Spy Kids

Spy Kids is one of a handful of films that I can watch over and over and never once get tired. It came out in 2001, when I was only seven years old. Perhaps that explains why I'm so attached to this special film. It simply has always been there, and I have always admired it. However, I have revisited countless films from my childhood and only a few feel as alive and exciting as Spy Kids.

The film is packed with energy from the very beginning, even before the first shot. Troublemaker Studios, Rodriguez company, made Spy Kids. Part of it's logo is a little animated rascal with a mischievous smile, playing an acoustic guitar. The character will go on to play a more memorable role in Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams, but for now he serves as a simple cue of the reckless, romantic adventure the viewer is about to embark on.

The film wastes no time, going straight into an aerial shot of a seaside cliff with a single house on top. The camera races towards the house as a fast acoustic guitar plays on the soundtrack, quickly building in pace until the camera reaches the house and focuses in on a window. There, a young girl looks out to the sea as the guitar slows,  reflecting her longing. Behind her mother tells her to get ready for bed. The girl, Carmen, is uninterested, not even looking back towards her mother, dreaming. She looks sad, but without overselling it like a lesser child actor might have done. Instead, Alexa Vega, who plays Carmen, looks genuinely lost without seeming to try. 

Parenthood!

It's a strange feeling, going into a movie called Spy Kids,  with those exhilarating opening moments, only to have all expectations immediately subverted while the movie transform into a family melodrama.The genius of Robert Rodriguez is how well he uses the spy, action flick cover story to tell an extraordinarily moving tale about a the importance of an ordinary family. 

From Carmen, the film cuts directly to her little brother, Juni (Daryl Sabara), applying some medicine on his tiny hands. "ok warts," he says in an exaggerated, low pitched voice, "prepare to meet your maker." It's another wonderful introduction that shows the capability of the child actor. What really sells the moment though, is that the instant he says the phrase and puts on the medicine, his hand twitches and he represses a scream.  

I love both introductions for the way they set up the main ambitions and struggles of the characters. Carmen, sitting at the edge of her window, seeks escape from her family and ordinary life. Juni is more innocent, still within the safe boundaries of the house, but still faced with seemingly huge problems. The closeup of his warts, and quick cutting while he puts on the medicine and bandaids suggest a monumental struggle staged as a miniature action sequence, one of many since the main action scenes involve mostly kids. Throughout the course of the film, Carmen will learn the value of family, while Juni learns how to handle the pressures of everyday life. 

Carmen asks her mother to tell her "the story of the two spies." It turns out, the two spies (of the kids' favorite story) who married and retired are none other than their mom and dad. The story is a very beautiful, concise sequence that previews some silly gadgets, characters who will see later, and most importantly the lifestyle they both parents abandoned to settle down and raise a family. "in a way they exchanged one life of adventure for another" she tells them. The only problem is that neither her, her husband nor the kids believe this is true. 

Ingrid (Carla Gugino) and Gregorio (Antonio Banderas) share a peaceful, secret lunch.

Soon, the old spies are back in business leaving their children with their "uncle" Felix played by Cheech Marin in a hilarious performance. Instantly, they are attacked. "I'm not you're uncle," he reveals  to them, taking off his fake mustache, irrevocably changing his identity. He tells them their parents were international spies and have been kidnapped. After giving them the location to a safe house, Felix is captured too, and it is now up to the kids rescue them. 

"I'm not your uncle."

Some of the film's best moments come right afterward as the kids learn to use the newfound spy technology. Among them: a spherical submarine, jet packs, instant  microwave hamburgers, and as a perk, currency "from every country!" 

All of these wonderful things, they later find out, are produced by an uncle (this time real) they didn't know they had. The other great performance of the movie comes from Danny Trejo as the kids' uncle, Machete. Once they meet him, they find out he is lonely and depressed. There's also a nice moment where it becomes painfully clear that Carmen could end up becoming like her uncle if she holds on to her current views on family. It again becomes clear how important a unified family is to Rodriguez. 

The rest of the plot involves thug thumb-thumbs, a madman called Minion, a kids TV. show number 2 at the ratings, evil kid clones, and tons of fake plastic brains. I won't try to explain since part of the fun in Spy Kids is just watching as the spectacle, in both story and visual terms, unfolds before your eyes. Spy Kids is a gem, and the best film Robert Rodriguez has ever made (along with Sin City, of course… more on that coming). Enjoy!

Verdict- 4/4 

Spy Kids (2001) PG 1h 28min.