SPIES LIKE US Review by: Chris Boehk Directed by John Landis

This is the movie that teaches us what a "dickfer" is. What's a "dickfer"? To pee with.

If you can learn something like that from a movie, its obviously a classic. And "Spies Like Us" is a classic. I went to see this movie when it first came out (I was 11 at the time) and I still love it to this day. In fact, I just watched it last week, which prompted me to write this review.

I'm not what you'd call a film or movie person. I usually don't like art films or independent films. I like films with a lot of potty humor, vulgar language, action/adventure, and of course, the almighty T&A. Spies is one of my favorite movies (I've got a lot of 'em), so if you think that sucks, you might as well stop reading.

This movie isn't as good as some of Chevy's other movies. I like Fletch and Caddyshack better. Spies is on the same level with The Three Amigos, but Spies has a slight advantage because its got Dan Aykroyd and he is awesome.

So, the plot is like this: Emmitt Fitzhume (Chase) and Austin Milbarge (Aykroyd) are two bumbling government bureaucrat types that need to take a departmental exam to move into top positions in the CIA. They get caught cheating on the exam, but instead of being punished they are promoted…or so they think.

Keep in mind, this movie came out smack dab in the middle of the Reagan administration, so nobody was more hated than those Russians. Well, the CIA needs two decoys to go into the Soviet Union to draw attention away from real CIA spies (GLG-20s) whose job it is to hijack a nuclear missile. Fitzhume and Milbarge are told that they are spies on a top secret mission. Much hijinx and humor ensues.

After a while, they find out who they really are, and with the help of one CIA spy (Aykroyd's real-life wife, Donna Dixon) they manage to launch the Russian missile at the US by order of two psycho Army generals. These generals want the world to be destroyed by nuclear war just to prove that the US has the power and technology to do such a thing (that sounds like American logic to me). However, Fitzhume and Milbarge thwart the evil-doers and save the day in the nick of time. Did I mention it's a real thriller?

This is an American comedy classic, ladies and gentleman, directed by John Landis, who also did Animal House, Blues Brothers, and Trading Places, so it means that you're guaranteed laughs (if you like jokes about peepees and boobies) and that you won't have to think at all. No one pulls off this type of stuff better than Chevy Chase and Dan Aykroyd. These guys don't do much anymore, and that's a shame, but we'll always have these great movies to enjoy with our friends and loved ones.