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The most successful invigoration of a cinematic franchise since Batman Begins, Casino Royale offers a new Texas Hold’em poker playing Bond identity. Based on the Ian Fleming novel that introduced Agent 007 into a Cold War world, Casino Royale is the most brutal and viscerally exciting James Bond film since Sean Connery left Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Meet the new Bond; not the same as the old Bond. Daniel Craig gives a galvanizing performance as the freshly minted double-0 agent. Suave, yes, but also a “blunt instrument,” reckless, and possessed with an ego that compromises his judgment during his first mission to root out the mastermind behind an operation that funds international terrorists. In classic Bond film tradition, his global itinerary takes him to far-flung locales, including Uganda, Madagascar, the Bahamas (that’s more like it), and Montenegro, where he is pitted against his nemesis in a poker game, with hundreds of millions in the pot. The stakes get even higher when Bond lets down his “armor” and falls in love with Vesper (Eva Green), the ravishing banker’s representative fronting him the money.

For longtime fans of the franchise, Casino Royale offers some retro kicks. Bond wins his iconic Astin-Martin at the gaming table, and when a bartender asks if he wants his martini “shaken or stirred,” he disdainfully replies, “Do I look like I give a damn?” There’s no Moneypenny or “Q,” but Dame Judi Dench is back as the exasperated M, who one senses, admires Bond’s “bloody cheek.” A Bond film is only as good as its villain, and Mads Mikkelsen as Le Chiffre, who weeps blood, is a sinister dandy. From its punishing violence and virtuoso action sequences to its romance, Casino Royale is a Bond film that, in the words of one character, makes you feel it, particularly during an excruciating torture sequence. Double-0s, Bond observes early on, “have a short life expectancy.” But with Craig, there is new life in the old franchise yet, as well as genuine anticipation for the next one when, at last, the signature James Bond theme kicks in following the best last line ever in any Bond film. To quote Goldie Hawn in Private Benjamin, now I know what I’ve been faking all these years. –Donald Liebenson

Customer Rating:
Summary: love this
Comment: I love this movie. If you dont like it then i dont have any clue why poeple need to understand that its not just a bond movie its actually a movie it breaks out of the usual bond formula and i think thats what makes it great. also the action is incredible

The first thing you notice about Casino Royale is that it is absent of all of the cheesy gimmickery of the old Bond movies. The stunts and effects are believable. The acting is understated and real. The plot is fresh and new.

Daniel Craig’s performance gives a hint of Sean Connery. But it’s not an imitation of Connery. Craig makes the role his own. This is a whole new Bond. The cliche is that this movie is Bond for the 21st century (the terrorist angle), when it actually just brings Bond back to his roots. He is cunning more than he is charming. (unlike Roger Moore) He is different, he is new, he reinvents what you think a secret agent in her Majesty’s secret service should be.

If you are looking for the trademark Bond staples such as the Martini (shaken, not stirred) – the easy women, the endless supply of Aston Martins etc… this movie may disappoint. Craig is rough around the edges but just smooth enough to make you believe that he deserves to be the newest “double-oh”.

I suggest buying this DVD in 1080p Blu-Ray because of the spectacular cinematography, shot on location in Prague. It won’t disappoint.

The best part about the movie, without giving too much away, is that the ending leaves you wanting more. Isn’t that the goal of any great series?

I give it 5 stars.