How Casino Royale Poker Scenes Were the Ultimate James Bond Stunt – PokerTube

06:4410 Jan

How difficult can it be to make a good poker scene in a movie? According to James Bond director Martin Campbell the Casino Royale remake poker showdown was as elaborate as any stunt 007 was involved in!

The 2006 movie grossed a monster $606million at the box office, with Daniel Craigs Bond and Mads Mikkelsens blood-eyed villain Le Chiffre involved in the highest stake poker game of all time.

For poker fans, of course, seeing their beloved game depicted on the big screen is almost always more miss than hit, so how did director Campbell manage to produce such an intense facsimile of a real highstakes game?

With No Limit Holdem replacing the Baccarat Chemin de Fer of the Ian Fleming book version, and the 1967 movie version

the cast and crew had to be taught the game basically from scratch to ensure everything from continuity to poker tells would come across as realistically as possible.

Not an easy task for poker consultant Tom Sambrook, the 2002 winner of the European Championships explaining:

Sambrook also admits to making a bit of money on the side, taking the actors for their per diem in hastily-arranged games in the studios.

The Englishman, who finished ahead of Hendon Mobster Barny Boatman and EPT legend John Duthie to win his title, explained:

Director Campbell somehow pulled together all the elements of the game in an almost believable series of poker scenes, mixed in with the usual action-packed adventures of a typical Bond movie.

He believes the 30 minutes of gameplay that made the final cut, showing three massive hands, was critical to the success of the film, admitting:

After discovering Le Chiffres tell, Bond has to survive two assassination attempts in his bid to end the villains hopes of winning the $130million poker game.

The four-way all-in sees Le Chiffres full house lose to Bonds straight flush, with most fans expecting a Royal Flush to win the day for the movie hero.

Check out the finale yourself!

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How Casino Royale Poker Scenes Were the Ultimate James Bond Stunt - PokerTube