Spy

We laughed. Melissa McCarthy’s spy character must suffer numerous indignities as she makes her first foray as a field agent. The script does everything it can to embarrass her, and in the wrong hands this could have been miserable. But like any good comedy, it’s a high wire act. The embarrassing things only work because of McCarthy’s funny and impatient reactions to them. And she never gives up, which makes her a hero. Also, thankfully, she’s a competent spy. She doesn’t accidentally stumble on solutions, the way they might in Get Smart or Spies Like Us. We went to see Train Wreck, which was sold out, so we saw this instead. It was a fine alternative.