Spy

-

Spy
 (2015)

A Review by Grant Kanigan

Directed by: Paul Feig
Written by: Paul Feig
Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Rose Byrne, Jason Statham
              Jude Law
Rating: 14A
Release Date: June 5th 2015

Melissa McCarthy takes a detour in Spy
     There is no doubt that Melissa McCarthy is one of the most talented comediennes of her generation. From her virtuoso turn in Paul Feig's Bridesmaids, a keen detective in The Heat and even Alan's love interest in the unfairly maligned Hangover Part III, she's always been able to make audiences laugh. Yet, it seems as if she has relied on this fact alone as of late. Identity Thief and Tammy were two awful, boring and completely unoriginal films. It was with these films in mind that I walked into a screening of Spy, and was completely blown away. Not only is this the funniest film of McCarthy's career, it's on track to be the best comedy of 2015. 
     As we've seen with Bridesmaids and The Heat, the duo of Fieg and McCarthy is a comically explosive one. Spy is no different. The audience is introduced to Susan Cooper, (McCarthy), a docile, kind and helpful desk agent at the CIA. Her job consists of helping Agent Bradley Fine, (Jude Law), stay alive in the field, via information gathering and satellite monitoring. Along with her best friend Nancy, (Miranda Hart), Cooper dreams of being a field agent and falling into the loving arms of Agent Fine. It's only when ruthless heiress Rayna Boyanov, (Rose Byrne), follows her criminal father's footsteps, murders Fine, and leaks the personal information of the CIA's top agents that Cooper is forced to take action. With her fellow agents compromised, Cooper must track down Boyanov and stop her from taking any more CIA agents' lives. 
     Spy films, and spy comedies no less, are a dime a dozen. Austin Powers, I Spy, Spy Hard, and even the recent Kingsman: The Secret Service, all have their place in the pantheon of spy spoofs and satires. What sets Feig's film apart is it's willingness to skewer itself versus other spy films. It doesn't spend time mocking the formulaic trappings of the Bond films, or trying to be an Austin Powers clone. Like the best comedians, Spy constantly uses self depreciating humour. To the absolutely gut busting one liners of Jason Statham's Agent Rick Ford, (Statham might have a new career in comedy after his turn in Spy), to the razor sharp one liners from McCarthy's Cooper, Spy is the rare comedy  where the comedic team has thrown everything they can at the wall to see what sticks, and it all does. It's a perfect mix of unadulterated R-Rated, (by the MPAA), comedy, with a delectable swirl of smart writing and brilliant improvisation. 
     As the old saying goes, 'there is beauty in simplicity.' Feig, along with his muse McCarthy, have created a simply hilarious film. Here's hoping this isn't their last. 

Grant's Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

Jason Statham & Melissa McCarthy in Spy: "Real Spy"

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hard Core Logo

-
Image
Hard Core Logo  (1996) A Review by Grant Kanigan Directed by: Bruce McDonald Written by: Noel S. Baker, based on                   Michael Turner's novel Starring: Hugh Dillon,  Callum Keith Rennie,                 Bruce McDonald Rating: 14A Release Date: October 25th, 1996 Hugh Dillon and Callum Keith Rennie in Hard Core Logo © Copyright 1996 - Miramax Films - All rights reserved.       Hard Core Logo  is essential Canadian cinema - a mockumentary, in the cruelest sense of the word - this is the film Guy Maddin has been trying to make his entire career, (Maddin's somewhat similar  My Winnipeg was whimsical as well as funny, but ultimately pointless and meandering). Bruce McDonald's punk-opus is not only essential canuck cinema, but quintessential punk rock cinema. No film before or since has so perfectly captured the rebel-without-a-cause spirit and devil may care attitude.        Hard Core Logo follows the eponymous band on their last ever tou
Read more

I Am Not Your Negro

-
Image
I Am Not Your Negro (2017) Directed by : Raoul Peck Written by : Raoul Peck, based on  James Baldwin's writings Starring : James Baldwin, narrated  by Samuel L. Jackson Rating : 14A Release Date : February 24th, 2017 A protester exercises his free speech as a police officer looks on in a still from I Am Not Your Negro Image Source      "The story of the negro in America is the story of... America," says James Baldwin, in an archived interview. When I Am Not Your Negro  was released slowly throughout 2016 and to general audiences in 2017, James Baldwin had been dead for thirty years; he died of stomach cancer in 1987. Yet, the cancerous roots of racial hatred, slavery and institutional bias have only dug deeper and deeper into the heart of American society. A quick search on whatever search engine you use, reveals seemingly endless factsheets , articles ,  and staggering injustices like the fact "the vast majority of [U.S.] counties arrest blacks at a
Read more

Wonder Woman

-
Image
Wonder Woman (2017) Directed by : Patty Jenkins Written by : Allen Heinberg, based on a story by Jason Fuchs, Allan Heinberg & Zack Snyder, based upon  William Moulton Marston's comic Starring : Gal Gadot, Chris Pine,  Robin Wright, Connie Nielsen Rating : PG Release Date : June 2, 2017 Gal Gadot finds a target in Wonder Woman Image Source      In a whirlwind year where fascism has seemed to once again rear it's ugly head, there's been a lot to be angry, frightened or simply stunned about. However, as with all things, there's always a silver lining. With the rise of xenophobia, sexism, racism and calls to violence in the United States, there's been a much larger resistance to it, with lawyers fleeing to help refugees, free of charge, at airports, protests in solidarity with black lives matter movements, and even pro-sports companies, (notoriously anti -political), standing out against hate. What a welcome surprise, then, that in a year of bip
Read more