Director Paul Feig and actress Melissa McCarthy continue to make magic together. "Spy," their third collaboration, is definitely more enjoyable than "The Heat" and in many ways measures up to "Bridesmaids."
McCarthy owns this film. Feig actually wrote it too, unlike the previous two films, but it's clear he did so knowing McCarthy would take it over. She's dynamic, sassy, lovable and foul, and it's delightful to watch even if it's messy.
Title alone tells you that "Spy" is meant to be a riff on classic spy films, specifically the "James Bond" series, but it's not a parody. Rather, Feig plays with spy conventions (especially as they relate to women) and even pokes at what other directors, writers and producers might do if given the same premise of a CIA desk jockey launched into the field to stop a scheme involving a nuclear warhead.
In fact, the deception goes beyond the appearances and into the plot. Somehow, Feig keeps the story fresh and intriguing, even when the film descends into goofy, preposterous chaos. It's impressive how good of a tightrope act it manages between stupidity and sharp, effective humor.
McCarthy toes that line too. At times she's just a vehicle for improvised shenanigans, and at others there's something genuine in her character, Susan Cooper. It's hard to pin down the character's qualities when she's constantly changing appearances and even personalities, but never for a moment does it seem like she's trying to hard and failing.
We do get to watch Jason Statham try the same thing, however, and make a total ass of himself. The star of actual spy movies does have some funny dialogue at times, but his character is a screw-up who talks a mean game. This idiocy is part of the convention-twisting in "Spy," but there are times he just seems like an idiot. It's more fun to watch Peter Serafinowicz as the outrageously lewd Aldo — an Italian agent who Susan encounters in the field at various points in the film — than watch Statham flounder. Jude Law even does a nice job, though his character isn't called upon for much.
Rose Byrne as Rayna Boyanov, the film's antagonist — a role she seems to excel in when acting for Feig —continues to nail her comic bits with such incredible poise. She's both a bona-fide villain and a funny caricature of one. Rayna isn't hollow, which would render Byrne unfunny; she's multi-dimensional enough to really work off of McCarthy's Susan.
"Spy" feels like a multi-bout boxing match between a stupid genre spoof comedy and a professionally improvised, fresh twist on a stupid genre spoof comedy. Every time you prepare to role your eyes and deem it a joke of a film, it comes up with something hysterically clever to pull you back in. Not many films or filmmakers can do it, and that's what makes the Feig-McCarthy duo one to keep an eye on for the long term.
~Steven C
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McCarthy owns this film. Feig actually wrote it too, unlike the previous two films, but it's clear he did so knowing McCarthy would take it over. She's dynamic, sassy, lovable and foul, and it's delightful to watch even if it's messy.
Title alone tells you that "Spy" is meant to be a riff on classic spy films, specifically the "James Bond" series, but it's not a parody. Rather, Feig plays with spy conventions (especially as they relate to women) and even pokes at what other directors, writers and producers might do if given the same premise of a CIA desk jockey launched into the field to stop a scheme involving a nuclear warhead.
In fact, the deception goes beyond the appearances and into the plot. Somehow, Feig keeps the story fresh and intriguing, even when the film descends into goofy, preposterous chaos. It's impressive how good of a tightrope act it manages between stupidity and sharp, effective humor.
McCarthy toes that line too. At times she's just a vehicle for improvised shenanigans, and at others there's something genuine in her character, Susan Cooper. It's hard to pin down the character's qualities when she's constantly changing appearances and even personalities, but never for a moment does it seem like she's trying to hard and failing.
We do get to watch Jason Statham try the same thing, however, and make a total ass of himself. The star of actual spy movies does have some funny dialogue at times, but his character is a screw-up who talks a mean game. This idiocy is part of the convention-twisting in "Spy," but there are times he just seems like an idiot. It's more fun to watch Peter Serafinowicz as the outrageously lewd Aldo — an Italian agent who Susan encounters in the field at various points in the film — than watch Statham flounder. Jude Law even does a nice job, though his character isn't called upon for much.
Rose Byrne as Rayna Boyanov, the film's antagonist — a role she seems to excel in when acting for Feig —continues to nail her comic bits with such incredible poise. She's both a bona-fide villain and a funny caricature of one. Rayna isn't hollow, which would render Byrne unfunny; she's multi-dimensional enough to really work off of McCarthy's Susan.
"Spy" feels like a multi-bout boxing match between a stupid genre spoof comedy and a professionally improvised, fresh twist on a stupid genre spoof comedy. Every time you prepare to role your eyes and deem it a joke of a film, it comes up with something hysterically clever to pull you back in. Not many films or filmmakers can do it, and that's what makes the Feig-McCarthy duo one to keep an eye on for the long term.
~Steven C
Thanks for reading! Visit Movie Muse Reviews for more