| Spy Game |
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| Rating: Good Distributor: Universal Pictures MPAA Rating: R Release Date: November 21st, 2001 (wide) Running Length: 2 hours, 5 minutes Genre: Action, Thriller, Political Director: Tony Scott Cast: Robert Redford, Brad Pitt, Catherine McCormack, Stephen Dillane, Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Larry Bryggman. |
| Plot: A CIA agent, Nathan Muir (Robert Redford), is retiring after years of service. However, his x-protege Tom Bishop (Brad Pitt), has gotten himself into trouble. Bishop has been caught in a Chinese prison. Meanwhile, Muir has to find a way to help his friend, while feigning interest in the interviews he is being subjected to by the agency. The agency wants Muir to talk about Bishop's past, but it becomes obvious that they merely want to find a skeleton in Bishop's closet. Unable to help Bishop without risking international disturbance, they instead need a reason to bury their agent. Subsequently, Muir tells a series of flashbacks (that weave in and out of the modern story). |
| Critique: Spy Game is a smart, well conceived action film. Acting by the leads is top notch; Robert Redford is commanding and composed, and Brad Pitt is explosive and exciting. Tony Scott's direction is at times intrusive and silly, but he is still successful in bringing a riveting action film to the screen. Recently, few action films have been as smart as Spy Game. Indeed, the film is constantly animated and aggressively involves the audience, but the plot is relatively complicated and layered. The concepts are intelligent, even if the execution is blunt (to say the least). Interestingly, the conflict is fascinating, even though the whole story take place in one office. Using flashbacks and intricate subplots Scott was able to create enough excitement. Although Spy Game has its flaws, it looks and feels like an unusually good action film. The story unfolds with precision and control. It provides entertainment, and engages consistently throughout its duration. Although it fails to conjure up the fantasy of the spy world like the original Mission Impossible (the second was a failure), Tony Scott's goals are to create a more adult, character driven drama. It succeeds in those goals, and both characters are developed. Still, there are holes where character motives are not explained. The holes do not ruin the film by any means, and can be dismissed as forgivable distractions. In conclusion, Spy Game is an engaging and enjoyable motion picture. The conflicts are effective, and the acting is strong. Although Tony Scott is misguided at times in how he delivers his film, he is responsible for bringing a very good action film to the screen. I highly recommend Spy Game. review by supernothingman |
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