A critical & commercial write-off for M-G-M on release, writer/director Nicholas Meyer’s Spy vs Spy Cold War dramedy now seems a modest, but tasty treat, an amuse-bouche for sophisticated palettes. Meyer, who wrote THE SEVEN-PER-CENT SOLUTION/’76 before saving STAR TREK twice (WRATH OF KHAN/’82; UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY/’91), has an unusual ability to hold tone across serious & comic boundaries. (Not the same as being semi-serious or semi-comic.) Here, refreshing a favorite old standby: the under-appreciated vet who gets a second chance unaware he’s being brought back not to succeed, but to fail. Naturally, he proves them wrong, screwing up their devious plans by coming thru with the goods. This one has former CIA man Gene Hackman, currently reduced to freelance industrial espionage gigs, called back to Washington headquarters to handle a Russian spy swap. Mikhail Baryshnikov’s the token incarcerated spy Gene’s escorting back to Soviet agents in Germany (along with two million in cash as sweetener), or is until they smell something fishy just before handoff, escaping on a dangerous (or is it merry?) Euro-chase to stay alive and find out what’s really going on. With top-tier tech work on location (mostly Berlin underground and Paris above) from D. P. Gerry Fisher; Ken Adam production design, Michael Kamen score (listen for a bit Tchaikovsky arranged for balalaika) and a super supporting cast, it’s easier than usual to follow along, twists and character reveals very satisfying. No surprise with Meyer in charge, his main fault is being too clever for his own good, but the years have made this civilized entertainment only more civilized.
ATTENTION MUST BE PAID: *Baryshnikov, no longer a kid at 43, looks and acts better than in anything else he did that didn’t focus on dance, hated the film and never made another feature. Pity.
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