Get
Smart
It might help to have seen the TV show at some
point in your life, but it’s not a prerequisite.
Steve Carell stars as Maxwell Smart – the best,
but bumbling, analyst for a secret government agency, CONTROL,
dedicated to fighting an evil anarchist counter agency, KAOS (they used
to be Commies, but that team lost the Cold War, so I guess they decided
to go guerilla). While Max is brilliant at what he does, he dreams of
taking on the sexier, more high profile role of agent, where he can
participate in field work, be a star and find the excitement he seeks.
Now, it looks like Max will be getting his chance.
KAOS has infiltrated CONTROL, started eliminating agents one-by-one,
and plans a horrible attack while CONTROL is trying to regroup, so The
Chief (Alan Arkin) has promoted Max to Agent 86, and matched him with
Agent 99 (Anne Hathaway) to make sure the good guys (and good ladies)
win.
Can Max and Agent 99 stop
KAOS’s dastardly plot?
Get Smart was one of my favorite TV programs when I was growing up, so
I was ecstatic to see the movie is just as funny (most of the time),
even if you never saw Don Adams, Barbara Feldon and the rest of the
crew in action. Yes, the Cone of Silence still doesn’t work.
No, Max doesn’t use a shoe phone anymore (but we do see what
has happened to the legendary iPhone of its day). And, yes, Get Smart
the movie is just as silly as Get Smart the TV show and just as funny
as the original (most of the time), with a few updates to make it more
modern.
The cast is one of the strongest teams in movies. Everyone is great
with the consistent deadpan delivery, but each actor also adds
something special. Hathaway is vivacious, confident and sexy in a way
that won’t embarrass her mother if she takes her to the
premiere, but still made my jaw drop. Dwayne Johnson (who will always be The Rock, in a good way)
as Agent 23 is the tough guy with a heart of gold who stands up for Max
when others try to bully him, and excels at making us laugh with his
machismo and suaveness. Then, Carell has the best facial expressions in
movies today.
Get Smart is a comedy that relies on being silly, showcasing lots of
physical humor and constant misinterpretations of dialogue and
intentions, but it’s silly without being stupid (unlike The
Love Guru which is stupid instead of silly).
We have to suffer through too many slow periods towards the end, and
even director Peter Segal can’t resist a couple instances of
gross out humor, which aren’t needed, so it’s not a
perfect movie, but your best choice this week.
Get Smart is rated PG-13 for some
rude humor, action violence and language.
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