Casino Royale, the 21st James Bond film, is due to start shooting shortly and is to be released November 2006. It is already a hot topic amongst fans of the 007 franchise, with the new Bond, Daniel Craig, generating much debate amongst fans.

Fans of the original Ian Fleming books will be hoping for a more authentic portrayal of both the character and the book. The producers seem to have been reluctant to take a risk with the formula in the past, presumably for purely financial reasons. The time has come now were they, perhaps, have no choice other than to bring in a new era.

We hope to see a more realistic and gritty film, less gadgets and explosions, more dialogue and less of the quips. Something of an opportunity was lost when the very real possibility of a Tarantino/Brosnan collaboration fell through. The director of Goldeneye has returned and is charged with delivering us a new Bond. His work on Goldeneye resurrected the franchise so he has the qualifications to do it again. Speculation is, as ever, rife as to leading ladies and Bond girls. The charcter of Vesper Lynd will be the most crucial female role and we expect it to go either to a very big name or a complete unknown.

Time will tell whether they have the courage to make a film worthy of the original creation of Ian Fleming - let's hope they do.

Information on the origianl books can be found here Ian Fleming

The latest updates, news and rumours about the film can be found here Casino Royale Film News