The Spy Next Door

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Reminiscent of Kindergarten Cop, with a dash of Spy Kids, The Spy Next Door blends together an entertaining mixture of family fun and martial-arts comedy styling to form a familiar story that once again reminds us that even hardened action heroes have a soft side. Jackie Chan stars as Bob Ho, an international spy on loan to the CIA who gives up his job in hopes of leading a so-called normal life with his next-door-neighbor girlfriend and her rambunctious brood. There's nothing in Spy that the audience hasn't seen before from similarly themed incarnations (think The Pacifier), but, fans will appreciate director Brian Levant's homage to Jackie Chan's past Hong Kong movie blockbusters -- most notably, Police Story and The Legend of Drunken Master -- during the opening credit sequence, which is fitting considering many of the action sequences are derivative of those films.The main story centers on Bob's relationship with artsy single mom Gillian (Amber Valletta) and her three kids: precocious teenage stepdaughter Farren (Madeline Carroll), nerdy middle child Ian (Will Shadley), and adorably energetic Nora (Alina Foley). 
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