by The Duke

Created on: January 30, 2007   Last Updated: May 09, 2007

There's always a great deal of interest in the media and from fans and probably a little bit of apprehension as well, when Eon Productions is choosing a new actor to play Bond. After all, when a new actor dons the tuxedo and Walther PPK, it's not only an unfamiliar face we have to get accustomed to, but usually a change in tone and direction of the films.

Connery's Bond was rough around the edges, more likely to use his fists than his wits. Moore's Bond was more reliant on his very English charm and Q's gadgets, plus his adversaries were on a larger scale. Dalton's Bond was more of a cross between Connery and Moore with plenty of English charm in there, though a little rough around the edges and never pulled out of a fight. Brosnan's Bond tended towards more wit, with a slight cold edge and definitely more intelligence, though still reliant on Q's gadgets.

How Daniel Craig would adapt the role (and the role to him) and if Bond could still offer anything on his 21st outing were the main questions that Casino Royale would have to answer. Daniel Craig was always on a hiding to nothing with his casting, as following a popular Bond such as Pierce Brosnan was always going to mean that he was not really given a fair chance from the fans, if not the media.

Right from the start, in the black and white pre-credits sequence where we learn how Bond attained his Double-O licence, the pace is fast and unrelenting. Both the 'traditional' Bond-down-the-barrel-of-a-gun pose and credits sequence are present as you might expect, but also, with Bond 21 taking a different approach with its back to basics and inexperienced agent storyline, these are slightly different to what Bond fans might expect.

Alongside the fact that we're with Bond on his very first proper case as a Double-O agent, the film has a more realistic aspect to it. Don't expect any of the completely over-the-top antics from Moore-era Bond with trips to space stations or huge underwater lairs but equally, don't expect Bond to simply shrug off a slug to the jaw. This is typified later in the film when, after a particularly harrowing few hours for Bond, he does require extensive recuperation. It doesn't mean that the action is anything less than you would expect from a Bond flick. For instance, the first set piece of the film is a chase between Bond and bomber-terrorist Mollaka which is an amazing, high-tempo free running chase through a building site and into a foreign embassy complete with trail of destruction commonplace

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