BEFORE: Last night I watched a spy movie with some comedic elements, and I think tonight's film is more like a comedy with some spy elements...
THE PLOT: A professional boxer has to help a U.S. government agent recover a missing jet.
AFTER: Ah, common themes abound...for starters, we're still in Eastern Europe, Prague or Budapest or the general vicinity. Secondly, we're still dealing with international arms as a commodity - a bomb in last night's film, and an invisible plane tonight (what, did they steal it from Wonder Woman?) And we've got a common man (OK, a pro boxer, maybe not so common) brought into the world of international intrigue.
I didn't watch the original TV series, with Bill Cosby and Robert Culp, but I think that Cosby played a pro tennis player, or at least that was his cover to travel around the world and do spy stuff. A boxer played by Eddie Murphy (last seen in "Meet Dave") is a craftily planned update.
But I rather liked this one, there were some nifty car chases and stunts, and the humorous interplay between Murphy and Owen Wilson (last seen in "Zoolander") made it enjoyable. Murphy's character was obnoxious, but since he was an egotistical boxer, he was supposed to be obnoxious. Wilson's "aw, shucks" attitude even worked out well, making him seem to be an underdog, laid-back secret agent.
I guess I'm becoming an expert on the genre if I can spot all these common themes - and I've still got 2 weeks of spy movies coming up...
Also starring Famke Janssen (last seen in "Taken"), Malcolm McDowell (last seen in "Just Visiting"), and Gary Cole (last seen in "Extract", with a cameo from Sugar Ray Leonard.
RATING: 6 out of 10
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