Got Smart? You better believe it. Steve Carrell uses his vacation time from the Office to put on the ol’ shoe phone of CONTROL agent Maxwell Smart. It’s not exactly like the television show, but Carrell has a grand time playing the befuddled, clumsy agent and Anne Hathaway strikes all the right notes as the sexy Agent 99.
Maxwell Smart (Steve Carrell) works for CONTROL, a top-secret governmental agency that was thought to be dissolved after the cold war. As with all governmental agencies it didn’t cease to be it just went into stealth mode. Smart has hopes of passing the Agent exam and becoming a field agent like the charismatic Agent 23 (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson).
Max scores well on the exam but the Chief of CONTROL (Alan Arkin) thinks that he’s more valuable in the analyst position that he currently occupies. Things change however when KAOS, led by the sinister Siegfried (Terrence Stamp) and his second in command Shtarker (Ken Davitian), attacks CONTROL headquarters and all of CONTROL’s agents are exposed.
Agent 99 (Anne Hathaway) has recently had plastic surgery so her face is unknown to KAOS, the Chief has no choice but to promote Max to agent since KAOS doesn’t know him either, and the former agents are reduced to desk jobs. Smart, now Agent 86, and Agent 99 go to Russia to track down what KAOS is doing with some stolen yellowcake plutonium.
When the two agents destroy a bakery that Max claims contains yellowcake (Agent 99 didn’t see the processing facility), Agent 23 is sent over to inspect the remains of the factory he says that there’s not radioactivity.
Max is jailed as a double agent, but he finds out that KAOS is planning to detonate their nuclear bomb in Los Angeles during the President’s (James Caan) visit so now Max has to escape and save the President.
Would you believe that Get Smart is the big screen version of the beloved Don Adams television show? In some ways it is but in other ways it’s not. For example, Terrence Stamp doesn’t seem to know that they’re filming a comedy. His Siegfried rarely has a funny line and when he does Stamp delivers them with deadly seriousness and seems much more of a threat than the character ever did in the old show.
Bernie Kopell, who played the original Siegfried and cameos in the film, always had a comedic frustration with both his bumbling cohorts as well as Smart.
The film seemingly plays as a continuation of the show since Max walks through a museum that highlights many of the gadgets that Adams used on the show. I suppose they could’ve added a “Jr.” after Carrell’s character’s name but they tried that with middling results on an attempted revival of the show in 1995 starring Adams, Barbara Feldon, and Andy Dick.
The casting of Steve Carrell as Maxwell Smart is divine indeed. He may not try and do the Don Adams voice, but he’s just perfect to step into the shoe phones of the bumbling superspy.
There was some doubt about Anne Hathaway, but they explain away the age difference between her and Carrell with a plot point and I swear she sounds exactly like Feldon when she says some of the signature lines from the show. I was very impressed.
Alan Arkin is also divine casting as the crusty Chief. Some fans of the show may not like that the spy antics seem to overshadow the comedy. I did laugh aloud several times, but Carrell’s Smart is not as bumbling or as dimwitted (yet not knowing it) as the original.
It was still a funny film and very well done considering how another big screen incarnation of a similar show turned out - Wild Wild West (oi! Terrible it was).
Get Smart is presented in a 1080p high definition transfer (1.85:1). You can almost make a drinking game out of the special features. Take a slug every time they refer to DVD. You’ll be schnockered in no time, though it may crinkle Blu-ray owners when they refer to DVD.
There’s only one special feature that is played in high definition and that’s the “Get Smart Takes” that plays alternate takes during the film that makes up around 45 minutes of new footage and 62% funnier according to the sticker on the front of the box.
Steve Carrell offers a 40 second introduction to the feature (in standard definition) that says when you’re playing the DVD (drinks) that a symbol will appear and you have to hit select to see the alternate take.
The Blu-ray just automatically goes to the footage with no interaction required when you select this feature. The rest of the special features are in standard definition. The 9 minute “The old “I hid it in the movie” Trick” is hosted by Bruce (Masi Oka) and Lloyd (Nate Torrence) and reveals all the references to the old show in the DVD (drinks again), well almost.
They don’t point out that Michael Dunn’s (aka Mr. Big and aka Miguelito Loveless in another spy show) mug shot is on Max’s fridge in the opening credits, shame shame. The 10 minute “The Right Agent for the Right Job” is a behind the scenes featurette.
The 6 minute “Max in Moscow!” is about the location shooting or is it? The 3 minute “Language Lessons” has Carrell advertising the DVD (drinks another, hiccup) using his firm grasp on foreign languages.
Next is a 3 minute preview of “Get Smart’s Bruce and Lloyd Out of CONTROL” sneak peek, this film’s sister production. There’s also a 5 minute “Vomit Reel” alternate takes of the plane vomiting scene in the film and a 5 minute gag reel. The Blu-ray also has a digital copy and the “Get Smart KAOS CONTROL DVD (one more drinky winky) Game.”
I was a bit disappointed that they didn’t include a copy of the Bruce and Lloyd film since it was an interesting way to promote the movie (though I’ve read some unflattering reviews). I could’ve even been included on a DVD (drains remainder of bottle, belch) and I might’ve liked that better than the game.
Get Smart differs a bit from the television show, but there’s still enough that is the same that I enjoyed it. Die hard fans might not like it, but I thought the casting excellent (Terrence Stamp was still good though he in my opinion differs the most from his small screen counterpart). And loving it…..
Get Smart [Blu-ray] is now available at Amazon . Visit the DVD database for more information.
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