Just in time for the chilling weather comes director Tony Smith's fast-paced thriller, Spy Game, a movie full of action and drama sure to heat up even the more stoic viewers.
The film stars Robert Redford (looking rough around the edges in his advancing age) as Nathan Muir, a CIA agent who, upon the day of his retirement, is drawn once more into a web of political intrigue. Early in the morning, Muir finds out that ex-agent Tom Bishop (played by the ever-stunning Brad Pitt, his own protg), has been captured by the Chinese government for attempting to free a prisoner from a high-security jail. Muir is forced to maneuver between fellow CIA agents who want Bishop dead while trying to save Bishop at the same time.
The film alternates between the present situation - the 24 hours Muir has left as a CIA agent and the time he has left to carry out his final plot - and the past, chronicling the development of Muir and Bishop's relationship from their first meeting in Vietnam in the '70s. Muir, sensing something extraordinary in Bishop, offers him a position in the CIA. The younger man accepts, throwing himself completely into learning the trade under Muir's well-seasoned expertise.
Their adventures lead them through Europe, ending up in Lebanon, where Muir and Bishop are on a mission to kill a powerful terrorist (an all-too appropriate theme these days). In Beirut, Bishop meets Elizabeth Hadley (played by Braveheart's Catherine McCormack), a relief worker in Beirut, with whom Bishop falls in love, aggravating the already-developing rift between the idealistic Bishop and the savvier Muir, who knows that the rules of humanity must suspended sometimes for the games that the CIA must play.
The narrative chronicling Muir and Bishop's collective adventures is portrayed as Muir's memories, displayed before the committee collected to discuss Bishop's imprisonment. These scenes are full of high suspense, punctuated by Redford's sharp humor, creating a heightened interest in both plot and direction.
The film is elegantly crafted; a succinct series of scenes collaged together, set to a soundtrack of world music and classic rock. The main problem with Spy Game is one committed by many a filmmaker - it tries to cover too much ground in too short a period of time. The film is entertaining, even engaging, but it leaves the viewer feeling a little cheated, like trying to visit all of Europe in a week. Nevertheless, the movie is certainly worth seeing, sure to please older and younger crowds alike.
Spy Game is currently playing at::
Loews White Marsh at 8141 Honeygo Blvd. Showtimes are 11:50 a.m., 12:50 a.m., 3:10 p.m., 4:10 p.m., 6:20 p.m., 7:20 p.m., 9:30 p.m., 10:30 p.m. Call 410-933-9034.
GC Towson Commons 8 at 1:15 p.m., 4:05 p.m., 6:55 p.m. and 9:40 p.m. Call 410-825-5233.
Muvico Egyptian 24 at Arundel Mills. at 12:50 p.m., 1:40 p.m., 3:50 p.m., 4:40 p.m., 6:50 p.m., 7:40 p.m., 9:50 p.m., 10:40 p.m. Call 443-755-8992.
