Daniel Craig Bond Retrospective: "Casino Royale" and "Quantum of Solace"

Spoilers for the films below

With the Daniel Craig era of the James Bond franchise coming to a close with No Time to Die I wanted to look back his at tenure, starting with my favourite, Casino Royale. This movie was a big deal for 17 year old Andrew. And it's incredible to think Craig has been playing Bond since I was still in high school. It was 2005 when he was first announced to be playing Bond and now it's 2021. Crazy. I fell in love with the tragic love story between Bond and Vesper Lynd (Eva Green), the reinvention of the gun barrel, set at the end of the series' first black and white sequence, was so cool. And Craig's performance made him my favourite Bond. While I often say Timothy Dalton is my favourite Bond, re-watching Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace back-to-back I think Craig may be my favourite, though it's always hard to choose. And while I can't say I love this film in exactly the same way I used to, I still feel some of that old love. It's a very nostalgic movie for me.

While Pierce Brosnan's final Bond film Die Another Day was a box office hit it was seen as too fantastical with its invisible car, ice palace and other such things. The decision was made to not only recast but to completely reboot the franchise, taking this opportunity to film Bond creator's Ian Fleming first Bond novel, Casino Royale. When Albert R. Broccoli was first making the Bond films, producer Charles K. Feldman had the film rights to the book which he made in to the 1967 spoof version. Broccoli tried to buy the rights from Feldman but to no avail. When Sony bought Columbia 1999 they got the rights and when they able to distribute the Bond movies, Broccoli's EON Productions was finally able to do the story proper. And the film is actually one of the most faithful Bond adaptations, retaining the basic plot of Fleming's novel though adding a lot more action. 

When Craig was chosen there was plenty of controversy but  the reviews for the film and Craig were maybe the best the franchise ever received until Skyfall. And director Martin Campbell, who introduced Pierce Brosnan in Goldeneye, had for the second time rejuvenated the franchise. Casino Royale was coming at a time where I believe audiences were open to more serious takes on characters like Batman and Bond. I feel people now want something a little lighter, that they're tired of the darker tome. But the film, I'd argue, has the right balance between seriousness and humor. There's a real sense of fun in the reinvention of this icon.

Casino Royale is very much a character study of Bond. It's also an origin story that's not an origin at the same time. Instead of starting with Bond getting recruited by MI6 from the navy or showing his schoolboy days the pre-title sequences jumps right in to Bond carrying out the two kills which will earn him his "00" status. Another film would've taken more time getting to Bond's first two kills but Casino Royale retains an element of mystery regarding Bond's past. The next time we see him he's chasing down a bombmaker in the film's first and stand-out set-piece. While he's a more rough-around-the-edges character, a "blunt instrument" as Judi Dench's M calls him, he's pretty much Bond right from the start- quipping, womanizing, gambling. The only  exception is him not giving a damn whether his martini is shaken or stirred. 

Coming back to the pre-title sequence, it efficiently sets up this version of  Bond as we see him talking calmly to MI6 Section Chief (and traitor) Dryden while cutting to Bond earlier brutally killing Dryden's contact, Fisher, in a bathroom. The black and white cinematography switches between a stark and gritty look in the bathroom to a smoother one in the present. This contrasts the hands on killing of Fisher with one silent bullet assassination of Dryden. Though to be fair, Fisher does come back to life and Bond shoots him as well. 

It takes almost an hour for Vesper to shows up, which makes her introduction more impactful. We've spent nearly an hour with Bond, seeing how he operates, free of emotional attachment. And then he meets the woman he doesn't know is going to change his life. He's never met a woman like Vesper and it changes the dynamic of what the film has been so far. Bond has been a loner, now he's working with someone who's going to challenge him and his ego. The dialogue between Bond and Vesper is the best we've ever had between Bond and his leading lady. It's snappy but also shows them probing each other, challenging each other's beliefs 

Their mission involves making sure terrorist financier Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen) doesn't win the high stakes poker game at Casino Royale. Bond foiled Le Chiffre's plan to bankrupt the airline industry, which lost Le Chiffre the money of his clients. If Le Chiffre loses MI6 can offer him protection in return for information. The gambling isn't the most exciting part of this movie but the script by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and Paul Haggis adds enough business around the game to up the tension and give us some nice character moments, including Bond being poisoned and Vesper having to re-start his heart. The scene where Vesper is sitting in the shower after Bond has killed several of Le Chiffre's who has come looking for their money. is one the franchise's most genuinely tender scenes as well. 

Just as how the film is simultaneously an origin story and not, Le Chiffre is a traditional Bond villain but also not. He has the physical disfigurement that's a trademark of several Bond villains, the sinister presence, and for the first hour Bond is a trail which leads to him. But Bond stops Le Chiffre's plan before the film has hit the hour mark. Le Chiffre becomes desperate man attempting to pay back his clients, rather than the villain with a world domination plot. The film's true villains are in the shadows, who we'll learn in the next film are the terrorist organization Quantum, who have kidnapped Vesper's boyfriend to get her to help them. And this makes Bond part of their plot as well, since it's him winning the game which gets them their money.  

Bond and Le Chiffre and just both expendable pawns. When Le Chiffre is torturing Bond, he tells him that even if he kills Bond MI6 will still help him. And Le Chiffre is killed because Quantum can't trust him. And this is before the final act. This further exemplifies how Le Chiffre is not the big bad of the film. And the larger threat looms over the happiness Bond and Vesper find with each other. Like On Her Majesty's Secret Service we see Bond given an opportunity for a different kind of life before it's tragically snatched away. But it's inevitable, if not for Bond than for the audience, who know Bond can't quit. There wouldn't be a franchise if he did. But there is odd sense of triumph to the film's final scene, with Bond standing over Quantum member Mr. White (Jesper Christensen), saying the iconic "Bond. James Bond" It's letting us know Bond's not going to be brought down by tragedy.

 

But Bond still has to deal with Vesper's betrayal and his need for vengeance in the next film, Quantum of Solace, a film that was one of the victims of the 2007-2008 writer's strike and displays it's lack of a polished story pretty clearly. I guess it wasn't originally supposed to be a direct sequel but became that later on. Stylistically the film does feel different from Casino Royale- largely I think because Campbell didn't return and Marc Forster ended up directing-and it's plot involving a coup in Bolivia and control over its water supply feels like it could've been in a standalone movie. 

Quantum is best viewed it back-to-back with its predecessor,  since it takes place right after Casino Royale ends, a first for the franchise.  Watching it for this retrospective, I didn't like it quite as much as I had before. It's a little thin and underdeveloped, and doesn't get to have to a true built from the ground up story. And it feels rushed compared to the more thought out prequel. The film has its moments: I like the bits of humour, stylistic flourishes and Craig's performance but it can't help but feel like a disappointment as a sequel to what was a breath of fresh for the franchise.

It was a bold choice to shove us right back in to the story of Casino Royale but I wonder if the story should've been placed some time after, allowing more space to build up its story rather than forgoing a traditional first act. Casino Royale took  time with its story but Quantum of Solace, at only 106 minutes with credits- including the pre-title sequence- is the shortest Bond film and as I said, it's kind of rushed. Bond usually has a more leisurely quality as we follow Bond from one exotic location to the next. But the shorter running time does befit what's an essentially a revenge story. If Craig is the 21st Century's Timothy Dalton then this is his Licence to Kill, a harder edged Bond film where Bond is caught between his emotions and his duty. 

I said the previous film was an origin story that wasn't and I'd argue Quantum is a revenge story that's not quite a revenge story. The film's main villain Dominic Greene (Mathau Almaric) is never established as having been involved with Vesper's kidnapped boyfriend who was being used to blackmail her. The whole point is Bond doesn't know where to direct his anger. As M tells him, he's so full of "inconsolable rage" he doesn't care who he hurts. It turns out Vesper's boyfriend was himself was a Quantum member and his kidnapping was staged to get her to help them. Bond confronts the boyfriend at the end, deciding to spare him and allow MI6 to arrest him. So, it's kind of an anti-revenge story in a way. And see Bond learn restrain, becoming more like the Bond we know other films. 

The revenge/character stuff is set against the backdrop of geopolitical plot concerning Quantum helping General Medrano's (Joaquin Cosio) coup against the government in exchange for control over Bolivia's water supply, with the C.I.A turning a blind eye. The film is obviously going for a plot reflecting real world geo-politics but there's not enough connective issue between Bond's inner turmoil and the main villain plot. There needed a clear turning point where begins to care about the bigger picture. One thing I do appreciate about the film's plot is how it incorporates Bond's C.I.A ally Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright), giving Felix a little moral dilemma.  Wright as Felix is great casting and wish he was in these films more. 

What's always remarked about the film is its frantic editing. The editing is very messy in this film but I can see how they were maybe going for something impressionistic. The opera shootout id actually quite good, with the editing cutting between the action on stage with the gunfight. It's one of the most "arty" things ever put in a Bond movie. And I admire the build up to the opening car chase. We're shown glimpses Bond's eyes, guns, and the car in shadows. The music builds and then we're suddenly thrust in to the chase Forster is a more "art house" kind of director than journeyman Campbell so it makes sense while we have more of these stylistic displays.

The film is at its best in its quieter character moments than in its action. The scenes between Rene Mathis (Giancarlo Giannini), who Bond thought had betrayed him in the previous film, have a real warmth to them. Mathis' death features both Bond being comforting and cruel in quick succession. He holds Mathis while he's dying but then throws in the garbage. Bond's relationship with Bolivian Secret Service agent Camille Montes (Olga Kurylenko) also has a surprising poignancy to it. Their relationship never becomes sexual. Instead, the film focuses on how they're both broken people looking for closure. Camille wants to kill Medrano for him killing her family. Bond doesn't attempt to lecture her about revenge. He even apologizes for screwing up her shot at Medrano earlier in the film. These are nice character details which make Craig's Bond maybe the most nuanced incarnation of the character. 

Casino Royale began with Bond killing two men and Quantum ends with him sparing one. It's a nice bookend for the duology. M tells Bond she needs him back, to which Bond replies he never left. Bond then drops Vesper's necklace in the snow. This ending actually segues nicely in to Skyfall, where Bond has committed himself to M16 for years, a cog in a machine. And he begins to question his relationship with M and what it means. But that's for next time. See you then.

The Essential Films: "On the Town" (1949)

A Series of Writings on Films that I feel are essential for film lovers, coupled with films that are personal to me. Spoilers for people who haven't seen the film.

On the Town is a lovely and very funny movie musical, a encapsulation of that one day where you meet the guy or girl of our dreams. You don't know when you'll see each other again but at least you were together for a moment. Directed by Stanley Donen and star Gene Kelly, On the Town is a precursor to their ultimate triumph, Singin' in the Rain (1952), but it stands up pretty well aside that film. When people say "They don't make 'em like they used to," this is the kind of film they're talking about, a film filled with joy and is absent of cynicism, as well as a snap-shot of performers like Kelly and Frank Sinatra in their prime, forever young.

On the Town began life as a ballet called Fancy-Free (1944)- choreographed by Jerome Robbins, who also choreographed the original production of West Side Story- with music by Leonard Bernstein .Stage designer Oliver Smith and his business partner Paul Feigay convinced Robbins and Bernstein to turn the ballet in to a musical. Leonard Bernstein wrote the music while Betty Comden and Adolph Green wrote the book and lyrics. Comden and Green's long running partnership would involve writing the screenplays for Singin in the Rain and Vincente Minnelli's The Band Wagon (1953), starring Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse, the latter gaining them an Oscar nomination. They would also write Auntie Mame (1958) starring Rosalind Russell.

On the Town premiered on December 28, 1944, at the Aldephi Theatre, directed by George Abbott, who also directed the original stage productions of Damn Yankees, Pal Joey (starring Kelly) and The Pajama Game (co-directed by Robbins with choreography by Bob Fosse). On the Town ran for 462 performances and is noted for its racially diverse cast, which the film unfortunately does not replicate. 

MGM head Louis B. Mayer didn't like the stage show and producer Arthur Freed had to convince him to buy the film rights. I believe this is why the film version does away with all but four of Bernstein's songs, with new songs by producer Roger Edens, with lyrics by Comden and Green. This led Bernstein to boycott the film. Abbott almost directed the film but Donen and Kelly were eventually assigned directing duties.

On the Town chronicles 24 hours in the life of three sailors, Gabey (Kelly), Chip (Sinatra) and Ozzie (Jules Munshin) get shore leave for a day. While on the subway Gabey sees a picture of "Miss Turnstiles," Ivy Smith (Vera-Ellen). The three fantasize about her in a one of the film's signature set-pieces, which was the sequence which really got be on board with the film- due to its humor and visual storytelling via choreography and cinematography (the film's cinematographer was Harold Rosson, who also did the cinematography for The Wizard of Oz, Singin in the Rain, The Asphalt Jungle and The Bad Seed.). Gabey encounters Ivy when they get off the subway but she leaves before Gabey gets to know her. He gets Chip and Ozzie to go help him search for her. On their quest they meet cab driver Brunhilde "Hildy" Esterhazy (Betty Garrett) and anthropologist Claire Huddesen (Ann Miller), who take a interest in Chip and Ozzie, respectively. To cover more ground Gabey goes off alone while Chip and Ozzie become closer to Hildy and Claire. Gabey eventually finds Ivy but doesn't realize she's not actually that big of a celebrity 

And yeah, that's basically the plot. It's simple but it works perfectly for what this film is, what Quentin Tarantino would maybe call a "hangout movie." Most of the film is spending time with fun characters. There's not even much conflict-  Ivy not being exactly who Gabey thinks she is doesn't really matter all that much Essentially, three guys and three girls fall in love, party a little, then have to say goodbye. But isn't that everything?   

The film is also a great time-capsule of New York in the 1940s. On the Town was the first movie musical to be shot on location. The on-location shooting provides a cinematic quality to the story which is important when jumping from stage to screen. The location shooting also allows the film to be fantastical and realistic simultaneously. The emotions are heightened but being in an actual environment helps keep it grounded. And there's something romantic about New York which makes it the perfect setting for the story. 

Let's talk about the actors. Kelly, as both a actor and dancer, combined masculinity with tenderness and vulnerability. He was graceful but a little bit rugged. Sinatra is boyish but kind of rough-around-the-edges. Munshin is the most comedic of the three, reminding  me a bit of Donald O'Connor in Singin in the Rain. However, I find the women were the most interesting of the six main characters. I particularly loved Hildy, whose "I want to have sex with you" energy towards Chip feels progressive for the time and is just plain funny. And Hildy and Chip's duet, "You're Awful," is maybe my favourite song of the film. It has so much intimacy and wry charm it's hard not to smile.  I also like how Donen and editor Ralph E. Winters (who won Oscars for Ben-Hur and King Solomon's Mines) allow it to play out in only a few shots. For me, seeing actors play out a scene in longer takes it always more pleasurable than constantly cutting.

Ellen has to be both the ideal woman but also down-to-earth which she pulls off very well. Miller is a dynamo in the "Prehistoric Man" number, her tap-dancing forceful but smooth. I also liked Alice Pearce (the only actor from the Broadway production to reprise her role) as Hildy's roommate Lucy Schmeeler, Lucy has a cold the others set her up with Gabey when Ivy has to leave for a burlesque show. The movie is a little mean to Lucy during this part, with Gabey not wanting some other sailors to mistake her for Ellen. However, I think it pays off well when when Gabey takes Lucy home, giving her a kiss on the cheek. He also tells her there is a guy for her. It made me feel better the whole set-up in general and adds to Gabey's likability. Pearce is probably best known for her role on the tv show Bewitched as the nosy neighbor Gladys Kravitz.

The film is book-ended by three new sailors getting shore leave, singing the exact same song- "New York, New York" that Gabey, Chip and Ozzie sang at the film's opening. This is reminding us this isn't the first or last time someone will fall in love in New York or have an adventure. Gabey tells Ivy he believes they'll see each other again. And I hope they do. On the Town has become one of my favourite movie musicals, a film with which I'm very glad I caught up. So, what are your thoughts on On the Town. Where does it rank among your favourite musicals. Comment and let me know.