These amiable actors elevate what may otherwise have been a rather ordinary exercise in nostalgia.
Get Smart (2008)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:201
Fresh:106
Rotten:95
Average Rating:5.5/10
Consensus: Get Smart rides Steve Carell's considerable charm for a few laughs, but in the end is a rather ordinary Summer comedy.
Australian Rating: PG [See Full Rating] Comedic violence and coarse language
Runtime: 1 hr 50 mins
Genre: Comedies
Australian Theatrical Release:
Jun 26, 2008 Wide
US Box Office: $130,246,343
Synopsis: Maxwell Smart (Steve Carell) is on a mission to thwart the latest plot for world domination by the evil crime syndicate known as KAOS. When the headquarters of U.S. spy agency Control is attacked... Maxwell Smart (Steve Carell) is on a mission to thwart the latest plot for world domination by the evil crime syndicate known as KAOS. When the headquarters of U.S. spy agency Control is attacked and the identities of its agents compromised, the Chief (Alan Arkin) has no choice but to promote his ever-eager analyst Maxwell Smart, who has always dreamt of working in the field alongside stalwart superstar Agent 23 (Dwayne Johnson). Smart is partnered instead with the lovely-but-lethal veteran Agent 99 (Anne Hathaway). Given little field experience and even less time, Smart-armed with nothing but a few spy-tech gadgets and his unbridled enthusiasm-must thwart the doomsday plans of KAOS head Siegfried (Terence Stamp). --© Warner Bros. [More]
Starring: Steve Carell, Anne Hathaway, Dwayne Johnson, Alan Arkin
Starring: Steve Carell, Anne Hathaway, Dwayne Johnson, Alan Arkin, Terence Stamp, James Caan, Ken Davitian, Masi Oka, Nate Torrence, David Koechner, Terry Crews
Director: Peter Segal
Director: Peter Segal
Screenwriter: Tom J. Astle, Matt Ember
Producer: Andrew Lazar, Charles Roven, Alex Gartner
Composer: Trevor Rabin
Studio: Warner Bros.
Reviews for Get Smart
Which words describe this movie version of one of the funniest television shows ever made? Terrible, puerile and a travesty are close, but not angry enough.
The Producers got smart with Get Smart would you believe, and with good reason. They decided to give the audience what it wants.
The hostile repartee between the characters is as ungainly as director Peter Segal's lumbering action sequences
What do dithering tv weathermen do when they retire? They must take their lame, witless banter and their awkward timing to Hollywood to write and direct movies. That might explain Get Smart, one of the latest in a long line of humid, mediocre, tire
...a manufactured piece of work that's been geared towards the lowest common denominator.
Without Anne Hathaway, Get Smart might have been a one-note comedy; with her, it's super spirited and super fun.
Not funny outrageous or funny gross, but funny cute, funny nice, funny mild.
Get Smart is happy enough to play for straight laughs rather than truly subversive wit.
Smart summer entertainment that retains the likeability and wit of its source material but brings it into the 21st century with a perfectly cast Steve Carell.
You'll have a better time if you don't expect this re-imagined work to resemble the original. The phone shoe does fit Carell, and he wears it well.
As a reworking of one of the great 1960s TV comedies, you'd think being funny would be its main goal. But you would be wrong. Very, very wrong.
Anne Hathaway plays the straightest part, quite possibly well, we are not entirely sure. She is so incapacitatingly sexy we lost concentration during several of her scenes.
The film doesn't have the sharp hysteria of the series, and it gets a bit over-serious at times. But it's still a thoroughly entertaining film with terrific characters all its own.
We sit back and wait for the laughs. Which come pretty slow and infrequent, though Carell does his straight-faced best to act out the A-Z of Hilarious.
The film is about as funny as a 3am cold call, and if you are a critic you cannot slam down the phone before you have heard it out.
Latest News for Get Smart
January 07, 2009:
People's Choice Awards Winners Announced
The 35th annual People's Choice Awards were handed out on January 7, 2009. A complete list of film nominees, with winners in bold, follows below. More...
November 21, 2008:
Segal to Helm Captain Marvel, Get Smart 2 for Warners ![]()
In a move that will see him directing both "Captain Marvel" and a "Get Smart" sequel for the studio, Peter Segal has signed a three-year first-look deal with Warner Bros. More...
November 03, 2008:
RT on DVD: Get Smart, Futurama: Bender's Game and the Obama DVD Controversy
This week, pick up Steve Carell's sweetly bumbling spy antics (Get Smart), the promising new Futurama movie (Bender's Game), a few early holiday treats (Shrek the Halls, A... More...
October 31, 2008:
This retro-espionage spoof is more giggles than satirical grit, and simply lacks the comic punch and charisma, along with the pungent Cold War flavor of the times that energized the original. ![]()
More...
More DVDs
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 36% 36% | Angels & Demons |
| 68% 68% | Funny People |
| 25% 25% | Four Christmases |
| 45% 45% | Shorts |
| 53% 53% | David & Layla |
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Fresh Links
Featured

Tim Burton's costume designer talks to Movieline about her long collaboration with the filmmaker and Johnny Depp.

The director talks about puppetry perfection and his film, Fantastic Mr. Fox

We've got 20 copies of the hit TV series' Pilot Episode to giveaway.

Double passes up for grabs to the new comedy starring Paul Giamatti.

Get all the latest movie updates, reviews, interviews and features here.
Competitions

Enough Prequel, Original Trilogy and Family Guy DVDs to fill a space cruiser

Everything from Dr. No to Quantum of Solace could be yours.

We're giving away the 10th Anniversary Blu-ray, plus Braveheart and the Rocky collection



Top Critic

