rebeccajallings

I've watched Hallmark films since I was a kid, and this is my most favorite. The plot, the acting, the sets, etc., are all way above average. I mean, look at the cast list!

I do believe writing this down has made me want to finally buy the very overpriced DVD so I can watch it whenever I like!

These days, I don't watch Hallmark films anymore. Not only do you need a subscription to get them, but they tend to be repetitive and pretty bland.

The coolest thing about The Spy Who Dumped Me is that it is part of an extremely small group of films made recently-a series of genre shifting women's movies: Spy, Heat, Ghostbusters, Oceans 8, Bridesmaids, Trainwreck, etc. Each one of these films has pushed against the paternalistic idea that women should not try to be funny and they certainly should not be anything but set dressing in any action movie. And there has been a good deal of pushback from male critics, who outnumber women critics-four out of five critics are men who seem to frequently have trouble seeing past their own gender. After all, women in comedy/action movies are a rarity. (Always check the gender of the critic before you read a review.)

There is a lot of negative pressure on women in the entertainment world who want to be funny. This film had a lot of what one could call women's humor, and it was glorious to hear the laughter from the women in the audiences. These characters were definitely resourceful. They made plans and they carried them out. Yes, men helped them here and there-and then got shot so the women had to figure stuff out on their own-which they had already done. We just didn't know what they had done, yet.

The action is fast and the story has a number of turns and twists, plus, they travel through a bunch of beautiful cities in Europe, which I always love. Sam Heughan, the male lead in the Starz show, Outlander, is the reason most of the women in the audience were there. He's a fine actor and an extremely good looking man who did an exceptional job, making what could have been a simple throwaway role, full of mystery and dorkiness, one right after the other. Is he a good guy or a bad guy? Is he smart or dumb? Hasan Minhaj does a superb job at being a jerk, and Justin Theroux is tremendously slimy and awful, consistently underestimating Mila Kunis completely. And Mila Kunis turns in a top notch performance, switching back and forth between a dangerous gun toting broad and a scared little girl who needs to be saved. Trust me, her character doesn't need to be saved. Kate McKinnon is one of the best comediennes in the country right now and is at the top of her game in this film. She is a joy to watch. The two of them are fabulous together. As Mila said in several interviews, she and Kate "fell in love" with each other after only ten minutes, and it shows. You would bet a lot of money that they have been best friends for a very long time.

I do especially admire the men in the cast for signing on to a movie in which their gender precludes any kind of leading roles. I mean, the women mention vaginas, for god's sake.

The writer/director is also a woman, Susanna Fogel. You done good here, Susanna.