Vesper Was Agent 3030

The Sunday before last, I went with my brother Jay and nephew Robert to the see Casino Royale. We also took Lilly to the theater, but not to see that movie, which we were fully aware would not be for kids (Robert is 17). She went down the multiplex hall to see Happy Feet, an animated animal movie (yet another) that I’m happy to know little about.

Shortly afterward, I got an e-mail from cousin Jay about Casino Royale. He’d seen it too: “The only drawback is that the actor who plays 007 is blonde, but if you can work through that, he fits the bill quite nicely,” he wrote. “It is a bit of a darker movie with none of the techno-gadgets that ruined (for me) the latter 20 or so of the previous James Bond movies.

“The movie contains lots of rough violence, much hand-to-hand action, suitably glamorous casino gambling scenes, and several pretty girls. This includes a nice, bad blonde in a minimal dress and the lovely Vesper Lynn who is Bond's ally. [And, I have to add, the fetching Caterina Murino, whose character dallies early with Bond, and then is offed Goldfinger-style.]

“It is suitably faithful to the book, but not slavishly so. The ending is a bit different but quite acceptable. Ms. Lynn turns out similarly to the book. This is a grownup movie, not for children in any way. I recommend it.”

I’ll go along with cousin Jay on most of that. One reason I wanted to go was that I’ve actually read Casino Royale (and posted about it, though I’ve forgotten exactly when), which was an entertaining, if dated, read. The latest movie version is entertaining, and that’s all I ask of Bond. Like any other fictional icon, he inspires reams of speculation about What It Means, but since I try to keep the nonsense content of this web site low, I won't add to the speculation.

But I do wonder why Bond’s hair color is such a big deal. It’s not as if Daniel Craig, with his prizefighter’s mug and light hair, looks like Howdy-Doody.