Aided by the input of Herp Albert and the Tijuana Brass, this is a brassy, jazzy soundtrack that is not Bondian at all, and would have made John Barry weep, but it is, nonetheless, memorable.

Perhaps the only element of the film that stands up (and, it certainly isn't the cinematography) is the music by Burt Bacharach. With perhaps the exception of Sellers, none of the classic actors are on top form, clearly doing this film out of loyalty to money, rather than a good script. Not only is this film a marketed parody of 007, it also seems to be a parody of itself, giving more of an insight into the temperamental production than you would believe. But it is safe to say, after several viewings, that some of it, unintentionally, is just not funny. I originally thought that, being part of a modern film-going generation, I would be forgiven for not being able to understand some of the humour of that period.

It certainly is that, but, sadly, the comedy is expendable. The film sells itself as a 'spy comedy' or 'spy spoof'. However, all does not go to plan, and everything reaches a messy and unforeseen conclusion.įamously, the film's production was taxing and tempers were considerably frayed, to the extent that the film was passed on to several directors throughout the course of filming. One of the 'Bond' recruits is Evelyn Tremble (played tactfully by Peter Sellers) who goes against Le Chiffre in a high-stakes baccarat game at Casino Royale. The decision is made that, in order to stop SMERSH, every agent in the field should be called James Bond, in order to confuse, and, finally, thwart the enemy. The film sees our protagonist, 'Sir' James Bond (played by David Niven) called out of retirement after the death of M, in order to stop the criminal organisation, SMERSH, and its big noise, 'Le Chiffre' (played, bizarrely, by Orson Welles). It's therefore all the more disappointing that this film was a critical flop. Feldman, and directed by Val Guest, this is a film which features a top-billed cast, with names such as David Niven, Peter Sellers, William Holden, Orson Welles, and Woody Allen, to name but a few. Casino Royale (1967) is a rogue production, and, as a result, it fails to be taken seriously as true 'Bond' matter. As a fan of pure Bond, that is to say the 'official' Bond film series under the direction of the Broccoli family, this is a film I usually would mention in hushed tones.

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