Teaming up again to bring R-rated, raunchy comedy to the big screen are the talented duo behind 2011’s “Bridesmaids,” director-screenwriter Paul Feig and his muse, Melissa McCarthy. But with “Spy,” they both venture into territory they haven’t set foot on — action via 007- and Bourne-like espionage.
Feig takes these two formulas and produces a well-mixed blend of action-comedy that’s appetizing enough for those who are fans of both genres, while also working without one or the other.
“Spy” throws McCarthy into the mix as CIA field operative Susan Cooper. But before that, Susan’s only a desk-bound analyst who guides her partner, Agent Bradley Fine (Jude Law), through his missions — as displayed in the film’s intense, and extremely hilarious, opening minutes.
It’s not until one of the organization’s targets, Rayna Boyanov (Rose Byrne), acquires the names of all undercover agents does McCarthy and her onscreen counterpart get the opportunity to do what she’s always wanted — kick ass.
And kick ass she does. Apparently Susan, despite being just an analyst, has been hiding a lot of physical and intuitive talent that makes her more than ready for the field. What is it with government analysts being more than just analysts? (Jeremy Renner’s character in “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol” would be another case of I’m Really Not Just An Analyst.)
For a while now it seems, McCarthy has been typecasted as the bumbling, or excessively aggressive, nitwit, and while “Spy” does take some time to allow McCarthy to shine like she truly should, the results are worth the wait. It’s a different role for her, and it makes us wonder why she’s never been given the opportunity to do what she wanted to do sooner.
Fortunately, the same goes for the rest of “Spy’s” A-list cast — Byrne is perfectly sassy and equally lethal, Law is suitably dapper and wonderfully charming and Jason Statham is having the time of his life has hothead agent Rick Ford.
Seriously, Statham’s chops as a comedic actor have never been so legitimately tested as they were in “Spy.” His skills in alt-driven comedy — a variation of improv — should come to no surprise, as Statham spent a good deal of his time before appearing on big screens around the world selling jewelry and watches on the streets of London.
All those years of quick wits have paid off as the now actor provides some of “Spy’s” most entertaining moments. Think of Rick Ford as a spoof of every other action hero, or villain, Statham’s played onscreen — whether that’d be the Transporter or Deckard Shaw in the recent “Furious 7.”
It would have been nice to see more of him, but what we get is more than satisfying — all eyes are now interested in what this surprising strike of English comedic gold is up to next.
Also showing a lot of promise, is Feig’s ability to direct action. Because no matter how much improv “Spy” throws at you, it’s very much an action flick as much as it is comedy. I’d even go as far as saying it’s more of the former — the laughs are just incentives.
Feig’s writing even provides enough character progression — not a biblical amount, just enough — and plot originality to keep the agents rolling and somersaulting their way out of critics’ crosshairs with ease.
What Feig didn’t write is where problems, what little problems “Spy” has, start to appear. There are times when the alt-driven humor goes a joke, or more, too far, sometimes prompting groans of, “Just get on with it” — Exhibit A including a bar scene with Susan and her friend Nancy (Miranda Hart).
“Spy” is funny. There’s no doubt about it. It’s also filled with action-packed fun. But “Spy’s” also sprinkled with graphic, sometimes excessive, violence.
While it’s not completely contributive to its accurately-earned R-rating — that honor goes to the profanity — it’s quite explicit, dissolving throats and all. It’s not as glorified or dark, as it shouldn’t be, but “Spy” takes the violence and attempts to turn it into a sort of joke the audience isn’t quite in on.
Although it’s not as cartoonish, or gory, as what’s in Matthew Vaughn’s “Kick-Ass” or his recent “Kingsman: The Secret Service” even.
It’s just there. And it can be brutal.
Feig also does the courtesy of lingering on those shots, that definitely aren’t meant for the easily appalled, just long enough for them to burn into your memory.
That aside, “Spy” still manages to be a thoroughly entertaining flick that rightfully showcases its ensemble cast in roles they’ve never really tackled, and the result is, for the most part, a tremendous success.
I will say, however, that Byrne’s character showed a lot of promise as a cold and calculating CIA target up until the ending of the first act, when she starts to suddenly transform into an idiotic diva one moment and, in the next, she’s back to the cunning, stone-cold killer she was thirty minutes ago.
Yet all of those nitpicks are very minor flaws to Feig’s otherwise ambitious take on the genre.
He isn’t afraid to make those jokes, and he isn’t afraid to shed some blood. “Spy” gives you a smorgasbord of jokes, well-directed action and, most importantly, an opportunity for variety and new possibilities for its stars and a guaranteed well-spent ticket at your local theater.