Jacob really wanted to see Spy Kids: All the Time in the World in theaters when it was out, but we never had a chance. I received a copy of the movie for review today, and he insisted on watching it the minute we walked through the door after school. Thank goodness it’s Friday, because he doesn’t have homework. I sat and watched most of the movie with him (with breaks here and there to feed the animals), and I have to say, it was pretty awesome! I watched the first two Spy Kids movies years ago when they came out on DVD, but never saw the third one. When I heard they were making a fourth movie, I wondered how they were going to handle the fact that the original Spy Kids are pretty much all grown up now.
Spy Kids: All the Time in the World features a brand new pint-sized super-smart duo, twins Rebecca and Cecil. It also stars Jessica Alba, who has been a favorite of mine since her Dark Angel days, as Marissa, the twins’ step-mom. Marissa is a retired spy who a marries spy-hunting reporter and settles into relative domestic bliss (well, except for the fact that her step-children don’t seem all that fond of her). When the Timekeeper decides to end the world by stopping time, Marissa has no choice to come out of retirement. While Marissa and her sidekick (her toddler, aka Spy Baby) get into a jam, the Spy Kids, along with their very cool talking robotic dog Argonaut, have to save the day…and the world. They also get a little help from some familiar faces- Carmen and Juni, the Spy Kids from the first three movies.
Jacob loved this movie so much he asked to watch it again right after it was over. In fact, he’s watched it four times in two days. I thought it was really well done and very cute. Rebecca and Cecil learn a lot of valuable lessons about working as a team rather than competitors, which is always a good message to send to children. They also learn that their step-mother is far from wicked and is in fact pretty awesome. There is a bit of “potty” humor in it (literally, the baby’s dirty diaper becomes a weapon), and Jacob loved the dog’s “butt bombs.” That doesn’t really bother me, as I have a son who finds it all hilarious, but I thought I would mention it in case it offends anyone.
The bonus features were really neat too. I liked the Passing the Torch featurette, which was all about the previous Spy Kids passing the franchise torch to a new generation. It’s great to see the original kids all grown up. I also loved the deleted scenes, although Jacob didn’t get into them as much because they were out of context with the movie. The Spy Gadgets feature was definitely the coolest though. Jake is really into that sort of thing right now.
Check out this awesome clip, called the Blue Cheese Prank, then download some fun recipes and activities from the movie:
