Directed by:
McGCinematography:
Russell CarpenterComposer:
Christophe BeckCast:
Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Tom Hardy, Chelsea Handler, Til Schweiger, Warren Christie, Leela Savasta, Natassia Malthe, Laura Vandervoort, Angela Bassett (more)VOD (3)
Plots(1)
FDR (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy) are covert CIA operatives and best buddies... until they both fall for charming and sexy Lauren (Reese Witherspoon). Their friendship is put to the ultimate test as they wage an epic battle for her affection, using their surveillance skills and an array of high-tech gadgetry - may the best spy win! (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment)
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Reviews (8)
A chill-out romantic flick. The agent plot is of no importance, as the emphasis is on the chemistry between the characters and their funny encounters. The film renders these things well enough for momentary fun, but won’t stay in your memory for long. The agents portrayed by Brad and Angelina (Mr. & Mrs. Smith), whose success led to the creation of this movie, had more charm.
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The female characters are boring and annoyingly whiny, McG once again confirmed the reputation of a man of heavy routine who is able to choose nice music and cheesy scenery, but it's already a bit difficult to get it moving interestingly and the script is full of moronic phrases and female wisdom, for which people should obligatorily be sent directly to the menopause penalty box. But Pine and Hardy are such "males" and there is so much between them that all heterosexuality goes away... Why does Witherspoon even get involved in that romantic spy bond of theirs? Watching their "registered" squabbles is almost as fun as watching a clash between Law and Downey. Although the screenwriter is far behind the charisma and the commitment of the actors... Pleasant fun, also because the two can turn a dull superficial pleasure into enjoyment (Pine as an expert on Klimt? I like it!).
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Practically nothing about this movie works. I like the three lead actors, but they are drowning in uninteresting dialogues, sloppy screenplay and the overall cheap feel of the movie. Maybe it was supposed to be an action comedy, but there is very little comedy and it’s entirely lacking in action scenes. Most importantly, the character of the villain is completely irrelevant for the story. It's a shame, this could have been a fun easy watch. What you get instead is just a crashing bore.
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A hyper-stylised romantic comedy somewhat inadvertently framed as a spy-action flick and taking the rivalry of two suitors a bit more literally. As is slowly becoming the rule in post-Apatow relationship movies, the sparks fly more strikingly between friends of the same sex than between a man and a woman, which is also due to the episodic structure of the romantic plot (the impression of sitcom-like scenes is reinforced by the use of pauses between the “scenes”). Like the lead actors, the screenwriters revel in the testosterone-fuelled, technophilic “my toys are better than yours” pissing match between two guys who have a shared mother figure in the form of their strict boss. (It’s worth noting that co-screenwriter Simon Kinberg’s credits include the not dissimilar Sherlock Holmes and Mr. and Mrs. Smith.) Unfortunately, they only stick with ideas that they don’t further develop, which is most regrettable in relation to the central twist given to the standard romcom formula. Contrary to the usual way of doing things, neither of the potential partners is a bit of a cretin – the screenwriting solution to this dilemma is to make the man a bit of a cretin by pushing him aside. Also, the attempt at duality in the mould of Hitchcock, who is referenced here as ostentatiously and unimaginatively as Scorsese is (a long shot in a bar), comes across as mechanical: two male friends, two female friends, scenes that are similar in content but in different settings... The action scenes are just as sloppy as the heterosexual flirting, as McG didn’t do a very good job of maintaining the continuity of the individual shots (the climax on the highway with the shooting going into a turn?). Given the film’s concept of overdoing things instead of pretending to be something (which makes it reminiscent of Knight and Day, whose bombast I found more believable), these shortcomings do not essentially hinder the straightforward entertainment. However, not even the charisma of Tom Hardy, whose Britishness I consider a major plus (unlike the presence of Witherspoon), can erase the fact that watching such products of the MTVisation of Hollywood falls into the same category of activities as breathing – after a while, you stop noticing that you’re doing anything. 50%
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McG should be a guarantee of a decent, effective action. He’s not. This was rather mediocre and the only real bomb comes with Tom Hardy’s scene on the paintball field. Otherwise, it’s awfully average. And as far as humor goes? There could have been a lot of irony in the dialogues, but in reality, there was a lot less than I expected. The only plus of the movie are the actors themselves. Chris Pine whom I hadn’t known before was okay and Tom Hardy was downright excellent. Reese was a bit of a makeweight, but I didn’t mind her, either. Overall, this movie is the most mediocre average I’ve ever seen. But even despite that, it’s still pretty watchable.
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