**YOU ARE NOW ENTERING SPOILERTOWN**
Plot: Le Chiffre holds a high stakes poker game to win back his losses from a bomb job gone wrong before he’s killed by the terrorists whose money he lost.
Foiled by: Bond survives multiple run ins and wins the poker game, only to be betrayed by both Matthas (he thinks) and Vesper (who at least leaves him a clue on where to find Mr. White)
Intriguing Setting(s): Uganda |Bahamas | Montenegro | Venice
Bond: Daniel Craig
Villain(s):
- Le Chiffre
- Mr. White
- Alex Dimitrios
- Mollaka Danso – sickest parkour chase scene of all time!
- Steven Obanno – more an enemy of Le Chiffre than Bond
- Valenka
Bond Girl(s):
- Vesper Lynd – she might have been the one if it weren’t for that Algerian
- Solange Dimitrios – unfortunate victim of the Bond touch
HL’s Hot Take: I love this damn movie. They actually explain why he isn’t killed in an obvious situation, the plot makes sense, the action is great and it manages to reset a series that had been seriously lacking in creativity and credibility.
Head Librarian Rank: 3/24
Critical Rank: 2/24
TRIVIA SECTION!
Odds & Ends: No Moneypenny, no Q
6 Degrees Cameos:
- As Bond cameos go, the Asian woman at the poker game is also the one who “kills” Bond in the opening scene of You Only Live Twice
- The black man at the poker game is Tyrone from Snatch!
Gadgets: minimal on the gadgets, save for the defibrillator and anti-venom in the glovebox
Cars: Aston Martin DBS
Awards: BAFTA win for Best Sound
Release Order: 21/25 (2006)