In addition to jaw-dropping action, the best spy movies feature narrative formulas that are equally thrilling for audiences like mistaken identities, double-crossings, and uncovering conspiracies. The feverish entertainment value of the genre hinges on the viewer’s ability to trust the process while taking a step away from reality’s believability for a two-hour runtime. The most deliriously fun spy movies are an equal mix of franchises that take their missions seriously and comedies that accept their identity as a vessel for laughter.
From hand-to-hand combat, mind-blowing stunts, and masterful technical execution to over-the-top premises, villains, and technology, spy movies appeal to a wide variety of audiences who want more than a formulaic James Bond movie. The best of the best in this category are multi-genre movies that can’t identify as just a spy movie, just a comedy, or just an action movie, but rather deliriously entertaining features that travel into the imaginative world of espionage.
10 ‘Red’ (2010)
Directed by Robert Schwentke
If not pure entertainment from its A-list cast and their equally A-list chemistry, Red is the ultimate espionage movie about old habits die hard. Bruce Willis stars as retired CIA operative Frank Moses who’s just survived an attack by a pack of hit men. Searching for the motive behind the assault, Frank seeks to break into the CIA headquarters but must reassemble his old team of experts to succeed. Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich, and Helen Mirren co-star alongside Willis to uncover the conspiracy.
The film’s authentic banter of bickering old coworkers creates a believable foundation for the escapist, imaginative action that unfolds. The characters are likeable and the over-the-top gunfire, explosions, and beatdowns understand the popcorn effect of a movie made just to entertain. Red draws inspiration from the genre’s past to reawaken for audiences the delirious fun spy movies are known for.
RED
- Release Date
- October 15, 2010
- Cast
- Bruce Willis , Morgan Freeman , John Malkovich , Mary-Louise Parker , Helen Mirren , Karl Urban , Brian Cox , Richard Dreyfuss , Julian McMahon , Ernest Borgnine , James Remar
9 ‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’ (2014)
Directed by Matthew Vaughn
A spy comedy that defied expectations, Kingsman: The Secret Service is an action film that combines wit and action, and some of the best fight sequences of the genre. Eggsy (Taron Egerton) is a South London street kid whose life changes when he’s recruited by a secret spy organization his late father took part in. Under the watchful eye of Agent Galahad (Colin Firth), Eggsy trains as a Kingsman agent to aid in stopping a tech genius (Samuel L. Jackson) who wants to execute a worldwide killing spree.
The cinematography and editing take audiences through each fight sequence with the opponents as if they are engaged in the duel. Galahad’s church scene is cut to appear as if it’s one long take against the backdrop of “Free Bird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd, producing a jaw-dropping five minutes of non-stop action and Colin Firth stunts. Kingsman is an entirely over-the-top spy movie that retains its entertainment factor no matter how many times audiences rewatch it.
- Release Date
- December 13, 2014
- Director
- Matthew Vaughn
8 ‘True Lies’ (1994)
Directed by James Cameron
True Lies ponders two questions: save the world or save the marriage? The Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jamie Lee Curtis spy flick features the two as husband and wife Harry and Helen. Harry is secretly a spy pretending to be a used car salesman at home, with his latest mission to apprehend a terrorist in possession of nuclear missiles. Meanwhile, Helen considers an affair after feeling unfulfilled in their 15-year marriage, but both their lives are turned upside down when Helen and Harry are captured by the very villain he sought to eliminate.
Fans of the action hero got the entertainment value they sought when purchasing a ticket to a Schwarzenegger feature. From the opening horseback hotel lobby chase to the third act fighter plane sequence, True Lies produces all the expected cartoonish spy action while also filling it with laughs and a romantic pulse very different from the genre’s often disposable female characters.
True Lies
- Release Date
- July 15, 1994
- Director
- James Cameron
7 ‘Atomic Blonde’ (2017)
Directed by David Leitch
As one of the best female-led spy thrillers, Atomic Blonde is a stylish spectacle that brings fresh, but gut-punching air to the genre. MI6 spy Lorraine Broughton (Charlize Theron) travels to Berlin just as the Wall is about to fall to retrieve a missing list of double agents while investigating the murder of another agent. What seems like an impossible mission forces Lorraine to navigate through the world of Cold War espionage, reluctant to trust anyone.
Theron’s portrayal of Lorraine cultivates a badass, cool-as-ice female action hero who focuses on the job instead of getting swept up into a whirlwind romance, as the genre usually descends into. What makes Atomic Blonde deliriously entertaining is its artsy but brutal action and fight sequences, using intensity to mesmerize audiences.
- Release Date
- July 26, 2017
6 ‘Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me’ (1999)
Directed by Jay Roach
The clever marketing strategy to spoof the trailer of the upcoming Star Wars film put the Austin Powers sequel on audience radars, despite a hype consensus for The Phantom Menace. Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me finds the titular super spy (Mike Myers) traveling back in time after Dr. Evil (Myers) returns to 1969 to steal Austin’s “mojo,” leaving him “shagless.” In addition to tormenting Austin, Dr. Evil returns to 1969 to set up a powerful laser and point it toward Earth.
While the first movie never took itself seriously, the sequel didn’t either, creating a divisive critic and audience reception. The slapstick and raunchy comedy depicts Austin Powers as an out-of-his-time misfit rather than an espionage enigma. Secure in his identity as anything but a James Bond, Austin is an annoyingly likable character whose joy and delight translate through the screen. Perhaps more vulgar than the PG-13 rating should allow, The Spy Who Shagged Me is a colorfully delirious spy comedy changing the pace of high-stakes missions.
- Release Date
- June 11, 1999
5 ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ (2023)
Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
Is there a stunt Tom Cruise won’t attempt? Not likely. Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One features Ethan Hunt (Cruise) and the IMF team’s most deadly mission yet, as a deadly race around the world begins to obtain an artificial intelligence weapon called The Entity. Featuring death-defying stunts and a 20-minute car chase sequence that left everyone’s adrenaline pumping. Dead Reckoning earned the franchise’s first Oscar nominations for Best Visual Effects and Best Sound, two crucial components to creating an immersive powerful experience with each sequence.
The seventh installment is the best of the franchise, clocking in with nearly three hours of high-octane action. Fans of the series can expect to see the usual Mission: Impossible thematic elements: a lot of Cruise running before knock-the-wind-out-of-you fistfights and committing palm-sweating stunts like driving a dirt bike off a cliff and hanging from a dangling train car. And who could deny the chills whenever the iconic theme music begins?
- Release Date
- July 12, 2023
- Cast
- Tom Cruise , Ving Rhames , Simon Pegg , Rebecca Ferguson , Vanessa Kirby , Haley Atwell , Shea Whigham , Pom Klementieff , Esai Morales , Rob Delaney , Henry Czerny , Cary Elwes
4 ‘North By Northwest’ (1959)
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
What would the espionage genre be today without this iconic mistaken identity feature? In a canon and era of James Bond films, North By Northwest features the charismatic Cary Grant as Roger O. Thornhill, an advertising executive thrust into a cross-country escape from a spy named Phillip Vandamm (James Mason), who mistakes Thornhill for a government agent. Thornhill doesn’t know who to trust, especially after he falls for the mysterious Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint) and begins to question where her loyalties lie.
Director Alfred Hitchcock‘s signature style cultivated a thrilling plot with stunning visuals onscreen with expert technical execution. Beyond the Hitchcock formulas, North By Northwest introduced an identifiable character into the spy genre, one much different from 007, rather a regular man who is forced into a globe-trotting adventure. The movie created a number of firsts in cinema history, making it the original deliriously fun spy movie.
- Release Date
- December 18, 1959
- Cast
- Cary Grant , Eva Marie Saint , James Mason , Jessie Royce Landis , Leo G. Carroll , Josephine Hutchinson
3 ‘Spy’ (2015)
Directed by Paul Feig
A deliciously funny slapstick installment in the spy genre, Spy features Melissa McCarthy at her best. She stars as Susan Cooper, a CIA analyst who has spent her career at a desk, being the eyes and ears for field agent, Bradley Fine (Jude Law), using an earpiece to keep Bradley out of imminent danger. When Bradley is assassinated, Susan goes undercover, partnering with the less-than-thrilled field agent Rick Ford (Jason Statham) to infiltrate the arms dealer enterprise responsible for Bradley’s death.
McCarthy’s ability to commit to the bit and create comedic chemistry with each of her costars produces irresistible laughs. Her leading talent finds a film that is worthy of her timing and delivery without succumbing to another wasted genre opportunity.Spy brings the popcorn entertainment while having the most fun, solidifying its place as one of the best spy movies.
Spy
- Release Date
- June 15, 2015
- Director
- Paul Feig
2 ‘The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent’ (2022)
Directed by Tom Gormican
In a meta performance from Nicolas Cage paired with the scene-stealing talents of Pedro Pascal, this spy comedy turned buddy feature sets expectations early with its wildly creative title and premise. Cage stars as a fictionalized version of himself trying to recover from a creative downward trajectory and financial ruin. He agrees to appear at Javi’s (Pascal), a wealthy superfan, birthday party, but in forging a unique friendship with the man, Cage is recruited as an informant by the CIA to spy on the drug kingpin. Cage channels all of his iconic characters to survive the ordeal.
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is comedic gold with its over-the-top delirium of Nicolas Cage playing Nicolas Cage. The entertaining absurdity of the movie creates a character-driven spy feature where the arc is more important than the espionage. Unbearable Weight takes the spy formula and flips it while fueling the film with equal parts parody and homage to the beloved star.
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
- Release Date
- April 22, 2022
- Director
- Tom Gormican
1 ‘The Spy Who Loved Me’ (1977)
Directed by Lewis Gilbert
Considered the best of the Roger Moore 007 era, The Spy Who Loved Me leans into the fun of the genre with a captivating villain and equally memorable henchman, authentic romantic tension, over-the-top action, special gadgets, and an impressive underwater set piece. When shipping businessman and oceanic enthusiast Karl Stromberg (Curd Jürgens) seeks to destroy New York with nuclear weapons from his underwater lair, James Bond (Moore) enlists the help of Russian agent Anya Amasova (Barbara Bach) to foil Stromberg’s plan.
Perhaps the most deliriously entertaining part of The Spy Who Loved Me is Stromberg’s henchman, Jaws (Richard Kiel), a seven-foot man with jagged steel teeth. While Moore’s movies are recognized for their campy nature, The Spy Who Loved Me departs from the formula to feature some of the genre’s best esthetics of the espionage world, from the underwater lair to the romance between Bond and Amasova, whose lover he killed. The film’s size and scope of epic proportions hinged heavily on Stanley Kubrick‘s help but still managed to produce for viewers an entertaining spy spectacle paired with Moor’s best Bond performance.
The Spy Who Loved Me
- Release Date
- July 7, 1977
- Director
- Lewis Gilbert
- Cast
- Roger Moore , Barbara Bach , Curd Jürgens , Richard Kiel , Caroline Munro , Walter Gotell
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