Bond back to basics

Director: Martin Campbell

Starring: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Judi Dench, Mads Mikkelsen, Jeffrey Wright, Caterina Murino

Classification: 12A

Perhaps it was the terrible reviews of Bond's last outing, Die Another Day, that prompted it. Or maybe the decision was inspired by the successful revamping of the Superman and Batman franchises. Either way, the decision to strip things back to basics and kickstart the ailing James Bond brand was a decision of pure genius.

Die Another Day was hugely successful in commercial terms, but it spelled the end of Pierce Brosnan's stint, as the ridiculous gadgets, overblown special effects and downright terrible storylines finally took their toll on the public's patience with 007. Just as Cubby Broccoli had fought the studios to hire Sean Connery back in the 1960s, so Barbara Broccoli fought to hire Daniel Craig - and I'm pleased to say, she was right. Craig plays Bond with a few rough edges and a devilish recklessness, which is aeons away from the sickly debonair front of Pierce Brosnan, or camp charm of Roger Moore. With piercing blue eyes and new beach body, Bond is ready for the 21st century as he displays a slightly more human side on his road to becoming 007.

When the film opens, a grainy, gritty prologue shows Bond before he attains '00' status, before swiftly moving to Madagascar, where a daring chase that sees Bond pursue a freerunning fugitive ends in an explosion at an embassy. M, played as ever by Judi Dench, wants Bond's head for it, but instead of lying low, Bond goes off to the Bahamas in search of an elusive terrorist cell. There he discovers Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen), a banker who orchestrates disasters that will affect the stock market, seemingly betting against it in order to make millions using the money of terrorists.

Bond thwarts his plan to blow up a prototype airliner, and when the stocks don't crash as Le Chiffre had intended, he loses over £100million of other people's money. He organises a high stakes poker game at the Casino Royale in Montenegro in an attempt to win back the money.

As the best player in the service (and also the man who has learned of Le Chiffre's connection to the cell), Bond is dispatched to play against him, under the watchful eye of gorgeous accountant Vesper Lynd (Eva Green). At first their banter is frosty and spiky, but slowly they warm to each other as Bond is sent careering up a huge learning curve in who he can actually trust.

I would argue that Casino Royale is the best Bond film since Goldfinger, dispensing with the ludicrous gadgets in favour of more plausible computer technology. The film does have a tendency to feel more like an extended advert for Sony products, but at least Bond is now having to rely on wits and strength, instead of a biro than doubles as a rocket launcher.

The glamourous Bond girls are in evidence, although the double entendre names have seemingly been jettisoned. Caterina Murino's Solange is the desperate housewife who tries to seduce Bond in the pursuit of some much needed passion, while Ivana Milicevic plays bad girl Valenka, Le Chiffre's girlfriend who isn't afraid to play dirty. In between both opposites is Vesper, beautiful yet intelligent, and seemingly playing her own game between Bond and Le Chiffre.

The plot is more plausible than most, particularly with the evils of terrorism so large in the public's attention. The uneasy relationship between the worlds of terrorism and high finance makes for an interesting plot device, and a perfect backdrop for the first adventure of a spy just given his licence to kill. The action is well-paced and directed with a visual flair that is perfect for the freerunning sequence, and Daniel Craig is truly compelling as 007.

Forget all that has gone before, and sit back to enjoy the new, 21st Century Bond. Long may this franchise continue.

4/5 A back to basics Bond for the 21st century