Release Date: March 12, 2004
Starring: Frankie Muniz, Anthony Anderson, Hannah Spearritt, Keith Allen, James Faulkner
Directed by: Kevin Allen
Written by: Don Rhymer
Distributed by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
MPAA Rating: PG (action violence, some crude humor)
The first Agent Cody Banks suffered from many problems, including a totally ridiculous concept and a level of sexual humor that was inappropriate for its prepubescent target audience, but it did well to confirm something all viewers, including parents, already agreed on -- the secret agent genre should be left to those heroes who’ve at least finished high school, and whose movies belong in the PG-13 category or higher. This PG-rated sequel, subtitled Destination London, at least, is less suggestive and less offensive than the first film, but it’s just as preposterous and immediately reneges on any promise of believability or the enjoyment of a wider audience (and vice versa).
Frankie Muniz returns as the title character, now a year older and still training as an agent in the CIA. His parents (played by Cynthia Stevenson and Daniel Roebuck) are barely part of the story but they show up briefly, and Cody once again must hide the fact that he’s really a secret agent. This is a subplot that may have worked had it been more cleverly written and a more prominent element of the story, but like the original film, the story ignores this opportunity. It’s driven solely by what resembles the fantasy of a boy who spends his entire afternoons playing with G.I. Joes and fake spy gadgets. And really, it’s only those types of youngsters that will give Frankie Muniz and his movie the credit the filmmakers are hoping for.
The silly plot involves a power-hungry British madman (James Faulkner) developing a mind-control device, with the help of an equally power-hungry American (Keith Allen), who also happens to be one of Cody’s trainers. Banks is sent to London where he meets up with a clumsy secondhand agent named Derek Bowman (Anthony Anderson), and together the two must infiltrate a music academy to become closer to the madmen and to attempt to foil their evil plans. And since the movie is an MGM property, they throw in plenty of James Bond-like gadgets and even an attractive female agent sidekick.
As if things could get more unbelievable, it turns out that attractive female agent is played by the 23-year-old actress Hannah Spearritt, though her character is supposed to be Cody’s age. With the right hair, make-up, and costumes (which are all supplied here), Spearritt could -- maybe -- pull off an 18-year-old, but her stature, plus her British accent, makes her seem like she’s baby-sitting the younger Muniz.
That’s hardly the movie’s biggest plausibility gap, though, because it’s never even hinted as to why Cody Banks and Derek Bowman, who reveals that he screwed up as a real CIA operative, are in charge of saving the world. Is this international threat really not a threat at all, that the U.S. government is relying on the heroics of someone who can’t even vote yet? Are the criminals really that bumbling that they only need to face a teenager to lose? Aren’t we supposed to see the likes of, say, Pierce Brosnan or Angelina Jolie when someone is plotting to take over the world? The answers to all of those questions are yes, and at least the first Cody Banks briefly mentioned that child-sized secret agents were necessary for operations that involved small corridors and/or a strategic romantic pairing for an important man’s young daughter. This sequel simply gets right down to the silliness and avoids any and all explanations.
To its credit, though, Cody Banks 2 manages to be slightly more pleasing than its predecessor, which is to say, none of its humor is really in bad taste. Some of it, such as the character played by Anthony Anderson and the kids’ surprisingly fun final concert, may actually make you crack a smile, but that doesn’t get the movie any closer to being quality entertainment. It’s still too obvious that MGM is milking as much as it can from younger viewers still caught up in the Spy Kids phenomenon.
While promoting Destination London, the 18-year-old Frankie Muniz said that he wouldn’t do an Agent Cody Banks 3 because he wants to move on to adult roles. Surprisingly, this may actually qualify as a disappointment. The idea of a young James Bond isn’t bad, just as long as the story isn’t so childish and the lead is old enough to have a driver’s license.
-- Andy Zientek (zfilm@earthlink.net)