Genres

Visitors Review

2012-05-24 16:28:29

good for children

This review is from: The Spy Next Door (Two-disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo) (Blu-ray) This movie will intertain your under 10 year old children. If you have young ones in your home who like spy stories, daddy heros, and happy endings, this is a fine choice. It will not likely capture the interest of the adult members of the family.

2012-05-24 11:16:28

Quick Shipment

This review is from: The Spy Next Door (DVD) DVD was shipped quickly and in the plastic wrap. When watching it, noticed that it skipped a few times but very possible that it could of just been the DVD player! Otherwise, very satisfied!

Khaidar 2012-05-15 17:22:48

it's a fun movie

This is movie is clearly intended for kids, teenagers and good loving families. J. Chan incredible in his age, still managing to do lot of fighting etc etc. The film doesn't have any offensive material for any category of viewers. Recommend for kids, teens, and parents.

PlutoandVenus 2012-05-14 23:55:58

Chan makes getting older look good.

If it is possible to age gracefully – and it isn't really – Jackie Chanmakes a pretty good case for it in The Spy Next Door. Known for histrademark marshal arts and comedy combinations, Chan is able to turnthe inevitable loss of agility in age into a comedy about a retiringspy who wants the comfort and boredom of family life. With The Spy NextDoor, Chan delivers a kid's film with the tongue in cheek humor of hisadult films, to the gratitude of moms everywhere.Director Brian Levant uses an array of stills from Chan's actual earlycareer to create the secret past of the middle aged spy Bob Ho. For theadults in the audience it's wonderfully nostalgic – is that baby facedmarshal artist our lovable Jackie Chan/Bob Ho? Is it really 10 yearssince Shanghai Noon came out? What was I doing then and why am Ispending my afternoons watch PG films? My nine year old daughter is, ofcourse, oblivious to all of this. She likes seeing Hannah Montana's dadBilly Rae Cyrus on the big screen and recognizes George Lopez fromcommercials, though she can't yet stay up late enough to watch his TVshow. Plus she gets a kick out of the smart mouthed kids giving theadults a hard time.The plot is instantly engaging to kids and adults – a secret agent(awesome!) who wants to retire and get married (aw!) to a single Momwith three bratty kids (ha ha ha!). The adults identify with theparents knocking themselves out for their kids and the kids love theextreme chaos: secret agent gadgets, Russian assassins and childrenbehaving more deviously than the agents themselves. That a formerlydeath defying secret agent is nearly defeated struggling to wranglethree rebellious children is funny and something any single mom couldtell you all about,( but then, that isn't so funny).Though her role as a single Mom is quietly heroic, as Gillian, AmberValetta is instantly forgettable. I had to look her up to write thispiece and wasn't sure who she was even with the credits in front of me.Sufficiently emaciated (as required for a Hollywood actress), Valettais a cardboard cutout put in place to deliver her lines to keep themovie going forward. It is likely that actresses are discouraged fromcontributing substantively to a role designed only to highlight themale star's qualities, so I have no idea if there's more to Valetta. Ifso, it isn't apparent in this move. The kids Madeline Carroll (Farren),Will Shadley (Ian) and Alina Foley (Nora), fare better. They areclearly having a good time undermining the parents at every turn, evenwhen, or perhaps especially when, they're trying to help. Carrol isexcellent as a young teen, desperate for guidance and rejecting it atevery opportunity. The scene of Chan trying to take down the bad guyswith a four year old wrapped around his leg is parenting in a nutshell.The Spy has delightfully subtle jokes throughout that entertain thegrown ups without interfering in the kids' experience. The ridiculousclothes on the Russian spy, the slow motion walk as the bad guys cometo town, lines like "I've got two words for you college boy, thirteen"got me laughing while my daughter paid little attention to them. Theshow concludes with Chan's outtakes, letting us in on the jokes thatalmost got away. A movie that entertains kids is good; a movie thatentertains kids and adults is a gem.

dtien_99 2012-05-09 11:35:52

Cutest Comedy!

Spy Next Door is the cutest comedy this year. The actors are excellent.The story is sweet, touching, and funny. Jackie Chan's martial art isclever in that he uses all the items next to him to fight. The movie isso well directed and well written. It is an action movie which is alsoabout love, family, and friendship. My son, who is 6 years old lovedit. He watched it 6 times within one weekend. We both laughed so muchas we watched it together. I was also very touched by the affectionwhich developed between Bob (Jackie Chan's character) and the kids. Thethree children actors were outstanding. I hope to see more of them inother movies. I realized that Jackie Chan was such a good actor as Ihad never watched a movie where I could see his acting. I am veryimpressed by him in this movie. This is a great movie for a wholefamily to enjoy.

vishak-svec 2012-05-08 22:02:10

typical Jackie Chan movie....loved it!

a great movie is all I can say! jackie does his usual super funnyaction comedy thing and it works!take your kids,your parents,yourgirlfriend,your dog,your dog's girlfriend,your friend and his dog....it's a comedy movie for god's sake watch it like one....not every movieis 'the dark knight' it's a fun movie watch it for jackie chan...andhis superb talentsthe stunts are great and everybody especially the kids will enjoy thecomedy movie....jackie chan can do no wrong...ever!10/10

2012-05-05 09:48:10

Not a bad movie! Check it out!

Family friendly flick (try sayin that fast 3x) LOL! Some bits of cheese throughout, but so what! All u families out there, give it a try! Perfect movie nite! Blu Ray 4 the family room, DVD 4 the kids room or 4 the car 4 those long road trips! Cool!

2012-05-05 02:12:51

Jackie Chan +Kids = Comedy

this is a great movie for everyone jackie chan is hillarious in this film and his stunt work gets better and better. and the kids were awesome too

michawheeler 2012-05-04 02:59:03

Mr Cyrus may not win any acting awards but he wins the award for Spy With the Best Kept Highlights

I'm not about to contradict anyone who says that 'The Spy Next Door' isa bad movie but I cannot say that I didn't enjoy it. From the momentthat Bob and Gillian wake up with those serene smiles on their faces(Gillian had been woken up by a squealing pig and screeching kids) youknow what you're in for and the movie certainly doesn't disappoint, inthat it does exactly what you expect and follows every cliché there isreligiously. For me this is what actually allowed me to enjoy it, themovie seemed to tell me, 'I am a bad movie, don't try to take meseriously just laugh at every possible opportunity! I promise you I'mnot harmful and I will be over before the stupidity gets the better ofyour suspended disbelief.'The film rests on Jackie Chan's shoulders and there's no denying thathe is a very charismatic man, very good with physical comedy and at 55and after all those injuries, still impressively fit. I can't say thesame for the kids, the youngest one (Alina Foley) is cute but the othertwo were a bit annoying although this may be the script's fault. Whatcan I say about the villains; Creel wore red lipstick and black fromhead to toe and just in case we missed she was the villain she alsowore a frozen sardonic smile too, the Russian guys wore heavy overcoatsand beards and all of them spoke in this hilarious accent...I enjoyedevery bit of it. In fact I think the parts with the villains were myfavourite.I think the movie did what it set out to do and entertained me, Iactually burst out laughing many times. One of which was when Billy RayCyrus's faced popped onto the screen, don't judge me I didn't know hewas in the movie and the image took me by surprise!

2012-05-03 20:29:42

The Spy Next Door

This review is from: The Spy Next Door (DVD) I was a little disappointed in this DVD with Jackie Chan. It is suited to be seen by kids and is not truly up to Jackie Chan's usual action comedy fighting movies.

dejavu 2012-04-27 21:01:01

"KARATE CHOP MIX WITH FUN DRESSING"

jackie chan can be anything he wants to be.he could be an undercover secret agent "bob ho" which is his role in this movie full of karate chops and fun. this movie is not just an ordinary comedy but implies a certain morality in a sense which bob ho is so eager to know why a daughter of her girl friend just merely call her first name instead of calling her mom. in the world we live a lot of differences among people are found. bob ho is very much surprised but can only purged his lips after he had known the reason why. this is a movie for the entire family to see. its worth your money.

capone666 2012-04-27 09:57:38

The Vidiot Reviews...

The Spy Next DoorWhat's so shocking about a neighbour with that profession? You leaveyour blinds open long enough and everyone next door becomes a spy.Fortunately, for the minors in this family- action-comedy theirneighbour isn't peeping on them, he's putting the moves on their mom.After apprehending his archenemy, CIA agent Ho (Jackie Chan) calls itquits. But his retirement is short-lived when he is left in charge ofhis neighbour/girlfriend's three youngsters, who don't particularlylike him. Things get even hairier when his nemesis escapes and comeslooking for him.Simply a family vehicle for Jackie Chan – who performs his stuntsadmirably – The Spy Next Door is utter dreck: the narrative isfamiliar, the child actors are abnormal looking and Billy Ray Cyrus'turn as CIA tech-operative Colton James may cause Crohn's disease.As for dating a spy, just make sure to swallow all your top-secretmicrofilm before they come over. (Red Light)

2012-04-26 00:42:09

My name is not really Bob

Gillian (Amber Valletta) has next a new potential love of her life; it is her next-door neighbor, the sedate pen salesman Bob Ho (Jackie Chan). However, their relationship is doomed as Gillian's children hold a low opinion of Bob. Gillian wants her kids to be safe and happy. What about Bob? He may not be as sedate as Gillian supposes but he intends to for her kids to like him. His opportunity comes when he gets to babysit. However, it looks like his old job may complicate things.With few exceptions, I am not a Jackie Chan fan. This movie is definitely one of the exceptions. It has over the top acting and stunts. The story is formula and predictable but this people can act and the dialog is hokey to match. You will want to kibitz.

2012-04-25 14:56:40

Tiana's thoughts

I thought the Spy Next Door was a great comedy for the whole family. There were great action moves and a nice choice of actors. Overall I thought it was good but not the best kid action movie I've seen. It is a close second though.I thought it was good because it was funny,didn't get boring,and there was a lot of action.

tavm 2012-04-24 05:40:41

Jackie Chan's The Spy Next Door was a nice harmless diversion

All right, I'll admit right off the bat that I didn't expect a highquality movie when I picked this one and I didn't. What I did get was aharmless 90 minutes with Jackie Chan doing what he does best, which wasexecuting his creatively funny stunts to entertaining effect. There'salso a filler story of him being a retiring spy who falls for adivorced woman with three kids who, for the most part, don't think muchof him since they mainly think of him as a loser. Oh, and some badstereotypical Russian accents for the male and female villains too.Still, like I said, Chan provides the main reason one would watch andenjoy this movie and it's nice to occasionally see the supporting castalso get in on the action. Besides, any movie where Chan sings alullaby to the youngest daughter in Chinese and a former resident of mycurrent hometown of Baton Rouge (Johnny Rivers) is heard singing"Secret Agent Man" during the beginning can't be too bad...

2012-04-23 12:26:30

UNCLE BUCK, THE PACIFER, REDEUX

This is a good family film with no killing or blood, but a lot of 3 Stooges type violence. Jackie Chan plays the neighbor who is also a spy. He is dating a woman who thinks he is a pen salesman. Her three kids don't like him. Because of that she can't consider him for a long term relationship. When mom, played by Amber Valletta (a nice cross between Uma and Cameron Diaz) has to leave town, Jackie Chan volunteers to babysit so the kids will get to accept him. Like all similar movies (Uncle Buck, The Pacifier) the kids torment their sitter. Chan, like Candy, uses his skills to overcome them and win their love. The director did a good job on the child actors. The movie is a little hokey at times, but it is still a fun film. It has a happy heart warming ending.

2012-04-20 19:12:23

Puts a Jackie Chan Smlle On

This review is from: The Spy Next Door (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Edition) (Blu-ray) Good natured Spy vs. Kids action flick is a low-cal twinkie even by family film standards. The critics liked to play rough with it; and if you feel snooty about it, better stay away. Cute is its stock in trade and there are no disappointments if expectations remain logical: PG Jackie Chan suburban domestic comedy with mild action. Wacky Russian mobsters and their dominatrix-babe leader wear leathers and generally show bad taste as the foil in the spy plot, which follows Jackie home to his family to be. Good for kids or adults like me who need a balance from the heavy stuff.Blu-ray makes the grade for sight and sound.

dr-hangso 2012-04-20 08:26:36

Played like a celebration to Chan's illustrious career as an action hero,

Which leaves The Spy Next Door pretty much a departure fromcontemporary adventure flicks which tend to draw upon violence and gorein its action sequences, to keep it within a safe, acceptable rating.Jackie Chan plays Bob Ho, a man with as much personality as his any ofhis past heroes, which tend to be cop / secret agent belonging to theHong Kong / Chinese police / spy agency, and here he's on loan to theCIA because of warming Sino-US relations. For years he's been helpingout and solving what the Americans cannot, keeping in line withHollywood's trend of putting China in good light, and he does soundercover and under fake glasses, living next to a divorcée (played byAmber Valletta) whom he fancies, and her three kids.They do not know his identity as his cover is as a geeky pen salesman,and like any super- hero film, has to keep his identity, abilities andtools a secret, which you know will be threatened for exposure as hegrows closer to the family, wanting to take his relationship withValletta's Gillian to the next step, and working toward seekingacceptance from her children, only for a Russian criminal to escape andthreaten the world's oil reserve, and having to grapple with a molewithin the CIA. Sounds complicated, but it actually isn't, really,especially when the main villain (Magnus Scheving) spends a lot of histime trying to look trendy and fashionable.If there's something that will appeal, it'll be two items. First up theopening credit montage which played like a celebration to Chan'sillustrious career as an action hero, where you get to see clips fromclassics such as Hong Kong's Armour of God when he was at his peak, todisasters like Hollywood's Tuxedo when he sold out to the West. Thenthere's even some drawing from Chan's own real life experiences in hischaracter's monologue about love and family, exploited to add certainemotional gravitas in an otherwise empty film that spends fleetingmoments in its underdeveloped subplots about the adventures inparenting/babysitting, from the youngest daughter with a fetish foranything pink, the only son who's a school-bully fodder trying too hardto be cool in school, and an eldest daughter with the usual rebelliousteenage attitude problem.

saraa 2012-04-14 01:21:18

Negatives are from oldies

These negative reviews must be from oldies (50+), this is a family movie intended for children, teens, and anyone family-oriented. If you are the type of person who enjoys vulgar, sexual-oriented comedies with disgusting humour then this is not for you. If you are a mild/conservative person who enjoys family fun, then this is the movie for you.

jephintsa 2012-04-13 15:59:34

Superb Movieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This Is a Very good Jackie Chan movie !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it is hilariousand definitely a treat for kids the movie rocks man!!!!!!!!!!!!@@@@@@@@@@@@ Well perhaps not the best but definitely agood one it is a spend for moneyBob Ho, a Chinese spy working with the CIA to stop a man named Poldark.He's been posing as an importer and has been dating his neighbor,Gillian, a single mother with 3 children. When Bob captures Poldark, heretires from the spy game. He wants to make a commitment to Gillian buther children are not exactly warming up to him. When Gillian has to goout of town Bob offers to take care of the kids while she's away, whichproves to be no easy task. At the same time, Poldark somehow escapes.It's apparent that some in the Agency helped him. At the same timeColton one of Bob's associates at the CIA asks him to look at somethingthat Poldark had on him that appears to encrypted, hoping he can crackit.When the children break into his home to see what they can find outabout him, they find the file and download it. And when they try toopen it, Poldark tracks it down and sends his people to take care ofHo. Bob manages to deal with them and then takes the children and goeson the run.