The Film Reports

Rating: 4.5/5

Action, Adventure, Comedy

One of many female-centred films that came out last year, The Spy Who Dumped Me is a new twist on the genre. Audrey (Mila Kunis) and Morgan (Kate McKinnon) are unwilling participants who have to deliver a plastic trophy on orders from Audrey’s ex-boyfriend, the titular spy, Drew (Justin Theroux). Drew’s coworker, Sebastian (Sam Heugan!!) tries to help them against their wishes.  

I really enjoyed this film, it’s a very good comedy, and one of the best parts is the thought that’s been given to the practicalities of being an international spy – the bits that would normally have been slid over with a quick cut. Without any spoilers, it comes up more than once and these scenes were always hysterical and added depth to the “spy” plotline. Screenwriters, take note?

These small “in-between” scenes also served to add depth to the characters. The film is definitely a comedy and without these small respites, it may have been too much. In fact, Morgan is described as that exact phrase at one point in the film (“too much”) by someone she’s just met and the only reason why the audience sympathises with her is because we’ve already seen behind her mask at that point.

That might actually be a good analogy for the film itself. The film is for sure very funny but the heart of it is the friendship between Morgan and Audrey. The two characters are endlessly supportive of one another, even in the fact of life-risking decisions. I honestly can’t even remember a single squabble. It’s heartwarming, and absolutely fantastic to see women portrayed like this, in comparison to something like Bride Wars (2009).

Another character that helped balance the tone of the film was Drew (Justin Theroux), the titular spy. He doesn’t have the best relationship with Audrey and Morgan, given that he dumped her over text. I’m 95% sure he has some animosity with atleast one of them in every appearance he makes and it’s hilarious. In a way, he is a stand-in for the antagonist. However, the flashbacks to when Audrey and Drew met are genuinely cute. Their conversations, and the dialogue in general to be fair, is well-written and appropriate in tone all the time. It’s a tricky line but they’ve managed to do it.

The only, only thing that I think the filmmakers haven’t managed to do it is to pull off an impressive climax after almost non-stop action throughout the film. The last 30 minutes or so definitely start dragging a little and it doesn’t really feel like the end of a movie. I am hoping for a sequel though, so it clearly wasn’t bad enough for me to hate it.

I think there’s only one part left to address and that’s if this really is a spy movie. And I think the most appropriate answer is “…maybe??” and a shrug. Sure, there’s spy stuff going on, but that’s not what’s important. The balance of action scenes and quiet dialogue-based scenes between Audrey and Morgan is what makes this movie so good. And so funny. The whole film is a masterclass on how to be understated funny. This film could be described as so many different genres and yet, I think it’s a perfect mixture of them all.

Watch it: @ girl’s night in