SYNOPSIS:
In the world of covert intelligence, only one man is Smart.
Steve Carell is in CONTROL as Maxwell Smart, the novice agent
often out of his depth but never out of options in this action
comedy pitting him against the nuclear scheme of the evil spy
group KAOS. Anne Hathaway partners with Max as ever-capable
Agent 99. And director Peter Segal (The Longest Yard) guides
his stars (including Dwayne Johnson and Alan Arkin) through
the dangerous realm of molar radios. multifunctional pocketknives,
exploding dental floss and more.
MOVIE REVIEW:
In recent years there has been a surface of hugely
popular comedies such as Will Ferrell’s "Anchorman”
and "Bewitched", Judd Apatow’s "The 40
Year Old Virgin" and the witty "Office" television
series in the West. You may or may not have seen those but
what they have in common is the participation of a certain
rising comedic star, Steve Carell.
In
this Warner Bros’ remake of the 60’s television
series created by Mel Brooks, Carell plays Maxwell Smart,
a fumbling agent codenamed Agent 86 working for CONTROL. Partnered
by Agent 99 (Anna Hathaway), they must destroy the evil schemes
hatched by a terrorist group, KAOS which planned to detonate
a nuclear bomb.
Carell
is one that doesn’t resorts to exaggerating expressions
like Jim Carrey or even Will Ferrell who will not hesitate
to strip to his undies just to milk a few laughs. He is a
comedian of a different sort. The role of Agent Max suits
him to a T. Max is a brainy, smart agent who can’t wait
to be deploy to the field. Thing is he is a goofy, bumbling
character and the script easily incorporate humorous situations
around Max to serve the laughs with only the need for Carell
keeping a straight face throughout.
There’s
a rousing ballroom dance sequence which reminds of the one
in "True Lies" but with more laughs and a funny
sequence in which Max pretends to pee while trying to sneak
in some snippets of the enemies’ conversations in the
toilet.
The
above are examples of how Director Peter Seagal (who cooperated
with Adam Sandler thrice) and his writers incorporate the
humour and gags without resorting to exaggerating the plotting
much. Anna Hathaway first pair up with Carell (with a huge
age gap in between) is sexy and never look out of place. Although
I must admit some of the supporting material didn’t
really work that well especially Masi Oka and Nate Terrence’s
characters (Bruce and Lloyd) which only serve as fillers and
nothing more. A ludicrous cameo by Bill Murray didn’t
hit the laugh-o-meter as well.
Since
it’s billed as a comedy, you got to overlook the less
than enthusiastic action sequences, a stiff looking villain
(played by Terence Stamp) and the so-called surprise twist
in the end but it’s a fun spy flick after all.
While
it’s not an exact copy of the original series, the new
material really compliments Carell well and vice versa. Without
the crudeness and adult sexual humour found commonly in the
Apatow and Ferell’s camp, I recommend this for the entire
family viewing. Seriously though I didn’t actually laugh
my ass off the whole time. Missed it by that much? I still
say no.
SPECIAL FEATURES :
This DVD comes with an interactive menu function
where you can access the movie deleted, extended and alternate
scenes by clicking on the image of a phone booth whenever
it appears on the screen. I still prefer the old-fashioned
way of accessing the features rather than sitting through
the movie plainly for it. But again that’s just me.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The
DVD transfer is respectable but not exactly as rich or natural
as other blockbusters. The Dolby Digital on the other hand
impresses with all the sound effects such as explosions and
gunfire in the movie. Dialogue is of clarity as well.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD
RATING :
Review
by Linus Tee
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