Spy Kids: All the Time in the World

Smell You Later: Slapstick Silliness And Obvious Humor Introduce A New Generation Of Spy Kids
Director Robert Rodriguez seems determined to keep the "Spy Kids" franchise alive at all costs. "Spy Kids: All The Time In The World" is essentially a reboot as opposed to a true sequel as it launches viewers upon the adventures of a new central family. Yes, original kids Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara are on hand as grown counterparts of themselves, but it feels as if they are passing the torch to the younger generation. While this, the fourth in the series, has much of the visual inventiveness you've come to appreciate from Rodriguez, it does lack some of the easy charm of the first couple of pictures. Trading cleverness for obvious humor, though, has its drawbacks. Thankfully, on on-demand, we are spared the theater's Aroma-Scope scratch cards that surely promised a plethora of unpleasant smells. (For the record, I liked it when John Waters did it, but that was a different story entirely). The movie plays to a certain demographic--if you think passing gas, vomit, and other bodily...

For Adults Not as Entertaining as Prior Ones, But My Kids Enjoyed
My kids ages 5 and 7 really liked this film, so I decided to rate it 4 stars, although on my own I would have given it 3 (I am not the target demographic after all.) I think Antonio Banderas and Alexa Vega lifted these films a bit in the past, and without them, it is feeling tired. In this one, a new generation of parents and kids are introduced, and they do OK, but lack the charisma of the original. The tone of the movie is different too - much more focus on humor, and a fair amount of slapstick. The highlight for me was Ricky Gervais voicing a robotic dog - he gets some of the best lines of the film, although my kids didn't quite get him. Jeremy Piven has some good moments as a two-faced agent/villain, but he also overplays it at times. Jessica Alba and Danny Trejo are fine, but don't compare to Banderas and Vega.

The plot is so-so, although I did appreciate the stepmother/blended family theme, as I do think that is relevant to many modern families. I also appreciated...

Smell You Later: Slapstick Silliness And Obvious Humor Introduce A New Generation Of Spy Kids
Director Robert Rodriguez seems determined to keep the "Spy Kids" franchise alive at all costs. "Spy Kids: All The Time In The World" is essentially a reboot as opposed to a true sequel as it launches viewers upon the adventures of a new central family. Yes, original kids Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara are on hand as grown counterparts of themselves, but it feels as if they are passing the torch to the younger generation. While this, the fourth in the series, has much of the visual inventiveness you've come to appreciate from Rodriguez, it does lack some of the easy charm of the first couple of pictures. Trading cleverness for obvious humor, though, has its drawbacks. Thankfully, on DVD, we are spared the theater's Aroma-Scope scratch cards that surely promised a plethora of unpleasant smells. (For the record, I liked it when John Waters did it, but that was a different story entirely). The movie plays to a certain demographic--if you think passing gas, vomit, and other bodily emissions...

Click to Editorial Reviews