embassy to capture a single bomb-maker. He turns down certain sex with a gorgeous Italian model for work. He uses his fists, his gun, and his wits to beat his enemies. No Bond-like gadgets and toys, as Q doesn't even appear, a first since "Dr. No." Even the opening credits show a tougher Bond. Gone are the tasteful silhouettes of nude women, replaced with an image of Bond punching and shooting animated baddies, who bleed clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades.
"Casino Royale" terrific Bond movie - perhaps not the best one, bit easily the best since "Live and Let Die" (1973), and Daniel Craig instantly replaces Pierce Brosnan as the #2 Bond.