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Get Smart

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Editorial Review

In this year of the mega franchise blockbuster, it is easy to forget that there are a slew of big-budget films vying for our attention which don't involve ageing archaeologists, injured weapons dealers, angry green giants or, most fearsome of all, packs of New York City women. In any other year, the hype surrounding the Get Smart reboot would surely be greater than it currently is. But in light of all that's come in the past few months, could it be that we're reaching blockbuster overkill and are saving our last gasp of enthusiasm for The Dark Knight?

Not helping is that expectations for this remake of the '60s sitcom are remarkably low. Perhaps it's because moviegoers have been burnt by poor TV retellings in the past, or maybe it's due to the fact that Don Adams's Maxwell Smart is such an iconic character that breathing new life into him seems unnecessary. More fatally, perhaps it's because the Get Smart TV show just isn't as funny as you remembered. Whatever the reason it's a shame, because this Steve Carell-led outing is a pleasant enough piece of fluff, as lightweight as its parent show, and with plenty of hearty chuckles on offer.

Granted, the plot is so flimsy that a decent gust of wind could blow it over, and revolves around the age-old rivalry between KAOS and Control which, in this case, zeroes in on a plot to explode a nuclear warhead in Los Angeles at a concert attended by the President. But the laughs come fast enough that it doesn't matter - after a while you'll be too busy waiting for the next chuckle to worry about the welfare of the world.

In this regard, Carell is the perfect choice as the bumbling Agent 86 - his timing is impeccable and, as he demonstrated in the disastrous Evan Almighty, he has that rare ability to make even the clunkiest of lines sound funny via an arsenal of vocal ticks and expressions. Anne Hathaway is just as successful as Agent 99 - who'd have thought that The Princess Diaries starlet would one day turn into a smoking hot action star as proficient at pratfalls as she is kicking arse? They find great support in Alan Arkin as The Chief and The Rock as Agent 23 but, unfortunately, the bad guys don't fare as well. In particular, Terence Stamp looks like he'd rather be anywhere other than playing KAOS's head honcho Siegfried.

There are pacing problems - the running time could have been trimmed by 20 minutes - and some of the action scenes are slightly hampered by poor CGI work. But, on the whole director, Peter Segal and writers Tom Astle and Matt Ember have done a good job of staying true to the spirit of the original show. There are some familiar cameos, not to mention gadgets and sets, and the overall effect is of a film that pays knowing tribute to its parent program, nothing more and nothing less. You'll forget most of it the second you leave the cinema, but while you're there you'll surely have a smile on your face.

Rod Yates

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