Console Wars and Bond

Well this last weekend has seen the release (in the US at least) of the PS3 on Friday and the Wii on Sunday and so to mark this occasion, in the voice of Yoda, I have five words to utter…

Begun the console wars have

Film watched:
Casino Royale

An apt sub-title for this should be “Bond Begins”, because in much the same way that Batman Begins was a reboot of the Batman franchise, Casino Royale is a much needed reboot of the Bond franchise.

As much as I love Bond films, and as much as I enjoyed Pierce Brosnon, it got to the point during Die Another Day, that the Bond films were almost as silly as the bond parodies (I’m thinking Austin Powers and the like). As such, Casino Royale is back to basics, with no over the top effect, no gadgets or plans or world domination. In fact a large portion of the film is based around the poker table.

Stand out moments for me are the chase through a construction site and the torture scene.

Daniel Craig does a fine job as Bond, he may lack the charisma of Brosnan, but instead has a more rugged charm, similar in some respect to Connery. As Bond’s go he’d pretty damn ruthless and also, definitely not invulnerable (I pity his balls, I really do).

My main complain would be the finale in Venice was a bit of a let down, especially if on a pure action level, it is compared to the opening chase.

Overall, a good solid Bond film, but not up there with the best of them yet.

7.5/10