Shaken and Stirred - Casino Royale
I wondered when this James Bond (Daniel Craig) would introduce himself as “Bond, James Bond” as my wife and I watched the latest movie in the franchise series, Casino Royale. I also played the Bond theme song, so prevalent in the other series of movies, in my mind more often than I think I heard it on the screen.
The unexpected scenes and the fast pace of the movie is what kept me riveted to watching it. Even at the beginning, when Bond is first introduced, I didn’t get the connection to the next sequence that followed. What followed is one of the greatest foot chases that I have seen on screen. It’s worthy of a Cirque du Soleil performance done on the streets instead of a stage. I later learned this acrobatic movement even has a name called parkour and has been in existence for over 10 years. My wife would ask me, after the movie, which scenes that I had liked the most and I told her that this is one that was memorable for me. This Bond can move and run!
This Bond is also physically built with a certain muscle definition reminiscent of a professional dancer. I wondered what training regimen, both weights and cardio, he had to undergo for this onscreen, bare chested look. Even the villain would comment about Bond’s physique in a torture scene later in the film. My wife said that all the women in the audience swooned when Bond showed himself in a tuxedo. Ah, the power of a well tailored suit and a tailored body! This Bond is setting the new standard for men to follow.
There is a high stakes poker game that the villain arranges for anyone with an entry of ten million dollars and, of course, Bond must participate in this. As the game is being played, I whispered, “Baccarat” to my wife next to me, without further explaining how it’s played. Scenes later did I realize that it was poker that they were playing instead of Baccarat. This was another variance from Fleming’s books and past movies. I was being retested in my Bond knowledge at every turn.
Later at dinner, I would ask my wife for her favorite scene or scene that she liked the most from the movie. Without any hesitation, she said it was the beach scene where Bond and his new love Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) are embracing and he proclaims that he would quit his job to sail around the world with her. “What about the action scenes?” Oh, they were secondary to the romance, she said. The movie could have ended with the beach scene, as others have similarly after the action is completed, and I would have been satisfied. But wait, there’s more!
Of course, there is more. Bond can’t quit. Bond can’t be in love. “The girl dies”, I whispered to my wife, as Bond and his love are sailing calmly on location in Venice. I have read all the Bond books. I know Bond. I shouldn’t have said anything at that moment because I know my wife would want the romance to endure. So do I.
I want my romance to last. I want to look like Bond and play for high stakes like Bond and fight any foe like Bond and have the inner strength of Bond. And where can I get Bond’s PDA, which is a GPS, also a security password decoder, a video player, a phone, an IM, and probably saves lives?
Bond has raised the bar for men in a physical and clever way, and letting us know that we could quit something important to us, if we have a higher value, such as love, to surpass it. In this Bond movie experience, like his vodka martinis, my wife and I were both shaken and stirred.
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Rocky Romero is a Business owner and Business Coach and Entrepreneur. He is currently running marathons and staying in shape with strength training, using health clubs and the Soloflex Rockit.
