In addition to jaw-dropping action, the best spy movies feature narrativeformulas that are equally thrillingfor audiences like mistaken identities, double-crossings, and uncovering conspiracies.The feverish entertainment value of the genre hinges on the viewer’s ability to trust the process while taking a step away from reality’s believability for a two-hour runtime. The most deliriously fun spy movies are an equal mix of franchises that take their missions seriously and comedies that accept their identity as a vessel for laughter.
From hand-to-hand combat, mind-blowing stunts, and masterful technical execution toover-the-top premises, villains, and technology,spy movies appeal to a wide variety of audiences who want more than a formulaicJames Bondmovie. The best of the best in this category aremulti-genre movies that can’t identify as just a spy movie, just a comedy, or just an action movie, but rather deliriously entertaining features that travel into the imaginative world of espionage.
10’Red’ (2010)
Directed by Robert Schwentke
If not pure entertainment from its A-list cast and their equally A-list chemistry,Redis the ultimate espionage movie about old habits die hard.Bruce Willisstars as retired CIA operative Frank Moses who’s just survived an attack by a pack of hit men. Searching for the motive behind the assault, Frank seeks to break into the CIA headquarters but must reassemble his old team of experts to succeed.Morgan Freeman,John Malkovich, andHelen Mirrenco-staralongside Willis to uncover the conspiracy.
The film’s authentic banter of bickering old coworkers creates a believable foundation for the escapist, imaginative action that unfolds.The characters are likeable and the over-the-top gunfire, explosions, and beatdowns understand the popcorn effectof a movie made just to entertain.Reddraws inspiration from the genre’s past to reawaken for audiences the delirious fun spy movies are known for.
9’Kingsman: The Secret Service' (2014)
Directed by Matthew Vaughn
A spy comedy that defied expectations,Kingsman: The Secret Serviceis an action film that combines wit and action, and some of the best fight sequences of the genre. Eggsy (Taron Egerton) is a South London street kid whose life changes when he’s recruited by a secret spy organization his late father took part in. Under the watchful eye of Agent Galahad (Colin Firth), Eggsy trains as a Kingsman agent to aid in stopping a tech genius (Samuel L. Jackson) who wants to execute a worldwide killing spree.
The cinematography and editing take audiences through each fight sequence with the opponents as if they are engaged in the duel. Galahad’s church scene is cut to appear as if it’s one long take againstthe backdrop of “Free Bird” byLynyrd Skynyrd, producing a jaw-dropping five minutes ofnon-stop action and Colin Firth stunts.Kingsmanis an entirely over-the-top spy movie that retains its entertainment factorno matter how many times audiences rewatch it.
Kingsman: The Secret Service
8’True Lies' (1994)
Directed by James Cameron
True Liesponders two questions: save the world or save the marriage?TheArnold SchwarzeneggerandJamie Lee Curtisspy flick features the two as husband and wife Harry and Helen. Harry is secretly a spy pretending to be a used car salesman at home, with his latest mission to apprehend a terrorist in possession of nuclear missiles. Meanwhile, Helen considers an affair after feeling unfulfilled in their 15-year marriage, but both their lives are turned upside down when Helen and Harry are captured by the very villain he sought to eliminate.
Fans of the action herogot the entertainment valuethey sought when purchasing a ticket to a Schwarzenegger feature. From the opening horseback hotel lobby chase to the third act fighter plane sequence,True Liesproducesall the expected cartoonish spy actionwhile also filling it with laughs and a romantic pulse very different from the genre’s often disposable female characters.
7’Atomic Blonde' (2017)
Directed by David Leitch
As one of the best female-led spy thrillers,Atomic Blondeis a stylish spectacle that brings fresh, but gut-punching air to the genre. MI6 spy Lorraine Broughton (Charlize Theron) travels to Berlin just as the Wall is about to fall to retrieve a missing list of double agents while investigating the murder of another agent. What seems like an impossible mission forces Lorraine to navigate through the world of Cold War espionage, reluctant to trust anyone.
Theron’s portrayal of Lorraine cultivatesa badass, cool-as-ice female action herowho focuses on the job instead of getting swept up into a whirlwind romance, as the genre usually descends into.What makesAtomic Blondedeliriously entertaining is its artsy but brutal action and fight sequences, using intensity to mesmerize audiences.
Atomic Blonde
6’Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me' (1999)
Directed by Jay Roach
The clever marketing strategy to spoof the trailer of the upcomingStar Warsfilm put the Austin Powers sequel on audience radars, despite a hype consensus forThe Phantom Menace.Austin Powers:The Spy Who Shagged Mefinds the titular super spy (Mike Myers) traveling back in time after Dr. Evil (Myers) returns to 1969 to steal Austin’s “mojo,” leaving him “shagless.” In addition to tormenting Austin, Dr. Evil returns to 1969 to set up a powerful laser and point it toward Earth.
Whilethe first movie never took itself seriously, the sequel didn’t either, creating a divisive critic and audience reception.The slapstick and raunchy comedy depicts Austin Powers as an out-of-his-time misfit rather than an espionage enigma.Secure in his identity as anything but a James Bond, Austin is an annoyingly likable character whose joy and delight translate through the screen. Perhaps more vulgar than the PG-13 rating should allow,The Spy Who Shagged Meis a colorfully delirious spy comedy changing the pace of high-stakes missions.
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me
Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
Is there a stuntTom Cruisewon’t attempt? Not likely.Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part Onefeatures Ethan Hunt (Cruise) and the IMF team’s most deadly mission yet, as a deadly race around the world begins to obtain an artificial intelligence weapon called The Entity. Featuring death-defying stunts and a 20-minute car chase sequence that left everyone’s adrenaline pumping.Dead Reckoningearned the franchise’s first Oscar nominationsfor Best Visual Effects and Best Sound, two crucial components to creating an immersive powerful experience with each sequence.
The seventh installment is the best of the franchise, clocking in with nearly three hours of high-octane action.Fans of the series can expect to see the usualMission: Impossiblethematic elements: a lot of Cruise running before knock-the-wind-out-of-you fistfights and committing palm-sweating stunts like driving a dirt bike off a cliff andhanging from a dangling train car.And who could deny the chills whenever the iconic theme music begins?
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning
4’North By Northwest' (1959)
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
What would the espionage genre be today without this iconic mistaken identity feature? In a canon and era ofJames Bondfilms,North By Northwestfeatures the charismaticCary Grantas Roger O. Thornhill, an advertising executive thrust into a cross-country escape from a spy named Phillip Vandamm (James Mason), who mistakes Thornhill for a government agent. Thornhill doesn’t know who to trust, especially after he falls for the mysterious Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint) and begins to question where her loyalties lie.
DirectorAlfred Hitchcock’s signature stylecultivated a thrilling plot with stunning visuals onscreen with expert technical execution. Beyond the Hitchcock formulas,North By Northwestintroduced an identifiable character into the spy genre, one much different from 007, rather a regular man who is forced into a globe-trotting adventure.The movie created a number of firstsin cinema history, making it the original deliriously fun spy movie.
North By Northwest
3’Spy' (2015)
Directed by Paul Feig
A deliciously funny slapstick installmentin the spy genre,SpyfeaturesMelissa McCarthyat her best. She stars as Susan Cooper, a CIA analyst who has spent her career at a desk, being the eyes and ears for field agent, Bradley Fine (Jude Law), using an earpiece to keep Bradley out of imminent danger. When Bradley is assassinated, Susan goes undercover, partnering with the less-than-thrilled field agent Rick Ford (Jason Statham) to infiltrate the arms dealer enterprise responsible for Bradley’s death.
McCarthy’s ability to commit to the bit and create comedic chemistry with each of her costars produces irresistible laughs.Her leading talent finds a film that is worthy of her timing and delivery without succumbing to another wasted genre opportunity.Spybrings the popcorn entertainmentwhile having the most fun, solidifying its place as one ofthe best spy movies.
2’The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent' (2022)
Directed by Tom Gormican
In a meta performance fromNicolas Cagepaired with the scene-stealing talents ofPedro Pascal, this spy comedy turned buddy feature sets expectations early withits wildly creative title and premise. Cage stars as a fictionalized version of himself trying to recover from a creative downward trajectory and financial ruin. He agrees to appear at Javi’s (Pascal), a wealthy superfan, birthday party, but in forging a unique friendship with the man, Cage is recruited as an informant by the CIA to spy on the drug kingpin.Cage channels all of his iconic charactersto survive the ordeal.
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talentis comedicgold with its over-the-top delirium of Nicolas Cage playing Nicolas Cage. The entertaining absurdity of the movie creates a character-driven spy feature where the arc is more important than the espionage.Unbearable Weighttakes the spy formula and flips it while fueling the film with equal parts parody and homage to the beloved star.
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
1’The Spy Who Loved Me' (1977)
Directed by Lewis Gilbert
Considered the best of theRoger Moore007 era,The Spy Who Loved Meleans into the funof the genre with a captivating villain and equally memorable henchman, authentic romantic tension, over-the-top action, special gadgets, and an impressive underwater set piece. When shipping businessman and oceanic enthusiast Karl Stromberg (Curd Jürgens) seeks to destroy New York with nuclear weapons from his underwater lair, James Bond (Moore) enlists the help of Russian agent Anya Amasova (Barbara Bach) to foil Stromberg’s plan.
Perhaps the most deliriously entertaining part ofThe Spy Who Loved Meis Stromberg’s henchman, Jaws (Richard Kiel), a seven-foot man with jagged steel teeth. While Moore’s movies are recognized for their campy nature,The Spy Who Loved Medeparts from the formula tofeature some of the genre’s best esthetics of the espionage world, from the underwater lair to the romance between Bond and Amasova, whose lover he killed. The film’s size and scope of epic proportionshinged heavily onStanley Kubrick’s helpbut still managed to produce for viewers an entertaining spy spectacle paired with Moor’s best Bond performance.
