SPY  3.3***

          Spy is an entertaining  comedy about elevating the least amongst us to higher positions. After success with Bridesmaids and The Heat,  Paul Feig, as writer and director, teams up again with Melissa McCarthy in what is their best so far. McCarthy plays Susan Cooper who works at a spy agency where she feeds critical information off her computer into an ear piece to assist agents in the field. The central plot involves a nuclear bomb . Since the villain knows the identity of all the field agents in the agency, only Cooper can go into the fiend  undetected. One of the film's best running jokes is the unflattering disguises Cooper is subjected to.

McCarthy endures the physical slapstick action with awkward perfection including a massive battle in a kitchen where she swings a mean frying pan. Rose Byrne plays the villain  whom Cooper must connect with in order to discover the whereabouts of the bomb.  Jude Law plays agent Bradley Fine, in a well done take-off/satire of  James Bond.  Jason Statham is hilarious as agent Rick Ford, a hot head with a huge ego who believes that Cooper will screw up the mission all the while she is constantly saving him.  Miranda Hart plays Cooper's ear piece contact who comes into the field and eventually tackles rapper 50 Cent in order to cause a diversion. The climax is slightly overblown yet McCarthy takes being a spy beyond the realms of normal satire and comedy.

Melissa McCarthy has one of the most impressive potty mouths in cinema. This self-deprecating comedienne fires off f-bombs and trash talk that would make Samuel L. Jackson jealous. McCarthy's tart dialogue, coupled with her  knack for physical comedy, ensures this espionage spoof is  enjoyable   But this film  also heavily relies upon the cast, with the rib-tickling McCarthy receiving excellent support. Rose Byrne nails it as the condescendingly caustic villain, Jude Law admirably does a great Bond satire, and Jason Statham – who snares the movie's best moment with an uproariously macho monologue – is downright hilarious as an obnoxious agent. Spy has its share of flaws and is a bit too long (2 hrs), but when it's funny it's really funny!!  

Rated R for language throughout (lots of F-words), moderate violence, and some sexual content including brief graphic nudity |

Clark