Time to find out if Melissa McCarthy is a movie star, or a fading fad?
You’re watching Beyond The Trailer’s review of Spy...
James Bond, Jason Bourne, Ethan Hunt, Harry Hart - Susan Cooper?! To be fair, Cooper might
be more interested in competing with Austin Powers, but still, the bar is raised pretty
high here. In fact, there’s a lot riding on Spy all around. First off, Melissa McCarthy
needs to prove that Tammy was an unfortunate blip on her box office track record, and not
a sign that audiences are beginning to grow tired of her shtick already. Tammy, only McCarthy’s
third starring role since her breakout turn in Bridesmaids, vastly underperformed compared
to Identity Thief and The Heat. Then there’s Paul Feig, who hopes to prove he’s the secret
ingredient to McCarthy’s success having helmed both Bridesmaids and The Heat. But
even more than that, Feig is putting himself on the line here as a screenwriter as well
- something he hasn’t done since 2003’s I Am David - which was not a comedy. Feig
was a writer on Freaks and Geeks though, and surely hopes to prove here he’s still got
what it takes - especially as he plans to write the upcoming Ghostbusters reboot, which
will also star McCarthy. There are also a lot more female comedies these days since
Bridesmaids impressed in 2011, which means McCarthy and Feig will have to contend with
Pitch Perfect 2 and Trainwreck. And while Jude Law and Jason Statham give Spy some much
needed male appeal, will it be enough to lure male viewers away from Entourage and Ted 2?
Interestingly, the two most likely to benefit from Spy are Rose Byrne - potentially stealing
the show once again after Neighbors - plus UK comedian Miranda Hart who’s making her
Hollywood debut. So are McCarthy and Feig running on fumes, or
are they simply
the new Will Ferrell and Adam McKay? One-note sure, and sometimes down -
but
never out...