Casino Royale [Blu-ray] [2006]
£9.97
Look to your laurels, Sir Sean! - As other reviewers have noted, there was a general feeling of unease when a small, relatively unknown actor was slated to be the next James Bond. We needn t have worried, however, since all such concerns are dissipated in the first few moments of this latest addition to the Bond stable.The opening sequence in grainy black-and-white is completely unexpected, beautifully handled and surprisingly gritty, setting the tone for the rest of the film. Within the first quarter of an hour or so we have had one of the most imaginative openings to a Bond, followed by one of the finer title sequences, topped off by a vertiginous (especially in Blu Ray!) chase sequence which may have you gasping.Excellent stuff from director, cast and crew. I had hoped that this would be the beginning of a more faithful treatment of each of the original novels in the correct order, but his seems to have been stymied by Quantum of Solace. We can only hope that the next book, Live and Let Die - a fantastic novel in its own right - is next.The best Bond since Connery hung up his wig (first time around)...
Bond Begins - Well its a good movie, but its certainly not Batman Begins. What ever happened to the idea of a total re-boot, showing the origins of Bond.They had the chance to show Bond before and at the start of his service with M16. We all know he s a Commander in the Royal Navy, but where does this title come from and why would he join M16?Bond should have been shown as a Commander in the SBS (the Navy s version of the SAS), these guys are often attached to other units such as 14 Int Unit, the forces own Intel gathering unit. Bond could well of been shown operating in Afganistan with the SBS at the start of the movie, and have the original mission tied with the overall story arc of a movie. Showing his work on attachment with 14 Int and his eventual recruitment into M16 as Spy and Assassin.A good film, but no major re-boot as promised :(
A good balance - Considered a good demo film for blu-ray but not as startlingly good as for example Planet Earth. The film is quite different to most Bond films and lacks the futuristic gadgets of the others. It has a lot of violence for a 12 rated film but fortunately none is too explicit - and the absence of unnecessary swearing is a welcome relief. Might take you some time to understand what the film is all about, but you do have nearly two and a half hours to catch up!
Best Blu Ray Title so far.... - Movie: 5 Stars Picture: 5 Stars Audio: 5 StarsThis has been my reference Blu ray disc so far.This is what I use to show of my system to my friends.The pictue and the PCM 5.1 Audio is absolutly amazing.
This is about to be replaced by a newer version. - Here we go again. It s the whole dvd situation again. You buy a film in good faith, only for them to replace it a few months later. It s pathetic that this film doesn t have either of the high def sound formats DTS MA or DD True HD. It s the reason I tend to rent Blu-Ray discs rather than buy at the moment. Great film though. 4 stars is for the film, 3 stars for the disc itself.