Review – Spy Game

Maybe I’m angrier at this movie than I should be because I thought it was going to be something a little different than what it was. I watched it at the end of a long day, and at by that point in the evening I was looking for a fast-paced action movie that wouldn’t be too demanding and would keep me entertained or at the very least awake. Instead I got a long, slow tale of the CIA’s recruiting and retention efforts. Sure, the production features a couple of vaguely amusing fight sequences. But for the most part the story consists of a retiring agent (Robert Redford) shuffling papers and attending meetings while his protégé (Brad Pitt) languishes in a Chinese prison. For actual motion the plot depends heavily on flashbacks, and the flashbacks in turn depend heavily on the queer-in-an-icky-still-in-denial-way relationship between the protagonists. Rare indeed is the espionage movie that can make covert operations and international intrigue seem even more boring than my day job. But this stinker pulls it off. See if desperate