Agent Cody Banks

The film talks a shy adolescent (Frankie Muniz) who's submitted to jokes from his school fellows but he's really a CIA undercover agent . He's assigned by his chief (Keith David) for one dangerous mission , he then meets a teen girl (Hillary Duff) whose father (Martin Donovan) is a scientific working in nanotechnology industries for the nasties (Ian McShane and Arnold Vosloo) . The teen is helped by an attractive agent (Angie Harmon).

The plot is a little bit ridiculous , but we're in a spoof comedy and it is narrated in fast movement ; besides , abound the surprises , being very funny and bemusing . In the film there is suspense , comedy , emotion , action-packed , tongue-in-cheek and chases galore with impressive velocity pursuits . The screenplay is nicely developed as well as characters and the frenetic action united to excellent special effects that are varied of these too . From the beginning until the end the amusement and entertainment is continued . The humor moments are in charge of Frankie Muniz with his abundant botches and goofs that happen when he must confront perils and risks against the villains . It's a spoof of James Bond's films , even there's a flying artifact like in ¨Thunderball¨ , plus a role type ¨Q¨ , a weapons deliverer , who teaches the various gadgets which Cody Banks will subsequently use . Exciting final facing off between the protagonists and the baddies on the mountain headquarter is breathtaking and special mention to the habitual villain Arnold Vosloo (The mummy) , he is terrific. Colorful cinematography by Denis Crossan ; the exterior of the CIA headquarters was shot on location in the Academic Quadrangle at Simon Fraser University near Vancouver , this location is popular for films shot in this city . Atmospheric and lively musical score by John Powell . The motion picture was professionally directed by Harald Zwart (One Night at McCool's , Commando Hamilton , Pink Panther 2). Rating: Enjoyable and nice.

This was a decent film, not as innovative as Spy Kids but an improvement over Stormbreaker. Of course it is very silly, and has a predictable plot and an uneven script. But due to the spirited performances from the entire cast, it is great fun. Frankie Muniz gives a sense of charm and cheekiness to his role, and while having less to do, Hilary Duff gives one of her better performances here. Angie Harmon also is fabulously sexy as Agent Miles, revealing outfit and all, and Ian Mcshane is great as Brinkman. While there are discrepancies in the script sometimes, there are inspired moments of physical comedy that delivers the laughs. Also the film goes along at a fast pace, and there are wonderful stunts and action sequences. Predictable, but great fun. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Normally I dislike (and somewhat resent) unoriginal movies that are simply an exercise in age regression of an established franchise to target a younger consumer audience (Young Indiana Jones, Young Sherlock Holmes, Muppet Babies, et al) . This practice ruined Saturday morning for me even moreso than mandatory comic-relief characters (Scrappy Doo anyone?). To be honest I went in expecting VERY little from Agent Cody Banks which was obviously a spy genre movie targeted at consumers too old for Spy Kids and too young to get into Bond films.

The story concerns a stand-out from an experimental new government recruiting facility that takes high school kids to a 'summer camp' which is actually a high-tech training operation for young CIA operatives. Cody Banks is one of the 'graduates' of this program who is currently simply getting by in his regular routine until his country calls him up to active duty.

It seems a nerdy scientist has developed nanobots capable of eating their way through just about anything at the atomic level (originally designed to clean up oil spills in offshore disasters). Needless to say, the funding for the project is supplied by a shadowy character with plans for world domination and, of course, he has a menacing henchman (Francois - rather ironic considering the US relations with France at the moment) who does the physical dirty work on the mastermind's behalf. When the villains seek to kidnap the daughter (Duff) of the nerdy scientist to gain control over the nanobots, Cody Banks (Muniz) is called into active service and given an array of spy gear that would make Bond envious. The side 'gimmick' is that Cody is shy and cannot talk to girls which makes him 'endearing' juxtaposed to Bond's womanizing talents. In all other respects Cody is a 5' tall 15 year old James Bond.

Sounds like a Bond film? It is. Only better than the last three Bond outings (believe it or not). I am actually fairly certain the sets and props used at the end of the film are recycled from early Bond films (most notably the sub bay and mag-lev train from Moonraker and/or Man With the Golden Gun- I cannot remember which film for sure, but you'll recognize it when you see it). The plot, while COMPLETELY unoriginal, is consistent and engaging enough to hold the attention (especially if you are too young to have seen the Bond/spy movies it borrows from). The gadgets are fairly interesting and, again, while derivative of earlier franchises, are fun to see in the hands of a teenager.

The acting is fairly credible (such as it is) with a few exaggerated (and over-acted) spy film stereotypes. There's no profanity, no nudity, no drugs (though what COULD be alcohol if you wanted to see it as such), plenty of action and the requisite action-film violence (and one fairly gruesome death at the end).

This movie is targeted squarely at the 'puberty set' but is still enjoyable by all ages. My 5 year old son really enjoyed it and nothing in the film was more objectionable than what he watches on broadcast TV (perhaps less so to be honest).

I recommend this film to anyone that likes spy films and anyone looking for a 'safe' film the entire family can enjoy.

"Agent Cody Banks" sticks Banks (Muniz), a 16 year old high school student and CIA junior agent, in the middle of a 007 plot clone with a nemesis who's out to extort nanobot technology from a good-guy scientist to control the world. Banks' mission is to get close to the scientist's hottie daughter (Duff) so he can...um, save the world. This kid flick has the same kind of high tech stuff, great sets, and production value we come to expect with 007 or MI flicks including martial arts, X-boarding, etc. all built around a teen puppy love story centerpiece. A fun action guy flick for kids which gets moving quick and never slows down. (B)

Kiddie spy flicks have become something of a new trend, resulting in the first spin-off since Spy Kids other than the original franchise. To say the least, this film falls way short of that expectation. Yes, the film had cool gadgets, and some decent sequences, it just seemed to lack where Spy Kids excelled. There wasn't that innocent charm or the silliness, for it seemed to be replaced by sexual innuendos and teenage hormones. Unfortunately, this series will most likely get more sequels, which means they have at least another chance to make up for their mistakes.