Casino Royale

AMG Review of Casino Royale

James Christopher Monger
All Music Guide

Director Martin Campbell and new 007 Daniel Craig brought an earthy tenacity to the increasingly showy and predictable James Bond franchise with Casino Royale, by taking the martini-slamming secret agent back to his roots, or more specifically, his very first mission. This afforded Tomorrow Never Dies and the World Is Not Enough tunesmith David Arnold the perfect opportunity to reinvent the dated spy music (sappy love themes, endless orchestral bursts accompanying a speeding boat or snowmobile, the inevitable three-note guitar motif that has become more effective in television commercials and parody films than in the real thing) that has long been associated with the character, an opportunity that now awaits the next composer in line.