ALLAN HUNTER at the Movies

SECRET AGENT James Bond first appeared in the pages of ‘Casino Royale’ in 1953. It is a novel that has never been filmed by the official Bond team until now, but it has been worth the wait.

Going back to basics has reinvigorated the entire production, adding a fresh impetus and energy to the tried and tested formula. It has all the bravura action sequences and globe-trotting intrigue that fans demand, but there’s also a tougher, more serious edge to the film that lends it an extra appeal.

Heavily criticised in the tabloid press, Daniel Craig performs with all the ferocious commitment of a man with a point to prove. His Bond is not the suave, sophisticated figure we know and love.

Instead, he is a bit of a hotheaded hooligan; a rough diamond yet to acquire the polish and authority his profession demands.

Craig is a very convincing man of action, but he is also a fine actor. He lends emotional depth to the character’s journey from his first lethal assignments to the way he acquires the sophistication of knowing what to wear and what to order at any cocktail bar in the world.

Dispensing with the usual outrageous megalomaniac and preposterous gadgets, ‘Casino Royale’ concentrates on the battle of wits between Bond and low-key villain Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen), a man who has grown wealthy by financing international terrorism.

It is a battle that reaches a climax at a high stakes poker game in Montenegro rather than the usual race to stop a ticking bomb.

‘Casino Royale’ is full of surprises, from Bond’s involvement with the spiky Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) to a rather nasty torture sequence in which a naked Craig is at his most vulnerable.

It is also crammed with heart-thumping chases, bruising fisticuffs, expert stuntwork and beautiful locations. Twelve years after he made ‘Goldeneye’, director Martin Campbell has given the venerable secret agent series a new lease of life that easily outshines rivals like ‘Mission: Impossible’ and ‘Jason Bourne’. This time, Bond is back with a vengeance.

Nationwide release
© Allan Hunter, 2006

Director: Martin Campbell
Stars: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen, Judi Dench, Jeffrey Wright
Screenwriter: Robt Wade, Neal Purvis and Paul Haggis based on the novel by Ian Fleming
Certificate: 12A
Running time: 144 mins
Country: UK
Year: 2006