Hollywood has been consistently producing James Bond movies for almost sixty years at this point. And, while the early installments were a bold new voice in the filmmaking landscape, the franchise stopped innovating after 1964 and has been appropriating whatever happened to be popular in contemporary action cinema since 1973. While every movie is a reflection of the world that created it, the 007 films are a particularly interesting time capsule of what was going on in pop culture throughout its existence.
For this episode, Ryan and Sarah frame their discussion around Casino Royale, a self-serious reboot of the series that falls in line with a trend that affected Batman, Star Trek, Planet of the Apes, and a number of other cinematic sagas. Talking points include a comparison to the film's source novel, the creative choices that place this story firmly in 2006, the problems inherent to making a "realistic" James Bond film, this movie's place in the Bond mythos as a whole, and how Casino Royale is the only Bond installment to have an affecting love story.
