I watched the 1954 and 1967 versions of Casino Royale last night, neither of those movies are part of the official James Bond Film Franchise.
The 1954 version was a black and white made for TV production that featured an American Jimmy Bond, other than the fact it takes place in a casino this version doesn't have much in common with the book, the actor Barry Nelson who played the part of Bond wasn't very good but I imagine this was a rushed production and despite it's flaws the 1954 version does have a few nice moments.
The 1967 version of Casino Royale is a mess but it's a watchable mess and it features more James Bonds than you could want in one movie including David Niven, Peter Sellers and Woody Allen.
One thing the film does have is an outstanding soundtrack written by Burt Bacharach.
Neither of these movies resemble the official Bond franchise bit I think they are interesting in their own right.
Never seen the TV production and never wanted to rewatch the abomination:)
ReplyDeleteThe TV production is interesting, Barry Nelson is terrible but there are a couple of clever moments in the TV version, it's worth a look but probably not worth going to a lot of effort to see it.
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