Agent Cody Banks Movie Review:


James Bond Jr., uh? I mean Cody Banks to the rescue.

TV-phenom Frankie Muniz takes to the silver screen once more as he steps into the pseudo-world of a secret agent. Muniz plays Cody Banks, teenager who was recruited by the CIA at a summer camp where he was trained with the elite abilities of a secret agent. After ten million dollars of training, the CIA just happens to forget to teach Cody how to talk to cute girls. So when a covert operation comes along that finds that Cody has to get close to popular girl Natalie Connors (Hilary Duff), it could be Cody’s most difficult mission yet.

At the film’s core, "Agent Cody Banks" is a saccharine packet waiting to explode. It’s chalked full of cutesy preteen and young teen moments but seems to shine better when it sticks to the spy gadgets and mission.

I really do like Frankie Muniz as a rising star. He has the charisma of a Michael J. Fox, circa "Family Ties" and "Back to the Future". I really think this kid is full of talent. He can say so much with a wrinkled forehead and a smirk.

I however wasn’t impressed much with the performance of other TV personality, Hilary Duff, who plays Lizzie McGuire on the Disney Channel. She didn’t come off as natural in her scenes. I have seen a lot of other actresses her age play the exact same role and really emerge but Duff seems offly stiff. I don’t mean to be cruel but as the apple of Cody’s affections she didn’t seem very special.

I also had a hard time liking Angie Harmon in her "Emma Peel" kind of persona as CIA handler, Veronica Miles. I am not sure if it was the wacky hairstyles or make-up that made me doubt it was even Angie Harmon. Why cover up such a lovely actress with so much exterior?

A lot of older Bond fans will get some of the production design jokes and love Cody’s version of Q played to great hilarity by Saturday Night Live regular, Darrell Hammond.

I found that when the film stuck to the film’s main plot it could have rivaled "Spy Kids" for the "junior-spy" Oscar. It was the really dull heavily forced humor and the daft fight scenes that made Cody Banks just a B-version of the "Spy Kids" franchise.

There are a couple scenes that make me not want to recommend this film to kids younger than 13. But if you are between 13 and 16 or a big Frankie Muniz fan, you should enjoy the movie. If you are anybody else, you may want to think twice.

(3 out of 5)

So Says The Soothsayer

Dean Kish

The CIA need to get close to renowned nano-technology scientist Dr Connors (Donovan) and they need to find out why he is associated with known terrorist Brinkman (McShane) and his henchman Molay (Vosloo). The only way to get close to him is through his 15 year-old daughter Natalie (Duff) and they are going to need a special kind of agent to do just that. His name is Banks, Cody Banks (Muniz) but the problem is that he is still in school and is so shy he can’t even speak to girls.

There is a new spy on the world espionage scene and this time he is stuck in the middle of another attempt at world domination. A lot to take on when you have homework and chores to do first.

After the success of the Spy Kids series there were bound to be more teenage spies appearing on the silver screen trying to cash in on the trend but Agent Cody Banks is more of a homage to Bond than an all out fantasy adventure.

Talented TV actors Frankie Muniz (Malcolm in the Middle) and Hilary Duff (Lizzie McGuire) make this movie far better than it should have been. Muniz is a good comedic actor who takes to the action very well. You can’t help but like the normality of the guy as he has qualities that we can all adhere to. Hilary Duff, as the object of Cody’s mission and affections is also good although her role should have been a lot bigger than the usual damsel in distress.

Again the old world domination theme is played out again with Ian McShane (TV’s Lovejoy) and Arnold Vosloo (The Mummy) been the poorer Dr Evil and Number 2. Even with their mountain peak base, complete with monorail, a standard piece of equipment for any evil layer, they aren’t quite tongue-in-cheek enough to really pull the roles off. Angie Harmon as Cody’s CIA handler Ronica Miles however is a talent to watch out for.

It has all the gadgets, the humour and the action of a Bond or a XXX and plays well to its intended teenage audience. While it doesn’t have the charm of the Spy Kids movies, the film is still good fun for all the family. Now where can I get some of those X-Ray specs?

Star Rating = * * *

Jamie Kelwick

Site Contents Copyright© The Z Review, unless used with permission.This site has no intention to infringe on the rights of the film owners of Agent Cody Banks and intellectual copyright holders of the movies mentioned herein & hold copyright over the movie, characters, merchandise & storyline.