The name's Blah... James Blah

So, Daniel Craig is the new James Bond (or James Blond as some quarters of the press have hilariously dubbed him). A good choice; Craig is a fine actor who should be able to pull off the balance between sophistication and grit the role requires.

But honestly, who gives a fuck?

The last few Bond flicks have been nothing but glorified videogames stuffed with utterly implausable scenarios, gadgets and locations. I remember some ludicrous car chase in a big building made of ice. What the fuck was that all about? Goldeneye was OK and the one with Michelle Yeoh in it was enjoyable simply because it had Michelle Yeoh in it. But Tomorrow Never Dies Another Day or The World Is Not Dead Enough Today or whatever were completely forgettable. Robert Carlyle was a baddie in one of them - no idea exactly what his evil plan was. I seem to remember that the last one was nothing more than a bunch of homages to previous Bond films strung together but with Halle Berry replacing Ursula Andress. I must admit that although Pierce Brosnan is on paper an ideal Bond actor I find him unbearably smug.

So, Bond 21 will have a new leading man and will be based on Casino Royale, the only original Fleming novel not to have been made into a serious Bond film (and, dear god, let's not think about that crappy, psuedo-psychedelic spoof with David Niven). Martin Campbell, the director responsible for rejuvenating the series 10 years ago with Brosnan's debut, Goldeneye, is once again going to rejuvenate the series with more grit and fewer gadgets and gimmicks.

Yeah, well, I'll wait until it turns up on the Christmas TV schedules, thanks. Anyone know when the next Jason Bourne movie is out?