“Spies in Disguise” Movie Review

    Now that awards season is upon us, I wanted to check out the Oscar nominated war film “1917” since it is now in wide release.  As much as I enjoy films with heavy subject matters, sometimes a more simplistic is just what the doctor ordered however.  So, “1917” will have to wait because “Spies in Disguise” looked like just the humorous pick me up I was looking for after a hard week at work.

    The film follows Lance Sterling, the most daring spy on the planet, on a mission to recover an attack drone from being sold to known terrorist Killian.  Upon arriving back from what he thinks was a successful mission, Lance fires Walter Beckett for supplying him with unwanted safe technology.  During his debriefing, it is revealed that Lance’s mission wasn’t the success he thought it was and he is now on the run.  With no one in the agency he can turn to, Lance tracks down Walter for help to clear his name.  Unfortunately for Lance, it will require him to go undercover...as a pigeon.

    Now this movie definitely isn’t going to be considered a masterpiece by any means but I did think it was really cute and humorous.  Animation studio Blu Sky is rather hit or miss in my book but this was one of their better films in my opinion.  There were more than a few instances where I literally laughed out loud.  Most comedy films recently have not had that effect on me.

     The voice cast is top notch and really brings to life their respective characters.  Will Smith is charming as ever as Lance Sterling.  Tom Holland brings some of his Spider-Man charisma (and an American accent once again) to the voice of Walter Beckett.  The rest of the voice cast is made up of very recognizable voices including Ben Mendelsohn, Rashida Jones, DJ Khaled, and Reba McEntire.

    This is the first Blue Sky Studios production released by Disney after they took over 20th Century Fox and it is pretty clear Disney does not prioritize the animated studio.  I wonder if Blue Sky Studios will remain a production company or if it will be viewed as Disney competing with itself and slowly phased out.

    “Spies in Disguise” is a humorous kid’s movie with plenty of humor for adults as well.  It’s a shame the movie hasn’t performed better in the box office because I would actually be interested in seeing this property turned into a franchise.  As it stands, the movie is an overall winner in my book.

Grade: B