Okay. As a huge fan of James Bond and all things Bond related, i was distressed at the choice of Daniel Craig to be my James. I just didnt get it. He is blond and has blue eyes. He is unknown to me and during shooting of this movie, i read he lost teeth and got hurt. James Bond does not get hurt. So i was prepared to hate this movie and Daniel Craig some more.
Daniel Craig is intense. It took me almost 30 minutes while watching the movie to let go of images of Pierce Brosnan, Timothy Dalton and Sean Connery and appreciate Daniel. He acted the hell out of this movie. Since this is a prequel, Bond is very crass, rough around the edges and hasnt achieved that suave debonair thing that is soooo James Bond. I am still a bit weirded out by the blond thing (there was a scene with a close up of his eyes and the eyelashes and eyebrows just got to me) but i will take back all the words of disdain i threw at Craig. Logically, i know that subsequent movies will have James evolving into the character we now love so i shall give Craig a break.
The plot of this movie is plausible. The bad guy Le Chiffre is one very weird fellow (as Bond villians shoud be), the Bond girls are alright and the theme song doesnt have the words "Casino Royale" in it (By the way, i believe there are only 3 Bond theme songs that dont incorporate the title of the movie in some way).
The gadgets - well seeing as James Bond had just gotten double 0 status, he didnt have access to any of the fun stuff. I mean, he started out driving a Ford. But the movie goes on to give background as to the reason why Bond has a thing for Aston Martins. The pre-requisite product placements (done tastefully of course) were there for Sony Ericcson phones, Sony Vaio, Jaguar etc.
The stunts in this movie are pretty brutal. Breath taking but not outlandish like Bond movies of old. Stunts are more along the lines of Mission Impossible type movies. And another thing: In this movie, James Bond bleeds and hurts. I mean he is roughed up good and it shows. There are some breathtakingly beautiful scenes shot in Europe - so amazing.
All in all, i have to watch this movie again. Just because i feel ready to drop all my pre-conceived notions and appreciate this movie for what it is. I would give this a 7 out of 10. Its a good flick. Its just really tough competing with Bonds of old.
3 comments:
hmmmmm. I'd heard this movie was really "Ohkay" and i really looked forward to watching it.
Now I'm going hmmmm...I guess it's a combination of factors. The sound wasn;t really good - (Numetro Abuja take note), so once the Xters start speaking in low tones, you can't hear. The theater was also noisy with people talking all through the movie. I'll have to see the movie again.
Noticed the MI 3 - like stunts too. I liked "M" too. She was very feisty and really chewed bond up for his ego and arrogance. But I can't recollect any reference to her being an Accountant and thus thinking of the bottom line without wishing to spend a dyme or break an egg. Would have expected such a retort from the ego-centric Bond.
I definitely have to see this movie again. Maybe the reason why he didnt have something to say back to M, was due to the fact that he hadnt developed his penchance for the quick comeback....
I loved this movie oh
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