Spy – We Are Movie Geeks

OSS 117 Returns in a New 2 Disc BluRay set

En garde, worldwide enemies of France, along with all freedom-loving people! Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath AKA super-agent OSS 117 is on the case! Actually, he’s on two cases as a pair of his deadliest missions is now available in a nifty ultra-cool double BluRay gift set. Yes, I know Santa “made the scene” over a week ago, but if you’re wondering what to do with your gift cards or return credits, well…

First, let’s crack open the dossier file on this operative. The character springs from a series of novels begun by writer Jean Bruce, beating Ian Fleming’s 007 by six years. Of course, the movie studios beckoned, and a movie franchise premiered in 1957 and concluded in 1970. Ah, but you can’t keep a good spy down. Five years before they teamed on the Oscar-winning THE ARTIST, director/co-writer Michel Hazanavicius and star Jean Dujardin re-imagined the hero as a slapstick and often clueless oaf. The inspiration for the 21st-century incarnation is of course OG superspy Sean Connery’s Bond, along with touches of James Coburn’s Derek Flint and Dean Martin’s Matt Helm. However, most current audiences may compare him to Maxwell Smart (Don Adams and Steve Carell) and Mike Meyer’s Austin Powers.

The major difference from the last two agent’s exploits is the filmmaker’s expert mimicking of the look and style of the spy genre of the 60s. For instance, in the first parody flick from 2006, OSS 117: CAIRO, NEST OF SPIES, which is set in 1955, there are lots of rear-projection sequences, day-for-night photography, and bright “pulp novel” color (except for the black and white WWII flashback prologue). Dujardin is the perfect sexist equal opportunity offender in his slick-tailored suits accented by his goofball grin and expert comic timing. He’s sent to Cairo to track down the killers of an old pal. And for the romantic subplot, he’s paired with future THE ARTIST co-star Berenice Bejo as a tough Arab operative.

And on the second disc we jump ahead to swingin’ 1967 for OSS 117: LOST IN RIO, as Hubert heads to “warmer climes” to make a payoff (cash for a list of French Nazi colluders). The colors are still eye-popping reflecting the “mod” look (lots of hippies). Plus there’s a great nod to that era’s multi-image, split-screen storytelling ala THE THOMAS CROWN AFFAIR, not to mention the use of footage from a 50s classic, a Hitchcock-inspired finale, and Matt Helm himself, Dean Martin, crooning on the soundtrack. Hubert hasn’t become more enlightened with time as he clashes with another beautiful female spy, this time from Mossad, played by Louise Monot while eluding former Nazis, vengeful Asian assassins, lucha libre goons, and an American CIA contact who mumbles English language expletive-laden insults.

Now, the gorgeous BluRay transfers should be enough to satisfy any spy parody fans. Ah, but that’s not all you get! Each disc is jam-packed with fantastic extras. There are deleted and alternate scenes, bloopers, feature commentaries, photo galleries, teasers, trailers, and “making of” docs. Actually, the second disc has a bit more as we’re with the cast as they descend upon cinemas running sneak previews and has a very funny on-set profile of star Dujardin. It’s hours of sublime entertainment. And it would look great next to a heart-shaped box of Valentine’s Day candy, or it could easily fit into an Easter basket of goodies. Magnifique, Monseuir OSS 117!

THE PIGEON TUNNEL – Review

If it is true that to be a great writer, you need an unusual childhood, then the great spy novelist John LeCarre may be Exhibit A. Or so it seems in this fascinating documentary by Errol Morris, THE PIGEON TUNNEL.

Errol Morris, one of the most creative, compelling documentarians ever, turns his camera on perhaps the greatest spy novelist ever, John LeCarre, in the documentary THE PIGEON TUNNEL. The British writer and former spy who uses the pen name John LeCarre, but whose real name was David Cornwell, has turned out a remarkable string of spy novels, nearly all of which became bestsellers. From The Spy Who Came Into The Cold onward, John LeCarre has thrilled readers with spy novels that have the intriguing ring of real spy craft to them, unlike the James Bond adventurer type, transforming the genre of espionage novels.

“The Pigeon Tunnel” is the name of John LeCarre’s (aka David Cornwell’s) 2016 autobiography but it is also the place-holder name he used for his spy novels before they had their final titles. Near the beginning of the Errol Morris’ excellent documentary THE PIGEON TUNNEL, LeCarre related a rather chilling story about the origin of that phrase, a tale in which privileged guests at a grand Monaco hotel use a seaside-facing balcony to shoot at pigeons as they emerged from a tunnel, an entertainment arranged by the hotel, something young Cornwell says he witnessed while staying at the hotel with his free-spending gambler father Ronald “Ronnie” Cornwell, and one that illustrates a certain sense of cold entitlement and his lack of feeling.

Documentarian Errol Morris spoke with John LeCarre in an interview that ranged over four days in 2019. LeCarre is charming, cordial, erudite and often smiling, as he talks about his books and his work in secret intelligence, and most especially about his father Ronnie Cornwell, a charming swindler and gambler who was always in debt and sometimes in trouble with the law. LeCarre’s mother abandoned the family when he was five, leaving him and his older brother with his unreliable, philandering father. Growing up with such a father, truth was a stranger in their lives and his father involved his sons in his cons. When not in trouble with the law, Ronnie rubbed elbows with the upper crust and spent freely. There was little affection. It was a childhood that could not have been more unusual.

While LeCarre recounts his tales, Errol Morris works his signature magic, with actors re-enacting some parts of LeCarre’s life, particularly his youth and young adulthood, sequences so good you are drawn into them like drama and a bit surprised when you come back to the white-haired man in the room. We also get archival stills and shots of newspaper clippings, often headlines about Ronnie’s arrests or financial scandals. There are extended clips from films based on LeCarre’s books, primarily THE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD and the British TV adaptation of the Smiley series of novels, starting with TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY.

While Errol Morris weaves his magic with archival materials, John LeCarre is filmed in ways that suit the spy tales or stories of growing up as the son of a conman. The shot is often cocked, a Dutch angle, and shooting into a room through a doorway or with eerie green light adds a sense of mystery. LeCarre never loses his temper, never raises his voice and only rarely looks even uncomfortable. With a few exceptions, like when he talks about his own father’s attempt to con him out of money, LeCarre is calm and collected, personable and polite – a charmer to the last.

But LeCarre begins the interview with a touch of wariness, quizzing director/interviewer Errol Morris about his “intentions” for the interview and asking how he should regard him – friend, adversary? When Morris replies that he honestly doesn’t know, and repeats it, LeCarre seems to relax as it satisfied with the vague answer. It sets a strange tone for all that follows, with us always wondering what is going on in his head,. behind the congenial smile. About recruiting spies, LeCarre describes how the British secret intelligence service looked for “boys who were a little bit bad but who were loyal,” those who had separated from family early by going to boarding school and has an early Independence – all of which he acknowledged described him perfectly.

As the two talk, the background sometimes shifts, from a library to a room with a large table and vertical windows. We see only LeCarre, although we sometimes hear Morris, as LeCarre talks about his books, his work in secret intelligence and especially about his childhood and his relationship with this unreliable father.

The one thing he seems to have done right, was seeing that his sons had good educations at public schools and went on to Oxford. The plan was for young David to be a lawyer but instead he studied modern languages, with the support of his tutor Vivian Green. Then MI5 came calling and espionage entered the picture.

John LeCarre’s spy novels were strikingly different from the James Bond adventure tales, with the feel of real spy craft and cerebral, coolly calculating cat-and-mouse games between adversaries on opposite sides of the Cold War. It was a revelation that transformed espionage novels. and led to a string of bestsellers and movies based on them.

All this adds up to a fascinating tour of the world of John LeCarre, his strange childhood, his days at Oxford where he studied modern languages and was recruited to spy for MI5, and his time with MI5 (British domestic security) and MI6 (international) during the Cold War that he wrote about so well. Blended with the excellent recreations and the archival footage and stills, and we feel completely immersed in John LeCarre’s world, fictional and not, always with the little hint of secrets still kept.

It is a world that LeCarre fans, like this writer, won’t want to leave. But leave we must, as the film comes to an end and we are left with the knowledge that is was LeCarre’s last interview before his death in 2020. But is was fascinating while it lasted, much like LeCarre’s always smart and nuanced spy novels.

PIGEON TUNNEL is available streaming only on Apple+ starting Friday, Oct. 20.

RATING: 4 out of 4 stars

“Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan” Season 4 – TV Series Review

*John Krasinski as Jack Ryan, in “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan” TV series, Season 4. Courtesy of Amazon*

“Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan” Season 4 brings another batch of challenges for the eponymous CIA super-agent who headlined a series of novels by Tom Clancy before starring in successful films, and, since 2018, three season of streaming adventures. This next season draws the TV series to a close with this fourth and (for now, at least) final season-long, globe-trotting thriller. Fans of any or all of the preceding Jack Ryan iterations will not be disappointed with John Krasinski’s continuing portrayal of their hero, or the six-episode plot-line he navigates.

As usual, there’s a huge conspiracy afoot threatening the world we know, with the action alternating among far-flung arenas of action, and plenty of questions as to who (other than Ryan) is on which side of the crisis. The series opens by showing Jack being subjected to “enhanced interrogation,” then jumping back three weeks as it progresses to and beyond that point. Several characters from the first three seasons return for this new challenge. One newcomer, veteran character actor Michael Pena, turns in what may rank among his best performances.

No more about the plot. What you need to know is that if you haven’t watched the first three seasons (still streaming on Prime), you won’t fully appreciate the characters and their motivations, even though this is a stand-alone story. No expense was spared on locations, sets or effects in this top-quality production. The first three episodes are longer on talk than action but that ratio reverses in the second half of the season.

Finally, since the initial release is only the first two episodes with the rest coming in pairs over the following two weeks, you might keep everything straight more easily by waiting until they’re all in hand for one big ol’ binge. If your memory and concentration are better than mine – very likely common among Clancy buffs – you may do fine piecemeal. For me, the chance to stream them all in a one-day spy-fest splurge helped considerably in keeping track of who’s who and what’s what in this complex web of plotting, counter-measures, facades and shifting loyalties. All in all, the popular series bows out on a high note, with no one likely to think they stayed too long at the party.

“Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan” Season 4 starts streaming on Amazon Prime on Friday, June 30, with the first two episodes, followed by two more on July 7 and 14.

RATING: 3.5 out of 4 stars

THE SPY BEHIND HOME PLATE – Review

Most fans of film (especially comedies) may recall this quick three or four-second gag (really, this flick is jam-packed with them) from that iconic 1980 comic smash AIRPLANE. The stewardess is walking up the center aisle, clutching a load of magazines. Spotting a white-haired grandmotherly-type she asks, “Would you care for something to read?” “Do you have anything light?” “How about ‘Famous Jewish Sports Legends’?”. Then Julie Haggerty hands the elderly passenger a very thin (maybe a folded page) leaflet. Got a pretty good chuckle back then (it’s not the “surely Shirley” bit, but…). Well, the subject of this new documentary feature is worthy of a thick book (and he has). It’s a life full of drama and danger, about a man of such varied interests, he could be the hero of a thriller. And he was, in last year’s THE CATCHER WAS A SPY, played by Ant-Man himself, Paul Rudd, no less. So many historical figures and celebrities crossed path with this man, you’d think he might have inspired ZELIG. But no, major league baseball player Mo Berg was very real. And unbeknownst to most of his teammates, and family, he was THE SPY BEHIND HOME PLATE.

Berg’s life is an amazing story, enough for a series of films or a long TV mini-series. He was born to Ukranian Jewish immigrants in 1902. He had a knack for sports (which pharmacist poppa Bernard discouraged) and played baseball at gentile schools under the name “Runty” Wolfe (sounds like the hero of a sports comic strip). Moe studied law, much to his father’s delight, at Princeton, and was one of their baseball team’s standouts (he’d say he was a great “glove-man”, but not much of a hitter). He was recruited by the Brooklyn Robins (later the Dodgers), and begin a pro career that took him to the Chicago White Sox (where he had to choose between law and baseball), the Washington Senators, and the Boston Red Sox. In school, Moe learned a dozen languages, which came in handy when he was part of a baseball goodwill tour in Japan (the sport was getting very popular there). But he was the only member of the group to get a letter from the state department awarding him “diplomatic courtesy”. This aided him when he shot “undercover” 16 mm footage of Tokyo from the top of St. Luke’s Hospital (this was in 1934 as Japan was building up their military). In between trips and cruises around the globe, Moe was a frequent contestant on the radio quiz show “Information Please”, sort of a Jeopardy precursor. Later, when the US entered WWII, Moe was recruited by the Office of Strategic Services (OSS later the CIA), along with many civilians and some celebrities, to be an undercover operative in Europe. As the war neared its end, Moe followed the European scientific community to find out just how much progress Germany was making towards nuclear weapons. His “double life’ was more thrilling than a doubleheader.

How’s that old expression go? If somebody thought this up it would be dismissed as ridiculous or far-fetched. Yes, truth is stranger and perhaps more improbable than fiction, at least when it relates to Mr. Berg. Director/screenwriter Aviva Kempner keeps his “cradle to grave” story rolling at a brisk speed (perhaps faster than Berg’s slow trot to first base, according to sportswriters of the day), making ample use of family photos, archival footage (those bustling streets filled to the brim with vendors just outside those towering tenements), interviews (especially Moe’s older brother Sam), new interviews with baseball players, managers, and historians, and period pop music (lots of big band standards). They reveal many surprises. Father Bernard never saw Moe play baseball (Sam shows us how his pop with spit in disgust at the mere mention of the sport), while Mama Rose would scoop up neighbors to join her at the ballpark. Plus there’s film and new stories about Moe’s more famous acquaintances. He’s on the Japan tour with Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth (seems that Moe was quite taken with Ruth’s 18-year-old daughter, unlike the “sexually fluid” Berg of the Paul Rudd movie). We get to hear Moe dazzle radio audiences with his knowledge (a “book smart jock”). As war approaches, Kempner tells us of the influence of British intelligence on the OSS, mainly via several meetings with Ian Fleming (yes, of 007 fame). On his advice, the OSS goes after citizens like Berg and Marlene Dietrich (she cut records that had anti-Nazi messages). To help illustrate the US spy efforts, clips from then-current Hollywood films are intercut (there’s Alan Ladd and Gary Cooper). The only time the doc stumbles is the detour into the race for nuclear power. Retellings of the Manhatten Project and Werner Heisenberg (hey “Breaking Bad” fans) take several precious minutes away from the journey of Berg. Luckily the film gets “back on track” as it tells of that scientist’s near assassination by Berg (see the Rudd flick for more focus on that). This is another astounding tale of the “greatest generation”, one with more detours and twists than any five Hollywood true spy thrillers. History really comes alive in THE SPY BEHIND HOME PLATE. It doesn’t hit one out of the park, but it’s a solid triple, and so it gets….

3 Out of 4 Stars

THE SPY BEHIND HOME PLATE opens everywhere and screens exclusively in St. Louis at Landmark’s Plaza Frontenac Cinemas

BEIRUT – Review

***Jon Hamm (foreground) and Rosamund Pike, in BEIRUT. Photo courtesy of Bleeker Street.***

Jon Hamm finally gets the leading man role he has long deserved, in the Middle East-set thriller BEIRUT. It should have happened long ago for the former St. Louisan, based on his unforgettable turn in MAD MEN, if nothing else.

Hamm is excellent as Mason Skiles, a one-time U.S diplomat stationed in Lebanon whose life was upended by tragedy but is reluctantly pulled back into service to negotiate the release of his former colleague and best friend Cal Riley (Mark Pellegrino) who is being held hostage by Palestinian terrorists. Hamm’s strong performance is the primary reason to see this thriller, which does not finish as strong as it starts. Still, Hamm is good enough to make the film still worth seeing.

BEIRUT opens in a peaceful, idyllic Beirut in 1972, where skilled diplomat Mason Skiles (Hamm) is working the room of a party he and his wife are hosting. The party is barely underway when his friend Cal (Mark Pellegrino), an embassy staffer and covert CIA operative, arrives with disturbing news that concerns Karim (Yoau Saian Rosenberg), the 13-year-old Lebanese orphan the couple have virtually adopted. Events suddenly take a violent turn and end in tragedy for Skiles.

A decade later, Skiles has left the diplomatic service and is working as a union negotiator, when he is not drinking himself into oblivion. Nonetheless, the CIA arrives to press him into service again, to negotiate the release of his old friend Cal, who has been kidnapped by Palestinian terrorists hoping to trade him for one of their leaders. Skiles’ particular skill set is needed to win Cal’s freedom.

Skiles returns to a very different Beirut, one at war and in rubble. Briefed by embassy official Donald Gaines (Dean Norris) and assigned to work with CIA operative Sandy Crowder (Rosamund Pike), Skiles has to work through his own demons while trying to save his friend.

Hamm is excellent in this film, and the main reason to see the film. The film is directed by Brad Anderson with a script by writer-producer Tony Gilroy. Gilroy wrote the script for the BOURNE IDENTITY and MICHAEL CLAYTON. Although this is a spy thriller, it feels closer to MICHAEL CLAYTON, with a shadowy world of intrigue, more a John LeCarre spy novel than a Bourne action spy thriller.

Hamm creates a complex character, dealing with a lot of emotional baggage and bad history while applying his skills as a negotiator to the task for which he has been pressed into service. All the emotional connection the audience feels is centered on this character. None of the rest of the cast get the chance to develop the same depth to their characters or get the same resonance with viewers.

Hamm is excellent in this twisty spy thriller, but one wished the film itself was better. BEIRUT is so busy being twisty that it ties itself into knots, Gordian ones. While Hamm delivers the goods, one wishes the film he was in was as good has he is. After a promising start, the thriller seems to lose some steam once it returns to war-torn Lebanon. We see the devastated city and the heartbreaking impact that has on Skiles but while we get a sense of its chaos, there is little on the issues or human drama at play in the rubble. The problem is that BEIRUT raises issues in the political fraught Middle East but then only touches gingerly on them. The Palestinian, Lebanese and Israeli characters are all two-dimensional, something that has caused some offense, and the conflict serves mostly as just backdrop for Skiles’ personal journey.

Which is a shame, since there is much to say about the region, its conflicts and U.S. policy, besides being rich ground for complex, thoughtful political thrillers. There was so much more that could have been said in BEIRUT, but Jon Hamm is a strong enough actor to make the thriller work.

BEIRUT opens Wednesday, April 11, at Plaza Frontenac.

RATING: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES – Review

How’d that beloved tune from the “pre-fab four” go? “Another Pleasant Valley Sunday, here in status-symbol land”. Well, they might’ve been crooning about the locale of this new comedy. Everybody’s lawn is perfect, right out of AMERICAN BEAUTY. Maybe even “picture perfect”, but more than a bit dull. Some of the residents perhaps secretly hope that things will get shaken up a tad. Ah, be careful what you wish for, so goes the old saying. That’s what happened in the final John Belushi/Dan Aykroyd team-up in 1981, NEIGHBORS. But instead of that off-kilter, way-too friendly couple, the new arrivals bore more than a passing resemblance to MR. & MRS. SMITH (not the Hitchcock comedy, but the first pairing of Pitt and Jolie). That’s the premise, as two “normals” risk life and limb when they’re KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES.

The Gaffneys, Karen (Isla Fisher) and Jeff (Zach Gallifianakis), seem to be living the “American dream”. They’ve got two pre-teen boys and live in cozy two-story home in an up-scale cul-de-sac. Karen takes care of said home, while running a part-time interior design biz from the study. Jeff, like many of his neighbors, works at a big local aeronautics company. He heads the human resources department in one of the more popular offices. That’s because he has internet access (too many sensitive government projects are going on upstairs, so no web surfing). The Gaffneys are contemplating a romantic Summer when they load their boys into a bus bound for camp. As they clumsily try to heat things up (if ya’ know what I mean), a moving van pulls into the driveway of the empty house across the street. New neighbors! And quite a glamorous duo, it’s the Joneses, travel writer Tim (Jon Hamm) and food blogger Natalie (Gal Gadot). They soon pay the Gaffneys a visit, even bringing them a hand-crafted gift. Jeff develops a bit of a “man crush” on Tim, but Karen’s radar is activated. Something’s just not right about them. Tim just “happens” to run into Jeff and invites him to lunch where Tim is way too interested in Jeff’s routine job (and his co-workers). During a late night exploration of the Jones house, the Gaffneys discover a room full of surveillance tech and gadgets. Could they be spies? And who are there bosses? This could make things very awkward at the next block party!

“Huzzah!” and a hardy, heartfelt “Welcome back!” to Ms. Fisher, who has been absent from screens for three years (there was a cameo in her hubby’s THE BROTHERS GRIMSBY a few months ago). In her first major role since 2013’s LIFE OF CRIME, she is the story’s instigator, the person who really puts the events in motion. Fisher’s a great comic partner for Galifianakis, but also marvelous when she’s intimidated by Gadot in the big changing room scene (showcased in the trailers and TV ads). While her hubby goes into panic mode after a big chase/shoot-out, Karen is invigorated even getting a case of the “munchies”. This is a spirited energetic comic performance, perhaps her best work since her break-out role in (no!) 2005’s WEDDING CRASHERS. As for her on-screen hubby, Galifianakis is much more grounded than he was in the very recent dud MASTERMINDS, making Jeff less of an outlandish cartoon, more of a sometimes goofy, bewildered “guy next door” (maybe a distant, less fanatical cousin of Ned Flanders from TV’s “The Simpsons”). Yes, he’s got a weird fascination with home beer brewing and indoor sky-diving, but Jeff’s a dependable “Joe”, who’s pretty clumsy, but aways sees the best in people. Still, he’s yearning for something…

That yearning is somehow fulfilled by Hamm, who’s doing more than a riff on Bond. He treads a delicate line as Tim, who is engaged in a dance of seduction with Jeff in order to get needed intel. The surprise (especially for Tim) is that the funny, little fellow answers his own yearning for a human connection. The tough (always has a 5 o’clock shadow) agent really just wants a pal. Hamm has finally gotten a film role that allows him to shed the ultra-cool brooding Don Draper of “Mad Men”, while exercising his comic chops and flexing an action-hero swagger. Besides caring about Jeff, Tim is crazy about his wife played by new movie Wonder Woman Gadot as super model/assassin, deadly and gorgeous. Her Natalie is all business, and is genuinely stunned that her partner/hubby develops feelings for the “squares”. Her line delivery is more subtle and calculating, as in the aforementioned scene with Fisher. Natalie is playing with Karen, as a cat plays with a trapped mouse. Her explaining her accent by telling everybody that she’s from Greece (like a certain warrior princess) is a nice touch. As precise as Hamm’s Tim is, he barely holds his own while battling by her side. The great supporting cast includes several actors from the acclaimed HBO comedy “Veep”, namely Matt Walsh as Jeff’s neighbor/co-worker, Kevin Dunn as the company security chief, and another of the show’s guest stars in a most unexpected role.

Feature comedy director Greg Mottola (SUPERBAD, ADVENTURELAND, PAUL) deftly guides this terrific ensemble, keeping the story flowing, and happily avoiding that deadly lull at the one-hour mark that derails many a funny flick. Michael LeSieur’s clever script delivers big laughs while making these characters feel real, never mere gag props. He also provides several great set pieces aside from the shoot-out and dressing room scenes. A lunch at a secret, exotic eatery is a true “gut-buster” (some entrees can bite back). Despite its PG-13 rating, this is a fairly adult story, but one that doesn’t depend on a barrage of “F-bombs” to prop up the plot. And hey, the best jokes aren’t in the trailer (just as with the new GHOSTBUSTERS and WAR DOGS), and it’s well under two hours (somebody knows how to edit!). You’ll have a most entertaining time watching and KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES.

4 Out of 5

Listen to This Week’s ‘WE ARE MOVIE GEEKS The Show’ Podcast

The second episode of our podcast WE ARE MOVIE GEEKS The Show is up and ready for you to listen to. Hear WAMG’s Michelle McCue, Jim Batts and Tom Stockman review the weekend box office hits SPY, INSIDIOUS 3, and ENTOURAGE. This week we also discuss LOVE AND MERCY, DARK STAR; H.R. GIGER’S WORLD, SAINT LAURENT, the Grindhouse Trailer we watched at last weekend’s Late Night Grindhouse, the upcoming Blu-ray release of THE GIANT SPIDER INVASION and much much more. WE ARE MOVIE GEEKS The Show is a weekly podcast and we will soon be streaming at ONStl.com Online Radio.

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Here’s our second show. Have a listen:

Melissa McCarthy’s SPY Gets A Mondo Poster And Fun Gifs

The hilarious SPY, from director Paul Feig, is on track to take the number one spot at this weekend’s box office.

20th Century Fox has announced that their new comedy is currently Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. In honor of opening day, the studio is debuting a new Mondo poster and some fun gifs.

Susan Cooper (Melissa McCarthy) is an unassuming, deskbound CIA analyst, and the unsung hero behind the Agency’s most dangerous missions. But when her partner (Jude Law) falls off the grid and another top agent (Jason Statham) is compromised, she volunteers to go deep undercover to infiltrate the world of a deadly arms dealer, and prevent a global disaster.

The film also features Rose Byrne, Bobby Cannavale, Allison Janney, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, and Miranda Hart.

Read Tom Stockman’s review here: https://www.wearemoviegeeks.com/2015/06/spy-review/

SPY is in theaters now.

McCarthy was recently seen starring in The Weinstein Company’s ST. VINCENT and in TAMMY which she co-wrote with her actor/writer husband Ben Falcone, who also served as the film’s director. She also starred in Fox’s THE HEAT opposite Sandra Bullock for Feig, Universal’s IDENTITY THIEF alongside Jason Bateman, Universal’s THIS IS 40 for Director Judd Apatow, and Todd Phillip’s THE HANGOVER PART I

McCarthy’s upcoming films include the Dreamworks animated comedy B.O.O.: BUREAU OF OTHERWORLDLY OPERATIONS opposite Seth Rogen and MICHELLE DARNELLE (2016).

Feig’s most recent films include the buddy cop comedy THE HEAT starring Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy, which grossed over $220 million globally and the hit comedy BRIDESMAIDS starring Kristen Wiig, Rose Byrne, Maya Rudolph, Melissa McCarthy and Jon Hamm.

Feig and McCarthy will team up again for the recently announced GHOSTBUSTERS reboot.

http://www.foxmovies.com/movies/spy

SPY – The Review

Director Paul Feig, whose BRIDESMAIDS upended notions of what a raunchy female ensemble comedy could be, does it again with another genre – the spy spoof. In SPY Melissa McCarthy stars as Susan Cooper, a desk-bound CIA analyst who uses technology to watch the back of her partner, Special Agent Bradley Fine (Jude Law), acting as his eyes and ears to remotely guide him on dangerous espionage endeavors. When he is killed by Raina Boyanov (Rose Byrne), the spoiled criminal daughter of a Bulgarian crime lord that Bradley had killed in the opening scene, Cooper volunteers to be sent to the field to avenge his death. She is assigned the task of following Raina through Europe and reporting back with information about the potential handing over of a nuclear weapon, one only Raina knows the whereabouts of. In disguise, Susan becomes much closer to her target than what had been initially planned, all the while trying to avoid Ford (Jason Statham), an obnoxious rogue CIA agent determined to singlehandedly solve this mission himself. She also has to contend with her assigned disguises, which include old-lady perms, dowdy dresses and T-shirts with cats on them (“I look like someone’s homophobic aunt”).

SPY may have a familiar set-up, but it’s hilarious, with a perfect cast and nonstop zingers that fly so thick and so fast that you’re likely to miss half of them because you’ll be laughing so loudly. SPY is not an Austin Powers-style parody of the secret agent genre, but really a straightforward riff on the James Bond series and director/writer Feig’s affection for all things 007 is clear. He tailors SPY into the template of a classic Bond entry complete with globe-hopping action (Paris, Rome, and Istanbul), a ‘Q’-like gadget master (who conceals gizmos in stool softeners, hemorrhoid wipes, and fungal cream), a scene at a casino, a car chase, and a Shirley Bassey-inspired opening tune played over animated gunplay credits. The plot twists in SPY won’t surprise anyone familiar with the espionage dossier, but Feig is not trying to reinvent the genre but simply to make his audience laugh. Seeing a mostly female-driven farce is something of a relief after years of repetitive Seth Rogen/Will Ferrell/Adam Sandler/Judd Apatow man-child comedies. Jude Law has fun and Jason Statham is a riot spoofing his image but SPY is notable for its roster of funny women in solid roles. McCarthy is defter and more empowered than usual (and with a mouth that would make Samuel L. Jackson blush). They’ve dialed down the usual laugh-at-the-fat-chick gags and the actress seems more than game for the physical stuff. Watch in amazement at what she does with a frying pan in a show-stopping kitchen battle. McCarthy is a big presence who needs a foil, and Rose Byrne is more than good enough. Though they don’t begin to interact until halfway in, the pair has perfect, aggressive timing and the films best moments are the hilarious and vulgar banter that fly between them (“what are you, a slutty dolphin trainer?”). Allison Janney is a stitch as Susan’s humorless boss with her own rigid ideas about appropriate camouflage and horsey Brit Miranda Hart is a scene-stealer as Susan’s best pal and fellow agent.

SPY is terrific in a lot of ways, and there’s an easy argument to be made that it’s the funniest major American film so far this year purely on the merits of its joke construction and action. It’s crude and rude, its plot is nothing special, and at over two hours it threatens to run out of steam, but its leading ladies strike major comic sparks off each other and I highly recommend SPY.

4 of 5 Stars

Win Passes To The Advance Screening Of SPY In St. Louis – Stars Melissa McCarthy And Jason Statham

Have you ever wondered, “If I was recruited as a spy and sent on a mission, how might I react?”

In the new movie SPY, Susan Cooper (Melissa McCarthy) is an unassuming, deskbound CIA analyst, and the unsung hero behind the Agency’s most dangerous missions. But when her partner (Jude Law) falls off the grid and another top agent (Jason Statham) is compromised, she volunteers to go deep undercover to infiltrate the world of a deadly arms dealer, and prevent a global disaster.

Directed and written by Paul Feig, SPY also stars Rose Byrne, Bobby Cannavale, Miranda Hart, Allison Janney and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson.

From 20th Century Fox, the comedy opens nationwide on June 5, 2015.

WAMG invites you to enter for a chance to win passes (Good for 2) to the advance screening of SPY on June 2nd at 7PM in the St. Louis area.

We will contact the winners by email.

Answer the following:

Being a big fan of espionage movies, writer-director Paul Feig said he wanted SPY, “to have the tone of a spy film, but still be as funny as we could make it.”

Given the choice, would you want to play the “spy” or the “villain” in a movie? and why?

TO ENTER, ADD YOUR NAME, ANSWER AND EMAIL IN OUR COMMENTS SECTION BELOW.

OFFICIAL RULES:

1. YOU MUST BE IN THE ST. LOUIS AREA THE DAY OF THE SCREENING.

2. A pass does not guarantee a seat at a screening. Seating is on a first-come, first served basis. The theater is overbooked to assure a full house. The theater is not responsible for overbooking.

3. No purchase necessary.

This film has been rated R for language throughout, violence and some sexual content including brief graphic nudity.

SITE: http://spy-themovie.com/
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TWITTER: https://twitter.com/SpyTheMovie
GOOGLE+: plus.google.com/+SpyMovie/
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OFFICIAL HASHTAG: #SpyMovie

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