Casino Royale Reviews
Film Geek Central
GOLDFINGER? SHMOLDFINGER! CASINO ROYALE is the best James Bond movie to date. Not only that, but it is also one of the best action movies ever made. And now, has become one of my favorite films. This is a classic.
Full Review
| Original Score: 4/4
Lyles' Movie Files
A streamlined back to basics approach for Bond that hits all the right marks in rejuvenating the franchise for a new generation.
Full Review
| Original Score: 9/10
Screen International
A muscular, wildly successful attempt to strip the lucrative James Bond franchise back to basics.
Sight and Sound
Let's say straight off that Craig is very good indeed: everything about his performance shows cunning and grace.
ComingSoon.net
Casino Royale is a welcome break from the past and a strong and entertaining film in its own right, proving the continuing viability of Fleming's creation 50 years after his inception.
Full Review
| Original Score: 8/10
Boston Phoenix
Every era gets the James Bond it deserves. Ours gets a Bond who's strong and forceful but also reckless and arrogant, who blunders into tricky situations in Third World countries and makes a bloody mess of things.
Full Review
| Original Score: 3/4
Urban Cinefile
A strong, well defined story, some unexpected betrayals and hidden corners, sensational locations and an absence of gadgets make Casino Royale a right royal Bond movie.
Urban Cinefile
Gritty and thrilling, Casino Royale has it all - action, glamour, spectacular locations and a new Bond that is above all, vulnerable.... Whether you can follow the Texas Hold 'Em poker game, it matters not.
Cinefantastique
... a tense, gripping thriller mercifully free of the baggage of the previous Bond flicks, Casino Royale takes the essentials of Ian Fleming's novel and updates them for the 21st century, seamlessly adding the requisite big screen action ...
Top Critic
Sacramento News & Review
Craig does OK in the role; no one has ever matched Sean Connery's steely insouciance, but he comes closer than most.
Full Review
| Original Score: 3/5
Beyond Hollywood
The last words onscreen read: "James Bond Will Return!" Of course he will. The difference is that for the first time in years, we actually want him back.
San Francisco Examiner
Gone are the clichés of recent Bond adventures - the too-clever quips, the loveless conquests, the gaudy gadgetry and the BMW-sponsored sports cars. 'Casino Royale' ambitiously explores the origins of the character's pathos, stripping him of all the
Full Review
| Original Score: 3/4
BrandonFibbs.com
Casino Royale isn't simply the best Bond film in years. It is one of the best Bond films ever.
Full Review
| Original Score: 9/10
sbs.is
A great restart for the series
| Original Score: 4/4
Casino Royale has the answers to all my complaints about the 45-year-old James Bond series, and some I hadn't even thought of.
Full Review
| Original Score: 4/4
eFilmCritic.com
When you strip the 007 films down for action and "realism," you lose the soul of those old beloved Bond movies.
Full Review
| Original Score: 3/5
Movie Metropolis
Takes us closer to the Bond that Fleming created. We see more vulnerable moments in him, more man than superman. And surprisingly, that makes the legend even stronger.
Full Review
| Original Score: 8/10
Stranger Song
This is James Bond before sassy self-awareness set in, and it rattles the cages more than any number of explosions could in letting us know why he's still relevant today.
