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Spy is yet another 2015 action/comedy starring Melissa McCarthy as Susan Cooper. She's a desk jockey at the CIA who never did anything with her life, and now lives vicariously through the earpiece in Super-Spy Bradley Fine's ear. Fine is played by none other than the suave Jude Law (a Bond candidate at any stage of his career). Cooper monitors the spy's missions from a dank and rat-infested basement at Langley along with her friend and fellow misfit Nancy (Miranda Hart).
When resident alpha-bitch and European villain Raina Boyanov (Rose Byrne) obtains a portable nuke, Cooper is tasked with her first field work ever. Essentially Rayna knows all the top agent's identities (the likes of which include Law, Jason Statham and Morena Baccarin), so Cooper must go on an observe and report mission to prevent the sale of the deadly device.
What follows is an occasionally complicated game of cat and mouse, spy vs. spy – whatever you want to call it. It's the story of a woman who believes she's nothing special and who must rise to the challenge of becoming a foul-mouthed badass (as only McCarthy can do). Director Feig very clearly has an understanding and appreciation of the spy genre, and pairs it nicely with McCarthy's klutzy self-consciousness and mouthy confidence.
There are a couple of gags that feel repetitive (like the touchy- feely Italian guy), but one element that stayed fresh and ultimately became funnier as the movie went on was the over-the-top antics of Jason Statham. Throughout Spy, he makes progressively more and more outrageous claims of his exploits in an effort to overcompensate in the face of McCarthy's unexpected success. Just some of his tall- tales include posing as Barack Obama, stitching a torn off arm back on with the other arm, and surviving a complicated chase sequence that he flawlessly executed whilst on-fire.
Statham is just one member of an otherwise stellar supporting cast. Jude Law is a solid choice as the insensitively narcissistic Agent Fine, Rose Byrne delivers an atypical role as one of the bitchiest characters I have ever seen, and even 50 Cent shows up for a cameo! OK so that last one isn't one of the bedrocks of the film, but I laughed most heartily. McCarthy is solid throughout, but I don't know if she'd be able to support the film on her own, so hooray for supporting actors.
All together I think Feig does a lot of things right with this comedy, but it does tend to get bogged down occasionally with the complexity of the story. I'm not saying it's on the order of something like Inception, but the frequent inclusion of double- agents and more traditional espionage story elements just doesn't really gel with this type of comedy. If the comedy/action spectrum is tethered between Spies Like Us and Skyfall, then this film is more like Get Smart with raunchier humor. You'll laugh a bunch, but it does tend to stretch on a bit too long and frequently features unnecessary or tired jokes.
Read the full review and others like it on the Drive-In Zeppelin website
When resident alpha-bitch and European villain Raina Boyanov (Rose Byrne) obtains a portable nuke, Cooper is tasked with her first field work ever. Essentially Rayna knows all the top agent's identities (the likes of which include Law, Jason Statham and Morena Baccarin), so Cooper must go on an observe and report mission to prevent the sale of the deadly device.
What follows is an occasionally complicated game of cat and mouse, spy vs. spy – whatever you want to call it. It's the story of a woman who believes she's nothing special and who must rise to the challenge of becoming a foul-mouthed badass (as only McCarthy can do). Director Feig very clearly has an understanding and appreciation of the spy genre, and pairs it nicely with McCarthy's klutzy self-consciousness and mouthy confidence.
There are a couple of gags that feel repetitive (like the touchy- feely Italian guy), but one element that stayed fresh and ultimately became funnier as the movie went on was the over-the-top antics of Jason Statham. Throughout Spy, he makes progressively more and more outrageous claims of his exploits in an effort to overcompensate in the face of McCarthy's unexpected success. Just some of his tall- tales include posing as Barack Obama, stitching a torn off arm back on with the other arm, and surviving a complicated chase sequence that he flawlessly executed whilst on-fire.
Statham is just one member of an otherwise stellar supporting cast. Jude Law is a solid choice as the insensitively narcissistic Agent Fine, Rose Byrne delivers an atypical role as one of the bitchiest characters I have ever seen, and even 50 Cent shows up for a cameo! OK so that last one isn't one of the bedrocks of the film, but I laughed most heartily. McCarthy is solid throughout, but I don't know if she'd be able to support the film on her own, so hooray for supporting actors.
All together I think Feig does a lot of things right with this comedy, but it does tend to get bogged down occasionally with the complexity of the story. I'm not saying it's on the order of something like Inception, but the frequent inclusion of double- agents and more traditional espionage story elements just doesn't really gel with this type of comedy. If the comedy/action spectrum is tethered between Spies Like Us and Skyfall, then this film is more like Get Smart with raunchier humor. You'll laugh a bunch, but it does tend to stretch on a bit too long and frequently features unnecessary or tired jokes.
Read the full review and others like it on the Drive-In Zeppelin website
What's the main difference between Divergent and Insurgent you ask? With Divergent I got to heckle at the screen to my hearts content and shout profanities, because I was in the comfort of my own home. With Insurgent I was bound to socially acceptable behavior, since it was a free advance screening in a theater.
When I say this is a bad series, I truly mean that there is nothing worthwhile to be taken away from either movie. The 2nd installment continues the overly convoluted and utterly senseless plot that pits our heroine Tris (Shailene Woodley) against a poorly defined villain and conflict. She is even less believable as the 'brave', tough-as-nails caste member she's been so effortlessly been trying to become, and then suddenly she exhibits all the other redeemable qualities that defines her as 'Divergent'? And I thought Twilight was awful...
This second installment centers around...well nothing in particular. It basically picks up where the first one left off and Tris and company have to 'get back at the Jeanine' - the out of place cartoon villain. There's some magical box that's introduced as the MacGuffin device which ultimately unravels the already fragmented narrative. Don't worry, the sequel adds a whole new level of plot-holes to the already ridiculous premise. Gee, all that futuristic tech that wasn't in the first film looks awfully familiar to another teen-girl-turned- heroine young adult series.
Characters? Development? Don't be preposterous! Those things don't exist in this movie. Just like the first film, you have painfully delivered dialogue that is more laughable than memorable. That forced romance from the first one? Yeah, you're just supposed to accept it in this one. (Sorry Four you're stuck with her for better or for worse).
Honestly the only redeemable part of this hackneyed and clichéd movie is Miles Teller's character. He's seldom on screen and is only funny because he plays a total jerk. Let's hope no one notices that they're borrowing a lot of elements from other classic and popular dystopian stories. Logan's Run? That's about a marathon right? Nope, there are no isolated societies in Divergent/Insurgent. Hunger Games? No! This is a movie about an impractical futuristic society that segments parts society for the greater good. You must be mistaken. Oh wait...
I made it through two and a half pitchers of beer, only drinking when there was something generally cringe-worthy on screen. See if you can beat my record (Drinking responsibly and in remedy of this movie of course) . The best part of the sequel? It's 20 minutes shorter than Divergent.
Read the full review and others like it on the Drive-In Zeppelin website!
When I say this is a bad series, I truly mean that there is nothing worthwhile to be taken away from either movie. The 2nd installment continues the overly convoluted and utterly senseless plot that pits our heroine Tris (Shailene Woodley) against a poorly defined villain and conflict. She is even less believable as the 'brave', tough-as-nails caste member she's been so effortlessly been trying to become, and then suddenly she exhibits all the other redeemable qualities that defines her as 'Divergent'? And I thought Twilight was awful...
This second installment centers around...well nothing in particular. It basically picks up where the first one left off and Tris and company have to 'get back at the Jeanine' - the out of place cartoon villain. There's some magical box that's introduced as the MacGuffin device which ultimately unravels the already fragmented narrative. Don't worry, the sequel adds a whole new level of plot-holes to the already ridiculous premise. Gee, all that futuristic tech that wasn't in the first film looks awfully familiar to another teen-girl-turned- heroine young adult series.
Characters? Development? Don't be preposterous! Those things don't exist in this movie. Just like the first film, you have painfully delivered dialogue that is more laughable than memorable. That forced romance from the first one? Yeah, you're just supposed to accept it in this one. (Sorry Four you're stuck with her for better or for worse).
Honestly the only redeemable part of this hackneyed and clichéd movie is Miles Teller's character. He's seldom on screen and is only funny because he plays a total jerk. Let's hope no one notices that they're borrowing a lot of elements from other classic and popular dystopian stories. Logan's Run? That's about a marathon right? Nope, there are no isolated societies in Divergent/Insurgent. Hunger Games? No! This is a movie about an impractical futuristic society that segments parts society for the greater good. You must be mistaken. Oh wait...
I made it through two and a half pitchers of beer, only drinking when there was something generally cringe-worthy on screen. See if you can beat my record (Drinking responsibly and in remedy of this movie of course) . The best part of the sequel? It's 20 minutes shorter than Divergent.
Read the full review and others like it on the Drive-In Zeppelin website!
First of all, you'll probably get more entertainment out of these user reviews than you will by seeing the actual movie. To clarify...aren't all possession movies inherently pro-Christian since the inclusion of demons and hell implies that there is are angels and heaven (since Lucifer was cast out of heaven and became the devil)?
As someone that has seen lot of REALLY bad horror films, I can safely say that The Lazarus Effect isn't all that bad. It's got a pretty decent cast in Mark Duplass and Olivia Wilde, but it's a cheap horror film. You get the predictable jump-scares, you get the dialed in dialogue, what else did you expect?
You don't go to see horror films because they're particularly well written or original. This movie is literally just a hodgepodge of movies like: Carrie, Lucy (the whole 10% of your brain thing), The Phoenix Project, Pet Semetary, Flatliners, etc.
I actually somewhat enjoyed this, but you realistically need to set your expectations 6 feet under. Maybe this film will find a way to resurrect some of your faith in the horror genre that way. It sure as hell isn't going to resurrect the $10 bucks you spent on the ticket at the theater.
Additionally, what ever happened to the novelty of watching a film before reviewing it?
Read the full review and others like it on the Drive-in Zeppelin website
As someone that has seen lot of REALLY bad horror films, I can safely say that The Lazarus Effect isn't all that bad. It's got a pretty decent cast in Mark Duplass and Olivia Wilde, but it's a cheap horror film. You get the predictable jump-scares, you get the dialed in dialogue, what else did you expect?
You don't go to see horror films because they're particularly well written or original. This movie is literally just a hodgepodge of movies like: Carrie, Lucy (the whole 10% of your brain thing), The Phoenix Project, Pet Semetary, Flatliners, etc.
I actually somewhat enjoyed this, but you realistically need to set your expectations 6 feet under. Maybe this film will find a way to resurrect some of your faith in the horror genre that way. It sure as hell isn't going to resurrect the $10 bucks you spent on the ticket at the theater.
Additionally, what ever happened to the novelty of watching a film before reviewing it?
Read the full review and others like it on the Drive-in Zeppelin website