While My Spy The Eternal City may not have the most refined story in the world, the chemistry between Dave Bautista’s JJ and Chloe Coleman’s Sophie is still in top form.
Director: Peter Segal
Genre: Action, Comedy
Run Time: 111′
Global Release: July 18, 2024
Where to watch: Prime Video
2020’s My Spy was a major success of the COVID-19 era, as its planned theatrical release was scrapped in favor of a splashy Prime Video release during the height of the pandemic. Naturally, a sequel had to be made one way or another, though I’m not sure releasing it on Prime Video is a great idea.
Why is that? Simply because My Spy The Eternal City has enough action shot on a large-scale to practically beg being viewed on the biggest possible screen, including yet another car chase set in Rome, after Fast X and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One did it in 2023.
This time, it’s between JJ (Dave Bautista) on a motorcycle and terrorist Crane (Flula Borg) driving the Popemobile. Of course, this being an action-comedy, each major sequence has a playful element of slapstick to it, which makes the franchise stand out on its own two feet as pure fun, escapist entertainment. It’s nothing new or particularly groundbreaking, but it works, because Bautista is an actor who understands the art of comedic timing, while also adding a layer of humanity to his portrayal of JJ.
Had JJ been played by Dwayne Johnson (honestly, I wouldn’t put it past the studio executives thinking of a role like this for him), My Spy wouldn’t have worked, because The Rock is a showman, not an actor. There’s a difference between selling yourself and your ‘product,’ which The Rock frequently does, and letting the art speak for yourself. Bautista does the latter, and has done so ever since playing Drax in James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy. He retains this playful sense of humor from that experience in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as JJ, but has become concerned with Sophie (Chloe Coleman) as she is now growing up as a fourteen-year-old teenager.
JJ wants to do the same thing he did with Sophie as she was nine, without realizing that the child she has known since then has matured. Working in the CIA, he has left all field work and has since become an analyst to protect the newfound family he has gained since the events of the first film. Their relationship became distant as a result, but when Sophie receives the news that her choir group will be traveling to Italy to sing for the Pope, JJ volunteers to chaperone. However, and unbeknownst to him, Crane has had his sights set on JJ, Sophie, and director Kim’s (Ken Jeong) son, Collin (Taeho K), whom he kidnaps.
This sets an unexpected mission in motion, with Kim travelling to Italy to save his son, accompanied by Bobbi (Kristen Schaal), JJ’s partner. The rest of the movie is fairly rudimentary, with the group going from point A to B until they reach their destination, but it’s the chemistry between each actor that makes My Spy The Eternal City a mostly entertaining action comedy.
There’s also a far better antagonist here than in the last film, and much time is spent in at least attempting to develop a menacing foe, compared to how the first film would become something completely different every time it would cut to the antagonist. I can’t say the plot is particularly inspired (terrorists want to nuke the Vatican, which has been done time and again in countless action/spy thrillers), but the villains have at least serviceable motivations, and are well-portrayed. Borg, in particular, does retain his sense of humor, but puts it in an against-type role that honestly serves him quite well. Crane is a menacing foe, whose stakes are deeply personal as he knows JJ. The two share a terrific on-screen rivalry, and become part of the film’s best, and tightest fight sequences.
It’s no surprise that director Peter Segal knows how to direct comedic action well, having helmed Naked Gun 33+1/3: The Final Insult, The Longest Yard, Get Smart, and the first My Spy. Reteaming with cinematographer Larry Blanford, Segal crafts action sequences that are far larger in scale, and require meticulous stuntwork to get them right. He often uses GoPros to further dynamize the action and tightly cuts them with the digital photography on the streets of Florence, Rome, or even inside the Vatican. The visual effects look far less shoddy than in the first film, though one scene in which Kim and Connelly (Craig Robinson, always a great screen presence) has the worst green screen I’ve seen in a major motion picture in a very long time (not even trying to hide it through visual effects).
As a result, the photography is a bit hit-and-miss, and so is the main story. It’s definitely not something that will win an Oscar, but even with such a paper-thin motivation for the bad guys, there are still gaping plot holes that are never resolved by the time the picture ends. Crane’s side antagonist (a surprise that shouldn’t be revealed here) is also painfully unimpressive, with the actor associated with the character giving a surprisingly bad (and unimaginatively cartoonish) portrayal.
That said, one seemingly does not watch My Spy for a researched and thought-provoking story. Rather, it’s all about the relationship between JJ and Sophie. In that regard, Segal and co-writers Jon Hoeber and Erich Hoeber do a great job of evolving JJ and Sophie’s arc, as Coleman grew up from the time the first film was released. It even dares to ask poignant questions about how parents (in this case, JJ isn’t Sophie’s father, but has adopted that role after developing a relationship with Parisa Fitz-Henley’s Kate) will always see their children as babies, because that’s how they first saw them as, and protected them for a good part of their lives until they became independent enough to live on their own.
I didn’t expect the movie to go this far in its exploration of parental relationships, but Segal does take the time to sit with Sophie and Collin as they discuss how their parents perceive them, and how they should understand what they feel towards their children. It’s a surprisingly introspective moment that will hopefully resonate with viewers young and old, even if the PG-13 rating could deter families from sitting down in front of the television and watching it. But the violence is playful enough that it never feels gratuitous or excessive (the most harrowing scene contains the most impressive match cut of the film, to purposefully shield audiences from explicit violence).
As a result, My Spy The Eternal City still manages to entertain, even if its shortcomings prevent it from being a truly incredible action comedy. Thank God that Bautista seems to take acting (as a profession, not as an endeavor for brand synergy, unlike The Rock) seriously and always infuses as much humanity as he can to each character he has brought to life on screen, whether in small role as in Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049, or in a more serious portrayal as in Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead or M. Night Shyamalan’s Knock at the Cabin. Bautista has always understood the assignment, and will continue to inspire for hopefully many more years to come, on the big and small screen.
My Spy The Eternal City will be available to stream globally on Prime Video from July 18, 2024. Read our review of My Spy (2020) below!
