My Spy (2020)

My Spy (2020)

5/10

Starring

Dave Bautista

Chloe Coleman

Kristen Schaal

Ken Jeong

Directed by Peter Segal

The girl in this movie is cute, and Dave Bautista is… not. While he charmed us in Guardians of the Galaxy, his charm didn’t quite win me over here.

The movie kicks off with an action scene, then shifts into a slower-paced spy tale that feels a bit like Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Kindergarten Cop (1990). It’s another classic scenario of a big, heavily built man partnering with a young child.

The twist here is that the child, Sophie, is in on the secret—she knows who the spy is, and she’s incredibly smart.

I wasn’t sold on the premise that JJ (Bautista) is considered a mediocre CIA agent because he’s too obvious. If that’s the case, why send someone with poor blending skills to be a spy? It felt silly, especially when a 9-year-old girl could identify him and his partner and even track them down to their base of operations.

The movie’s decision to keep the action subdued and the comedy understated was, for me, a missed opportunity. On the plus side, the girl absolutely stole the show with her performance. The dramatic moments gave the movie a much-needed edge, and her acting was the main reason I stuck with it. Without her, I might have given up early on.

The fun part of the movie is watching Sophie outshine the spy at his own game. Their bond develops naturally, which makes it easier to enjoy the ride. Bautista and the young actress share solid chemistry, which helps carry the film.

The primary reason for JJ being in Sophie’s life (and that of her single mother) is to catch Sophie’s uncle. While this serves as the main plot, the film leans heavily on the relationship between JJ and Sophie since they share the most screen time.

In the end, the movie is just okay and not great, but not terrible. The musical score could have been stronger, and the filmmakers should have leaned more into either intense action or pronounced comedy. The script itself needed significant polishing.

It’s a bit of a stretch to believe JJ could form any meaningful bonds with others, but the connection between him and Sophie works because of the time they spend together.

This is one of the many movies pulled from theatrical release due to the COVID-19 pandemic and picked up by Amazon for distribution. If you’re curious, you can find it streaming there, but it is not worth it if you can find something else to watch.