I saw the first James Bond movie, Dr. No, at the theatre, and every other one in which Sean Connery played Bond, plus most of the new ones where he didn't. Like many people, he's my favorite Bond, but 2006's Casino Royale is possibly the best Bond film of all, and Daniel Craig is no slouch as Bond. While this story is the latest Bond film, and was done in 1967 as a comedy, the story was actually Ian Fleming's first Bond novel.

At the beginning, Bond is not yet a "00" agent, licensed to kill, but he quickly gets the required two kills for promotion. He's sent to Uganda to spy on a terrorist. During this trip, he learns of Le Chiffre, a banker for terrorists. It's discovered that Le Chiffre is planning to raise money by playing in a high-stakes poker game, so Bond is assigned to play him, with the hopes that bankrupting him will destroy his organization.

What makes this Bond a cut above the previous is that they changed the formula slightly. There's still tons of action and hair-raising stunts, but they eliminated the futuristic non-existing gadgets in favor of real high-tech equipment that actually exists, and Craig plays Bond as a more realistic person, although still "very British". A very good Bond, and a great night's entertainment.

Damn great movie. My favorite James Bond.

***SPOILER ALERT***








It's funny, now that I think of it, that all 3 bond girls in this film end up dead (although technically Ivana Milicevic wasn't a Bond girl 'cuz he never touched her).

There's no 'technically'. She's not, end of story.

She's just a female character.