10 Movies That Destroyed Themselves

Unlike many duds from this era, the original adaptation of Ian Fleming's first Bond novel hasn't come to be regarded fondly in recent years; the David Niven-led 007 spoof Casino Royale continues to be as much of a failure today as at time of release.

Another Peter Sellers disaster, the film got off to a decent start before the actor -- playing baccarat master Evelyn Tremble -- began acting up, becoming uncooperative and refusing to be in shots with co-star Orson Welles, who portrays Le Chiffre. Legend has it that Sellers was intimidated by the accomplished Welles, and that Welles himself was no fan of Sellers who he, quite rightly given his behaviour, viewed as an amateur.

As a result, Sellers was absent from long sections of the shoot, which the film's five directors (five!) had to work around. To make matters worse, everyone and their mum had a shot at rewriting the script, including Sellers himself, Woody Allen (who stars as Dr Noah), Val Guest, and Ben Hecht; and Sellers even hired Terry Southern to polish his character's dialogue in an attempt to outshine Welles and Allen.

Whatever else it may be, Casino Royale is simply a good example of the Americans not really understanding what makes British fare tick; a wrong that Canadian Mike Myers would right a mere thirty years on...