SPY KIDS

2001, Dimension Films

Live action

Rating: PG

Approx. 88 mins.

THE STORY:

A pre-teen brother and sister suddenly discover not only that their parents (Antonio Banderas & Carla Gugina) are retired spies, but also that it is up to them to rescue their parents now that they have been taken by evil maniacs Floop and Minion. They enlist the help of their estranged uncle, but prove to be smart, tough agents in their own right. 

Ultimately they rescue their parents, punish Minion, and help Floop realize that his path is in children's programming rather than evil-doing. Along their journey, the siblings learn to appreciate each other's strengths and to identify their own.

QUESTIONABLE LANGUAGE:

• idiot
• oh my God

VIOLENCE:

• Quite a bit of shooting and general weapon use

TEACHING POINTS:

• some lessons about sibling relationships, i.e. learning to see and honour differences, look out for each other

THE UPSHOT:

The 5 year-old in the room loved it, I think because watching it made her feel very grown up. It is exactly how you would expect a Robert Rodriguez film to be if adapted for kids: lots of shooting, lots of slo-mo shots of the black-clad sunglassed protagonists walking intimidatingly, a character called Machete. 

The very thing that enthralled the 5 year-old in the room, however, made the grown ups uncomfortable. I like the fact that the female characters are all self-motivated and equal agents, but feel the movie glorifies brawn over brains.

3/5