The international cast
who are mostly unknown to UK and US audiences bring a freshness and
believability to the whole affair. Eva Green shines as Vesper Lynd, and it
is her undeniable dark French beauty that gives rise to the thought that
there is far more going on behind her piercing blue eyes than her sensuous
mouth would ever betray. Le Chiffre is beautifully underplayed by Danish
actor Mads Mikkelsen, whose blood weeping tear duct is as bizarre as
anything Fleming could have dreamed up. Mikkelsen has one of the great
faces of modern cinema (reminiscent of Fifties’ screen villain Jack
Palance), which is used to maximum effect by director Campbell at every
opportunity. Le Chiffre’s card duel with Bond at Casino Royale is cleverly
broken up in a way that reduces the boredom factor setting into the
audience during what could have been a very static drawn out sequence.
When Craig delivers the line to Mikkelsen: “That last hand nearly killed
me!” Connery couldn’t have been any cooler!Unfortunately just as Le Chiffre takes centre stage
in the superbly realised torture scene (I had to cross my legs at this
point), he’s whacked by Mr. White in the identical manner SMERSH removed
him in Fleming’s original 1953 novel. With the death of who we believe to
be the main villain the story takes a surprising (if you haven’t read the
book) and fatal turn with another wonderfully executed set piece in
Venice where Bond is outnumbered and outgunned by a group of mysterious
assassins, but uses his ingenuity, sheer bloody mindedness and
determination to rub out the opposition in an attempt to rescue Vesper.
The end of this sequence is disturbingly real, and is reminiscent of a
scene in Ridley Scott’s White Squall, and packs as much an
emotional punch that will most likely bring a tear to the eye of many an
audience member.
You Know My Name written by Chris Cornell and David Arnold
If you take a life do you know what you'll give?
Odds are, you won't like what it is
When the storm arrives, would you be seen with me?
By the merciless eyes of deceit?
I've seen angels fall from blinding heights
But you yourself are nothing so divine
Just next in line
Arm yourself because no-one else here will save you
The odds will betray you
And I will replace you
You can't deny the prize it may never fulfil you
It longs to kill you
Are you willing to die?
The coldest blood runs through my veins
You know my name
If you come inside things will not be the same
When you return to the night
And if you think you've won
You never saw me change
The game that we all been playing
I've seen diamonds cut through harder men
Than you yourself
But if you must pretend
You may meet your end
Arm yourself because no-one else here will save you
The odds will betray you
And I will replace you
You can't deny the prize it may never fulfil you
It longs to kill you
Are you willing to die?
The coldest blood runs through my veins
Try to hide your hand
Forget how to feel
Forget how to feel
Life is gone with just a spin of the wheel
Spin of the wheel
Arm yourself because no-one else here will save you
The odds will betray you
And I will replace you
You can't deny the prize it may never fulfil you
It longs to kill you
Are you willing to die?
The coldest blood runs through my veins
You know my name
You know my name
You know my name
You know my name
You know my name
You know my name
You know my name
Chris Cornell and David Arnold's title song "You Know My Name" does
not appear on the soundtrack album for Casino Royale but is
available as a CD single.
By the time it became
obvious to me the film was near its conclusion I felt a wave of
disappointment invade me - I could have easily sat through another two
hours of this, then perhaps I’d have discovered who the mysterious Mr.
White, that Bond had just kneecapped, was working for.
2008 can’t come quickly enough for me!
