For minute nine of Casino Royale we get our first look at First Look – Mollaka, Carter, and a deep-fanged Mongoose.
At the start of minute 9 we see Le Chiffre make the ill fated investment into Skyfleet, much against his stockbrokers advice. As Le Chiffre and the money leave the Ugandan Camp, the camera pans to Mr White. Interesting here the camera doesn’t pan to Steven as the scene closes. It’s as if Mr White will be the more watchful one. The one that has the most power above both Steven and Le Chiffre.
Thoughts
Personally I think the whole appropriation of money in this film really asks you to suspend disbelief. For one, how is a stockbroker going to determine that the money is secure and should be transferred? It’s all in cash in crates in a Ugandan rain forest!
Secondly, Bond would never be able to transfer all that money from his winnings just by entering a 4 digit passcode. Think about it, has that ever happened in the history of money transfers?
Madagascar
We cut to the Bahamas which is doubling for Madagascar. This dilapidated swimming pool is really there and you can photos of it in my previous post on Bond in the Bahamas. From that article I got some insight on the mongoose v snake battle,
In a fight between a mongoose and a cobra, the mongoose would likely win. It is generally believed that a mongoose wins around 80% of their battles with snakes. The mongoose wins because it has a very good strategy.
I can’t remember where I heard it but apparently the mongoose’s teeth were CGI’d for the film.
Mollaka
We also get our first look at Mollaka, played by Sebastien Foucan. By the way if you’re wondering where that jacket is that he wears in the parkour chase it’s in the International Spy Museum in Berlin. I took a photo of it from my visit in Sept 2022. (See below).
Carter
We cut to a shot of Joseph Millson who plays agent Carter. (A character name given to him by Daniel Craig). Carter was going to return in Quantum of Solace and his lines were written into the script, but due to the drastic film edits, were not shot. However, his lines are heard in the Quantum of Solace video game as the producers of the game were given a version of the screenplay that was not the final edit of the film.
Carter says turning away from the mob that,
‘It looks like our man, burnt scars on his face.’
It pans to a shot of Bond that is overlooking the crowd from a dilapidated terrace. He hasn’t said anything yet.