Review of OSS 117: Lost in Rio (2009) by Mike V — 14 May 2010

I wouldn't exactly say that this movie was laugh-out-loud funny, but it did do a pretty effective job of spoofing 1960s spy movies--James Bond, to be sure, but other films from that era as well, including Hitchcock.

There were a few genuinely funny gags, and occasionally the film went over the top, but to some extent the movie played its absurdist reality relatively straight. Hubert's Israeli sidekick, for example, mostly served as his comedic "straight man" throughout the film, expressing frequent annoyance at his insensitive remarks.

While I found the movie moderately amusing, and I appreciated the craft of its homage to films of a certain time period, I was never wowed by it. Not a great movie, but a relatively benign diversion.