Momentum and Relativity Media’s family action comedy THE SPY NEXT DOOR stars Jackie Chan as Bob Ho, an undercover CIA superspy who decides to give up his career in espionage to settle down with his next-door neighbor and girlfriend, Gillian (Amber Valletta). But Bob has one more mission to complete before Gillian agrees to marry him: winning over her three opinionated kids.
When Gillian suddenly has to leave town, Bob volunteers to babysit the children so he can earn their approval. But when one of the kids mistakenly downloads a top-secret formula from his computer, Bob’s archenemy, a Russian terrorist, moves in for the attack, forcing Bob to juggle the roles of spy and prospective stepfather in the most challenging mission of his career!
Martial arts superstar Jackie Chan is joined by an talented supporting cast featuring Amber Valletta (PREMONITION, TRANSPORTER 2, HITCH), Madeline Carroll (SWING VOTE), Will Shadley ("Dirty Sexy Money"), Alina Foley, Magnus Scheving (LAZYTOWN), with Billy Ray Cyrus ("Hannah Montana") and George Lopez (BEVERLY HILLS CHIHUAHUA, SWING VOTE). THE SPY NEXT DOOR is directed by Brian Levant (ARE WE THERE YET?, SNOW DOGS, THE FLINTSTONES) from a screenplay by Jonathan Bernstein & James Greer and Gregory Poirier and story by Jonathan Bernstein & James Greer. The film is produced by Robert Simonds. Momentum and Relativity Media Present A Relativity Media and Robert Simonds Company Production; of The Spy Next Door, a film by Brian Levant.
Release date 19th March 2010
No-one has rated this movie yet - be the first! You must be logged in to rate a movie.
"It's a paint by numbers actioner, with plenty of gags and gadgets"
The Spy Next Door is a fun filled, family action comedy, which sees Bob Ho (Jackie Chan) a secret agent trying to get out of the game and retire with his new girlfriend Gillian (Amber Valletta) and her three children. Unfortunately for Bob, his arch nemesis; Poldark (Magnús Scheving), a Russian terrorist has escaped and is planning to cause chaos to the world.
It's a paint by numbers actioner, with plenty of gags and gadgets - it does what it sets out to do - entertain. It doesn't have any huge set pieces and the plot is easy to follow with no political stuff shoved down your throat; perfect for kids!
Glaze and Colton James (George Lopez and Billy Ray Cyrus) provide memorable performances as CIA agents and the kids act like real kids too, most notably the talented Madeline Carroll (Farren) as the bratty eldest child who shows an immediate dislike to the lovable Bob Ho.
The Russian accents from the villains were a bit hit and miss, which resulted in some cringe worthy moments from Magnús Scheving as Poldark but found Creel (Katherine Boecher) much more convincing.
All in all the films entertaining, it shares some similarities with The Pacifier starring Vin Diesel (another film that I enjoyed for what it was - family fun). The action scenes are lighter than the usual fare from Jackie Chan, but are still brilliant, they are slapstick in humour and fun for kids, like the garden fight, where Bob utilises every day objects to thwart the enemy - a classic move from the one and only Jackie Chan.