There is little to commend "The trouble with spies", a woefully unfunny espionage comedy. Trying to sit out the movie feels like a penance : the overarching story makes no sense, the various incidents don't fit into the plot, the tone is all over the place and the character of the male protagonist is badly conceived. Moreover, the said protagonist is played by Donald Sutherland, who seems both too intelligent and too sinister for the role.
To be fair the action is set in Ibiza, a lovely place. However the take on Ibiza feels glibly superficial, like something found in a "Fun under the sun !" tourist leaflet.
Near the end "The trouble with spies" asks the question : "When choosing a romantic partner, would you go for a person willing to murder other human beings by burning them alive ?". Now this is the kind of question that seems to carry its own answer, just like "Should I encourage my teenage daughter to date a thrice-divorced drunkard ?" or "Should I tell my mafioso brother-in-law that it was I who shopped him to the Feds ?". Arrestingly, the movie defends the view that a tendency to burn people alive should not stand in the way of true romance. One shudders upon imagining the dreamy-eyed conversations of the cuddlesome couple...
If you're looking for a better espionage comedy you could take a look at the French "Le grand blond avec une chaussure noire", with a very funny Pierre Richard.
To be fair the action is set in Ibiza, a lovely place. However the take on Ibiza feels glibly superficial, like something found in a "Fun under the sun !" tourist leaflet.
Near the end "The trouble with spies" asks the question : "When choosing a romantic partner, would you go for a person willing to murder other human beings by burning them alive ?". Now this is the kind of question that seems to carry its own answer, just like "Should I encourage my teenage daughter to date a thrice-divorced drunkard ?" or "Should I tell my mafioso brother-in-law that it was I who shopped him to the Feds ?". Arrestingly, the movie defends the view that a tendency to burn people alive should not stand in the way of true romance. One shudders upon imagining the dreamy-eyed conversations of the cuddlesome couple...
If you're looking for a better espionage comedy you could take a look at the French "Le grand blond avec une chaussure noire", with a very funny Pierre Richard.