Spy Game (2001)

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Blistering performances.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This brad pitt and rob redford spy thriller directed by tony scott he makes this film one of the thirllers of 2001 and one its one hour 15mins it flies by as there was a time when Cia officer nathan muir he play as wise character y redford and his wingman tom bishop played by brad they were inseparable travelling the world and tasting every thing it had to offer from vietnam to beirut in a profession fraight with danger and uncertainty muir and bishop forget an uncommonly close friendship but that was years ago, now in 1991 on the brink of retirement from the agency muir learns that bishop has gone rogue jailed overseas on espionage and is scheduled to die in the next 24 hours muir decides to take on the most dangerous mission and personal mission of his life as bishop got sucked in to the one game that he taught he wouldn't get caught doing as he played the game but game got him instead as muir bishop finds out the hard way operation dinners out is a go go go go . enjoy

Here's an atypical but enthralling thriller from sure-hand director Tony Scott which plays out most of its tale in various flashbacks, but is held together through an excellent leading turn from Robert Redford. Redford is an ageing CIA agent and on his last day of work before retirement (gee, where have we heard that one before?) he learns that his young protégé has been captured for spying in a Chinese prison and is due to be executed the following morning. Much of the film consists of him relating previous experiences and adventures to his superiors as the clock ticks down towards his partner's imminent death. Whilst this might not sound to be very interesting viewing, the flashbacks are invariably exciting and involve lots of secrecy, death, and open warfare in some cases (an excellent interlude in Beirut for example), elements all woven together well.The present scenes of Redford using his own contacts and methods to help his captured chum are excellently portrayed and even if the film comes a little loose towards the ending, it still engages the senses through the quality of the acting. Here's a film with some fleshed-out characters brought to vivid life through the strong actors playing them. Redford and Pitt are excellent in their two very different roles, and we also get strong support from Catherine McCormack as Pitt's love interest and Stephen Dillane, excellently snide as an enemy of Redford's at the intelligence agency. Flashily directed by Scott and never lulling for a moment, this is an exciting and intelligent movie with plenty of incident and dynamism to recommend it.

About me: I'm 44 old male, so I watched a lot of movies in my lifetime.Story-Line: Upon learning that his former partner (Brad Pitt) has been caught by the Chinese, veteran CIA operative Nathan Muir (Robert Redford) does his best to help him.About the Movie: In a few cases, all of the movie elements come together in perfect harmony. But in most cases, some of the parts outperform others, as it is with the "Spy Game". But, don't get me wrong, it is not a bad movie, but also it is not that good, especially towards ending, making you to expect a big action scene, but there is no pay off. Never the less, film did entertained me. Also, Redford and Pitt worked well together and Redford embodies Muir with tremendous intelligence and the wits to react to nearly every situation. The final result is an above-average spy film that surpasses the limitations of its script.Verdict: "Spy Game" is thriller for grown-ups about spies who manipulate their "assets" with brains, not explosives. Is flick good? I personally thought so. Do I think that it could have been improved with some some additional touches? Of course. But, in the end, I found myself satisfied. I understand that sometimes people simply want to be entertained, so for those into spy flicks or die-hard fans of the two leads, "Spy Game" is definitely recommended, for others, not so sure. Rating: 8- (only 'cos I like Spy flicks)Favorite quote: (Gladys Jennip:) Feeling a little paranoid on our last day?(Nathan Muir:) When did Noah build the ark Gladys? Before the rain.

In 1991, CIA agent Tom Bishop (Brad Pitt) is captured trying to help Elizabeth Hadley (Catherine McCormack) escape Chinese PLA Su Chou prison. Nathan Muir (Robert Redford) on his last day before retirement tries to navigate the politically sensitive situation. He recruited sniper Bishop back in '75 Vietnam for a mission.Director Tony Scott is making a slick espionage movie with two of the greatest stars in the universe. This should be better but it's only passable. Scott is pulling out all the editing tricks to artificially juice up the excitement. I'm not sure it fits the material but it's perfectly watchable. It wants to be an action movie when it's more of a tense chess game.