The sequence, which is broken up into three distinct scenes, is as dramatically engaging and bombastic as the rest of Bond’s sweatier, high-octane exploits. His mission: to beat the villainous, weepy-eyed Le Chiffre ( Mads Mikkelsen), forcing the terrorist-assisting banker to seek asylum with the British government in exchange for information about his clients. The critical narrative puzzle piece of the film sees Bond enter a Texas hold ’em tournament at the titular Casino Royale in Montenegro.

This is to say nothing of the final sequence in the film, where a Venetian house sinks (!) into the sea.Īnd yet, in my opinion, for all its action-packed thrills, the most captivating, edge-of-your-seat scene in the film is the central, high-stakes poker game. In another scene, 007 pursues a bomb maker over the rooftops of Madagascar, jumping, scrambling, and maneuvering through laundry lines and scaffolding. There’s the scene where Bond ( Daniel Craig) flips his Aston Martin, rolling the out-of-control vehicle down a dark windy road.

Today, we’re watching a video essay that looks at what makes the poker scene in Casino Royale so captivating.Ĭasino Royalecontains some of the most blood-pumping set-pieces in James Bond’s long and illustrious cinematic run. Welcome to The Queue - your daily distraction of curated video content sourced from across the web.