A Scientist at the Movies Reviews by Greg Paris

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Title: Casino Royale (2006)

Date Viewed: 12/3/06

Details:

Daniel Craig (James Bond)

Eva Green

Mads Mikkelsen

Judi Dench (M)

Giancarlo Giannini

Director: Martin Campbell

Score: +

The Review: Let me get this straight -- James Bond begins by driving a Ford?! Nothing says "reboot back to the beginning" like the choice of motor vehicle!

It's a bold move to "reboot" any longstanding franchise. It entails re-imagining a series, recreating the beginning of a mythos, engaging a new set of actors, and either ignoring or asking the audience to forget any preceding body of work and look at the concept with new eyes. The first example I remember recently was Batman Begins, and I thought that it was relatively effective, even if that franchise hasn't seen any more action since its 2005 incept. This new version of Casino Royale is the next example, and it too seems to rework rather well.

Daniel Craig is a darker, grittier, less suave Bond -- someone who has recently achieved a double-0 "license to kill" and is not afraid to use it. He is much more obviously physical -- there I go again, comparing it to previous Bonds and not letting the past mythos lie! -- and there is an awesome chase scene with impressive running stunts in the opening of the movie. Perhaps we are also due for a rethinking of the "Bond girl", since Eva Green (as Vesper Lynd) is neither the statuesque bombshell nor alluring blond of past mythos. Good though.

For all the talk of rebooting, this is the third version of the first Ian Fleming novel about the British not-so-secret agent. None of the previous entrees are at all well-remembered: the first was made-for-TV as part of an anthology series in 1954 (only one year after publication), and the second (1967) was a made-for-obscurity over-the-top parody with David Niven that is best (and usually) forgotten. Neither had a recognized actor in the role of Bond, neither was the start (or restart) of a franchise, but at least the earlier one followed the script. Indeed in 1954, few knew the name of Ian Fleming, and only the single Bond novel had been penned. It took JFK to say he enjoyed reading Fleming for the series to really take off, and as they say, the rest is history -- a pseudo-history of the cold war and the international situation, highlighting the current villain of the hour.

(1-Jan-07)

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