The character of James Bond has always carried a swagger and a touch of elitism that has helped to create a quintessentially upper-class British portrayal of an action hero; one who, of course, enjoys drinking a watered down vodka. It goes without saying as well that it helps that, alongside his swagger, he has the ability to show up at the right moment to save the girl – by happy coincidence often relying upon a dramatic action scene to thrill us in the process.
Sadly, though, the latest Bond movie, Spectre, failed to live up to the usual lofty standards of the Bond films, leading Forbes to decry the movie as the worst Bond in 30 years in its 2015 review of the film. Rotten Tomatoes is slightly more forgiving, with a 64% approval rating on its Tomatometer, but there is no denying the fact that Bond needs to up his game in the next outing in order to get that much-loved British swagger back.
Gaming and Parkour: A New Type of Bond
Perhaps the reason we want to see Bond firmly with his mojo back is because of the lofty heights actor Daniel Craig has lifted the character to. After all, this is a man who made us all want to start playing poker again in his breathtaking Casino Royale scenes. His memorable one-liners, which arguably weren’t bettered by the masterful “that last hand… nearly killed me”, and his famous takedown of Le Chiffre (“I won’t consider myself to be in trouble until I start weeping blood”) made a generation of Bond fans engage wholeheartedly with the iGaming industry.
Unfortunately, although there are operators like 888, for instance, that give us glimpses of the glamorous Bond world with their online poker offerings (largely thanks to their VIP program, which rewards loyal gamers with Bond-worthy prizes), there’s no similar outlet for teaching us how to goad and effectively ‘one-liner’ our opponents with the same panache Bond manages!
It wasn’t just quick wit and skill at the poker table that made Craig’s Bond so good; he was also more action-focused all round, with parkour and other modern touches from the world of exercise and sport notching the scenes up a level or two. All of this combined makes a new actor trying to slot into Bond’s shoes pretty hard, especially given Craig’s lovely advice after shooting Spectre about what the next Bond actor should avoid!
Finding That Mojo Again
If Bond is to find his mojo again, with Daniel Craig almost having committed to going again as 007, then perhaps it is an even deeper focus on action and that wit combined that will help make the story engaging enough to win back the doubters. This would certainly be a better approach than a plot that no one feels overly invested in, which is sadly what happened in Spectre.
Should the writers achieve this, Bond will well and truly have found his mojo again, and perhaps Daniel Craig might be persuaded to stick around for the long haul to take on a few more films!