Casino Royale

At least for me, Casino Royale was the biggest surprise of this season (but no wonder just 24 days after its release :-). Martin Campbell succeeded in the restart for the Bond brand that didn’t work even in Golden Eye. Bond is simply better than ever before. This is greatly due to the excellent Daniel Craig and I’m glad that the misgivings about his being cast as 007 were wrong because it’s him who is the powerhouse of the whole movie. The action sequences are simply genius (I was thrilled by the whole Miami / Ruzyně airport operation), and not to few, not too many of them. The romantic storyline is enchanting and very well conceived, at last we have the chance to see inside James Bond. And no shortage of dry lines and jokes. Almost every other wisecrack is a Bond-movie cliché and it is really great to follow the gradual evolution of Bond’s character... I’m just curious if this great movie will be trumped by the third Bourne next year. (12/07/2006)

After some time, and after watching a rerun, I began to like this 21st Bond film. I also like Eva Green thanks to Dark Shadows and I'm taking more and more to Mads Mikkelsen thanks to A Royal Affair. They have a nice interchange at the Casino, Mads has a very tasty villain with a bleeding eye and Eva is a different kind of beauty than the ones James has been dating. The plot is good, the scenery pleasing to the eye, the action and humor just right, and of course the flawless final point. I certainly enjoyed that. (08/26/2012)

After "Bond" (Connery), "Strange Bond" (Lazenby), "Funny Bond" (Moore), "Rambo Bond" (Dalton) and "Mixed Bond" (Brosnan), here's another guy. Daniel Craig - "Rough Pissed Off Bond". Casino Royale is a gripping film that will keep you interested from start to finish. The "crane and all that" scene is one of the most bombastic action spectacles I've ever seen in a movie theater, and clearly the best of the entire film. But the rest of the Casino is not far behind. For example, I would never have believed that it is possible to film poker games in a thrilling and entertaining way. The new generation Bond did not disappoint - Craig is likable, he is human and not a machine seducing busty nymphs, he is tough as nails and entertaining. Great! (08/28/2009)

As a man afflicted since childhood with love for the phenomenon of the super agent in Her Majesty's Secret Service (they have been a part of my life since 1984, when I saw the first Moor film), and as someone who has seen all the Bond films, I say: Casino Royale is an old school Bond film that I've missed since the days of Goldfinger. Daniel Craig is Bond in the best Connery tradition, yet he is also new, original, almost popular. He gives back to the legend its gloss and energy. Martin Campbell perfectly combined the thrilling action rides in an old-fashioned coat with a calm (but internally electrifying) game of poker, in which the gentleman's style of Guy Hamilton and Terence Young is reflected. This conservative spy level may not captivate today's viewer, but I was completely fascinated. No doubt the good old days are coming back and Pierce Brosnan's exaggerated CGI action era is waving goodbye. I won't remember it in a bad way, but Daniel Craig is the Bond of my heart, hand in hand with Sir Connery. Bond's humanity, egoism, vulnerability, fragility... Craig does it all with extraordinary credibility and certainty. Hand in hand with this is the fantastic villain Le Chiffre (Auric Goldfinger, you've met your match!), the most magical Bond-girl (forgive me, beautiful Ursula, but Eva Green gave Vesper a soul, not just a body), and the increasingly charming M Judi Dench. Martin Campbell does more than just an action routine - he holds the film wonderfully together and the chemistry of the characters drives like an Aston Martin. Although Casino Royale is far from being problem-free - lapses in logic, naivety, flatter passages, unspokenness and recklessness, just about everything that is inseparable from the series - it is definitely the best bond since the 1960s. (11/16/2006)

Casino Royale is a Bond movie that reminded me of Ian Fleming's books. Although set in the present day, it has such a retro vibe to it. Craig's Bond is a pretty tough guy, so he pleasantly surprised me with his wit when talking to Vesper. Mads Mikkelsen is a brilliant actor in my opinion, and Eva Green was the proverbial icing on the cake. Less action was definitely not a bad move. At least you can tell the difference between a spy film and an action film. (08/05/2016)