I Spy

Review by Clint Morris

Like a well rounded, juicy-looking apple with a big black pustule in the middle, Betty Thomas’ I Spy takes another page out of the “Make it look pretty on the outside, but let it be largely hollow inside” school of filmmaking.

Of course, that's hoping audiences won’t notice or assume anything before they hand over their hard-earned cash...

Okay, it isn’t that bad – depending on what you hope to get out of it.

For the uninitiated, I Spy is the film incarnation of classic 60’s TV series “I Spy”, starring Robert Culp and Bill Cosby. But looking at this unrecognisable deviation, you wouldn’t know it.

The characters have been changed, the storyline clearly different and the laughs of the series replaced by gung-ho action.

While the series chronicled the spy duo’s odd synergy and avant-garde erudition, the film pits opposites against each other – in this case a rich egomaniac and a routine sad sack.

Because boxer Kelly Robinson (Murphy) has a boxing bout scheduled in Europe, he is tapped by the CIA to help super agent Alex Scott (Wilson) enter the influential circle of Arnold Gundars (McDowell), a disreputable arms smuggler who is alleged to have in his tenure a mislaid U.S. Super Stealth bomber.

Naturally Kelly and Scott are like chalk and cheese but, with the help of some gadgets and anarchic practice, might just save the day.

I Spy isn’t the blockbuster film the studio intended it to be. It’s simply a generic action movie – nothing you haven’t seen before. The laughs are there, albeit sporadically, and the bursts of action are all too spaced out. In essence, it feels a little ho-hum for something that could have had much potential.

To the film’s merit though, Murphy and Wilson are a pleasant combination. Wilson, perfect as the straight-guy, and Murphy, in his element, as the energetic Kelly.

The film’s few good moments – the finale isn’t bad, and Murphy doing a rendition of “Sexual Healing” is okay – is due largely to the presence of the two actors.

If you’re not after a lot, I Spy is your movie, but if you’d like to get a bit more for your buck, look elsewhere.

2.5 out of 5

I Spy
Australian release: Thursday January 23
Cast: Eddie Murphy, Owen Wilson, Famke Janssen, Malcom McDowell, Gary Cole, Phill Lewis.
Director: Betty Thomas.
Website: Click here

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