Casino Royale (1954)Written by Charlies Bennet and Anthony Ellis
Directed by William H. Brown Jr.
In 1954 James Bond made his screen debut in an American television production. Bond was almost a decade away from hitting the big-time and so this short TV-Movie doesn't contain many of the Bond-trappings we are familliar with today.
Bond himself is turned into an American. Fair enough - the programme was made for American audiences, and the Americanisation of the character would no doubt make him more relatable for viewers. I've got to say, as a bit of a Flemingist I don't like the change, but I can accept it for this hour-long mini-movie.
American actor Barry Nelson plays James 'Jimmy' Bond, American CIA Agent. Alongside British Secret Service ally Clarence Leiter (a Britified Felix Leiter) he attempts to beat the villianous Le Chiffre (a superb Peter Lorre) at Baccarat.
On the face of it it sounds pretty close to the original novel, but because of the short run-time certain changes are made. Vesper Lynd and Rene Mathis are combined into one character - Valerie Mathis. Also her apparent deception seems to be very up front - as opposed to the original novel and 2006 film version where it acts as a 'twist'. Bond is also very much aware that she seems to be working for the 'other side'. Ultimatly, though, she is a good guy working for the French Secret Service (as per Mathis is the original novel)
Vespers betrayal of Bond is one of the best things in the original novel - in fact Le Chiffre meets his end a fair bit before the end of the novel, with a good few chapters dedicated to the Bond/Vesper storyline. I have to say I miss it here - but there's no way they could have told that story on 1950's television.
I kinda like Nelson as the American Bond. It's not too far a cry from the cold, ruthless Bond of the novel. Sure he's American, and naturally something is lost in this alteration - he doesn't feel like any Bond prior (the novels) or since (the movies) but he works in this instance - if the show had spawned a series, as it was hoped to, then it probably wouldn't have worked. It's really a one-time deal - any more than that and it would have been too jarring.
I'm a big fan of Australian Michael Pate in the British-Leiter role. There's times where he actually reminds me of Bond, just little things like the way he delivers a line or the way he moves. Again - this is not the Leiter of the books, so it is probably best to try and get that out of your head. As adaptations of the literary characters, both Bond and Leiter are terrible - as characters in a one-off American TV thriller... they work. We'll let it slide.
Peter Lorre is awesome as Le Chiffre. He's a closer physical match than any of the actors to take on the role subsequently. He oozes a slimy, horrible quality, you love to hate him. Why was this guy never cast in an EON production? He was born to play a Bond-Baddie.
The film also dramatises my favourite little sequence from the novel, with a gun disguised as a cane jammed into his back Bond has to feint-faint in order to escape death. Love it, and it's done pretty well here. The climax sees the biggest departure from the novel - you couldn't have Bond having his goolies smashed on live-television, so he's tortured by other unpleasant means. In the end he puts an end to Le Chiffre's life himself and comforts the girl (totally different to the novel).
I like the film. It's decent, and to enjoy it you have to remember that at this point there was only one Bond novel and no other films. There wasn't really a Bond character yet, and so it's not Bond as we know it. Forget that and it's a fun hour. It does contain one very Bondanian exchange. You can imagine Connery delivering something similar...
That is classic Bond right there. They need to slip that in to a new film somewhere.
I like it. That's all there is to say.
Bond himself is turned into an American. Fair enough - the programme was made for American audiences, and the Americanisation of the character would no doubt make him more relatable for viewers. I've got to say, as a bit of a Flemingist I don't like the change, but I can accept it for this hour-long mini-movie.
American actor Barry Nelson plays James 'Jimmy' Bond, American CIA Agent. Alongside British Secret Service ally Clarence Leiter (a Britified Felix Leiter) he attempts to beat the villianous Le Chiffre (a superb Peter Lorre) at Baccarat.
On the face of it it sounds pretty close to the original novel, but because of the short run-time certain changes are made. Vesper Lynd and Rene Mathis are combined into one character - Valerie Mathis. Also her apparent deception seems to be very up front - as opposed to the original novel and 2006 film version where it acts as a 'twist'. Bond is also very much aware that she seems to be working for the 'other side'. Ultimatly, though, she is a good guy working for the French Secret Service (as per Mathis is the original novel)
Vespers betrayal of Bond is one of the best things in the original novel - in fact Le Chiffre meets his end a fair bit before the end of the novel, with a good few chapters dedicated to the Bond/Vesper storyline. I have to say I miss it here - but there's no way they could have told that story on 1950's television.
I kinda like Nelson as the American Bond. It's not too far a cry from the cold, ruthless Bond of the novel. Sure he's American, and naturally something is lost in this alteration - he doesn't feel like any Bond prior (the novels) or since (the movies) but he works in this instance - if the show had spawned a series, as it was hoped to, then it probably wouldn't have worked. It's really a one-time deal - any more than that and it would have been too jarring.
I'm a big fan of Australian Michael Pate in the British-Leiter role. There's times where he actually reminds me of Bond, just little things like the way he delivers a line or the way he moves. Again - this is not the Leiter of the books, so it is probably best to try and get that out of your head. As adaptations of the literary characters, both Bond and Leiter are terrible - as characters in a one-off American TV thriller... they work. We'll let it slide.
Peter Lorre is awesome as Le Chiffre. He's a closer physical match than any of the actors to take on the role subsequently. He oozes a slimy, horrible quality, you love to hate him. Why was this guy never cast in an EON production? He was born to play a Bond-Baddie.
The film also dramatises my favourite little sequence from the novel, with a gun disguised as a cane jammed into his back Bond has to feint-faint in order to escape death. Love it, and it's done pretty well here. The climax sees the biggest departure from the novel - you couldn't have Bond having his goolies smashed on live-television, so he's tortured by other unpleasant means. In the end he puts an end to Le Chiffre's life himself and comforts the girl (totally different to the novel).
I like the film. It's decent, and to enjoy it you have to remember that at this point there was only one Bond novel and no other films. There wasn't really a Bond character yet, and so it's not Bond as we know it. Forget that and it's a fun hour. It does contain one very Bondanian exchange. You can imagine Connery delivering something similar...
Leiter: Aren't you the fellow who was shot?
Bond: No, I'm the fellow who was missed.
Bond: No, I'm the fellow who was missed.
That is classic Bond right there. They need to slip that in to a new film somewhere.
I like it. That's all there is to say.
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