Casino Royale with Cheese - Review!!!!!! We DEFINITELY need more exclaimation marks!!!!!!

Actually, Hold the cheese, we won't be needing it this time round. Yep, Bond is back, and this time, he's brutal! Brutal in the sense that he means business.
I'm not sure where to start with this one, so I'll just let this review become the brainfart its always going to be, such is my overwhelming excitement at how goddamn good Casino Royale is.

We sat down, settled ourselves, and the previews rolled through. The film begins. It opens with a black and white intro which instantly draws your complete attention. Its an extremely stylish and very well conceived noir opening scene, with some very subtle but truly amazing shot framing. It really sets us up for whats about to come. Bond, but not as we ever, EVER knew him. Straight in with the utterly gripping, nail biting brutal side of Bond we were so often depraved of with the camp character we've come to know since connery quit (with the exception of Lazenby and Dalton perhaps). This opening scene sets the tone for the rest of the entire movie, and boy does it leave you feeling excited inside! After the Chris Cornell opening titles which are visually very stunning, but aurally an absolute onslaught, the movie begins, and I guarantee your feet won't even touch the floor for the next 2 hours.

Throughout the movie, and through my uncontrollable boyish grinning, I kept catching myself looking at Craig as Bond, and thinking to myself "I just Don't recognize this Character on screen... I know its Bond, but where has he been for the last 35 years!?" such is Daniel Craigs truly remarkable performance and absolute reinterpretation of James Bond. What we get here, is Bond as Flemming intended. Casino Royale is the opening film with the new and improved James Bond. We're back to basics. No gadgets, no elaborate plans to take over the world, less cheese, a noticable lack of presence of eyebrows and definately no invisible cars. All bond has is a secret compartment in his unbelievably gorgeous Aston Martin, and his total manly braun. Bond is younger. Not so much in the flesh, he still epitomizes everything that Bond is and needs to be, sophisticated, un-phased, cool, collected, and a bit of eye candy for the ladies, but perhaps a little more mischievous, for want of a better word, younger. He's not as cynical or worn out by his job, and he's certainly not trying to crowbar all things "British" down our throats at every given oppertunity (...oh roger...). He's not afraid to get his hands dirty. This reminded me of how Connery was in the beginning. Sure he was suave and sophisticated, but there was always an edge to connery's Bond that made you think he really could slap ten shades of shit out of you and not drop his Vodka Martini. Craig, similarly, has something of a raw edge to him. Something bold and dangerous, yet cunning and wry at the same time. He can take a punch (and does, regularly) in some of the best looking brutal fight scenes since the Bourne Identity. We're pretty much looking at Connery's Bond but a few years earlier. I was completely and utterly convinced. I hereby slam all Daniel Craig naysayers out there with the words: This could quite plausibly be the best Bond interpretation ever.

The story itself is direct from Flemmings first ever Bond novel, and its pretty accurate, give or take. Its set around a high stakes card game. One thing I was pleased about in the whole premise was the change from Bonds traditional game of Baccarat to Texas Holed 'em Poker. Bond is staked in the game with funds from the british treasury (obviously with slight concern) to play against known terrorist, Le Chiffre. Now this is a real Bond villain. He's right there, all the time, getting his hands dirty. No big monstrous contraptions designed to kill people excrutiatingly slowly. He's mean, creepy and very very scary (He cries tears of blood for christ sakes!) Bond is up against it and make no mistake. The locations are amazingly good and really set the timbre of the film. The action is plentiful and so well done that I literally found myself on the edge of my seat on many occassions. Its humorous, witty and stylish. Craig's Bond is cool, collected and a little bit of a live wire every so often.

In short, if you are a true Bond fan, you ARE going to LOVE this movie.

Marks - 5/5

I'm going to see it again this weekend, I suggest you all do the same!