Rating: 
Summary: Non-Stop Excitement, Thrills, and Comedy!
Review: Casino Royale is one of the oddest choices in the 007 movie bag. It is unofficial and a spoof of the James Bond series. Quite a complicated film to make with 5 directors, endless producers and screenwriters, and an endless cast in the movie with dozens of cameos. Lee Pfeiffer once commented on the film that "If you were in London at the time of the movie production, you had a part in the movie." Indeed Casino Royale is an over-budget big flop of the James Bond series, it stands up very well for itself. David Niven, Ursula Andress, Orson Wells and Woody Allen bring undeniable charm, class and comedy to the film. There is basically no plot for the film, but the comedy and spoofs make up for it. The gambling scenes and over the top finale are some of the highlights of the film. The true winner is the powerful score by Burt Bacharach. A real winner with Dusty Springfield and Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass. A crazy film with nonstop thrills, comedy and excitement! A real winner.
Rating: 
Summary: So THAT'S where Mike Myers got the idea for "Austin Powers"
Review: The opening sequence is a classic; the leaders of the British-US-French-Soviet spy rings come together to persuade James Bond (a well-cast Niven) to come out of retirement. What a cast of actors in this scene alone: John Huston, Bill Holden, Charles Boyer and Kurt Kazner! Later sequences are hit-or-miss: some side-splittingly funny, others limp. The best sequence involves a dapper Peter Sellers and the incredibly beautiful Ursula Andress romancing to the tune of Bacharach's "The Look of Love." A sequence with Joanna Pettit as Bond's daughter is amusing, as well. The Woody Allen moments are strictly for nebbish afficianados. The movie ends on a flat note, as Sellers walked off the film before his storyline could be resolved! Still, its a great way to spend a rainy afternoon -- reliving the swinging sixties, back when Bond meant something!
Rating: 
Summary: Somewhat entertaining, mostly dull
Review: Casino Royale isn't a terrible movie; it has its moments, and, truly, has a superb cast. That much can be said for it. There are some scenes with Ursula Andress, especially, that are very funny, and the beginning isn't without its humor. However, in general it is a mess of movie; loosely constructed, making little to no sense, and, what is worst of all, not even all that funny. I had to fight off sleep to keep consciousness during the movie, something I almost never have to do. I actually got to the point where I couldn't wait for it to end. Not the worst film ever made, but save your money. Rent it if you must.
Rating:
Summary: The funniest James Bond spoof ever
Review: The "Austin Powers" series sure could take a few hints from "Casino Royale". Whereas the former is predictable and obvious, "Casino Royale" is a good example of that famous dry British wit.What else could you call it when wealthy Ursula Andress tells Peter Sellers that she gets her newspapers BEFORE they're printed, and he replies, "Well, I suppose you can do anything if you've got money..." Or when Joanna Pettet comments on her estranged mother's oversized bed and is told, "The German army was very large in those days." I've withheld one star because the movie does tend to have an episodic feel, due to the five different directors who worked on it, and because it drags a bit in places. Still, the witty jokes more than make up for those small flaws. Considering how many hands this movie was in, it's amazing that it works so well. Woody Allen gives his funniest performance as neurotic Jimmy Bond. Peter Sellers is terrific, as usual. And watch out for an appearance by a young Jacqueline Bisset as Miss Goodthighs. The movie's crowning touch is the music by Burt Bacharach, which manages to be catchy and loopy at the same time. Finally, one of the best reasons for owning rather than renting this movie is that some of the gags go by so fast (Q's laboratory, the art auction), that you might not catch them all until your second or third viewing. And, like a lot of good humor, some of the jokes just get funnier with repeat viewings.
Rating:
Summary: Classic Bacharach/Dusty Springfield music, so-so film
Review: Burt Bacharach's score for Casino Royale and Dusty Springfield's classic breathy version of the Look of Love, came to define something about the late 60s. In fact, the LP of this movie is considered one of the standard audiophile discs used to test high-end audio systems. It has something to do with the quality of the recording equipment used at the time. BUT.... If you are renting/buying this disc in hopes of a James Bond film, you will be disappointed. More a spoof than anything else, the movie doesn't really work on that level. David Niven, Woody Allen and the rest of the cast are fun to watch in some spots. But overall, it's a barely passable film. But that score! Even the opening number by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass will jolt you out of your chair. Classic Records released a DVD audio version of the soundtrack. It's also available on regular CD.
Rating:
Summary: The Original Austin Powers Movie
Review: This was made in the mid 1960's, at the hight of the Bond Boom and popular legend has it that it was an artistic and comercial disaster. Althogh it did better at the box office than it is often given credit it had massive production costs and it certanly isn't as well made as the official Bond films but it is also not without merit. It has a wonderful cast headed by David Niven and Peter Sellers along with the good and the great of British comedy from the period. Ursula Andress is the female lead and unlike her apearance in "Dr. No", we at least get to hear her real voice; her exotic cosumes were designed by Julie Harris who went on to perform a similar service in "Live and Let Die". The photography is surperb and the digital remastering makes it truly a feast for the eyes. The production design is at least comparable with the EON series. My favorite aspect of the film is Bert Bacharach's score; almost every scene has its own tune and each one is a delight. "The Look Of Love" has to be one of the most sensual songs ever writen for a film and it has the images to match! Bacharach and David worked hard to capture the movement of Ursula Andress and they more than succeded. The only thing that lets the movie down is that it is episodic feel to the whole film (probably because of the numerous directors) and the fact that it is about twenty minutes too long. It is hard to sustain tounge in cheek humour for over two and a half houres. The Austin Powers films owe a lot to this and several other movies of the period ("Our Man Flint" the Matt Helm Movies etc.) and its fun to see where he got his insperation.
Rating:
Summary: When your castle is blown up, it's back to the spy game....
Review: Great movie! Sir James Bond played by David Niven is forced back into espionage after his hedonistic lifestyle is so rudely interrupted by a British army 81mm mortar team who proceeds to blow up his perfectly splendid castle. Bond prefers a life of luxury to the dangers of espionage but alas, it's back to the good old Walther PPK 7.65mm and the cloak and dagger for 007. As Dr. Michael Lim the Travelling Gourmet, I too appreciate the finer things in life. I think all fans of Bond do too. The music is remarkable. This is THE movie where that immortal and hauntingly seductive song, by Burt Bacharach, "The Look of Love" reaches deep into your libido and psyche, especially when you hear it for the very first time. My old friend, the late Derek Nimmo (of BBC's Just a Minute) fame is in this movie too as a would be Bond under the tutelage of Sir James himself. If you see the current Austin Powers movies you'll see where the scipt writers got many of their ideas from. Beautiful and seductively voluptuous women abound as in all 007 movies. In those days, men were men and women were not pale, anaemic anorexic skin and bone creatures but lovely, curvaceous and meaty damsels. Bring back the real women I say to Hollywood film makers! This spook spoof will put a smile on your lips and cheer you up no end. Certain scenes like when Sir James demonstrates how things should be done are really hilarious. Above all, the classic British ideal of stiff upper lip, always remain calm and unruffled no matter what, and carry on regardless...comes through all the antics, bombs, blondes and bullets. David Niven comes a very close second to Patrick Macnee (The Avengers) when it comes to playing cool, calm and collected English gentlemen. And so, what's next? As Austin Powers would say, "Yeah, Baby, Yeah!!!" By Dr. Michael Lim The Travelling Gourmet ENJOY!
Rating:
Summary: Bond Spoof and Origins
Review: Charles Feldman's Casino Royale is a colorful psychedelic mess 36 years after its creation. This film was the first James Bond spoof and a precurser of the Austin Powers movies. Unfortunately the film has not aged well. The jokes seem as dated as the costumes. There is virtually no plot to speak of and the sequences by four directors seem cobbled together by fifth director Val Guest. The film is fun to watch with its great musical score and vibrant colors but there isn't a lot holding this thing together. Perhaps the most interesting feature of the disc is the 1954 TV movie from Climax Mystery Theatre which featured Barry Nelson as the American spy Jimmy Bond. It was fun to see the true origin of the Bond franchise. Bottom line rent it for its place in history but don't go in expecting greatness.
Rating:
Summary: Haiku Review
Review: Sellers, Niven and
Allen romp through Bond cliches.
It's funny, but long.
Rating: 
Summary: Swingin' 60s on Film!
Review: Funny! Despite it's bad reputation, if you are a NON-square, ya gotta check this out. Lots of in-jokes, droll humor and laugh-out-loud stuff. Sure, it's a bit "all-over-the-place" but that's half the fun. The go-go dancing Indians, the cavalry charge into the casino, the Dr. Caligari sets, the pop-art sets and psychedelic FX, the Frankenstein monster... it's all like a mix of The Magic Christian, Monty Python, Blazing Saddles, Austin Powers, The Monkees "Head" and James Bond thrown into a Swingin' Sixties blender. And all those great stars strutting their stuff!! Don't worry about the plot... this is eye candy. If you want a generous 60s fix, just sit back and let this flow over you. All that and the Burt Bacharach score. I'm glad I bought this.
|
