For further proof that there are fewer original ideas in Hollywood than there should be, I give you Get Smart (2008).  I wonder if those viewing it 2008 thought they were seeing something new instead of a film based on a fairly popular television show that ran from 1965 to 1970?  In any case, it is yet another example of mining recognizable titles for a profit.  Sometimes, it works okay, and this one is okay.  I should also not be too critical considering there are many who accuse Catholicism of being staid.  Such sentiments are stereotypes, and I suppose you can make the same accusation about what I said about reboots.  Anyway, despite this being less than innovative, there are some fun parts that I hope will be clear from this review.

What is clear from the beginning of Get Smart is that Maxwell Smart (Steve Carell) is a dedicated and eager analyst for the intelligence agency known as CONTROL.  While his work is prized by CONTROL’s director, The Chief (Alan Arkin), he dreams of becoming a field agent like the beloved Agent 23 (Dwayne Johnson).  Maxwell has diligently trained for the opportunity and appears to be well-skilled in all necessary tactics, but The Chief wants Maxwell to remain in his current position.  The news of not getting a promotion is devastating for Maxwell, who regrets not being able to buying a new puppy.  Yes, it is that kind of movie.  While on the street, he meets Agent 99 (Anne Hathaway) for the first time, though she has recently reconstructed her face and is not recognizable to him.  Their encounter is fortuitous, though, as the next day they encounter a CONTROL headquarters that has been ransacked.  It is evidently the work of KAOS, the group of international terrorists that are CONTROL’s archnemeses.  Moving into a new secure location, The Chief tells those remaining that they need to go after KAOS’ leader, a man known as Siegfried (Terence Stamp).  However, because KAOS is attacking all the field agents, The Chief needs new operatives.  Thus, he elevates Maxwell to Agent 86, and because Agent 99 has been recently altered, she is sent with him to be his partner.  She is not thrilled by having to go with the novice, but she has no choice.  Their first lead is Ladislas Krstic (David S. Lee), the KAOS bomb maker who resides in Russia.  On the flight over, they have to dodge Dalip (Dalip Singh), a KAOS assassin sent to stop them.  From there, it is on to Ladislas’ mansion where they attempt discover how the bad guys are obtaining nuclear material.  Though they find the information they seek, they have to fight their way out of Ladislas’ office.  With their knowledge, they head to Moscow, but it is also revealed that there is someone within CONTROL that is tipping off Siegfried.  It is Maxwell that is sent to infiltrate the KAOS base through the front door, while Agent 99 sneaks in through the ventilation system. However, because of the information Siegfried is receiving, he is not fooled by Maxwell’s shenanigans.  Maxwell gets free, and he finds the material for making nuclear missiles, placing explosives that will hopefully bury the facility.  On their way out, they have to tangle once more with Dalip, but he is defeated by Maxwell’s knowledge of the large man’s personal life.  While Agent 99 and Maxwell walk away satisfied with a job well done, Siegfried and his cronies sneak out some of the nuclear material.  Further, when Agent 23 is sent to verify that the site has been neutralized, he finds no evidence of anything having to do with nuclear weapons.  As such, Maxwell is suspected of being a double agent, and Agent 99 neutralizes him and brings him back to the United States.  Meanwhile, Siegfried calls the United States government threaten destruction unless he is paid, but they do not believe him despite The Chief’s warnings.  As such, he summons Agents 23 and 99 to come with him to meet the president (James Caan) in Los Angeles to convince him of the seriousness of the situation.  A remorseful Agent 99 leaves Maxwell a message as to their destination.  Commandeering a fighter jet, he makes it to California in time to make The Chief believe his hunch that there is a bomb in Los Angeles.  The target is the Disney Theater downtown, with Siegfried and Dalip managing to get the device inside.  Once the CONTROL agents get there, Agent 23’s incredulity over why they are there gives him away as a traitor.  Instead of turning himself in, he takes Agent 99 hostage and gets away with the computer needed to set off a nuclear explosion.  The Chief and Maxwell take off in pursuit.  Maxwell makes it onto the car in which the agents are riding, and with Agent 99, is able to retrieve the computer.  As for Siegfried, he is thrown out the getaway car by Dalip when the KAOS leader insults his enforcer’s wife.  From there, it is back to a grateful CONTROL headquarters, with Agent 99 and Maxwell walking away as a happy couple.

If you are familiar with the people who play Agent 99 and Maxwell in Get Smart, you might find such a happy couple to be comedic.   However, that is not the main part of the movie that is supposed to be funny.  Instead, the comedy in the film is focused on Maxwell being a gullible but earnest person, traits that do not serve one well in the espionage world.  I would not want to suggest that Catholics are gullible.  Instead, it is good to be earnest.  Another word for that is being genuine.  Maxwell cares greatly about being the best agent he can be.  Indeed, I wish most Catholics put the same feeling into following God.  He did not create us to be something other than what he made us to be.  That may seem like an obvious statement, but so many of us get distracted by what the world has to offer.  It is those that strive to follow His voice that, in this Catholic’s experience, are the most genuine.  Put differently, there is not much guile in them.  Again, this is not something that is well suited for a spy, which is what is supposed to be what makes audiences laugh in Maxwell’s case.  While it is chuckle worthy, I found that I grew attached to seeing Maxwell succeed.  In modern cinema, practically every main character is an anti-hero, but that is not the case with him.  His main concern is doing things the correct way, which is a roughly Godly way of going about life.

There is also no wrong way of going about watching Get Smart.  I struggled a bit to talk about it from a Catholic perspective because it does not delve into such matters.  At the same time, I cannot think of anything too objectionable about it.  Proceed as you wish.