Maybe not the best, but a Better Bond

Rating: 9/10 (18 November 2006)

Here I was bemoaning the passing of Pierce Brosnan. I guess it was all about not liking change. Now, Daniel Craig has made me forget all about Pierce (sorry), and a few other miscasts. I believe no one can replace the original...Sean Connery just had it all, and made the athletic prowess and intellectual superiority seem believable. Now, Mr. Craig may not be all that, but I believe he's already better than Dalton and Brosnan. Additionally, I believe Craig fits the model for today's young audiences, who can't seem to get enough of hunks in action films. He's very fit, more so than any Bond before him, and not unpleasant to look at, albeit not owning up to the "je ne sais quoi" of a Connery and Moore. There was just something elegant about Connery and Moore, and "more" than enough man.
This movie got my attention. Plenty of good action with a few goofs (where's the airbag FORD? I guess Bond doesn't look good resting on an airbag OR his laurels, hmmmm?) The gambling scenes were a bit amateurish. After all with the world series of poker and Rounders almost a decade ago, don't you think we know this already? That whole sequence was too predictable. Otherwise, the writing and editing was good.
Before seeing this film, I may have predicted the demise of the Bond installments. However, Mr. Craig has given James new life. I hope we can come up with a good title for the next installment, even if it's original material.
"M...the defibrillator please!"