The Spy Who Dumped Me: A Movie Better Than Its Bad Title

I don't think the marketing people behind The Spy Who Dumped Me did a great job selling this movie for what it is. The trailers showcased a cheesy, watered down, PG-13 romp in the vein of the flop My Super Ex-Girlfriend. It looked like harmless fun that would provide a scarce handful of laughs that's better off being viewed on a Tuesday night after a long day at work. The title of the film does it no favors either. Sure, it's supposed to be a play on the James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me, but the title parody has already been done by the far superior Austin Powers franchise. The title also doesn't accurately depict the essence of the film either. It's not a pun-based, family-friendly romantic-comedy-action romp. In fact, the movie was completely different than the marketing had led my expectations to become. And it was, in fact, a pleasant surprise.

Mila Kunis is Audrey. She's celebrating her 30th birthday and pining over her ex-boyfriend Drew (Justin Theroux) who just recently dumped her over a text message. There to pick up the pieces is her best friend Morgan (Kate McKinnon). What Audrey doesn't know - and very soon after her birthday finds out - is that Drew is actually a spy for the CIA. He's on the run, being hunted by a terrorist organization. When Drew shows up to Morgan's apartment, he gives Audrey a trophy telling her that there's something very important inside and she needs to get it to Vienna and give it to Drew's contact. Drew is killed and Audrey and Morgan, with the trophy in tote, are being hunted by the same organization. The two of them hop a flight to Vienna and accidentally find themselves as makeshift spies trying to save the world - and each other - before it's too late. This is where the adventure begins.

Much like 2015's Spy with Melissa McCarthy, The Spy Who Dumped Me doesn't hold back any punches. It's very much an R-rated buddy movie. But the dynamic between the two stars are what really hold the film together. First off, there's no strained conflict between the two of them that buddy movies so often put together. They're best friends - and they remain so throughout the film. The reason they find themselves in so much trouble so often is that the two of them are actually trying to accomplish the mission, even as "normal citizens". The other thing that really works about the film is that neither of them are inferior in a fight. There's no cowering and crying in the way that most male writers write women in distress. Whether it's a fist fight, a knife fight, or a gunfight - they always rise to the challenge. They're not experts, but they're not incompetent either. And writer/director Susanna Fogel has a lot of fun with the action. The gunfights are bloody, the fist fights are stylized, and it's actually a pretty capable spy movie. There's a lot of action and none of it is watered down. Fogel wants her audience to have a lot of fun, and for the most part, they will.

I've never really jumped on the Mila Kunis bandwagon. I've never found her particularly funny in almost anything she's ever been in (save for Forgetting Sarah Marshall). Her characters are usually the same and her voice is like an audible cheese grater, but here the obnoxiousness that I normally associate with her has been pretty toned down. She's very likable in the film and as a main character she's fine. But she's not the reason to see The Spy Who Dumped Me, it's McKinnon all the way. She's never bad in anything, but here she's given a co-lead role and she soars with it. She had our entire sold-out theater rolling on the floor in stitches nearly every scene she was in. I've been waiting for someone to write her a well-rounded and hilarious role and Fogel has done a damn good job with it. Had it not been for her, I don't know if I would've given this movie the time of day, but I'm definitely glad I did. Now, someone just needs to give her starring roles so we can get over-saturated by McKinnon and NEVER EVER tire of her.

The movie is a lot more fun and certainly a lot funnier than it should've been. Sure, it's not a perfect movie. The espionage plot line is definitely on the more simplistic side (it's no Mission: Impossible), and the third act is a lot weaker than the first two and a lot of the comedy is lost by then, but it's still a good buddy movie to see that almost everyone will enjoy. There's comedy. There's action. There's plot twists and turns. There's even some great cameos. And to top it off, it's just nice to see women directors doing comedy with women actors and showing the doubting world that these movies are just as funny and make just as much money as movies that feature a full sausage fest cast. Trust me. Put whatever expectations you have for this movie out of your mind because it will exceed them tenfold. You will laugh harder and more often than the trailers suggest you will and the writing is much better than the title hints at. The Spy Who Dumped me is the perfect film to cap a long and big season of summer movies.

B-