Casino Royale Review

Overall Rating

I agree with the general consensus that although an utterly brilliant film in it's own right, I don't think Casino Royale really is a Bond movie.
Loads of people say that Craig is the best Bond ever etc but I would disagree. I think he plays the part of a person who is better than Bond, but he is not actually Bond.
Think about it, this guy is rough and ready, doesn't care about how his martini is prepared and doesn't have gadgets. This guy is not the best James Bond ever, he is an action hero character who is better than the James Bond character(although not in my opinion).
The film is drowned in a sea of product placement. It is particularly cheesy when on the train the 'Bond girl' notices James' watch and says words to the effect of 'Omega?, they are as good as Rolex,' this almost made me choke on my popcorn! never have I seen such a blatant, shameless act in a film. I was half expecting 007 to start explaining how Omega is the bespoke businessman's choice of timepiece opposed to the flashy, show-offy rolex and tag.

Overall, I think this film is utterly, utterly brilliant. The loss of a suave, sophisticated figure is more than compensated for by Craig's emotional and powerful performance. However, one has to wonder what development/damage has been done to the wordwide iconic figure of 007.

I was just about to click 'submit' when something occurred to me. In Casino Royale, Bond has just been promoted so maybe space has been left for Bond to mature and settle down with time in future films.