...and Daniel Craig completes his mission of portraying 007 as if he were given orders directly from Her Majesty. We are introduced to James Bond prior to double-o status where MI6 intelligence directors are handlers and messengers with as much importance as pawns in a chess match (derived from Ian Fleming's first book).

Leaving behind the black-and-white world of evaluations, reports, and task oversight; the freshly, minted 007 must make his chops by plugging a couple of leaks for M and enter the full spectrum of danger and intrigue in today's world. This isn't the smooth, polished Bond that Roger Moore or Pierce Brosnan portray with such ease.

This is a highly-trained, military thug with all of the finesse of a cruise missile. One begins to wonder if this guy can ever come close to the cool and collected Sean Connery, but could care less as this Bond tears through the first big action scene like a 300 lb. gorrilla chasing a hyperactive monkey on crack. (The Jackie Chan style gymnastics in this chase sequence alone are worth the price of admission!!)

Bond is officially ordered on vacation after botching this assignment, but that doesn't stop him from following his own leads which point towards a mysterious, terrorist organization. They never said it..., but SPECTRE is at the center of this plot. The Quentin Tarantino-esque villian aptly named Mr. White introduces us to Le Chiffre, banker extraordinaire for half of the world's terrorists.

Bond's instincts (and the bad guy's cell phone) lead him to the Bahamas and then to Miami where he foils Le Chiffre's plan to sabotage the debut of the next model of commercial aircraft being unveiled to the media. It seems that the sinister Le Chiffre makes money for his client not through the usual 401K's or investment portfolios, but by selling hedge funds short and "ensuring" their stock will plummet with pre-arranged catastrophes. Having thwarted Le Chiffre's plan inadvertently, Bond sets up the showdown at the casino where Le Chiffre plans on winning back all of his clients losses at a mega-stakes card game.

No, this isn't Baccarat. Gone is the unusual game from those 70's Bond films which only jet-setting Europeans knew the rules or what was going on. It's 2006, and Bond is playing no-limit Texas Hold 'em without Phil Gordon quoting odds in the background.

Everything else has been a set up to this point and the plot gets thicker and more twisted from here. I'm not giving anything else away, and I doubt you'll be disappointed with Acts II and III. This movie is a mix between a chess game, poker, and three card monty where strategy, tells, gut instincts, and cons all come into play. I'm not sure where to score Daniel Craig on my list of favorite Bond actors.

The mere fact that I have to debate this says a lot about this film. Gone are the gimmicky gadgets from other films. They would have only distracted from the plot and would seem as awkwardly placed as all of the Ford vehicles in this film. (Can someone please find a right-hand drive Aston Martin for the next Bond film? I think that's why Bond lost control and wrecked it!)

Replacing those gadgets were the simple tools of a cell phone and a laptop to track people, explode bombs, stun enemies, and transfer millions of dollars. If you think that’s boring, think again. In the world of identity theft and GPS, the tools he used were all too real. (There are actually companies implanting chips in people’s arms to replace security badges!) I can't wait for the next Bond film to see how this evolves and who will be tapped to play Q.

Run Time: 144 minutes

James Bond: Daniel Craig (Layer Cake)
M: Judi Dench (Chronicles of Riddick, Mrs. Brown)
Alex Dimitrios: Simon Abkarian
Solange: Caterina Murino
Vesper Lynd: Eva Green (Kingdom of Heaven)
Mathis: Giancarlo Giannini (Hannibal)
Le Chiffre: Mads Mikkelsen (King Arthur)
Valenka: Ivana Milicevic (Just Like Heaven)
Felix Leiter: Jeffrey Wright (Syriana, Boycott)
Mr. White: Jesper Christensen