posted
I'm kind of amazed that after the last few Casino Royale threads that there's not been one now that the movie is actually out and people are seeing it.
Well fine, I'll start my own thread! Nyaaaa!
This whole thread is a spoiler and has been declassified thanks to giant explosions and naked women. Thank you.
I was blown away by the movie. I haven't seen a good Bond film in years, and this wasn't simply a good Bond film. This was an AMAZING Bond film, and also and AMAZING film all on its own. I was sucked right into it and hooked on every little scene.
First off - Daniel Craig is a wonderful Bond. I thought he did well in the teasers, and that was nothing compared to how he did in the actual film. I always liked Sean Connery, but this guy's a close second. From beginning to end, this man is James Bond and I never had that illusion broken.
There was a scene in the film after a long, long chase where Bond, actually bloody and beaten and being pressed against a car by police, appears to have lost. The minion takes out his remote and goes to detonate the explosive he's planted that Bond has seemingly failed to prevent. Then, the minion hears a beeping noise and realizes Bond tagged the explosive to him during the chase. The camera pans back to him as he just smirks over the background noise of a small explosion. That scene really sold Craig's Bond to me. It was that frame, that smirk, that sold him to me.
I was also impressed by the plot - it was actually pretty smart and incredibly deep. Despite it being written by the same idiots that gaves us Die Another Day, this movie succeeds everywhere that the latter film failed. By the end of the movie, I felt like I really knew who James Bond was. Somebody asked "What kind of person does it take to be a 00 Agent?" This film answered it.
I could just keep gushing about it because I've quite frankly never been this excited about a Bond film for so long. I'm looking forward to what this team does for the next one and what direction they're going to take it in.
-------------------- "One original thought is worth a thousand mindless quotings." -- Diogenes
"Vote Republican! We won't burn you at the stake for your religious beliefs or slaughter your family and steal your land." -- Ramblin' Dave Posts: 3555 | From: Florida | Registered: Feb 2002
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posted
Who are you and what have you done with Barry Norman?
Was thinking about that film, maybe catching it - you've sold me, i'm taking a look
-------------------- This is where I come up with something right? Something really clever... Posts: 6552 | From: UK | Registered: Oct 2002
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posted
Spiffing movie! I kept seeing Steve McQueen in Daniel Craig's face! If McQueen had done Bond, this is what we might have gotten!
Is it truly "Bond?" No... I don't think that even means anything anymore. "Bond" is an archetype (or a franchise!) not a role.
(In roughly the same way, Robin Hood is an archetype, whereas, say, Teddy Roosevelt or Sherlock Holmes is still a role.)
Oh, and I didn't believe the bit where Bond and the bad guy climbed up 1/4 inch braided steel cables. Physically impossible; it would strip the flesh right off the bones of your hands. Sorry, nitpicker's syndrome...
Silas
Posts: 16801 | From: San Diego, CA | Registered: Sep 2000
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quote:Originally posted by Silas Sparkhammer: Oh, and I didn't believe the bit where Bond and the bad guy climbed up 1/4 inch braided steel cables. Physically impossible; it would strip the flesh right off the bones of your hands. Sorry, nitpicker's syndrome...
I don't know about that part, but it is petty considering that most of the things that bad guy did weren't special effects or trickery at all. He's one of the creators of parkour, and he can do a lot of crazy looking things. Filming those few minutes of film took months. I'm sure Daniel Craig had a bit more help with it.
Posts: 2018 | From: Santa Barbara, California | Registered: Aug 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Finding Rebochan: I was also impressed by the plot - it was actually pretty smart and incredibly deep. Despite it being written by the same idiots that gaves us Die Another Day, this movie succeeds everywhere that the latter film failed.
Slight nitpick, Casino Royale was written by Ian Flemming in 1953, whilst it may have been updated/adapted by the same team that did die another day, the better plot is probably because they didn't write it !!
I agree with you about Daniel Craig's Bond, I thought he was really really good.
Scout
-------------------- "Abandon shop. This is not a daffodil, repeat, this is not a daffodil!" Posts: 661 | From: UK | Registered: Jan 2003
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posted
My opinion: great movie, all around. Those who know Bond only by the movies are going to be surprised. Me, I was surprised to see that the writers retained almost all the plot of the novels (of course, they changed some things a bit, the cane-gun being replaced by a poisoning, for example, but everything was there, including that very uncomfortable torture scene. Ouch!).
In fact, what I saw here with Daniel Craig was the Bond of the novels, somebody who I've hardly seen since the seventies. And I find it funny that by trying to renew the franchise, the producers went back to what Ian Fleming actually wrote.
Just as the David Niven version of Casino Royale was prophetic of what was to follow in the Bond series (especially during the Moore years -with the exception of For Your Eyes Only, and even then), I can only hope that the newest version will set the tone for the following movies. All in all, the best Bond movie since On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and that's saying a lot. Practically perfect in every way.
-------------------- "Kentoc'h Mervel !" Posts: 388 | From: France | Registered: Feb 2005
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posted
I got to see it tonight. I wouldn't really call myself a Bond fan, but I do enjoy the movies once in a while. This one went right to one of the top spots. It was nice to see Bond as a character again instead of a caricature.
Also, are Daniel Craig's eyes really that blue? Because if those weren't contacts, he can give Elijah Wood a run for his money.
-------------------- "But about the reindeer...what kind of a nose shines? How did he get it? Maybe it's not a reindeer after all. It could be something else." Posts: 2216 | From: Winston-Salem, NC | Registered: Nov 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Finding Rebochan: Despite it being written by the same idiots that gaves us Die Another Day, this movie succeeds everywhere that the latter film failed.
The screenplay was originally written by them, yes, but the script revision for Casino Royale was done by the highly acclaimed writer and director Paul Haggis (Crash, Million Dollar Baby, Flags of our Fathers). Die Another Day didn't have him.
-------------------- "You're the opposite of troll. It's a compliment!" Posts: 12086 | From: Alberta | Registered: Feb 2000
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Richard W
Ding Dong! Merrily on High Definition TV
posted
I thought it was fantastic too - and some great cars! I liked the scene where you think they're setting up for a big chase to really show off that Aston Martin, and instead he completely wipes out and smashes it up (for a good reason, though) before even catching sight of the people he's chasing.
The card game was well done, although it was a bit confusing the way they kept cutting to breaks without it being obvious at times that it was a break. I liked that they showed enough of what was going on that you could follow the play. (I admit that I completely missed Bond's winning hand - when the third guy, that Le Chiffre beat, put his hand down, he had what I'd assumed Bond was going to have). In retrospect, though, it was a bit rubbish that everybody in that hand played quite reasonably given their cards, and it was pure luck that Bond had the winning hand. Nobody was bluffing. OK, Bond knew he had the best possible hand in that situation, and wouldn't have bet like that if he didn't; and it's the hands where nobody is bluffing that seem to lead to the biggest wins or losses, but it still came down to great luck for Bond. I can't remember whether they showed the order of the flop to know at what point he got that hand, but I think they did show the final card dealt and Bond had his winning hand before that. It doesn't take a lot of nerve to bet hugely when you know that you can't lose.
Posts: 8725 | From: Ipswich - the UK's 9th Best Place to Sleep! | Registered: Feb 2000
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posted
I haven't seen it yet. Now I'm curious to because the other review I had read about it (by a friend who likes to review movies and is pretty good, not a "real" critic) had said that this Bond was kinda thuggish and not as Bondey. That he looked as if he LIKED beating the crap out of the other guy, instead of just getting it over with so he could bed the next broad like Sean Connery. Heh.
Also I don't know if Bond is supposed to be good looking, but I wouldn't look twice at Daniel Craig - he simply doesn't do nutting for me in THAT way ifya catch my drift. Is Bond supposed to be handsome? If so there's one Bond of them all who is about 25 points ahead of the rest, but I won't mention which one because I think it might bring wrath upon me!
I never read the novels. Maybe the real Bond is more thuggish.
-------------------- "Wolves, dragons and vampires, man. Draw the nut-bars like big ol' nut-bar magnets." ~evilrabbit
(snurched because one of my nutbar family members is all about wolves and another one is all about dragons...)(with apologies to surfcitydogdad) Posts: 2397 | From: Texarkana, TX | Registered: Mar 2006
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posted
Richard W: I don't think Bond had the hand until the last card, but I can't be certain. I consulted DogMonkey and he can't remember either. (It was a Royal Flush, an extremely rare hand, by the way...) I don't think the cards per se were really the important thing, though, more the knowledge that something that important rested on what is ( to a certain extent*) a game of chance.
*Please don't lynch me, poker fans.
-------------------- "My sandwich choice is uncertain, until I actually order. It's like Schrodinger's Sandwich." "Is plutonium involved in this sandwich in any way?" "Maybe." Posts: 496 | From: Whitby, ON, Canada | Registered: Sep 2006
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quote:Originally posted by redsnapperdragonfly: I haven't seen it yet. Now I'm curious to because the other review I had read about it (by a friend who likes to review movies and is pretty good, not a "real" critic) had said that this Bond was kinda thuggish and not as Bondey. That he looked as if he LIKED beating the crap out of the other guy, instead of just getting it over with so he could bed the next broad like Sean Connery. Heh.
Also I don't know if Bond is supposed to be good looking, but I wouldn't look twice at Daniel Craig - he simply doesn't do nutting for me in THAT way ifya catch my drift. Is Bond supposed to be handsome? If so there's one Bond of them all who is about 25 points ahead of the rest, but I won't mention which one because I think it might bring wrath upon me!
I never read the novels. Maybe the real Bond is more thuggish.
snapdragon, I didn't feel much for Daniel Craig either but seeing him in a swimsuit...DAMN!!!! He's really, really hot in this film & before I could seriously take him or leave him. I had given up on Bond films a few films back but this one is really good. Its smart, funny & lots of action. And, as previously mentioned, Mr. Craig looks damn fine in his little swimsuit!
-------------------- I cannot live without books-Thomas Jefferson *~* A child educated only at school is an uneducated child - George Santayana I'm going to pummel you with such zeal, Buddha will explode! *~* Never miss a good chance to shut up - Will Rogers Posts: 6585 | From: Dallas/Fort Worth, TX | Registered: Feb 2002
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quote:Originally posted by redsnapperdragonfly: Is Bond supposed to be handsome?
Fleming described Bond as looking like this man but with a scar running down his face. The Wikipedia page has a picture of a sketch that Fleming had commissioned of his vision as Bond for comic strip writers to use. Whether that's handsome or not is, of course, in the eye of the beholder.
It's been a long time since I've read any of the books, but my impression wasn't that Fleming intended him to be notably handsome, but rather that he was very smooth and charismatic.
-------------------- "You're the opposite of troll. It's a compliment!" Posts: 12086 | From: Alberta | Registered: Feb 2000
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posted
Scout and Jenn, thanks for the info. I knew Casino Royale was based on the first Bond novel, and I also knew a few things going into it about why it was a very different kind of book (Bond doesn't shoot the main bad guy and loses the girl).
There is a side note that most of the poker scenes lost me. I just do not know Texas Hold Em'. The movie was good about giving the cues to the audience that a hand was good or bad, so I wasn't losing the plot, but the long shots on the cards would drive me nutty. At least it wasn't baccarat.
-------------------- "One original thought is worth a thousand mindless quotings." -- Diogenes
"Vote Republican! We won't burn you at the stake for your religious beliefs or slaughter your family and steal your land." -- Ramblin' Dave Posts: 3555 | From: Florida | Registered: Feb 2002
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quote:Originally posted by evilrabbit: It was a Royal Flush, an extremely rare hand, by the way...
Actually, it was a 9 High Straight Flush. Not as high of a hand as a Royal Flush (which is an Ace High Straight Flush), but still nearly impossible to beat. I also can't remember if Bond got the Straight Flush on the Turn or the River.
Posts: 306 | From: Tacoma, WA | Registered: Sep 2005
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quote:Finding Rebochan: I haven't seen a good Bond film in years, and this wasn't simply a good Bond film.
I saw this today, and came out of the movie saying the exact same thing. I think Daniel Craig has captured the essence of James Bond, and I can't wait to see more.
Richard W
Ding Dong! Merrily on High Definition TV
posted
I vaguely remember one of the aces being the last card dealt. But I wasn't looking for the possible straight flush at that point so I could be wrong.
It does make some difference I suppose. Actually, I suspect you're right and that Bond did get the card he needed on the river, given that earlier on in the game Bond mentions that Le Chiffre had only got his straight on the last card and had been bluffing before that (it's how he spotted the "tell").
If he hadn't got the card, he'd just have folded, though, and the game would have carried on...
TrekkerScout's right, it wasn't a Royal Flush, but Straight Flushes in general are the highest hand possible (with Royal Flush just being a special name for the highest Straight Flush). In that situation, Bond knew his hand was unbeatable.
(edit) It was quite clever to make it a low-number straight flush because it distracted from the possibility, what with the aces being the only visible high cards.
I didn't mean that there was anything unrealistic about any of it, and it was a great dramatic scene, it's just that to me, despite all the talk of the skill of poker, it emphasised that there's also a large amount of luck involved and that's essentially why Bond won.
Posts: 8725 | From: Ipswich - the UK's 9th Best Place to Sleep! | Registered: Feb 2000
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posted
This was the first James Bond movie I've ever enjoyed as something more than a smirky cartoon. I was incredibly impressed, and (let the flames begin), Daniel Craig is the first and only person to capture Bond as he should be. Indeed, the entire shift in mood from gadget-filled, pyrotechnic "fun" romp to serious, white-knuckle spy thriller has been long overdue. It was exactly what the franchise needed, and now--finally--I can call myself a Bond fan, and will remain so as long as the franchise continues to progress in its current direction.
Also... on a lighter note, the scene in the hotel lobby (set in the Venice hotel in which Vesper and James stayed) is a real hotel lobby. My wife and I each availed ourselves of the lavatories while touring Venice. (The staff was very friendly and polite.) When that scene flashed by on the screen, my wife exclaimed (in full "outside voice") "Hey, we PEED THERE!"
The other theatergoers were amused.
ETA: Fixed some typos...
-------------------- High on the wind, the Highland drums begin to roll, and something from the past just comes and stares into my soul... --Mark Knopfler Posts: 3402 | From: New Bern, NC | Registered: May 2004
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quote:Originally posted by DesertRat: This was the first James Bond movie I've ever enjoyed as something more than a smirky cartoon. i was incredibly impressed, and let the flames begin, Daniel Craig is the first and only person to capture Bond has a should be. Indeed, the entire shift in mood from gadget-filled, pyrotechnic "fun" romp to serious, white-knuckle spy thriller has been long overdue. It was exactly what the franchise needed, and now--finally--I can call myself a Bond fan, and will remain so as long as the franchise continues to progress in its current direction.
Also... on a lighter note, the scene in the hotel lobby (set in the Venice hotel in which Vesper and James stayed) is a real hotel lobby. My wife and I each availed ourselves of the lavatories while touring Venice. (The staff was very friendly and polite.) When that scene flashed by on the screen, my wife exclaimed (in full "outside voice") "Hey, we PEED THERE!"
The other theatergoers were amused.
No flames from me, Marine!!! I feel Casino Royale is the best Bond film since From Russia with Love!
-------------------- "SPECTRE's a dedicated fraternity whose strength lies in the absolute integrity of its members."
- Blofeld Posts: 186 | From: Safely back at my Norfolk, VA evil lair | Registered: Aug 2004
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I once read a biography of Ian Fleming that included a photo of him circa WWII--and Fleming himself looked remarkably like that sketch of Bond he approved for the comic strip.
Fleming once said that he thought Cary Grant would make a great screen Bond--or failing Cary Grant, James Stewart (obviously some Hitchcock influence there!).
But really, James Stewart as Bond? Almost as hard to picture as Groucho Marx playing Rhett Butler.
Brad "say the secret woid, the duck will come down, and the Civil War will end" from Georgia
-------------------- "No hard feelin's and HOPpy New Year!"--Walt Kelly Hear what you're missing: ARTC podcasts! http://artcpodcast.org/ Posts: 7581 | From: Gainesville, Georgia | Registered: Jun 2000
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Jimmy Stewart as Bond: "The name's Bond. Ah...James. Bond that is. Now...ah, thank you. Ever try one of these? Pretty good. Shaken, not stirred. Well, maybe it doesn't make any difference. Anyway, I was saying... Blofeld? Did I get that right? See, some folks... Oh, none for me, thanks. Thanks. Some folks, in a position of authority, have gotten it into their heads, somehow, that you... Say, that really is a very pretty cat. You don't suppose I could...?"
Silas
Posts: 16801 | From: San Diego, CA | Registered: Sep 2000
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quote:Originally posted by Toys for big boys.: I saw it for the second time yesterday. The not-so-subtle plug for Virgin Atlantic was all the more obvious.
And that part of the film made me realise I've been watching far too much CSI: Miami.
Are you speaking of Richard Branson's (very) brief cameo?
And count me in; Daniel Craig is a brilliant Bond. I was just enthralled - though I did feel a little pervy, admiring his tushy during the torture scene. (But I mean, come on!)
Posts: 1651 | From: Columbus, Ohio | Registered: Aug 2004
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If you like Craig in this, check out Layer Cake. All of that raw sexual goodness.
-------------------- We frettered around like farm animals, looking around for formulas and father figures. -Twilight Zone Posts: 425 | From: Lynchburg, VA | Registered: May 2005
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-------------------- "No hard feelin's and HOPpy New Year!"--Walt Kelly Hear what you're missing: ARTC podcasts! http://artcpodcast.org/ Posts: 7581 | From: Gainesville, Georgia | Registered: Jun 2000
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