My Spy
Year: 2020
Director: Peter Segal
Starring: Dave Bautista, Chloe Coleman, Parisa Fitz-Henley & Kristen Schaal
Runtime: 102 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 06/08/20
Director: Peter Segal
Starring: Dave Bautista, Chloe Coleman, Parisa Fitz-Henley & Kristen Schaal
Runtime: 102 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 06/08/20
COVID-19 certainly has caused a bit of a pickle for me in terms of having new films to review because none of them are coming out! But thankfully some streaming services have been able to get hold of recently released films and provide them as part of your normal subscription. My Spy is one such example of this on Amazon, a film that came out in January, but has been available on the service almost as soon as the film was available to buy on DVD & Blu-Ray.
My Spy is about CIA agent JJ (Dave Bautista) who after botching up a mission gets given one last shot at proving himself by running surveillance on a mother and daughter in Chicago. Kate (Parisa Fitz-Henley) and her daughter Sophie (Chloe Coleman) have recently moved to Chicago from France to escape the criminal life Kate’s former husband was involved with before his death. JJ bugs the apartment in order to see if they know the whereabouts of information regarding nuclear weapons but is in the process caught by Sophie. She bribes him into helping her out with school and making new friends, but after realising that he’s actually a nice guy she tries to set him up with her mother. All the while Kate’s former brother in law Victor is drawing ever closer to Chicago in search of the nuclear plans his brother kept hidden.
I saw plenty of trailers for this film late last year and early into this year and thought about going to see it, but once the UK went into lockdown it was obviously too late to do so. I’m glad I finally got the chance to see it because it was pretty enjoyable actually. Coleman is great as Sophie, she’s got excellent comedic timing, she uses facial expressions brilliantly, and her chemistry with Bautista is great buddy cop material.
Bautista is also good in this film, I have a worrying feeling he might get typecast as the next Dwayne Johnson with some of the films he’s appearing in, but he does comedy well. He can be a little flat in the film when he’s not paired with Coleman, but I think that’s more of an issue with the character of JJ than with Bautista himself because we have seen his capabilities in other films like Guardians of the Galaxy and Blade Runner 2049.
Kristen Schaal plays Bobbi, a CIA tech specialist who is JJ’s partner in the film and I feel like this character was really poorly written. She doesn’t do very much, and when she does it’s played off as some goofy moment. I get the feeling that they wanted her to be something along the lines of Benny (Simon Pegg) in the Mission: Impossible films, but instead it feels like they put Mr. Bean into the mix.
My Spy is about CIA agent JJ (Dave Bautista) who after botching up a mission gets given one last shot at proving himself by running surveillance on a mother and daughter in Chicago. Kate (Parisa Fitz-Henley) and her daughter Sophie (Chloe Coleman) have recently moved to Chicago from France to escape the criminal life Kate’s former husband was involved with before his death. JJ bugs the apartment in order to see if they know the whereabouts of information regarding nuclear weapons but is in the process caught by Sophie. She bribes him into helping her out with school and making new friends, but after realising that he’s actually a nice guy she tries to set him up with her mother. All the while Kate’s former brother in law Victor is drawing ever closer to Chicago in search of the nuclear plans his brother kept hidden.
I saw plenty of trailers for this film late last year and early into this year and thought about going to see it, but once the UK went into lockdown it was obviously too late to do so. I’m glad I finally got the chance to see it because it was pretty enjoyable actually. Coleman is great as Sophie, she’s got excellent comedic timing, she uses facial expressions brilliantly, and her chemistry with Bautista is great buddy cop material.
Bautista is also good in this film, I have a worrying feeling he might get typecast as the next Dwayne Johnson with some of the films he’s appearing in, but he does comedy well. He can be a little flat in the film when he’s not paired with Coleman, but I think that’s more of an issue with the character of JJ than with Bautista himself because we have seen his capabilities in other films like Guardians of the Galaxy and Blade Runner 2049.
Kristen Schaal plays Bobbi, a CIA tech specialist who is JJ’s partner in the film and I feel like this character was really poorly written. She doesn’t do very much, and when she does it’s played off as some goofy moment. I get the feeling that they wanted her to be something along the lines of Benny (Simon Pegg) in the Mission: Impossible films, but instead it feels like they put Mr. Bean into the mix.
Stylistically the film isn’t anything particularly special. The action scenes, what few there are, aren’t particularly engaging. The best one was a car chase towards the end of the film but that’s mostly because it leaned more into the comedy than action. The rest of them have some underwhelming CGI effects and just don’t do a whole lot to get you excited for what you’re witnessing. For kids I’m sure they’ll suffice, but the adults I feel will perhaps want a bit more from them.
It is funny though. The characters and dialogue in this film mesh really well together. Kate’s neighbours, a gay couple that make regular appearances, are very funny and are a delight in every scene they are in. Pair this with the previously stated excellent chemistry between Bautista and Coleman and it’s quite entertaining for the majority of the runtime.
My Spy is a fun family film that whilst certainly lacking in some areas doesn’t damper the overall experience too much. If you’re at home with the kids, then this is a great way to keep everyone happy for an hour and a half. I’d even go so far as saying that I’d certainly be up for a sequel if the studio were to make one just so I could see more of Bautista and Coleman on screen together.
It is funny though. The characters and dialogue in this film mesh really well together. Kate’s neighbours, a gay couple that make regular appearances, are very funny and are a delight in every scene they are in. Pair this with the previously stated excellent chemistry between Bautista and Coleman and it’s quite entertaining for the majority of the runtime.
My Spy is a fun family film that whilst certainly lacking in some areas doesn’t damper the overall experience too much. If you’re at home with the kids, then this is a great way to keep everyone happy for an hour and a half. I’d even go so far as saying that I’d certainly be up for a sequel if the studio were to make one just so I could see more of Bautista and Coleman on screen together.