Daniel Craig steps into the legendary role with all the swagger and charisma required to make the legion of demanding Bond fans entirely satisfied.  He is a chiseled and grizzled version, more reminiscent of Sean Connery than either Moore, Dalton or Brosnan.  It will take three or four more films before we can accurately compare and contrast... but he knocks this first effort right out of the park.  He is brilliant.  But more on him later.

The story begins, quite literally, with Bond, having just been promoted to double-0 status, "executing" his first mission.  His first kills as a servant to MI6 are the intro before the much anticipated musical opening.  It is strange how renowned and beloved these Bond openings have become over the years.  "Casino Royale" delivers one of the best Bond tracks ever recorded (You'll Know My Name - Chris Cornell) overlaying a very retro-style graphics sequence that plays with the theme of playing card suits.  Look for a gorgeously subtle touch hidden in the Queen of Hearts!!!  The only thing missing from the sequence was the silhouette of a naked woman -- I thought that was part of the deal with these sequences?

This time around, Bond is on the hunt for Le Chiffre, a man who weeps blood and is fiercely determined to get his hands on over $100,000,000.00 -- whether it is via stock market fraud or an insanely high-stakes game of poker.  When the first option is thwarted by our secret agent, the cards begin shuffling and the large-denomination chips begin rattling.

James' financial contact, who fronts him the $10 million buy-in to the expensive game, is the elegant and classy Vesper Lynd -- a mental equal to Bond and the woman who holds the key to dismantling his armor.  She is played by Eva Green, one of the most naturally beautiful and sexy women I have ever seen on the big screen.  She first came to my attention in Bertolucci's recent masterpiece, "The Dreamers". Green is an actress so quintessentially French that she makes her other countrywomen seem merely French-Canadian.  Not that there's anything wrong with French-Canadians!

Needless to say, there are twists and turns, explosions and stunts, Martinis and cars -- this Bond film doesn't fail to deliver any of the expected goods.  Although one of the famous verbal landmarks we have come to expect doesn't appear until the final moments.

What this movie does so supremely well is to humanize our previously impervious hero.  He is in the early stages of his double-0 life and this is the story of HOW he becomes Bond.  It is a brilliant touch that adds a layer of pain and depth to a character generally considered shallow.

There is an emotional weight to this story.  There is a physical weight to the action sequences.  Nothing feels fluffy and insignificant in this film.  It is, without question, the most impactful movie in the entire series.

I cannot say enough about Daniel Craig.  If this weren't a Bond film, I would have the balls to suggest that he should be considered for an Oscar.  After all, it ain't easy to step into this role and add something that no other actor has managed to even try.  For the first time, I actually thought of 007 as three-dimensional... as vulnerable... as a man capable of true love.  Which leads me to Eva Green...

Eva Green makes all other Bond girls look exactly that... girls.  She embodies Vesper Lynd with intelligence and power and conflict and an uncontrollable sexiness, all of which serves as Kryptonite to James.  Again, she is not content with providing a night of passion and few double-entendres... Vesper is a real character, and she needs to be, in order for us to accept James Bond's transformation.

Even the bad guy in "Casino Royale", in spite of the clichéd facial scar, is less cartoonish than found in previous installments.  Mads Mikkelsen plays Le Chiffre with a calm understatement that shuns the over-the-top antics of other Bond villains.  The high stakes poker game, and all that surrounds it, is perfectly composed by director, Martin Campbell.  None of it ever crosses the line into cheese or camp.

Everything about this movie smacks of authenticity.  It really feels like something massive is at stake... And no, I am not talking about the fate of the world... I am talking about the fate of a human being.  "Casino Royale" is a bitter-sweet Bond film, delivering all the typical treats, but offsetting it with a meaningful love story and vulnerable characters who are affected by the loyalties and betrayals of others.  This is my favorite Bond film.  It is one of the best movies of 2006.  I cannot wait for the next chapter -- After all... 

...James Bond will return.