Playing it Smart

After what seems like forever, I finally made it to the theater to check out a couple new movies, one of which I'll review here and then the other will be forthcoming soon. First up is Get Smart, which is yet another in a seemingly endless line of films that are adapted from small screen hits. Unlike most of them, I was anticipating one because I was such a fan of the television show. Even though I am a child of the 80s, I saw reruns of the 60s spy comedy (created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry) when I was a kid and thought it was hilarious, even if I didn't always understand the Cold War humor.

One of the film's strengths, and a large reason why I had high hopes for it, was its cast. They picked the perfect people for the roles. And I'm not just talking about the leads, but all of the minor characters as well. There could be no other man but Steve Carell to take over the Don Adams role of Maxwell Smart, aka Agent 86. Anne Hathaway is also great as romantic foil Agent 99. At times I felt she was vocally reminiscent of the original 99, Barbara Feldon. Alan Arkin was the right choice for the Chief and again plays well off Carell, just as he did in Little Miss Sunshine.

The rest of the cast is a wonderful bounty of familiar faces: The Rock, David Koechner, Terrance Stamp, Terry Crews, Masi Oka, Ken Daviditian, and Patrick Warburton all have a lot of fun in their limited roles. Credit to the filmmakers for not only adding all of these funnymen to the cast but then using them as beloved minor characters from the original show. In addition to all of these roles, there are a handful of entertaining cameos as well. These were particularly enjoyable because they weren't spoiled for me ahead of time.

As evidenced by the solid casting, the filmmakers clearly had a love for the original show and tried to pay homage to it as best they could, which cannot be said for all films that were adapted from TV shows. Unlike some films which are made simply to cash in further on a recognizable name, the people behind Get Smart took the time to include a lot of what made the original show so enjoyable into their film.

When one of these TV adapatation films is made, there seems to be two methods of creating them. One is to create a general story and then try to shoehorn a few references from the original show to justify using the title. For instance, Starsky and Hutch. That movie was just an ordinary action comedy starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson. It just so happens that their names are Starsky and Hutch. The other approach is to identify key aspects of the original show that need to be a part of the movie and then create the story around them. Get Smart is an example of this. Many of the show's classic catchphrases, punchlines and objects are all found in here and come across for the most part naturally.

While the approach Get Smart took does right by its source material, it doesn't always equate a solid story. That is certainly the case here. The central plot is a little weak and at times, the pacing of the film was uneven. They would belabor on certain points and rush through others. For instance, they really hammered home the antagonistic beginnings of 86 and 99's relationship (Typically, "I'm the expert, you're the rookie, leave the crimefighting to me" stuff). But then they really rushed through the part where 99 not only learns to trust Max, but also falls for him. It seemed the film could have used another 20 mins. or at least cut out some of the earlier scenes and added more near the end.

Even though I applaud the filmmakers for paying proper homage to the original show, they did include some things in the film that I felt were unnecessary. One was a minor plot point about how Max used to be really overweight and then lost a bunch of pounds in order to become an agent. This didn't bother me from a continuity perspective as much as I just found it to be unfunny. They had enough quality material to work from the original show without needing to add some lame fat jokes. The other added annoyance was James Caan playing the President as a complete boob in a thinly veiled jab at our current Commander in Chief. At this point, Hollywood's stance at the current administration has become tiresome and it had really no place in this film. I especially felt sorry for an esteemed actor like James Caan to be reduced to such a hack role like this.

I've focused a lot on the film's comedy, but it is worth noting that this film is as much an action film as it is a comedy. I was impressed with a lot of the action sequences here as they more involved and realistic than you would find in most comedies. The action doesn't rival something you'll find in a pure action movie like Die Hard, but they clearly spent some money in order to make the film look as impressive as possible. I think if you're a comedy or an action fan, you'll have a good time with this one.

This is not a perfect movie ("missed it by that much"), but for summer escapism fare, I've seen a lot worse. I hope all of the Get Smart fans out there go see this movie and appreciate the job the producers did in adapting this film to the big screen, because I sure did. This film did just enough to make me hope they end up doing a sequel. They clearly have the right cast in place and with a stronger story, they could have a very successful action-comedy franchise for years to come. Grade: B