I Spy (2002)

I Spy (2002)

6/10

Starring

Eddie Murphy

Owen Wilson

Famke Janssen

Malcolm McDowell

Directed by Betty Thomas

I watched some of the old I Spy episodes starring Robert Culp and Bill Cosby. It was a serious thriller series with no comedy at all. This version, with Owen Wilson and Eddie Murphy, flips that on its head—it’s packed with jokes and every spy cliché they could squeeze in.

The characters they play are total misfits who can barely handle being in the same place at the same time. Wherever they go, chaos and comedy follow, and I couldn’t stop laughing throughout the movie. It’s a shame this film wasn’t a box office hit because there were so many directions a sequel could have gone.

The movie is directed by Betty Thomas, who also directed Murphy’s version of Doctor Dolittle (1998).

The plot revolves around two men thrown together because the country needed them to team up. One is Kelly Robinson (Eddie Murphy), a middleweight boxing champion. The other is Special Agent Alex Scott (Owen Wilson), who’s recently been promoted but isn’t exactly the most skilled agent—a fact made painfully clear in the first mission we see him on.

Their mission centers on a stealth plane that’s fallen into the hands of arms dealer Gundars. Gundars plans to sell the plane to the highest bidder, and Alex’s agency is determined to stop him. Conveniently, Gundars is hosting a middleweight boxing match in Budapest, where Robinson is defending his title. The government uses the match as a cover to get Alex into the operation and recover the plane.

Alex wasn’t the agency’s first choice for this mission, but their top spy is too well-known to be effective undercover.

At first, Robinson and Alex spend most of their time trying to one-up each other, which causes plenty of initial problems. Over time, though, they find a balance and start working together. Meanwhile, Alex has a crush on Agent Rachel Wright, and Robinson hilariously tries to help Alex woo her.

This movie is packed with laughs and doesn’t take itself seriously. Oddly enough, it was both a commercial and critical failure. Many critics disliked it, claiming the plot was weak and that it felt like Murphy and Wilson were just competing to see who could be funnier.

Personally, I loved that about the movie—it gave me plenty of reasons to laugh. The plot is simple, but that’s the point. They stripped out the complexity and focused entirely on the humor.

I believe this movie is funny, fun, and just misunderstood by many.