My Spy The Eternal City (2024) – Written Review

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Plot Summary

It has been many years since JJ and Sophie’s chance encounter, and now she is 14. JJ has taken on a desk job as an analyst and tries to be there for Sophie as a father would. Because she is a teenager, she doesn’t appreciate it, especially since JJ has Sophie training to be an agent daily when she just wants to ask out a boy, have her first kiss, and live her best life.

Enter the opportunity to go to Italy, which Sophie’s school wins the chance to do, and JJ decides to chaperone. With this, he finds himself trying to be the cool dad, even if Sophie hasn’t seemingly bequeathed such a title, while disgruntled Russians try to recover nuclear weapons lost during the fall of the Soviet Union. This, of course, forces JJ to return to the field alongside returning characters like Bobbi and David Kim.

Noted Cast and Characters Of “My Spy The Eternal City”

Character’s Name	Actor’s Name
JJ	Dave Bautista
Sophie	Chloe Coleman
Bobbi	Kristen Schaal
David	Ken Jeong
Nancy	Anna Faris

JJ

A veteran with a decorated military career, JJ is now far more domestic. He handles the cooking and cleaning while his partner is away and takes care of their daughter, Sophie, as well. Also, he has semi-retired from fieldwork to be a desk analyst, which he is good at but isn’t where many think he is needed.

• The actor is also known for their role in “Parachute.”

Sophie

Now a 14-year-old girl, Sophie once was enamored with JJ’s life as a spy, but with him taking a desk job, her interest has waned, and add in she has crushes on boys and other interests; what once bonded her with JJ is becoming a wedge which could drive them apart.

• The actor is also known for their role in “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.”

Bobbi

Bobbi is still your favorite data analyst who feels underappreciated and is a bit quirky.

• The actor is also known for their role in “My Spy.”

David Kim

David is the head of covert operations and the father of one of the kids who join Sophie’s trip to Italy.

• The actor is also known for their role in “Ken Jeong: You Complete Me, Ho.”

Vice Principal Nancy

Vice Principal Nancy is new to North Virginia High School, and with a multitude of children who belong to federal government employees, she does her best to run a tight ship.

Content Information

• Dialog: Cursing, Sexually Suggestive Dialog
• Violence: Gun Violence, Violence Against Animals, Blood, Notable Fight Scenes
• Sexual Content: N/A
• Miscellaneous: Drinking, Vomiting

Review

Our Rating: Positive (Worth Seeing)

Who Is This For?

•  Those who like spy comedies

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Highlights

JJ and Sophie’s Relationship Evolving

With Sophie now a teenager and JJ settled in as a parent, we see a notable shift in their relationship. JJ is a man who has notably excelled in some of the most challenging situations in life, but raising a kid and staying on her good side is perhaps his most arduous task.

In many ways, that is where the heart of “My Spy: The Eternal City” is. This man so badly wants to seem cool to Sophie’s friends and not get shut out by her, but with being an adult who is used to a routine and far more adaptable in life-or-death situations than handling the changing priorities of a teenager, he struggles. Which, of course, Sophie doesn’t take into account. She is more focused on how embarrassing he is, how he tracks and notes her every movement.

It makes sense for him to do that, as he does work for the CIA, is a notable agent, and having a family does create a liability. But, it is in seeing Sophie use what JJ has taught her, show that while he may not be her dad by nature, he is by nurture, that you may find yourself getting emotional by the time the film ends, especially as Sophie proves herself to be a partner, who can be reliable, and not a kid who always needs protecting.

Sophie Getting To Show Her Talents

While Chloe Coleman has a stunt person in Kristina Baskett, you have to admit it is cool to see the kid from the original “My Spy” now being able to do parkour moves, shakily handle a gun, and pursue the style of a different kind of spy as opposed to Dave Bautista’s JJ. The movie doesn’t setup a sequel, but with Sophie 14 and the last movie nearly four years ago, you could imagine Amazon waiting for Coleman to age up once again and present the idea of her becoming a real agent and not an unofficial asset to JJ in the field. For while some of the moments, like watching Sophie drive, clearly were made to be comical, you can also see them as setting up long game jokes for a third movie.

It’s Comical

Admittedly, you may think they try too hard when it comes to some of the comedy, especially from Kristen Schaal and Ken Jeong. However, they aren’t consistently trying to be scene stealers and come off as unnatural. There are times when the two are funny, and generally speaking, you can get a chuckle out of this film.

An example would be Vice Principal Nancy questioning if JJ is going to be a “Shadow Parent” or active as a chaperone. It’s not rolling on the floor funny, but to see someone Anna Farris’ size dress down someone Dave Bautista’s size and damn near leave him stammering is comical.

On The Fence

Its Villain’s Bring Little To The Film To Keep The Pace Going

Unfortunately, “My Spy: The Eternal City” has generic Russian villains. This isn’t to say they don’t cut a joke here and there and provide decent action sequences, but as one of the driving forces of a nearly two-hour movie, from their motive to personalities, they fall flat.

General Information

Film Length	1 Hour 51 Minutes
Date Released	July 18, 2024
How To Watch	Prime Video | Stream Here
Distributor	Prime Video
Director(s)	Peter Segal
Writer(s)	Erich Hoeber, Jon Hoeber, Peter Segal
Based On Work By	Erich Hoeber, Jon Hoeber, Peter Segal
Genre(s)	Action Adventure Comedy
Content Rating	Rated PG-13

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