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Parents' Guide to

Spies in Disguise

By Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 8+

Odd-couple spy/buddy comedy is wacky fun; lots of action.

Movie PG 2019 102 minutes
Spies in Disguise Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 11+

Based on 53 parent reviews

shebzi
shebzi Adult
January 29, 2021
age 18+

Glorifies sexual assault

I can't believe no-one has even bothered to mention this yet. There were literally 3 different sexual assault scenes in the first half of the movie. After the third one, my boyfriend and I stopped watching the movie, we were so uncomfortable. Why is it necessary to keep creating scenarios where the spy-turned-pigeon has a probe-like object forcibly inserted into his behind? It adds absolutely nothing to the storyline, and the worst one was the scene with the fat man. They literally did the scene in slow-motion, they were trying to emphasise what was going on. What the hell? These scenes were not humorous and added absolutely nothing to the storyline. I don't believe children should be normalised to such scenes.

This title has:

Too much sex
12 people found this helpful.
AutumnMomto3
AutumnMomto3 Adult
May 11, 2020
age 18+

Too much nudity & violence

I’m pretty upset my kids (6,4,&2) saw this. The movie was not as funny as I was hoping & I was disgusted by the extended nudity scene. They spend quite a bit of time looking, touching & fighting with a naked man who confessed he just peed in the pool & then sticks his figure up the pigeon’s butt. No subtlety in suggestive themes there. This did not belong in a children’s movie, even for older kids. It was well beyond a towel briefly dropping for comedic affect. I also felt the violence was too much for a movie aimed at kids. The movie ended well, but the violence got a bit too dark before that. Very disappointed. I do not recommend watching this with your kids.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
8 people found this helpful.
See all 53 parent reviews

What's the Story?

SPIES IN DISGUISE is an animated spy thriller about two very different men. Suave master spy Lance Sterling (voiced by Will Smith) is known for not mussing his tuxedo while taking down international criminals, while awkward Walter Beckett (Tom Holland) is a young, brilliant inventor who creates spy gear. When a mysterious terrorist is able to use tech to disguise himself as Agent Sterling while committing violent crimes, Lance turns to Walter for help and unexpectedly drinks a newly perfected serum that looks like water. But the invisibility concoction doesn't make Sterling disappear: Instead, it turns him into a pigeon. While in bird form, Lance must team up with Walter as his new/unlikely partner in order to take down the face-stealing mastermind.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (53 ):
Kids say (77 ):

Smith and Holland have great buddy-comedy chemistry and give this weird-in-a-good-way animated adventure a charming, crowd-pleasing vibe. Blue Sky Animation has an impressive track record with animal-focused comedies (four Ice Age films and two Rio movies), and Spies in Disguise continues the studio's streak with the wacky twist of Smith's smooth-talking agent turning into a talking blue pigeon (complete with a tiny tuxedo bow-tie tattoo). Some of the humor may go over very young viewers' heads, but tweens will appreciate the pigeon anatomy jokes, as well as the dark, drone-obsessed adversary (Ben Mendelsohn, who's quite comfortable playing villains and can sound quite chilling).

Although the two leads work mostly as a duo, the talented supporting cast includes Reba McEntire as Sterling's unit director, Rashida Jones as an internal affairs investigator (who believes Sterling has turned traitor), and Karen Gillan and DJ Khaled as her well-intentioned but misguided team. The Mark Ronson-produced soundtrack prominently features Rob Base's "It Takes Two" (for the Gen X parents), "Rocket Fuel" by DJ Shadow and De La Soul, "Fly" by Lucky Daye, and other high-energy tracks. But what really elevates this story is Walter's insistence on nonviolence (or at least nonlethal violence), creating gadgets and tech that focus on distracting and humanizing enemies with glitter-and-kitten bombs and other adorable innovations. The movie's sweet, heartwarming message of peace and understanding is one everyone could use.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the positive messages in Spies in Disguise. What does Lance learn about peaceful negotiation thanks to Walter? Why is it important not to be casually OK with violence, even if it's for government reasons?

  • Which characters do you consider role models in the movie? What are their character strengths?

  • What are your favorite buddy movies? Why do you think the genre works, particularly in action/adventure? Why are the buddies usually "odd couples" with very different personalities, strengths, and styles?

  • Do you think there's potential for a sequel to this movie? If so, what would you like to see more of in the story?

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