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Melissa McCarthy takes on the bad guys in actually rather funny comedy Spy |
Director: Paul Feig
Cast: Melissa McCarthy (Susan Cooper), Jason Statham (Rick
Ford), Rose Byrne (Rayna Boyanov), Jude Law (Bradley Fine), Miranda Hart (Nancy
B. Artingstall), Bobby Cannavale (Sergio De Luca), Allison Janney (Elaine
Crocker), Peter Serafinowicz (Aldo), Morena Baccarin (Karen Walker)
Comedy is an unusual thing to write about, I often find.
Unlike any other film genre, you know immediately whether it works or not, ‘cos
if you ain’t laughing it probably ain’t working. Well the good thing is that Spy does work, as I certainly laughed.
It’s actually a fairly well structured comedy, a smart parody of Bondish action
films matched with the foul-mouthed crudity you get in the films from the
Feig/Apatow stable.
Susan Cooper (Melissa McCarthy) is the cheery deskbound analyst
who provides real-time data and intel to would-be 007 Bradley Fine (Jude Law).
But after disaster strikes, Susan volunteers to go into the field to find out
as much as she can about Rayna Boyanov (Rose Byrne), the daughter of a rogue
arms dealer who is taking over the family business. Despite the concerns of her
boss – and super-macho fellow agent Rick Ford (Jason Statham) – Susan proves
surprisingly adept at espionage, disguise and above all action.
What Spy does well
is that it feels like it’s been written and shot with a bit of discipline,
rather than the over-indulged and forced “improvisation” that so often blights
these sort of comedies. It feels more controlled, and therefore easier to
engage with – we are watching a group of good actors tell a story, rather than
a gang of comedians showing off. I think this is helped by the fact that most
of the cast are not natural comedians, but instead actors delivering gags with
skill. Feig also shoots the film with zip and punch – most scenes don’t drag on
indulging forced banter.
Melissa McCarthy is very good as the rather sweet lead, torn between
the role she has given herself in life, and her own desire to use her
capabilities. Her character delivers many of the comic moments of the film, but
she’s not the joke – instead she is shown to be brilliantly proficient both as
the “eyes and ears” of Jude Law’s suave Bond-spoof role, and also as the woman
in the field. McCarthy’s comic timing is matched with an affection for her
character that makes her likeable and easy to empathise with. What she creates
here is a genuine character who grows and develops as the film progresses.
The film’s real weapon is the strong cast of proper actors
giving expert comic turns. Rose Byrne is hilarious as an imperiously bitchy,
foul-mouthed villain who makes every line into a thinly veiled (and often not
veiled at all) insult. Jason Statham gives probably a career-best performance
as a ludicrously macho secret agent bragging incessantly about a string of
unlikely sounding exploits, while being barely competent in the field. Who knew
The Transporter could do such a neat line in self-parody? Allison Janney’s
foul-mouthed, impatient CIA boss and Miranda Hart’s ditzy surveillance expert
offer similarly rich comic roles. These actors know that the trick of real
comedy is to deliver well prepared punchlines with controlled efficiency rather
than crummy flights of fancy.
Spy also works
because it has an actual story, and mixes this effectively with action and
hi-jinks that feel like solid spoofs of Bondish films but are also genuinely
entertaining in themselves. It’s a plot that stands (more or less) on its own,
rather than feeling like a shoddy framework to hang rude jokes on. As such, the
rude jokes complement by the plot (rather than crushing it) and most land with
a genuine chuckle. It’s also lovely to have a film that places female
characters so front-and-centre, not as props or as “sexy fighting women” (I’m
looking at you Pride and Prejudice and
Zombies) but as confident individuals who know who they are and are not
defined by their relationship to a man. McCarthy is terrific, as are the rest
of the cast. This is a film you will definitely enjoy.
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