Agent
Cody Banks, is a crime-fighter that I truly believe the world will do just as
well without. I live a nocturnal existence and as a result I rarely get around
to watching television before Conan, therefore I couldn't say that I've ever seen
an episode of Malcolm in the Middle. My children own a copy of Big Fat Liar and
I've seen most of it around 700 times, so I do consider myself to be something
of an authority of Frankie Muniz. Muniz is one of those child stars who excels
at playing the kid who makes up for his relative homeliness with his personality.
I also saw the episode of Punk'd where Ashton steals his car and Muniz cusses
like a Hell's Angel and completely makes an ass of himself.
I
believe it is because of the affinity he showed for technical gadgetry in Big
Fat Liar that the CIA took an interest in turning him into a teenage spy. Thus
Muniz is pressed into service, albiet somewhat against his will. Somehow, without
his parents knowledge or permission, Banks has been to CIA summer camp and been
well-trained to do all the important spy stuff: fight, shoot, drive, fly, bla
bla bla . . . The only Bond-ish skill he can't seem to master is the art of seducing
the ladies. After all he's only 15 and suffers from stuttering stage-fright when
he's staring Beth in the face.
Muniz
fares well enough in this hit and miss Spy Kids-meets-007 adventure, in the opening
scene he uses his jet-propelled skateboard to save the life of a child in a runaway
car. Yes the Agency has equipped Banks with all the requisite gizmos for this
line of work: X-ray glasses (I would have gladly joined the Agency for a pair
of those alone); a cell phone with a holographic display; a wristwatch that emits
an electric shock; the aforementioned skateboard; a portable pen-laser-blow-torch
combination; you know, standard spy-issue equipment. Banks is nothing if not a
natural when it comes to all this hi-tech tasking, unfortunately in order to save
the world he needs to charm the beautiful daughter of a scientist and this is
where our would-be Bond struggles. When face to face with the fairer sex he freezes
up and turns into a tongue-tied twerp in need of training. Thus he must quickly
be tutored in the art of amore by agent Angie Harmon, a no-nonsense knock-out
Bond-girlesque agent who insists on being referred to as his handler, as opposed
to his partner. Personally I wouldn't have had a problem with this subtle distinction
if I were Banks - but what do I know about espionage.
The
scientist in question is being made to work for an evil organization known only
as "E.R.I.S.," where his creation "nanobots," (microscopic
robots that can be programmed to do anything), are to be employed as a secret
weapon to conquer the world. Thus the Agency needs their ace teenage spook to
embark on the dangerous mission of infiltrating this operation by sweet-talking
his way into the heart of Natalie (the scientists darling daughter played, of
course, by Hillary Duff). Daunting business for young Banks - not only must he
talk to this girl, if the world is to be saved, he needs to become her (gulp)
boyfriend. During these scenes the film does offer a few funny and winning moments,
that will no doubt strike a familiar chord with the films target audience.
Unfortunately,
unlike many kid's movies - Spy Kids, for example, very little of this film is
written well enough to entertain the adults in the audience. In fact the writing
credits are shared by six different writers - never a good sign. The script is
a scattershot affair riddled with typical teenage toilet humor - flatulence, dog
poop, prep-school bullies, and the like. Muniz does as good a job as any young
actor could've been expected to do, given the clichéd scenarios he encounters
in this cut and paste Mission Implausible.
All
of this film's stock characters are poorly drawn and thus the film never rises
above the level of a simple kid's movie. And for kids it will find an audience.
The majority of the adult characters in the film are either evil or scheming and
parents are portrayed as clueless creatures to be avoided at all cost. Muniz does
his best to salvage this formulaic flufster - but ultimately it comes up lacking
in a few important areas such as excitement, originality, laughs, intelligence
and even chemistry.
