*** Official CASINO ROYALE Discussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[Kirk Tsai]

I've probably seen 3/4 of the Bond movies at least once, which is to say that I am not nearly as familiar with the franchise as many. But this also reminded me the most of On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

The action scenes overall were nicely done IMHO, but the Madagascar sequence just smacks of Martin Campbell's other over the top sequence--yep, the tank in Goldeneye. Not in what Bond or the African guy physically does, but the way Bond just brings in the big construction vehicle and goes ahead to tear up a construction site.

I thought the poker scenes were in danger of drowning the movie. I guess it's nice to see how poker gets dumbed down in movies, just like boxing or team sports movies. Remember what Eastwood said in M$B? "Tought ain't enough," but none of these movies know that (that includes M$B).

I'm not sure if Eva Green is a good actress or not, but she sure strides better in lively roles. The actress that appears in this movie and The Dreamers is a totally different person than the one who shows up in Kingdom of Heaven. I am sure that Jeffrey Wright is a good actor, and really hope to see more of him. He would have been a killer Bond villian though...

Also liked how the storyline would continue in the next movie.

 

[Chris Atkins]

Couldn't agree more...and it really reminded me of the fight between Bond and 006 near the end of Goldeneye...involved a lot of high altitude fighting, chasing, etc., that didn't end up convincing me.

 

[JonZ]

I liked it, but man that blonde hair bothers me.

 

[MikeRS]

Loved this film.

It's so well made that I actually began to tear up 2/3rds of the way through.

The thing I loved most (besides the utter unfuckwitable craftsmanship of the whole thing) was how subtle the storytelling was. This is an origin/backstory of Bond becoming Bond, and that concept had the potential of coming off too self-referential and gimmicky. But it really didn't. It's only at the end of the film that all the final pieces of the "Bond puzzle" come together in your head. There's a truly cumulative feeling to this characterization.

And this is still a BOND FILM - don't let any reviewer sway you differently. The surface, ambience, and texture is all still there. It's just become extremely soulful again. By the time the Bond theme finally and slowly creeps in the soundtrack.........shivers.

A perfect word to describe the film (especially it's emotionality and action set-pieces) is HARDCORE.

Oh yeah....



Damn straight.

 

[Justin Bauer]

1. I went to the movie with an ex girlfriend and she about had to change her panties during the movie because of how "big, smart, and brutal" Daniel Craig was. Trust me, I was annoyed with her constant little gasps and squirming throughout the movie as she kept commenting on how she did not realize Craig was "that big"...I asked her to not get into specifics and to let me watch the movie without her talking my ear off. She is already planning on taking 2 of her girlfriends to the movie so they can swoon over him...

2. I thought that was the moment where Bond realized that Mathis was playing both sides and told Le Chiffre about his "tell".

You will notice that Le Chiffre struggles to hide it a few times after Bond announced what his tell was.

 

[Dale MA]

I loved it. It's definitely in my top three Bond movies, not sure of the exact position yet, will have to watch it a few times before I decide.

It actually leaves you with a fair bit to think about, which feels like a rather unusual thing to say after the last three Bond films...

 

[Galen_V]

Does anyone know if there is any significance to the number 378? It kept popping up all over the film--the Aston Martin was parked in spot 378, Bond's room was 378, the license plate of the car was 378...

 

[Sam Favate]

Coming from a longtime fan who has seen the previous 20 movies too many times, I say this is easily the best Bond movie in 35 to 40 years. The tone of the movie is the best since On Her Majesty's Secret Service, but Craig is a better actor than Lazenby. Point-for-point, it could be the best since From Russia With Love, which is the very best IMO.

The opening credits were very nice, although two things I didn't care for: The 3D models and the song. The rest of the animation and the titles were great.

Great action pieces in the movie, but they did not overwhlem the picture, as they did in so many others, most notably Goldeneye (every scene ends in an explosion!).

Craig has a real screen presence. Not to knock his predecessors (all of whom were good in their own ways) but Craig has the most charisma and air of danger about him than anyone since Connery. If Craig continues to make these pictures and doesn't resort to comedy (as even Connery did), his run in the series will be regarded as the best.

Beware if you hear any reports that the next one will be more lighthearted -- any time that's said of a sequel, it becomes to comedic and the great failing of movie sequels is to have fun with the characters that the audience loves (it's happened in all the Bond pictures, the Star Wars and Star Trek films, the Indiana Jones movies, and so on).

Much better than I could have imagined, Casino Royale is what I have wanted the Bond series to be. (I can't imagine Pierce Brosnan and Quentin Tarantino could have done a better job.)

 

[Yumbo]

That song blows!

 

[Chuck Mayer]

Loved the film, loved Craig even more. As Mike said, I was surprised at the vulnerability the film showed. It played straight, and the film was the better for it. I thought the cast was excellent. The ending touch (though a bit Batman Begins) was a PERFECT ending to the film just seen.

I might drop a review in later, but just wanted to gush. Can't wait to see it again.

My wife, a huge Bond (and Brosnan) fan, was quite taken with Craig. He grows on you.

Great Bond film! Made it worth paying for and sitting through Die Another Day. Mostly.

 

[Doug Miller]

Craig not good looking? I don't know, I think the dude has a good look to him. He's a little "prettier" than Clive Owen, but he had a definite presence.

One thing I would have liked to have seen more spelled out. The financier that moves the money as the middle man, who ultimately ends up with the $100+ million. When "M" is wondering where the money went, I wanted to see a more direct link to S.P.E.C.T.R.E -- a more obvious link to non-Bond fans to make them curious about this terror network, etc.

Doug

 

[Robert Crawford]

As someone that saw the original Bond films in a movie theater, I went into this latest go with Bond a little skeptical to say the least and especially with a blond hair Bond at that. However, I totally enjoyed this film and I consider it among the best Bond films as well as very comparable to the ones made back in the early 1960s. My hat is off to Daniel Craig, who IMO, recaptured the toughness of James Bond before Roger Moore almost ruin the character for me.

I intend to see this film again and that in itself is saying alot because the last Bond film I watched twice in a movie theater was "Goldfinger" back in the day.





Crawdaddy

 

[Windbreaker]

Glad to see everyone loved this one. But as a hardcore Bond fan who has seen each film 3+ times, I am going to have to wait until I can pronounce CR one of the best ever. Will I enjoy it this much (or more?) 5 years from now? That's how you measure greatness in my book.

 

[Paul_Scott]

I think the only Bond film I could have even possibly seen twice would have been Moonraker. It was released at a time when I spent most of my free time at the theater. But I'm pretty sure I only saw it once.
For some reason, though I've enjoyed them quite a bit, and enough to buy them on several formats on home video, and upgrade between formats- I was never remotely tempted to see any of the films twice in the theater.

Casino Royale is going to be the exception. Very much looking forward to seeing it again.

Another interesting thing I thought of- Consider that Sony was the one bankrolling this- and one of the factors involved in their budgetary decisions was that the newest James Bond film would eventually be a proprietary Blu-ray day and date release. Now just look at the last two films- DAD was full of flash and CGI spectacle and it made a great return- that is the kind of film I would expect a bunch of guys in suits would want to make a splash on a next gen video format- and its hard to argue with the box office. It may have got panned by critics and a lot of fans, but they still went to see it. Instead they sign off on a radical departure that has a mostly non traditional, non action orientated second half, and with a change in leads that actually outraged some people.
Gotta give props to Sony here. They did their part and delivered a great film, not merely just flashy, loud HT-ready product.

I'm impressed.

 

[Blimpboy]

I feel like I saw a different movie than most who posted here. I thought the cast was the weakest point in the film. I never cared about any of the characters. Vesper and Bond's "romance" never developes naturally on screen. OHMSS, which many have compared this film to, shows Bond and Tracy growing closer over time. Her absence in that film for over 1/2 hour makes her re-appearance more meaningful. The over emphasizing of Bond's coldness and inability to open up to women was brought up too many times. This could only mean they were going to go in the opposite direction. Too bad. Daniel Craig has all the warmth of a New England winter. Bronsan showed better brooding in TND after Paris was killed. If the movie had any strengths, it was were it stayed close to the novel. However I find poker less interesting than bacarat. I thought the film closer in tone to LTK than FRWL or OHMSS. No one seemed to care for the change in direction then. It seemed it took fifteen years to try again. Like the tone of Casino Royale. Wish it were made with Dalton acting and John Glen directing. Martin Campbell is 0 for 2 in my book.

 

[Robert Crawford]

As much as I loved the early Bond films and appreciate this latest one, I wouldn't classify any Bond film as great. There are only a limited number of films that I would use the word "great" to described them. Now as far as rewatchability, I can say without question that I will watch this film more than three times because I've watched every other Bond film at least that number of times. Of course this counts both theatrical viewings and different video format viewings.




Crawdaddy

 

[Adam Sanchez]

We saw it last night, totally loved it. Craig did a great job.

One thing that is driving me NUTS though is I know I have seen Ava Green somewhere but I can't place where... unless I am just losing my mind. I distinctly remember her slightly off front tooth, which does not detract from her beauty at all, but I still notice it.

IMDB didn't help because I have not seen any of the other movies she is in. So I don't know where I have seen her. Ugh!

 

[Frank Anderson]

Loved the movie. Can't wait for Craig to do another. But I did hate the opening song. Also, I miss Q.

[url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/e/eb/htf_imgcache_3163.gif] [/url]

 

[Ray H]

Loved it as well. A tad depressing though. Definitely the wrong film for someone expecting a big "Huzah!" to punctuate every scene.

I was surprised by how much the audience responded to the humor in the film. Throwaway lines got surprisingly big laughs from my crowd.

 

[Patrick Sun]

Well, if you had seen "The Dreamers" you would have seen a lot of her, a whole lot of her...

She was also in "Kingdom of Heaven", her most high profile role to date until CR.