10 Movies Way Better Than They Have Any Right To Be

Casino Royale: a title most in 2006 knew only as the hammy, non-canon James Bond spoof released in the '60s. So, when a new Casino Royale was announced, starring Daniel Craig as a blonde, waxed, muscular Bond who didn't fit the archetype established by Ian Fleming, Sean Connery or any of the other actors in the years since, fans and critics alike wondered how they could have got it so wrong.

Both films are based on one of the more static 007 novels, centring the action around the high-octane thrills of... a poker game – something other Bond entries had wisely used to establish character and advance plot without lingering on for too long. But director Martin Campbell had an ace up his sleeve, having directed the near-flawless GoldenEye (1995); Pierce Brosnan's first outing in the tux.

With Campbell's steady hand, a cast of acting greats (Craig, Judi Dench, Jeffrey Wright, Mads Mikkelsen) and a new action sensibility, Casino Royale made it work. And not just the poker, but the asthmatic villain, the monosyllabic Bond and the lack of the glam and gadgets the series had become known for. He drives a Ford Mondeo and gets away with it, for god's sake!

As a result, the film has gone on to become not only Daniel Craig's best 007 feature, but one of the top five of all time.