The news that the new Bond would be blond placed me firmly in the skeptical camp about the future of the franchise. So it was with low expectations that Keith and I went out and saw Casino Royale. On opening day, even!

I’ll keep the spoilers below, with warning, but I can safely say that overall, I really enjoyed it. Daniel Craig makes quite a good Bond, much to my surprise. The story is good, the action scenes are totally satisfying and there was just the right amount and kind of humor. I give it a thumbs up!

On the downside, there were some production and technical problems with it. The dialog is so ponderous at points that it’s like a bad porn movie - way too much boring talking, not enough action. At one point, I was thinking to myself “enough with all the gushiness - back to the shooting, already.” And I’m a girl! I can only imagine what teenage boys will think of the prolonged, boring dialog.

The cinematography is outright awful. Locked off shots and simple back & forth during conversations with no reaction shots. No interesting framing, no thought to composition beyond the standard. Dreadful - it’s at the level of competent student work, but not what I’d expect from a highly paid pro crew. Bleah.

THE PARAGRAPHS BELOW CONTAIN COMMENTS THAT MAY BE MILD SPOILERS. I don’t give away any plot points, but PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK.

On the positive side, the music was really well done, reinforcing the plot points effectively. This is the story of how Bond became Bond, and the composer has done a terrific job of giving brief flashes of the famous Bond theme to highlight key moments in the plot, without ever revealing the whole melody. Gorgeously done.

The first major action sequence is good enough to forgive at least some of the technical failures. Wow. I mean, like, wow. When we were watching the opening credits, I noticed there was a credit for stunts and thought it was odd that a stuntman would get a front-end, high-profile credit like that. But that opening scene explains everything. Wow.

One last nitpick: Bond does not drive a Ford. Ever. Even as a rental. Even before he’s Bond. That was just so wrong. The whole theater groaned.

Many other good action sequences, and an appropriate amount of suspense and tension. Too much gushiness. I can’t believe I’m having to say that about a Bond movie, but there you have it. Worth the price of the ticket, though, and I must admit that I breathed a sigh of relief that Craig’s Bond wasn’t a wuss or horrible or anything. He’ll do just fine.