“We seem to have reached an absurd situation in which ‘independent’ has come to mean ‘not made of plastic.'” – Abigail Nussbaum
I think I also have to agree with her assessment of Casino Royale, which she describes as “an entirely earnest story about the creation of an utterly ridiculous man.” It’s a good movie, and one of the better Bond movies in recent years, but it’s tough to bring a gritty realism to something which, at its heart, isn’t terribly real at all.