Review: Look out James Bond! McCarthy is ready to become the next big ‘Spy’

Posted on June 12, 2015

By MARK VIOLA

There’s no arguing against the assertion that Melissa McCarthy is one of the most marketable and recognizable faces of comedy today. Although she had long-standing roles on “Gilmore Girls” and  “Mike & Molly,” McCarthy really broke into the big leagues with her scene-stealing performance in “Bridesmaids,” which was followed by lead roles in “Identity Thief,” “The Heat” and “Tammy.” Along the way, however, it seemed that McCarthy was quickly typecast as the uncouth and foulmouthed slob. The various casting agents and directors were probably more to blame for this than McCarthy herself, but it didn’t stop many, myself included, from getting rather tired of the same performance over and over again.

Which brings us to “Spy,” with McCarthy playing an original and quite entertaining character in CIA analyst Susan Cooper.

But outside of McCarthy’s performance, which is one of the best of hers I’ve seen, writer/director Paul Feig (“Bridesmaids,” “The Heat”) has also managed to create a movie that is not only a good spy comedy, but also a solid spy film. Because “Spy” is not a spoof, but instead a spy movie that just happens to also be a comedy, and a quite funny one despite a tendency at times to rely too heavily on Feig’s usual brand of shock humor.

Still, this is a comedy where even when you’re not laughing at the jokes, the story and characters are strong enough on their own to keep you engaged and racing along with the action to its explosive conclusion.

While McCarthy plays a much different role than the one we’re used to seeing her in films, this is still a very R-rated comedy, filled with foul language, sexual content and violence, not to mention a series of photos I could have done without seeing.

The film is rated R for language throughout, violence, and some sexual content including brief graphic nudity.

(This is a shortened version of the full review available in our printed or e-edition papers.)

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