comment #1

le corbeau says ...

And when it opened, weren't people saying it was a relative underperformer? I guess good word of mouth really did make a difference, for once, with a big blockbuster-style movie.

comment #2

Ian Sinclair says ...

Casino Royale was always a huge, with the best repeat business of any Bond picture, but the perception of just how big it was was fogged in the US, due to the success of Happy Feet. Sony wittily responded to Happy Feet's proudly proclaiming "The Number #1 Movie in America!" with their own "The Number #1 Movie in the World!"

comment #3

jeffmcm says ...

What's up with bashing Wilson and Broccoli? Obviously they were right about casting Craig and they shepherded a good script and action sequences.

comment #4

Craig Kennedy says ...

It's easy to take shots at Wilson/Broccoli but they've done a fine job of steering a 40 year old franchise through less than creative but very lucrative waters for years. I never cared much for the Brosnan entries but they appeared to give people what they wanted and made shitpots of money worldwide. With all of the pressure not to kill a golden goose, Wilson/Broccoli should be commended for allowing the franchise to make some pretty significant changes in creative direction, whether you like their previous films or not.

comment #5

Ian Sinclair says ...

Yeah, what is the hate for Wilson and Broccoli all about? They produced a movie that is the most critically and commercially successful Bond ever, hired the writers, the director and cast, spearheaded the classy advertising campaign, fought for Craig with Sony and rebooted the whole franchise for at least the next ten years. Hats off to them, I say.

comment #6

christian says ...

and i'm waiting still for jeff's mea culpa that the bond series was dead dead dead. nobody cares anymore in the 21st century. another spot on jw prediction...

and the brocoli/wilson team held the series back for years with bad decisions left and right. or maybe we're still waiting for that jinx franchise...

comment #7

RoyBatty says ...

These days, the old "$100M Club" has become either the $150M - $200M club to denote a blockbuster, especially with a budget of $150M.

Bond films continue to be solid success, especially when overseas gross is factored in (CASINO will surpass DIE in the next week become the highest grossing Bond film ever - NOT adjusted for inflation). But none in the last 25 years have been able to reclaim that huge, swinging a big dick type blockbuster status.

And that is the type of patronage you can point to and claim "repeat business." Because fan boys don't count.

comment #8

Ian Sinclair says ...

Do Bond movies have "fan boys?" Does being a straight white male make you a fanboy now? Or female? Some of my wife's female friends have seen CASINO twice just for Craig. One thing straight white males do have in common though is this - they sure won't be seeing DREAMGIRLS any time soon.

comment #9

Reedyb says ...

Box Office Mojo reports that there are 10 releases that have topped the $300 million mark worldwide this year.


1. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest $1,065.4

2. The Da Vinci Code $756.7

3. Ice Age: The Meltdown $647.3

4. Cars $461.8

5. X-Men: The Last Stand $458.8

6. Casino Royale $423.4

7. Mission: Impossible III $396.2

8. Superman Returns $391.1

9. Over the Hedge $331.3

10. The Devil Wears Prada $317.3

comment #10

Reedyb says ...

Unless of course, Jeff was talking about overseas alone. Then, I stand corrected and humiliated.

comment #11

Ian Sinclair says ...

You stand corrected and humiliated. He was talking overseas alone. Including the US domestic tally ($144m) CASINO ROYALE's worldwide total is $448m.

comment #12

Eric says ...

This was the first Bond movie my wife had ever seen. It's one of her favorite movies of 2006, FWIW.

comment #13

le corbeau says ...

"Bond films continue to be solid success, especially when overseas gross is factored in (CASINO will surpass DIE in the next week become the highest grossing Bond film ever - NOT adjusted for inflation). But none in the last 25 years have been able to reclaim that huge, swinging a big dick type blockbuster status."

Even if this were true-- and adjusted for both inflation and size of the marketplace, I'm sure Casino Royale still ranks behind Thunderball-- it's a unique achievement to have maintained a series this long that continues at the same budgetary level over time. Other series went into TV (Planet of the Apes), declined to straight-to-video or theatrical-but-really-for-video-store-name-recognition (Pink Panther), or pooped out as their iconic stars aged (Indiana Jones, Dirty Harry). The only even remotely equal comparison is Star Trek-- which looks dead barring some equally impressive feat of creative invigoration.

comment #14

Larry says ...

Looking at the top nine films listed above, I note something they have in common. They all suck.

comment #15

Patrick says ...

WRONG!

'Thunderball' is well over $600-700 worldwide if
you adjust for inflation. 'CR' won't get close
to it.

comment #16

Ian Sinclair says ...

Thunderball was released at a time when the only place you could see a picture was in theaters (it remained in release for six months and was then re-released in a double-bill with Dr. No). Once you start adjusting for inflation you should also adjust for contemporary elements like potential DVD sales, pay-per-view and television sales. Once you incorporate those elements, any picture that does what business ROYALE has done to date would make that Thunderball figure extrenely vulnerable.

comment #17

le corbeau says ...

Note, Patrick and Ian, that I said "size of the marketplace." US population is roughly double what it was in 1965; the global theatrical market is 3-4 times as large, taking in many countries which were financially insignificant to theatrical release then. Plus as Ian rightly notes, a film today makes far more money from post-theatrical events-- cable, home video, etc.-- than was possible in 1965.

So a fair comparison is not merely inflation in ticket prices but some measure of market share-- how much of total possible revenue in its day a film captured. Even then, you could tilt it however you choose, based on how you compare those things. But Bond circa Thunderball was a huge cultural phenomenon; Casino Royale is merely a very successful movie.

comment #18

christian says ...

as reported in the papers, THUNDERBALL played 24 hours at theaters to accomodate crowds. imagine that today.

comment #19

Ian Sinclair says ...

Anyone notice that CASINO is consistently popping up in virtually all of the year-end best lists? Wouldn't it be fun if it became a dark horse Best Picture contender! The outrage! An ACTION MOVIE? Harumph!

comment #20

christian says ...

has mgm even been pushing craig as a best actor?