Daniel Craig in tiny swimming trunks, a very dangerous poker game, and the important question: which James Bond is actually the sexiest?
Hello Gazers!
This week we're dusting off our tuxedos, ordering something shaken rather than stirred, and heading back to 2006 for Casino Royale, the film that reinvented James Bond for a new generation.
But was Daniel Craig's tougher, moodier and considerably more muscular 007 really a step forward? Or was he simply the same old Bond with a gym membership and a slightly more troubled expression?
First, we're revisiting the film itself, from Le Chiffre's high-stakes poker tournament and Bond's increasingly complicated relationship with Vesper Lynd, to some particularly uncomfortable encounters, spectacular action sequences and a memorable finale in Venice.
We explore how Casino Royale revitalised the franchise, the controversy surrounding Craig's casting, the film's critical and commercial success, and whether its grittier approach borrowed a little too enthusiastically from the Bourne films.
Then it's time for Culture Corner, where we're heading back to Britain in 2006.
It was the era of metrosexual men, lads' magazines, Top Gear and an increasingly confused national conversation about masculinity.
As traditional ideas about manhood collided with changing attitudes towards gender, class and sexuality, we ask whether Daniel Craig's more physically imposing but emotionally vulnerable Bond reflected a wider cultural shift.
And what better way to explore changing masculinity than by examining every James Bond?
From Sean Connery's unapologetic swagger and Roger Moore's raised eyebrow to Timothy Dalton's intensity, Pierce Brosnan's polished charm and Daniel Craig's brooding physicality, we're examining how each incarnation of 007 treated women, expressed masculinity and reflected the attitudes of his era.
Naturally, this leads to the most academically rigorous segment in the history of The Problematic Gays:
Our ranking of the James Bonds by hotness.
Yes, we're objectifying the world's most famous womaniser for a change.
We also discuss Bond girls, exotic locations, racial stereotypes, the franchise's enthusiastic product placement, and that famous moment when Daniel Craig emerges from the sea and suddenly becomes the object of everyone's gaze.
Has Bond genuinely evolved, or does Casino Royale simply package some very old-fashioned attitudes in a rather attractive new body?
We finish with our ratings for the film, our thoughts on the wider Bond franchise and the usual question:
Could you get away with it today?
And next time, we're heading somewhere rather less glamorous as we revisit Carrie (1976).
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The name's Gaze. Problematic Gaze.
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