Spy Game
Starring Brad Pitt, Robert Redford, Catherine McCormack

Directed by Tony Scott, R

**1/2 out of 4 Stars

Released November 21, 2001

Running time: 115 minutes

**1/2

by Kevin Lang

"Spy Game," directed by Tony Scott, is, at times, a smart, well-done, complicated spy-action thriller. It started out in the present, and then it moved into a series of flashbacks as Robert Redford, who played Nathan Muir, recounted his experiences with his protégée, Tom Bishop (Brad Pitt). From the opening sequence, through the first half of the film, the story developed smoothly, and it seemed as if it was on it's way to becoming a solid, well constructed film.

The basic idea behind the plot was simple. Captured by the Chinese trying to free the woman he loved, Elizabeth Hadley (Catherine McCormick), Tom Bishop was to be executed for espionage. Redford's Nathan Muir had twenty-four hours to try to orchestrate a plan to save him. During that time, which amounted to most of the movie for the audience, we got to know the characters through a series of flashbacks, as Nathan recalled his experiences with Tom Bishop. This was a good concept for a story, and credit should be given to the screenwriter, Michael Frost Beckner.

For the first half of the film, the plot moved along well. Nathan's recollections to CIA officials of his experiences with Tom Bishop worked well in developing the two characters. Then Elizabeth Hadley came into the picture. It was shortly after this point that the film's hold on me began to loosen.

Catherine McCormack is a beautiful and talented actress. If you've seen "Dangerous Beauty" or "Braveheart," then you are well aware of this. However, in "Spy Game" we don't get the chance to see very much of her talent. Her time onscreen was limited, and her presence, yet felt, was overwhelmingly muffled by the attention given to her costars.

Brad Pitt and Robert Redford, Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins, ... Is that all? Oh, yes, how could I forget, Brad Pitt and Harrison Ford. Maybe it's just me, or did Brad Pitt sign up for the Big Brother Acting Program. There's no need for me to knock Pitt. He is an underrated actor whose talents are on par with any one of those stars, which is why he was paired with them. However, his work with his latest sponser, Robert Redford, although full of potential, never seemed to reach it's peak.

The bond that had been forming between the two characters seemed to deteriorate somewhat after Nathan, unknown to Bishop, used him to catch a mole in the agency. Later he seemed to lack trust in Bishop's ability to complete an assignment, which ultimately inspired Bishop to find a new operative to work with. In the end it was the character of Nathan Muir that we began to lose admiration for. We were never really given the chance to get to know him. He seemed to only exist at the CIA. His personal life, which would have helped to make him a more rounded character, was virtually nonexistent. Even the wife that we thought he probably had, was questionable at the end.

Brad Pitt's relationship with Elizabeth Hadley grew, at least we eventually realize and are somewhat aware all along that it must have. Elizabeth Hadley was an ex-humanitarian extremist who happened to be involved in the bombing of a British Chinese Embassy building that she thought was empty. It turned out that it wasn't, and she was exiled from her homeland of Great Britain. Being an agent of the CIA, you would think that this might have been a turn off for Bishop, or at least a fork in the relationship road. But he seemed to ignore it for the most part. I mean she was presently working as a nurse to help sick children in the war torn Middle East and all, so c'mon, right? Ultimately, the character of Elizabeth Hadley was not in the film long enough to be likeable, other than beautiful, and her relationship with Bishop was more implied than experienced. Even the single love scene in the film began with Tom Bishop getting out of bed to leave. We barely saw them together, and therefore we missed seeing their relationship develop in any way at all, even physically.

The final strike against "Spy Game" came near the end. It was when we learned that Nathan was responsible for sending Elizabeth to the Chinese prison in the first place. He did so in exchange for another prisoner, again leaving Tom Bishop to get the short end of the deal. Nathan thought that he was protecting Bishop from getting further involved with Elizabeth. That took us back to the beginning of the film, where Bishop's attempt to rescue Elizabeth failed.

The ending was not disappointing. Bishop's plan was almost too intelligent for our own good, but the screenwriter stopped just before going too far, so as not to totally confuse and alienate the audience. Again, in watching the ending, it would have meant more to me if I were convinced that a stronger bond existed between the main characters.

"Spy Game" is a good film with several needless flaws. Without them, it would have been much better. More time should have been spent working out the kinks in the story, rather than simply trusting the film's star power to nullify its imperfections.