Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-09-17
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 144 minutes

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The most successful invigoration of a cinematic franchise since Batman Begins, Casino Royale offers a new 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 galvanising 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 armour by falling 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 Aston 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

Synopsis
After a great deal of discussion--on the part of fans and producers alike--over Daniel Craig's (The Mother, Munich, Layer Cake) suitability for the role of James Bond, he more than proves himself in this explosive revamping of the franchise. Under the direction of Martin Campbell (The Mask of Zorro) and with Paul Haggis (Crash) helping with the re-writes, this addition to the Bond canon manages to hold true to the essence of the stories--the villainous villains, the fabulous sets, the beautiful women, the fast-paced action--while updating the formula with subtlety and humanity. Trading in the Cold War era for a new, post-9-11 landscape, the tale unfolds in locations that span the globe, including the Bahamas, Venice, and the Czech Republic. It opens in Madagascar, where Bond pursues a guerilla bomb-maker in one of the most breathtaking chase scenes ever--and it all takes place on foot. Botching that assignment, Bond goes to Montenegro to square off against terrorist baddie Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelson), an international loan shark who gambles with the money of his equally dangerous clients. Beautiful British Treasury representative Vesper Lynd (Eva Green, The Dreamers) supplies Bond's own funds, appearing on his arm in Montenegro, while M (Dame Judi Dench, Pride and Prejudice) keeps a close watch on the action from headquarters. The extravagant poker game forms the centre of the action, with Jeffrey Wright (Syriana, The Manchurian Candidate) putting in an intense appearance at the table; interrupting the game are assassination attempts, poisoning, and other dramatic events that keep the adrenaline pumping. The flirtation that unfolds between Bond and Vesper Lynd is only in keeping with the spy's M.O. as a ladies' man. What differs here, however, is what sets this Bond apart from the rest: the romance is taken seriously, and it exposes vulnerability in Bond that he's never shown before. This, however, only makes him the tougher, as Craig's Bond is darker, less campy, more brooding and mysterious, than his past incarnations ever were.

Customer Reviews

A superb and much needed "reboot" for the Bond franchise
For the first time in many years, we finally get a Bond film based on a novel by Ian Fleming. The silly stuff - invisible cars, the "comedy" section with Q, etc has all been cast aside, and what we are left with is, by and large, a serious Bond film that easily outclasses the recent Bourne films.

The plot sticks to Fleming's first Bond novel quite closely, bar the changes needed to bring it into present day. A lot of criticism has been levelled at the film for not being "a true Bond film", but it's worth remembering that the Bond films, really ever since From Russia With Love, have veered away from Fleming's Bond and transformed him into the humourous, gadget and girl equipped Bond that most people, having never read the books, now see as the "true Bond".

The film has also been criticised for lack of continuity, but what continuity should there be? Continuity between the previous Bond films was always patchy at best, but now, Bond is at the start of his career as a 00 agent, so there isn't going to be any continuity between the previous films and this one.

All in all - a much needed return to form. Can't wait for the next one.

Almost hits the Jackpot
After Matt Damon's edgy reinvention of the spy thriller in "The Bourne Identity", I was worried about the future of the Bond franchise. Cue Daniel Craig. His interpretation of JB: 007 turns out to be the perfect riposte to JB: Project Treadstone. (And if you haven't seen Craig in "Layer Cake", please do so immediately. He's brilliant.)

To cut a long story short, this Bond Film represents a stunning return to form. Craig makes Bond believable again and in a way that Roger Moore, bless him, TImothy Dalton, and Pierce Brsnan never quite managed. Craig certainly has a hardness about him which is convincing. He is only let down by a tacky wardrobe which dresses him in tacky designer-wear in too many scenes.

Eva Green is good looking and does a credible job as the love interest, but I'm afraid she is unlikely to be a schoolboy poster girl in years to come. The film really needed someone like Monica Bellucci, Angelina Jolie or Julia Roberts. Similarly, the unknown actor who plays the bad guy, Le Chiffre, (Mads Mikkelson) just isn't malevolent enough. The film really could have done with some better known actors in the key roles. Judy Dench is a wonderful actress, but somehow the M character is still a bit of pantomime role.

The action sequences are impressive, especially the chase scene at the beginning. The Casino scene is probably too long and the torture scene is overdone. But good action and a sharp dialogue tied to a tighter storyline than we're used to with Bond films, makes this a superior action movie. Having watched it several times, it is well worth adding to your Bond Collection.

What I like most about this film is that it successfully reinvents Bond for a new generation. I feel compelled to say that Casino Royale bodes well for the next Bond installment. So, all in all, if you haven't seen it, you'll enjoy it. Even if you have, it's a safe bet for a good night in.

Casino Royale - Changing of the guard
I was personally in the forefront in castigating Daniel Craig as a no-hoper after having watched Sir Sean Connery at the helm as 007 many many years back. I even refused to watch the movie when my daughter hired the DVD.
As it happened Casino Royale the movie was on the box and I had nothing else to do so I thought "Why not, could it possibly be that bad?" I'll be the first to admit that I was pleasantly surprised.
Daniel Craig is suave, stunning in a swimming trunk, tough, a good actor to boot and human all in one packaging. He has changed James Bond forever and need I say for the better. Agent 007 has a new persona and his name is Daniel Craig.
The movie dispenses with the implacable and indestructible Bond (and his cars) and replaces him with a real life boy next door who bleeds, lives and loves just like the rest of us. No mean feat indeed.

Bravo Daniel Craig!!
Bravo to the new James Bond!!