Reviews

If you are watching this movie expecting anything more then action then you're a bit touched in the head. Action indeed, but a special form of action! IT'S 80'S ACTION! All that's missing from this show is "I love it when a plan comes together", as offered by the immortal Hannibal Smith from "The A-Team" as played by the venerable George Peppard.

Make no mistakes. This movie is le grande fromage, but it is fun. Even the super evil ninja with the cute little star tattooed below his right eye is downright adorable. Who doesn't like cute ninja's? Even those with lasers? Highly recommended (if you have enough booze and detach yourself from any form of realism). Fun.

Wow! Simply put... Wow! Just got back from the show and I thought it is the best Bond in many many years.

Remember the great ballyhoo when Daniel Craig was announced as 007? Critics decried the casting of the blonde hair and blue eyed Craig as Bond. It was the end of the franchise! A betrayal of the legacy of Fleming, Broccoli, and Saltzman! And so on... What fools the critics must feel like now.

Seeing this is a movie that strongly features a casino and poker, I think it's fair to say that Craig delivers "in spades". His Bond is a revelation to the series. He brings a brutal and grim menace to the role unlike anything we have seen from his predecessors. This is the toughest, meanest, most ruthless Bond ever to take to the screen. And not only can he dish out the rough stuff, but he can certainly take it. Craig carries off the most violent scenes in the history of the series with utter conviction and believability.

Despite all the rough stuff, what is quite interesting about Craig's Bond is the surprising charm and wit he brings to the role. There are moments of humour sprinkled throughout the film, but not in the slapstick buffoonery of many of the previous installments. It's the wit of Craig's Bond that is funny, not the set up, pratfall, or whatever gag, but the wit. Even the most brutal scene in the film (and the of history of the series) features a funny element, and similar to Much at the gate, the humour very much helps to soften the most difficult part of the movie.

My greatest fear for this particular incarnation of Bond? Remember Timothy Dalton's 007? He had grit, determination, and menace as well, and while the gates weren't bad for his pair of movies, Dalton's Bond is largely dismissed and mostly forgotten. (And for anyone that likes "Casino Royale" I suggest a revisiting of "The Living Daylights" and "Licence To Kill".) I hope Barbra Broccoli and Michael Wilson have the courage to stay on this character. It's a breath of fresh air and puts the series on level footing with the superb "Bourne" movies. The Bond character and the world in which he takes part is believable and has credibility.

Full marks to the supporting cast. Judy Dench returns as the tough-as-nails M, Mads Mikkelsen is menacing and threatening as Le Chiffre, but my top marks go to Eva Green as Vesper Lynd. Continuing the tradition of the strong female lead established in the Brosnan movies, Vesper Green is great match for Bond. She is highly intelligent, strong willed, and cunning. The cast is great but this is absolutely Craig's movie. He outshines them all and I guess that's entirely appropriate as he is the top of the play bill.

Other elements that make a Bond film a Bond film? Why action, gadgets, and girls of course! The action is on par with any if the other films. except the brutality of the fight scenes. Get ready for these as they are bloody intense and the series hasn't seen anything like this since the legendary Bond and Red Grange tussle on the Orient Express in "From Russia With Love".

Gadgets? Thanks the heavens above someone finally had the wits about them to discontinue the series's obsession with gadgets. I love the Bond movies one and all, but having our hero always relying on Q Branch instead of his wits and abilities is silly. Remember back in "From Russia With Love" when all he ad was the briefcase with the gold sovereigns, sniper rifle, throwing knife and trick tumbles on the lock? This movie returns to that discipline and it is well appreciated by this author.

And girls? Even though there's only two to mention, they are hot and skimpy. That should be enough on that topic.

If you have made it this far, your probably wondering when I'm going to stop gushing over this movie. Well here's why the show got an 8 instead of something higher. Two words for you... "the" and "ending". This movie includes a rather unique denouement, at least in big budget Hollywood terms. Just when you think you can finish off that last bit of popcorn and that last swallow of pop, you find out there's a bit more to go... and then a bit more after that. Nuff said before I stray into "Spoiler land".

This is the Bond movie that was desperately needed. The production team have made a deliberate decision to reinvent the series and I strongly believe it works. Try this one out. Hollywood's greatest secret agent is back.

I think we would all likely agree the "rags to riches" story has been done to death by Hollywood. But, when someone comes along and gets it right the results can be truly excellent. Perhaps the best know of this genre is original "Rocky" movie. "Goal - the dream begins" gets it right, even though it is loaded with all the clichés that generally accustom this kind of movie. "Goal" has the whole recipe here - the unknown with the heart of gold, a unique and virtuosic talent, from a downtrodden and hopeless setting, the brooding and unsupportive parent who refuses to accept his child's potential, the doting grandparent who can see the potential that lies within our hero, the outsider who promises a way to fame and fortune and so on... But, like the first few "Rocky" movies, this one delivers without falling into the usual schmaltzy pitfalls.

Kuno Becker is very well cast as promising young player Santiago Munez. He is earnest, honest, and gives off that glow of burning desire to be the best. My only knock is that he doesn't quite physically look the part at times. When they line him up with real professionals he looks a touch slight and skinny, not quite boasting the musleclature of a professional athlete. The supporting cast works out well, too. No real complaints to offer as everyone seems to be a very good fit. Alessandro Nivola's dialect could use a spot of work, but no one outside of the UK will really pick up on this. I very much liked Marcel Irues as Newcastle United's Manager. He seemed to be a totally natural fit for the role and is a shoe in for the lead if someone ever decides to make the "Aime Jacquet story".

Where this movie really takes off is on the pitch, whether its a park in LA, the training ground in Newcastle, or St. James Park, the home of Newcastle United. The soccer scenes are exceptionally well done and look realistic. Real players feature prominently all over film, both on and off the pitch, and not just in walk on cameos, ie "Bend it like Beckham". The action is convincing, the tackles are crunching, and the goals are authentic and not the usual over the top spectacle (anyone remember Pele's winner from "Victory"?) Becker fits in well with the action scenes, though it's odd how you never really see all of Becker on the ball and usually just the waist up, kind of like they found some else to do all the little flicks and stepovers...

And for all those who say "it can't happen", I beg to differ. This movie is not fantasy. In fact, they could have made a biopic about a young Calgarian from Western Canada who somehow manages to make Bayern Munich, works his way up through the reserves, and in his premier season with the senior side wins the league and European Cup, makes the England side for World Cup 2002, and returns again to be the best England player in World Cup 2006! Maybe someday someone out there will make the "Owen Hargreaves story".

All in all, great stuff and I'm already looking forward to Goal 2 & 3.

I must admit that I was very surprised with this one. This movie was very unlike the usual Hollywood fare. I can't really explain how it was as it just is. Very very good.

The basics? Great cast but I'm still unsure of Sarah Polley. From the perspective of a Canadian (of which she is one), she stood out. All of the other players in the cast had an accent with the exception of her. Doesn't mean she didn't do the job, she just didn't quite fit.

Other basics? Remarkable cinematography (thought I am not sure Denmark, the place of the story, is quite as littered with volcanic rock). Costuming is brilliant. The looks of the warriors is excellent - everything from the helmets to arms. If only Sarah Polley's hair would have been authentically conditioned as Gerard Butler's! My complaints are done. The rest is impeccable in a very unique way.

My most damning criticism? The swearing. Don't get me wrong - I can light it up with profanity when needed (and for the most part when not needed). The swearing in this movie just didn't seem to fit. It seemed an unnecessarily modern add-on to this very good film. Then again, kudos for dropping the "C" bomb out of nowhere. Not sure it did much other then catch he interest of the theater, but it's fun to hear a film that goes to the extra profane mile to the one word that still separates the men from the boys.