Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Jason Statham, Rose Byrne, Miranda Hart, Bobby Cannavale, Nargis Fakhri, Allison Janney, and Jude Law
Director Paul Feig seems to have a comedic muse, and her name is Melissa McCarthy. In 2011, she was a supporting but integral contributor to the genius comedy Bridesmaids. Alongside Sandra Bullock, McCarthy then headlined Feig's next feature in 2013, the buddy action comedy The Heat. Some two years later, Feig and McCarthy are reuniting once again. This time, it's for the espionage comedy Spy in which McCarthy is the sole lead. As usual, the director-actress duo delivers one fun affair with their latest.
Susan Cooper (McCarthy) is an analyst in the CIA. This desk worker innocently goes about her job supporting field agent Bradley Fine (Jude Law) until he is killed while out on a mission by the mysterious Rayna Boyanov (Rose Byrne). There's one catch as well. Rayna knows the identities of all the CIA's top agents including hothead Rick Ford (Jason Statham). Susan, however, has found a clue linking Rayna to arms dealer Sergio De Luca (Bobby Cannavale). With her top picks for the investigation into Fine's death compromised, supervisor Elaine Crocker (Allison Janney) reluctantly gives Susan her first field assignment. After reviewing the tapes of this badass in training some ten years ago, Crocker realizes that she has little to worry about. Soon, Susan finds herself making waves and racking up a sizable body count.
Well, you can count Spy in the plus column for both Paul Feig and Melissa McCarthy. With this being their third successful collaboration on the big screen, I think I've figured out their recipe for comedic delight. Feig cultivates the tougher side of McCarthy, and it works time and time again. He encourages her to be the rough bridesmaid stealing puppies and getting thrown off airplanes. He encourages her to be the no-nonsense cop bringing the heat on her beat alongside a fellow female officer of the law. He encourages her to be the potty mouth spy that can talk smack with the best of them. Their collaborations are at their core comedic gold, and Spy is no exception. In their third outing on the big screen, McCarthy and Feig have one irreverent, action-packed adventure after another. Simply put, Feig and McCarthy bring out the best in one another.
Beyond McCarthy and Feig's reunion, Spy boasts a pretty impressive cast. We've got Jude Law giving us an amusing caricature of the pretty boy British spy we all know and love. We've got McCarthy's fellow Bridesmaids cast member Rose Byrne playing an over the top super villainess in terrorist Rayna Boyanov. Giving out threats laced with f-bombs like they're candy, she's a comedic, female version of Tony Montana and one of the few cast members who can verbally spar with McCarthy on screen. Miranda Hart and Allison Janney bring plenty of humor to the film as well in very opposite ways as the effervescent Nancy Artingstall and the stolid Elaine Crocker respectively. Finally, I'd be remiss if I neglected to mention perennial badass Jason Statham in his impressive comedic performance as Rick Ford. Fresh from serving as the baddie in Furious 7, Statham shows that he has a lighter side. He clearly has a good time on set, and this translates to his performance on the big screen.
Spy comedies are in this year, and they're delivering both the laughs and the fights. First, we had Kingsman: Secret Service. Now, we've got Spy. Paul Feig's latest film is a riotous affair that turns up the comedic volume as the film progresses. It’s a rare and precious thing to find a comedy with a full tank of laughs. At the same time, it offers plenty of action befitting of a summer blockbuster. All in all, Paul Feig and Melissa McCarthy find their target one more time. Spy gets a 0.03% rating. Have some wine coolers with this one.
