CASINO ROYALE (2006 FILM)

'''Casino Royale''' (2006) is the 21st film in the James Bond series and the first to star Daniel Craig as MI6 agent James Bond. Based on the 1953 novel of the same name by Ian Fleming, it was adapted by screenwriters Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, and Paul Haggis and directed by Martin Campbell. It is the third screen adaptation of the ''Casino Royale'' novel, which was previously produced as a 1954 television episode and a 1967 satirical film. However, the 2006 film is the only EON Productions adaptation of Fleming's novel. It is a reboot of the Bond franchise, establishing a new timeline and narrative framework not meant to precede any previous film.^[2] This not only frees the Bond franchise from more than forty years of continuity to maintain, but allows the film to show a less experienced and more vulnerable Bond.^[3] The film is set at the beginning of James Bond's career as Agent 007, having earned his license to kill. After preventing a terrorist attack at the Miami Airport, Bond falls for Vesper Lynd, the treasury agent assigned to provide the money he needs to foil a high-stakes poker tournament organized by Le Chiffre.
The casting for the movie involved a widespread search for a new actor to portray James Bond, and significant controversy over Daniel Craig when he was eventually selected. Some Pierce Brosnan fans threatened to boycott the film in protest.^[4] Despite this, the film, and Daniel Craig's performance in particular, earned critical acclaim. ''Casino Royale'' was produced by EON Productions for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Columbia Pictures, marking the first official Bond film to be co-produced by the latter studio, which had produced and originally distributed the 1967 non-canonical film version.
''Casino Royale'' is the highest grossing James Bond film to date,^[5] the 37th highest-grossing film of all time,^[6] and the 6th highest grossing film of all time in the United Kingdom.^[7]

Contents

Plot

Cast

Production

Casting

Filming

Effects

Music

Release

Reception

References

External links

Plot

In the opening sequence, James Bond is on a mission that, if successful, will qualify him for double-0 status. He goes to Prague and kills an MI6 section chief, Dryden, who has leaked classified information, and his ally, Fisher. Elsewhere, Mr. White, serving as a middleman, introduces a banker, Le Chiffre, to a guerrilla group seeking a safe haven for its funds. Le Chiffre assures them that there is "no risk in the portfolio", but his investments actually involve considerable risk: he buys shorts on successful companies and then engineers terrorist attacks to sink their stock values.
In his first mission as Agent 007, Bond goes to Madagascar in pursuit of an international bomb-maker named Mollaka. After a free running chase to the Nambutu embassy, Bond kills his target and blows up a part of the building in order to escape. He obtains Mollaka's mobile phone and discovers that it has received calls from the Alex Dimitrios, an associate of Le Chiffre in the Bahamas. Bond travels there and seduces Dimitros' wife, Solange. While answering a phone call, Solange reveals that her husband is flying to Miami. Bond leaves to pursue him. In Miami, 007 kills Dimitrios and then follows Le Chiffre's henchman, Carlos, to the Miami Airport. There, Bond foils Le Chiffre's plan to destroy the prototype ''Skyfleet'' airliner and thus leaves the banker with a major loss.
Now under pressure to recoup his clients' money, Le Chiffre sets up a high-stakes Texas hold 'em tournament at the Casino Royale in Montenegro. Hoping that a defeat would force Le Chiffre to aid the British government in exchange for protection from his creditors, MI6 enters Bond into the tournament. He meets up with Mathis, his ally in Montenegro, and Vesper Lynd, a treasury agent, who is assigned to look after his handling of the $10 million buy-in. After the tournament is underway for some time, Bond loses his initial stake. Vesper says that it would be a waste of money to continue to stake Bond and refuses to give him the funds to buy back in.

Distraught over his failure, Bond resolves to assassinate Le Chiffre. Moments before he can, the CIA's agent Felix Leiter, who is also playing in the tournament, intervenes and offers to stake Bond in exchange for custody of Le Chiffre. Back in the game, Bond begins to amass chips. Le Chiffre and his associates attempt to kill Bond via a poisoning attempt, but he survives and wins the tournament. Soon afterward, Le Chiffre abducts Vesper and uses her to lure Bond into a near-fatal car chase, which results in his capture as well. Le Chiffre then tortures Bond for the access code to the game's winnings. When it becomes clear that Bond will not give in, Le Chiffre advances to castrate him, but Mr. White enters and kills Le Chiffre and his associates for their failure. Bond and Vesper are left alive.
Bond awakens in a hospital on Lake Como and orders Mathis, whom Le Chiffre identified as a double agent, arrested. Bond admits his love for Vesper and vows to quit the service before it strips him of his humanity. Accordingly, he posts his resignation to M and goes on a romantic holiday in Venice with Vesper. However, Bond soon learns that his poker winnings were never deposited in the Treasury's account. Realizing that Vesper has stolen them, he pursues her and members of the organization she is working for into a building under renovation. After killing the enemy guards outside the building, Bond finds Vesper imprisoned in an elevator. Apologizing to him tearfully, she locks the inside door and the elevator plunges underwater. Bond dives in and manages to break through and reach Vesper, but she intentionally inhales water and drowns. Mr. White, watching from a balcony, walks away with the money.
Bond, feeling betrayed, learns from M that Vesper had a French-Algerian boyfriend who was kidnapped by the organization behind Le Chiffre and Mr White and that she agreed to deliver the money only if they would consent to leave Bond alive. He then discovers White's name and number in Vesper's mobile phone. White, arriving at a palatial estate near Lake Como, receives a phone call. Upon asking "Who is this?", he is shot in the leg. As he crawls painfully towards the villa, Bond appears, gun in hand, and responds, "The name's Bond, James Bond."

Cast

★ 'Daniel Craig' as 'James Bond': A British agent who, after being assigned 00-status, is sent on a mission to arrest a bomb maker in Madagascar, where he stumbles upon Le Chiffre's terrorist cell and is then sent to defeat him in a high-stakes poker game at Casino Royale.

★ 'Eva Green' as 'Vesper Lynd': An agent for HM Treasury assigned to supervise Bond and finance his poker table exploits.

★ 'Mads Mikkelsen' as 'Le Chiffre': A banker serving the world's terrorists. He is a mathematical genius and chess expert, and uses these skills when playing poker.

★ 'Judi Dench' as 'M': The strict head of MI6. Though she feels she has promoted 007 too soon and expresses abhorrence of his rash actions, she acts as an important maternal figure in his life.

★ 'Jeffrey Wright' as 'Felix Leiter': A quiet CIA operative participating in the poker tournament while assisting Bond. This is the first official Bond film in which Leiter is played by a black actor.^[8]

★ 'Giancarlo Giannini' as 'Rene Mathis': Bond's ally in Montenegro.

★ 'Simon Abkarian' as 'Alex Dimitrios': An associate of Le Chiffre, based in the Bahamas.

★ 'Caterina Murino' as 'Solange Dimitrios': Dimitrios's wife, whom Bond seduces. She is killed by Le Chiffre for joining hands with Bond.

★ 'Isaach De Bankolé' as 'Steven Obanno': A ruthless Ugandan warlord introduced to Le Chiffre by Mr. White to account his finances.

★ 'Jesper Christensen' as 'Mr. White': A mysterious liaison among the world's terrorists.

★ 'Ivana Miličević' as 'Valenka': Le Chiffre's girlfriend and henchwoman.

★ 'Sébastien Foucan' as 'Mollaka': A bombmaker pursued by Bond through a construction site in Madagascar.

★ 'Ludger Pistor' as 'Mendel': A Swiss banker responsible for all monetary transactions during and after the poker tournament.

★ 'Claudio Santamaria' as 'Carlos': A terrorist employed by Le Chiffre to blow up an aircraft.
Two major exclusions from the film are the characters of Q and Miss Moneypenny. Their exclusion makes ''Casino Royale'' the second film in the series without Q (''Live and Let Die'' being the first), and the first film without Moneypenny. In October 2005, producer Michael G. Wilson stated that the characters were not in the movie because they were not in the book, though Moneypenny was mentioned in the novel by Bond. The decision to leave Moneypenny's character out from the film coincided with actress Samantha Bond, who had portrayed the character in the previous four films, announcing that she would not be reprising the role.^[9]

Production

EON Productions gained the rights for ''Casino Royale'' in 1999 after Sony Pictures Entertainment exchanged them for MGM's rights to Spider-Man.^[10] In March 2004, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade began writing a screenplay for Pierce Brosnan as Bond, aiming to bring back an Ian Fleming flavour.^[11] Director Quentin Tarantino expressed interest in directing an adaptation of the ''Casino Royale'' novel,^[12] though this was only a personal interest, and he didn't follow this up with EON. In the June 2007 issue of ''GQ'' (UK) Tarantino confirmed his desire to make ''Casino Royale'' after ''Pulp Fiction''. Tarantino claims to have worked behind the scenes with the Fleming family, and believes that this was the reason why filmmakers finally went ahead with ''Casino Royale''.^[13] In February 2005, Martin Campbell was announced as the film's director.^[14] Later in 2005, Sony led a consortium that purchased MGM, allowing Sony to gain distribution rights starting with this film.^[15]
EON admitted that they had relied too heavily on CGI effects in the more recent films, particularly ''Die Another Day'', and were keen to accomplish the stunts in ''Casino Royale'' "the old fashioned way".^[16] In keeping with this drive for more realism, screenwriters Purvis, Wade, and Haggis wanted the script to follow as closely as possible to the original 1953 novel, keeping Fleming's darker storyline and characterization of Bond.^[17]
''Casino Royale'' became the first Bond film to take its title from a Fleming novel or short story since 1987's ''The Living Daylights''. It is also the first Bond film since then not to be adapted as a novelization. Instead, a film tie-in edition of Fleming's original novel was published.^[18]

Casting

Throughout 2004 and 2005, a whole legion of potential new actors to portray James Bond were speculated on by the media, ranging from established Hollywood actors, such as Eric Bana, Hugh Jackman, Goran Visnjic and Clive Owen, to many unknown actors from a number of different countries.^[19] At one point producer Michael G. Wilson claimed there was a list of over 200 names being considered.^[20] English actor Colin Salmon, who had played the role of MI6 operative Charles Robinson in earlier Bond films alongside Pierce Brosnan, was also considered for the role and raised speculation that he might become the first black Bond.^[21] According to Martin Campbell, Henry Cavill was the only actor in serious contention for the role. But being only 22 years old at the time, he was considered too young.^[22]
In May 2005, Daniel Craig announced that MGM and producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli had assured him that he would get the role of Bond, and Matthew Vaughn told reporters that MGM offered him the opportunity to direct, but EON Productions at that point had not approached either of them.^[23] Later, Craig stated that the producers had indeed offered him the role, but he had declined until a script was available for him to read.^[24]
By August 2005, speculation was high that the 37-year-old Daniel Craig was being seriously considered, although full casting for the role was not actually done until September. Then, on October 14, 2005, EON Productions and Sony Pictures Entertainment confirmed to the public at a press conference in London that Daniel Craig would be the sixth actor to portray James Bond.^[25] Significant controversy followed the decision, as it was doubted if the producers had made the right choice. Throughout the entire production period Internet campaigns such as "danielcraigisnotbond.com" expressed their dissatisfaction and threatened to boycott the film in protest.^[26] Craig, unlike previous actors, was not considered by the protesters to fit the tall, dark, handsome and charismatic image of Bond to which viewers had been accustomed.
The next important casting was that of the lead Bond girl, Vesper Lynd. Casting director Debbie McWilliams acknowledged that Hollywood actresses Angelina Jolie and Charlize Theron were strongly considered for the role and that Belgian actress Cécile de France had also auditioned, but her English accent "wasn't up to scratch."^[27] Audrey Tautou was also considered, but not chosen because of her role in ''The Da Vinci Code'' that was released in May 2006.^[28] It was announced on February 16, 2006 that French actress Eva Green would play the role of Vesper Lynd.^[29]

Filming

Producer Michael G. Wilson and Craig in Venice during filming

Principal photography for ''Casino Royale'' commenced on January 30, 2006 and concluded on July 21, 2006. The film was primarily shot at Barrandov Studios in Prague, with additional location shooting in the Czech Republic, the Bahamas, Italy, and the United Kingdom. At Pinewood Studios, the shooting schedule concluded.^[30]
Initially, Michael G. Wilson confirmed that ''Casino Royale'' would either be filmed or take place in Prague and South Africa. However, EON Productions encountered problems in securing film locations in South Africa.^[31] After no other locations became available, the producers had to reconsider their options. In September 2005, Martin Campbell and Phil Meheux (director of photography) were scouting Paradise Island in the Bahamas as a possible location for the film.^[32] On October 6, 2005, Martin Campbell confirmed that ''Casino Royale'' would film in the Bahamas and "maybe Italy." In addition to the extensive location filming, studio work including choreography and stunt coordination practice was performed at the Barrandov Studios in Prague and at Pinewood Studios where the film used several stages as well as the paddock tank and the historic "Albert R. Broccoli 007 Stage". Further shooting in the UK was scheduled for Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey, the cricket pavilion at Eton College (although that particular scene was cut from the completed movie) and the Millbrook Vehicle Proving Ground in Bedfordshire.^[33]
After Prague, the production moved to the Bahamas. Several locations around New Providence were used for filming during February and March, particularly on Paradise Island. Footage set in Mbale, Uganda was filmed at Black Park, Country Park in Buckinghamshire concluding on July 4, 2006. Additional scenes took place at Albany House, an estate owned by golfers Ernie Els and Tiger Woods.^[34] The crew returned to the Czech Republic in April, and continued there, filming in Prague, Planá and Loket, before completing in the town of Karlovy Vary in May. A disused spa, formerly known as the Kaisersbad, in Karlovy Vary was used as the exterior of the Casino Royale, with the Grandhotel Pupp serving as "Hotel Splendide".^[35] The main Italian location mentioned by Campbell was Venice, where the majority of the film's ending is set. Other scenes in the later half of the film were shot in late May and early June at the Villa del Balbianello on the shores of Lake Como.^[36] Further exterior shooting for the movie took place at properties such as the Villa la Gaeta, near the lakeside town of Menaggio.
On July 30 2006, a fire broke out at the 007 Stage. The damage was significant, but had no effect on the release of ''Casino Royale'' as the incident occurred one week after filming had been completed, and the sets were in the process of being dismantled.^[37] On August 11, 2006, Pinewood Studios confirmed that no attempt would be made to salvage the remains of the stage,^[38] instead it would be rebuilt from scratch.^[39]

Effects

The gunbarrel sequence modified as part of the opening sequence

In designing the credit sequence for the film, graphic designer Daniel Kleinman was inspired by the cover of the 1953 British first edition of ''Casino Royale'', which featured Ian Fleming's original design of a playing card bordered by eight red hearts dripping with blood.Fleming, Ian. ''Casino Royale''. London: Jonathan Cape (1953). Kleinman said, "The hearts not only represent cards but the tribulations of Bond's love story. So I took that as inspiration to use playing card graphics in different ways in the titles," like a club representing a puff of gun smoke, and slashed arteries spurting thousands of tiny hearts.^[40] In creating the shadow images of the sequence, Kleinman digitized the footage of Craig and the film's stuntmen on the Inferno visual effects system, at the Framestore CFC in London; the actors' silhouettes were incorporated into more than 20 digitally animated scenes depicting intricate and innovative card patterns. Commercials at Framestore CFC
For the rest of the film, Special Effects and Miniature Effects Supervisor Chris Corbould, as with the producers, wanted to return to a more realistic style of film making and significantly reduce digital effects. According to Corbould, “CGI is a great tool and can be very useful, but I will fight to the tooth and nail to do something for real. It’s the best way to go”. Three scenes involving primarily physical effects in the film were the chase at a building site in Madagascar, the Miami Airport chase sequence, and the sinking Venetian house, with sets located on the Grand Canal and in Pinewood Studios.
First on the schedule were the scenes on the Madagascar building site, shot in the Bahamas on the site of a derelict hotel which Michael G. Wilson had become acquainted with in 1977 during the filming of ''The Spy Who Loved Me''. In the scene, Bond drives a digger toward the building, slamming into the concrete plinth on which Mollaka is running. The stunt team built a model and put forward several ways in which the digger could conceivably take out the concrete, including taking out the pillar underneath. A section of the concrete wall was removed to fit the digger, and reinforced with steel.
The sequence at Miami International Airport was partly shot at the Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey, with some footage from the Prague and Miami airports. In filming the scene in which the engine thrust of the moving aircraft blows the police car high into the air, second unit directors Ian Lowe, Terry Madden, and Alex Witt used a crane with a strong lead cable attached to the rear bumper of the vehicle to move it up and backwards at the moment of full extension away from the plane.
The sinking of the Venetian house at the climax of the film featured the largest rig ever built for a Bond film. For the scene involving Bond following Vesper into the house undergoing renovation supported by inflatable balloons, a tank was constructed at the 007 stage at Pinewood, consisting of a Venetian piazza and the interior of the three-story dilapidated house. The rig, weighing some 90 tons, incorporated electronics with hydraulic valves which were closely controlled by computer because of the dynamic movement within the system on its two axes. The same computer system also controlled the exterior model which the effects team built to one-third scale to film the building eventually collapsing into the Venetian canal. The model elevator within the rig could be immersed in 19 feet of water, and utilized banks of compressors to strictly regulate movement.
The scene involving the car crash was devised using an Aston Martin DBS V12, specially modified and reinforced to withstand the impact. Due to the low centre of gravity of the vehicle, an 18-inch (450 mm) ramp had to be implemented on the road tarmac at Millbrook Proving Grounds and stunt driver Adam Kirley had to use an air cannon located behind the driver's seat to propel the car into a roll at the precise moment of impact. At a speed exceeding 70 mph (113 km/h), the car rotated seven times while being filmed, and was confirmed by the Guinness Book of Records on November 5, 2006 as a new World Record.

Music

The soundtrack of ''Casino Royale'', released by Sony Classical on November 14, 2006 featured music composed by veteran composer David Arnold, his fourth soundtrack for the Bond film series, while Nicholas Dodd orchestrated and conducted the score. Producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli announced on July 26, 2006 that Chris Cornell, who was the lead singer for Audioslave and Soundgarden, composed and performed the title song "You Know My Name".^[15] Various names were reported in the media prior to the announcement, including a return of Tina Turner,^[42] who sang "GoldenEye", and Tony Christie.^[43]
Cornell was first reported to be writing and performing the song in collaboration with David Arnold on July 20, 2006 by the Finnish newspaper ''Ilta-Sanomat'' and the complete score was completed early on the morning of October 11, 2006.^[44] "You Know My Name" is the first theme song since 1983's ''Octopussy'' to use a different title than the film, and Cornell is the first male performer since A-ha in 1987's ''The Living Daylights''. It is the fifth title theme after ''Dr. No'', ''From Russia With Love'', ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' and ''Octopussy'', that does not make any reference to the title of the film. It is the first title song to be repeated in the end credits since "A View to a Kill". The end titles begin with the James Bond theme, but halfway through, an abbreviated version of Cornell's song is played.

Release

''Casino Royale'' premiered at the Odeon Leicester Square, the Odeon West End and the Empire simultaneously in London on November 14, 2006. It marked the 60th Royal Film Performance and benefited the Cinema & Television Benevolent Fund (CTBF), whose patron, Queen Elizabeth II, was in attendance with the Duke of Edinburgh. It was the third James Bond premiere that the Queen had attended following ''You Only Live Twice'' (1967) and ''Die Another Day'' (2002).^[45] Along with the cast and crew, numerous celebrities and 5,000 paying guests were also in attendance with half the proceeds benefiting the CTBF.^[46]
Only two days following the premiere, pirated copies appeared for sale in London. “The rapid appearance of this film on the streets shows the sophistication and organisation behind film piracy in the UK,” said Kieron Sharp, from the Federation Against Copyright Theft.^[47] Pirated copies of the DVD were selling for less than £1. Craig himself was offered such a DVD while walking anonymously through the streets of Beijing wearing a hat and glasses in order to avoid being identified.^[48]
The film achieved GB£1.7 million of ticket sales in the UK on its first day of release, grossing more than twice as much as the former record-holder ''Die Another Day'', and becoming the highest UK take for any Bond film.^[49] Weekend opening total in the UK was GB£13,400,000, surpassing the previous record of GB£9,100,000 held by ''Die Another Day''. It claimed the third biggest opening weekend and became the sixth highest grossing film of all time in the UK with a box office total of approximately $108-$109 million.^[50] (the total USA box office was approximately US$170 million).The film also had the biggest Bond opening in the Republic of Ireland with over €1,100,000 in the first 2 weeks. Altogether the film took about €4,200,000 in Ireland. From November 16 to November 19 2006, the film took in over $40,000,000.^[51]
Opening day estimates in the United States and Canada showed ''Casino Royale'' on top with $14,750,000, while opening weekend estimates showed it in the second place with $40,600,000,^[52] as well as earning another $42,000,000 internationally. Although ''Happy Feet'' won the overall weekend box office contest, such a comparison in earnings is problematic, as ''Happy Feet'' has little more than half the running time of ''Casino Royale'', and therefore had significantly more screenings per day, which translates into more potential gross. A better indication of the film's relative performances is that ''Casino Royale'', per theatre, outperformed ''Happy Feet'', which was released in 370 more theatres. According to Box Office Mojo, ''Casino Royale'' took in, on average, $11,890 per theatre, while ''Happy Feet'' grossed $10,918 per theatre.^[53]
''Casino Royale'' opened at the first position in 27 countries, with a weekend gross of $43,407,886 worldwide.^[54] As of March 30, 2007 it has grossed over $593,352,994 globally,^[55] breaking both the domestic and international box office records of ''Die Another Day''. The film the opening weekend record in India, taking in over $3,386,987, which was the highest for a foreign language film at the time.^[56][57] In Russia, the film made over $4.5 million, the eighth largest opening for a non-Russian film.^[58]
In January 2007, ''Casino Royale'' became the first Bond film ever to be shown in mainland Chinese cinemas.^[59] It was reported that the Chinese version was released without alteration, but it emerged that it had been edited before release, with the reference to the Cold War re-dubbed and new dialogue added during the poker scene explaining the process of Texas Hold'em, as the game is less familiar in China. ''Casino Royale'' earned approximately $11.7 million in China since its opening on January 30 on 468 screens,^[60] including a record opening weekend collection for a non-Chinese film, with $1.5 million.^[61]
''Casino Royale'' was simultanenously released on DVD, UMD, and Blu-ray Disc on March 13, 2007.^[62] In the UK, ''Casino Royale'' was released on March 19, 2007 on DVD and Blu-ray Disc.^[63] The DVD and Blu-ray Disc releases broke sales records: the region 1 Blu-ray Disc edition became the highest selling high-definition title to date, selling more than 100,000 copies since its release.^[64] The region 2 DVD edition achieved the record of fastest selling title for its first-week release. The UK DVD has continued to sell well, with 1,622,852 copies sold since March 19.^[65] A copy of the Blu-Ray Disc edition of Casino Royale was given out to the first 500,000 PAL Playstation 3 owners who signed up to the Playstation Network.^[66] The DVD release includes the official music video for the film, and three documentaries detailing how Daniel Craig was chosen for the role of Bond, the filming, and ''Bond Girls Are Forever'' a documentary about the various women who have portrayed the Bond girls throughout the franchise.

Reception

Critics gave the film a positive response, in particular Craig's performance and credibility. During production this had been subject to debate by the media and the public, as Craig did not appear to fit Ian Fleming's original portrait of the character as tall, dark, and suave. ''The Daily Mirror'', which had once run a front page news story critical of Craig, with the headline, ''The Name's Bland — James Bland'',^[67] and ''The Daily Telegraph'' compared the quality of Craig's characterization of Bond to Sean Connery's; and the Telegraph praised the script as smartly written, noting how the film departed from the series' conventions. ''The Times'' compared the more assertive portrayal by Craig to Timothy Dalton, and praised the action as edgy,^[68] with another reviewer citing in particular the action sequence involving the cranes in Madagascar.^[69] Critic Paul Arendt of BBC Films,^[70] Kim Newman of ''Empire''^[71] and Todd McCarthy of ''Variety''^[72] all described Craig as the first actor to truly embody Ian Fleming's James Bond from the original novel: ironic, brutal, and cold.
In North America also, the movie was well received. MSNBC gave the movie a perfect 5 star rating.^[73] The film was described as taking James Bond "back to his roots", similar to ''From Russia with Love'',^[74] where the focus was on character and plot rather than the high-tech gadgets and visual effects that were strongly criticised in ''Die Another Day''.^[75]
Rotten Tomatoes gave the movie an aggregate rating of 94%, the highest rating for a wide-release of the year. It is the fifth-highest rating for a Bond film on the site behind ''Goldfinger'' which received a 95%, ''The Spy Who Loved Me'' and ''From Russia with Love'' which both received a 96%,^[76][77] and ''Dr. No'', with a 97% score.^[78] Metacritic gave the movie a Metascore of 80, signifying "Generally Favorable Reviews."^[79]
However, the film met several mixed reactions. Though American radio personality Michael Medved gave the film three stars out of four, describing it as "intriguing, audacious and very original... more believable and less cartoonish, than previous 007 extravaganzas", he commented that the "sometimes sluggish pacing will frustrate some Bond fanatics."^[80] Similarly, a reviewer for ''The Sun'' praised the film for its darkness and Craig's performance, but felt that "like the novel, it suffers from a lack of sharpness in the plot" and believed that it required additional editing, particularly the finale.^[81] Commentators such as Emanuell Levy concurred, feeling the ending was too long, and that the film's terrorist villains lacked depth, although he praised Craig and gave the film a B+ overall.^[82] In addition, Vesper Lynd (as portrayed by Eva Green) was chosen by ''Entertainment Weekly'' as the fourth greatest Bond girl in the entire film series.^[83] Other reviewers responded negatively, including Tim Adams of ''The Observer'' who felt the film came off uncomfortably in an attempt to make the series grittier, and criticized Craig's performance with the review title "You might be shaken, but this Bond won't leave you stirred".^[84] Steve Sailer of ''The American Conservative'' also criticized the film, saying it was "mediocre in execution and bloated in conception, wrapping the usual elephantine Bond movie mechanics around Fleming's minimal plot."^[85]
At the 2006 British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards, ''Casino Royale'' won the Film Award for Best Sound (Chris Munro, Eddy Joseph, Mike Prestwood Smith, Martin Cantwell, Mark Taylor), and the Orange Rising Star Award, which was won by Eva Green.^[86] The film was nominated for eight BAFTA awards, including the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film of the Year; Best Screenplay (Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Paul Haggis); the Anthony Asquith Award for Best Film Music (David Arnold); Best Cinematography (Phil Meheux); Best Editing (Stuart Baird); Best Production Design (Peter Lamont, Simon Wakefield); Best Achievement in Special Visual Effects (Steve Begg, Chris Corbould, John Paul Docherty, Ditch Doy); and Best Actor (Daniel Craig). This made Craig the first actor ever to receive a BAFTA nomination for a performance as James Bond.^[87] He also received the Evening Standard British Film Award for Best Actor.^[88]
''Casino Royale'' won the Excellence in Production Design Award from the Art Directors Guild,^[89] and singer Chris Cornell's "You Know My Name" won the International Press Academy Satellite Award for Best Original Song.^[90] The film was nominated for five Saturn Awards — Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film, Best Actor (Daniel Craig), Best Supporting Actress (Eva Green), Best Writing (Purvis, Wade and Haggis) and Best Music (David Arnold).^[91] The 2006 Golden Tomato Awards named ''Casino Royale'' the Wide Release Film of the Year.^[92] ''Casino Royale'' was also nominated for, and has won, many other international awards for its screenplay,^[93] film editing,^[94] visual effects,^[15] and production design.^[96] At the 2007 Saturn Awards, the film was declared to be the Best Action/Adventure/Thriller film of 2006.^[97] Several members of the crew were also recipients of 2007 Taurus World Stunt Awards, including Gary Powell for Best Stunt Coordination and Ben Cooke, Kai Martin, Marvin Stewart-Campbell, and Adam Kirley for Best High Work.^[98]

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34. James Bond takes over Ernie and Tiger's pad
35. On set report from Casino Royale getaway chase sequence
36. OO7 NEL BEL PAESE
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38. 007 stage destroyed by fire
39. UK release date pulled a day forward to 16th November
40. Credits design
41.
42. Tina Turner links herself to Casino Royale theme song
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44. David Arnold
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48. The name's Qi, Ling Ling Qi
49. Casino Royale UK Biggest 007 Opening
50. Casino Royale - Box Office Details
51. Casino Royale - Box Office Data, Movie News, Cast Information
52. Casino Royale grosses .6 million
53. Happy Feet (2006) box office
54. ''Casino Royale'' hits jackpot overseas
55. 'Dreamgirls' banking on expansion
56. 'Spider-Man 3' breaks all records!
57. Bond breaks records
58. Russia - CIS Box Office November 16–19, 2006
59. Judi Dench continues to earn Academy's respect
60.
Casino Royale (2006) - International Box Office
61. China shows 007 the love
62. Casino Royale (2-Disc Widescreen Edition)
63. Casino Royale and more from Sony!
64. Casino Royale Blu-ray Reaches Unit Milestone
65. Bond Breaks Records
66. Casino Royale Blu-ray for PS3 early adopters
67. The Name's Bland.. James Bland
68. "Brilliant" Bond seduces critics
69. Potato Head shoots way to 007 triumph Stuart Wavell
70. Casino Royale (2006)
71. Casino Royale
72. Casino Royale Todd McCarthy
73. "Casino Royale" is Prime Bond
74. Casino Royale Kirk Honeycutt
75. Die Another Day Todd McCarthy
76. The Spy Who Loved Me
77. From Russia With Love
78. Dr. No
79. Casino Royale at Metacritic
80. Casino Royale
81. The best Bond since Connery
82. Casino Royale B+
83. The 10 Best Bond Girls Joshua Rich
84. You might be shaken, but this Bond won't leave you stirred
85. Unshaken, unstirred Steve Sailer
86. Latest winners and nominees
87. This year's nominees
88. Craig named best actor at Brit film nods
89. ADG Awards 2006
90. Satellite Awards - 2006
91. 33rd Saturn Awards Nominations
92. Golden Tomato Awards. 'Casino Royale' and 'The Queen' take top honors in awards for well-reviewed films
93. Mystery Writers of America Announces 2007 Edgar Award Nominees
94. 10 make cut for ACE noms
95.
96. 'Casino', 'Curse', top ADG Awards Anne Thompson
97. 'Superman' tops Saturns
98. The 2007 Taurus World Stunt Awards Ended With a Bang on Sunday Night

External links

;Official sites

★ Official Sony ''Casino Royale'' Site

★ Official ''Casino Royale'' Blog

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;Reviews

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★ ''Casino Royale'' Reviews at Metacritic
;Other

★ Boeing 747 in ''Casino Royale'' at Aerospaceweb.org