Espion malgré lui

My review was written in May 1990 after a screening in Chelsea in Manhattan.

Dumped unceremoniously into the marketplace by Sony's Triumph label, "Honeymoon Academy" is an old-fashioned comedy that wastes the talents of Kim Cattrall in her first top billed role.

Depressing box office prospects are reflected in zero paying customers showing up for a 9:30 p.m. Opening night performance at the Manhattan thetare where it was reviewed, following no press screenings.

Pic's inappropriate title is an afterthought based on the success of executive producer Paul Maslansky's "Police Academy" films. Lensed in spring 1988 as "For Better or for Worse", pic ha no school for newlyweds.

Cattrall, styled as a thin blonde, is a State Department secret agent thrown together with Robert Hays in a library. It's love at first sight, and they marry and go off to Madrid for a honeymoon, a gift from her boss Leigh Taylor-Young.

Taylor-Young sends agent Charles Rocket to force Cattrall to work during the holiday as a courier of payoff money for counterfeiter Christopher Lee. Endless slapstick and an unsuccessful detour into "Romancing the Stone" territory pad out pointless footage.

Cattrall projects the appeal of Laraine Day but deserves better pics. Hays is a capable physical comedian, playing straight in the manner of his "Airplane" persona in a role originally cast for Paul Reiser. Supporting cast, notably Rocket, is hammy. Lee brightens up the film very briefly.

Technical credits are acceptable, except for poorly synched dialog set in a forest with waterfalls interfering with direct sound recording.

Sean (Robert Hays) falls for Chris (Kim Cattrall) and they immediately get married. He thinks that she's a travel agent. In reality, she's a secret American agent doing dirty jobs for the State Department. They are off to a honeymoon in Spain. Her boss has a different idea.

This is an one-joke concept for the first half of the movie. He keeps missing her doing espionage things over and over again. This is also known as 'For Better or for Worse'. Honeymoon Academy is trying to sound like Police Academy. Only, this troubled production is nowhere near as successful. Original lead Paul Reiser had to be replaced after an injury and most of the movie had to be reshot in a rush. At least, we get to see a bit of Spain and taste a bit of the flavor. The second half has the couple doing some screwball capers. It's a reversed Romancing the Stone. It all feels like the lesser version of better movies.

The original title for the movie was for better or for worse I really don't know why they changed it to honeymoon academy the original was more fitting with the movie

Wholesome Disneyesque comedy about a female spy (who had thought she had retired) and her new husband (who had thought she was a travel agent). Sort of like TV's "Scarecrow and Mrs. King," and "Moonlighting." Kim Cattral (people either love her or can't stand her but) and Robert Hays ("Airplane") make a great couple and I had wished this had warranted sequels. If you are a fan of "Mannequin" try this film as well.

"Honeymoon Academy" was one of my first storyboarding jobs. I remember being in the office when the producer received a call from Spain announcing that Paul Reiser (the original lead) had wrecked his leg. I believe he fell on the steps of the church during the wedding sequence. Instant chaos...the movie had a slim budget and a very short shooting schedule. They couldn't wait for Reiser to heal...they had to dig up a new leading man, fly him to Spain, and shoot everything from the beginning. Somehow they made it.

I no longer remember the original title of the movie, but it wasn't "Honeymoon Academy." After its release we all wondered where the title came from. It had nothing to do with the story.