The Corner Penthouse

I Spy (2002) is remake of the 1965-1968 TV series starring Robert Culp and Bill Cosby. Is it any good? Read on to find out...


I Spy (2002) is the story of a super powerful experimental spy plane that is stolen by evil arms dealer Arnold Gundars (Malcolm McDowell), who plans to sell it to whichever international terrorist is the highest bidder. The U.S. Government drafts egotistical boxing star Kelly Robinson (Eddie Murphy) to join suave special agent Alex Scott (Owen Wilson) on a dangerous top secret mission to get the plane back. Armed with the latest high tech gadgets, a whole lot of attitude, and an assist from sexy secret agent Rachel Wright (Famke Janssen), this ultimate odd couple might be able to save the world - if they can just get along.


This movie has all of the right talent. If only it had a script to match. The movie turns the 1960s action series into an action-comedy, only its not very funny and doesn't make a lick of sense. The spy agency recruits a boxer for a "secret" mission, only he never shuts up about it and takes his entourage along, all of whom also know about it. Once the boxer's part in the mission is accomplished - to provide a way into the arms dealer's estate under the guise of a boxing exhibition - there is no reason he should continue to be employed by the agency for the mission; yet he is.


Famke Janssen isn't given much to do other than "be sexy". As the main bad guy, we sure don't see enough of Malcolm McDowell, and Gary Cole is so "barely there", you have to wonder why they got a notable actor for the role. My biggest issue with the movie is how annoying Kelly Robinson is. If you took a shot every time he said his own name, you'd be dead of alcohol poisoning before the movie is halfway over. Yes, I get that he's supposed to be an egomaniac, but is he supposed to be annoying, too? After all, he's one of the main heroes of the story. Aren't we supposed to like him?


All in all, it's not the worst movie I've ever seen. If you shut off your brain, it's certainly enjoyable. There are a lot of great stunt and action scenes, so at least there's that. Two years later, Owen Wilson would fare much better in another big screen action-comedy based on an old television show, Starsky and Hutch.


I Spy (2002) is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio with a runtime of 1:36:33. On the audio side, there is only an English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track. Subtitles are available in English only. As is the case with most Mill Creek Entertainment releases, there are no bonus features. That is a shame as Sony's original DVD release contained an audio commentary and four featurettes.


I Spy is available on Blu-ray from Mill Creek. If you want the bonus features, you should also pick up Sony's original DVD release.


All images were taken from the IMDB gallery of the film. This item has been provided by Mill Creek Entertainment for review on this site.