After today, there are only 100 days left to the year which means I have a 100 movies left to watch (I know the blog is titled 365, but my mistake cause there’s 366). Believe it or not, there are a lot of James Bond films that I still have to see and so for today I chose to watch Casino Royale which is the first Daniel Craig (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo) film in the series. James has just gotten his 00 status and he gets sent into the field for the first time. His immediate result is not a desirable one, but he looks to make it up with a poker game. You see James follows a weapons dealer named La Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen) to a poker game in Luxembourg where James will have to outsmart him to stop him. The film also stars Eva Green (300: Rise Of An Empire) as Vesper Lynd, Judi Dench (Skyfall) as M, Jeffrey Wright (Boardwalk Empire) as Felix Leiter, Giancarlo Giannini (Man On Fire) as Mathis, Caterina Murino (The Story Of My Life) as Solange, Simon Abkarian (Zero Dark Thirty) as Alex Dimitrios, Isaach De Bankolé (The Skeleton Key) as Steven Obanno, Jesper Christensen (Spectre) as Mr. White, Ivana Milicevic (Banshee) as Valenka, and the film was directed by Martin Campbell (Goldeneye).
On the scale of all of the Bond films that I have seen, I actually enjoyed watching this one because it was fun to watch. The series took a dark turn with Skyfall and it continued through Spectre (I still have Quantum Of Solace to watch). This was as fun of a movie to watch as Goldeneye was and it was one heck of an improvement from it’s predecessor Die Another Day. This is definitely a side of James Bond that we had never seen because it was a young version of him who is adjusting to being in the field. We figure out through this film why he has a hard time keeping the ladies (he has no problem getting them). I really liked Mads Mikkelsen as a bond villain, but he’s certainly not my favorite. He’s everything a Bond villain would be and I love his choice of torture (I don’t really love it, it’s just extremely painful to watch). I am in love with Eva Green so I think it’s safe to say that I loved her as a Bond girl. She was the perfect counterpart to James Bond as she matched wits with him on plenty of occasions. The great thing about these films besides the action and special effects is the locations that they travel to. They filmed in the Bahamas, Italy, Czech Republic, and England. Do yourself a favor and give Casino Royale a shot because the film showcases why I love Daniel Craig as James Bond and why I wouldn’t be upset if he returned to the role once again. I am going to give the film an B+ for a final grade only because Skyfall and Goldeneye are better than this one.
For today’s film, I wanted to go international because sometimes foreign films are more gritty and exciting than American films. A friend of mine had told me about the film City Of God and said it was a must see. The film follows two children from the slums of Rio de Janeiro named Rocket and Lil Dice that take two completely different paths in life. For Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues), all he ever wanted to do was to become a photographer as a hope of getting out of the slums known as the City Of God. For Lil Dice (Leandro Firmino) all he ever wanted to do was to become the crime kingpin of the City Of God. The film follows their every move including the triumphs, setbacks, and tragedies associated with their lifestyle choices. The film also stars Phellipe Haagensen (A Thousand Pardons) as Benny, Jonathan Haagensen (City Of Men) as Shaggy, Matheus Nachtergaele (Shades Of Sin) as Carrot, Seu Jorge (The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou) as Knockout Ted, Alice Braga (Elysium) as Angelica, Maurício Marques (Carandiru) as Melonhead, Darlan Cunha (City Of Men) as Steak And Fries, Karina Falcão as Shorty’s Wife, Gero Camilo (Man On Fire) as Shorty, and the film was directed by Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund.
First things first when it comes to talking about this film and that is if you can stand watching a film with subtitles then by all means go for it. If you can’t then turn around because it goes fast. I loved the style of the movie where it starts as a certain point, then it turns back to the beginning, works it’s way back to that point in the beginning of the film. It’s like it gives you a backstory so that you understand how our protagonist got to that point. The film is very gritty and it shows you the desperation that comes from living in the slums and it kind of wakes you up to the madness that happens in other parts of the world. The film goes to show you how appealing power and money are when you come from nothing and are desperate for something like so many people were. The film from what I read is loosely based off of the true story of the gang wars of the suburb of Rio known as the City Of God which is the other factor that made this film so appealing to me. The acting is great and the sets are really fantastic. You really feel like you are plunged into the heart of the slums with the characters like you are in the thick of it.There is a lot of violence and language so viewer discretion is advised. This is as good as it gets for foreign crime dramas so if you’re a fan check it out because it’s on Netlfix right now. I am going to give the film an A- for a final grade.
365moviesin365dayschallenge 