Review Roundup: Melissa McCarthy Stars in Action Comedy SPY

Melissa McCarthy stars in the new action-comedy SPY. SPY was written and directed by Paul Feig, best known for his work on BRIDESMAIDS, THE HEAT, and I AM DAVID.

SPY follows the story of Susan Cooper, an unassuming, desk bound CIA analyst, and the unsung hero behind the Agency's most dangerous missions. When her partner falls off the grid and another top agent is compromised, she volunteers to go deep undercover to infiltrate the world of a deadly arms dealer, and prevent a global disaster.

SPY stars Melissa McCarthy, Jude Law, Jason Statham, Rose Byrne, Allison Janney, and Miranda Hart.

Let's see what the critics had to say!

A. O. Scott, The New York Times: This movie is fancier than "The Heat" or "Bridesmaids" - flush with high-end visual effects purchased on the strength of their success. And the big, hectic set pieces aren't bad, as long as the gunfire doesn't drown out Ms. McCarthy's floridly inventive insults and non sequiturs. There's an undercurrent of cheeky surrealism that sometimes pops to the surface: For some reason C.I.A. headquarters are infested with bats and mice; for some reason the rapper 50 Cent is in Budapest; for some reason Ms. Byrne is Bulgarian. Even better is the blithe feminism that makes "Spy" feel at once revolutionary and like no big deal. It's not just that the movie aces the Bechdel test. It didn't even need to study. The movie isn't uplifting; it's buoyant. While Susan at first clearly has a lot to prove - that she's a skilled professional and a ruthless adversary, everyone else's doubts to the contrary - Mr. Feig doesn't make her proving it the central arc of the narrative. Instead, he highlights Ms. McCarthy's quickness and unpredictability, her genius for defying logic and decorum. She can be ridiculous and heroic, needy and scary, clueless and clever - in quick succession and sometimes all at once.

Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: It's all outrageously entertaining, from Susan's makeovers, frumpy to fab, to the lethal weapons disguised as stool softeners and hemorrhoid patches. All the actors come up aces. And let's bottle the delicious byplay between McCarthy and Byrne, whose comic timing is bitchy perfection. It's a kick to watch as McCarthy comes out blazing while creating a character who cuts right to the heart. McCarthy is totally irresistible. Ditto the movie.

Justin Chang, Variety: For some, the term "action-comedy hybrid" may trigger dire memories of earlier studio mediocrities like "Knight and Day," "Killers" and "The Bounty Hunter," in which the two genres BLENDED about as harmoniously as oil and water. By contrast, "Spy" gets the balance almost exactly right, predicated on the eminently sensible notion that a well-timed verbal jab can help punch up an action scene, while a high-speed car chase can only be improved with some discreet breast groping. Even when the violence catches you off guard with its sudden ferocity, it works in no small part because Feig, avoiding the surreal silliness of an "Austin Powers"-style sendup, maintains a surprisingly straight face even as he pursues a humorously skewed angle on the world of international espionage.

Joanna Robinson, Vanity Fair: SPY doesn't always succeed. Just because Melissa McCarthy can do anything, doesn't mean she should necessarily do everything. And with each subsequent double-cross and new European location, the film starts to sag under its lengthy two hour running time. But if you just can't get enough of a gun-toting McCarthy (and given The Heat's phenomenal box office returns that might be the case), then SPY is the film for you.

Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian: It's an entertaining piece of silliness, though it looks like a decision has been made to balance out the female star with some weirdly explicit violence and salty cuss-words, perhaps to reassure the male demographic target audience that this is no wussy chick-flick.

Scott Mendelson, Forbes: SPY is the real deal. It is a female-centric action comedy hybrid that makes no apologies whatsoever in any respective categories. It not only puts a female in the center of the action but also surrounds her with other game comedic actresses in the service of a story that subtly comments on the real loss society suffers when it excludes those who don't fit the proverbial mold. It is genuinely funny, with next-to-none of the humor generated by jokes about McCarthy's body or her character's alleged incompetence. In fact, the film's key joke is how exceptional of a secret agent Susan Cooper turns out to be THE MOMENT she is given the chance. And, perhaps most surprisingly, it is a mostly uncompromised out-and-out action thriller, where the fights, chases, and shootouts are about as big as you'd expect from a lower-budgeted male-centric action movie.

Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: "Spy" can't be called perfect, or close to it, but the movie's better than hit-or-miss. Happily for fans of McCarthy, she shoots from her formidable hip - and she hits the target.

Kyle Smith, New York Post: Alas, "sad case" is not how we want to see McCarthy; it's frustrating to see her spend more than half the movie being the pathetic target of jokes rather than the dominating figure she was in "Bridesmaids" and "The Heat," both of which are far funnier than this one.

Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly: Still, Spy isn't without a few rough spots. The recurring 50 Cent cameo isn't as funny as the movie seems to think it is. The frantic pace of the film's first half goes a little slack in the second as it gets more action-centric (not exactly Feig's specialty). And while I get that part of McCarthy's shtick is beating others to the punch of how she's not what a typical leading lady looks like, I'm beginning to wish she didn't feel the need to any more. With the run she's been on, she's earned that much. Honestly, though, she can do whatever she wants at this point. Just as long as she works as much as possible. After all, who else is going to show the boys how it's done?

John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter: Melissa McCarthy comes into her own as a comic star in Spy, stepping out from recent supporting- and co-headlining roles to become the big screen A-lister she promised to be in 2011's Bridesmaids. Lampooning the alpha-male conventions of the secret agent flick while transferring some of that badassery to an unlikely character, writer-director Paul Feig remains one of the best friends women in comedy have, managing to get yuks from fat-lady jokes while mocking a world that treats such women like they're invisible. Laugh-stuffed and making excellent use of its marquee-grade supporting cast, it promises to be a home run in its early summer release.

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