The first real family film acted by Jackie Chan arrives at the curious crossroads of his long career. It is a little belated for him as he is only a shadow of his former brilliant self, though the time is apt for the new age groups to perceive the joys of an indisputable living superstar. In general, the absence of competition in this genre and able marketing will help the film achieve respectable revenue from the old guards as well as from those recently got initiated, to continue the fascination for the movie on cable, DVD, etc.

Single uptown parent Gillian (Amber Valletta) is in a dilemma. Her boy friend businessman Bob Ho (Jackie Chan) seem to be a dependable and trustworthy person she so badly wish to be with, but her three children, Ferren, Ian and Nora are not too keen on him. Bob, unknown to them, is actually a secret agent on deputation from China to assist CIA to catch a vicious criminal mind known as Poldark, who with his girl friend Creel is devising plans to demolish the oil supply of the world. However, as Gillian goes away for a number of days to take care of her sick father, Bob had to face the hard task of looking after Gillian’s unmanageable children and also find time to prevent the despicable objectives of Poldar.

It is rather obvious from the beginning that this is a recycled project, intended as a common action-comedy, later reworked especially for Jackie Chan by the acclaimed scriptwriter Gregory Poirier, when the initial choices turned down the project. Poirier’s assignment was actually difficult as Chan’s English has not come up to the mark when comparing his great Hong Kong films, though in Rush Hour films his language efforts were well accepted. ‘The Spy Next Door’ begins with scenes from many of his best films. Another problem with the film is the absence of any passion or devotion between the lead actors, Valetta and Chan, showing the illogical creation of the film from the commencement itself. This is the type of sickening family drama that tests your patience and is clearly awkward throughout its unfolding. The fight sequence between Chan and Scheving reminds you of parallel instances in his memorable film ‘Dragons-Forever’. Although it is unreasonable to anticipate Chan to show identical physical capabilities at present that he was adept at 35, he continues to be more nimble and lithe than any other action heroes of Hollywood.

Though the film does not overcome its limitations intrinsic in the script, it excels during the fight sequences that are stylishly devised and thoroughly compelling. The mandatory requirement of involving in Bob’s detective activities and the consequent improvement in the children’s’ relationship with Bob are not depicted nicely either. However, Jackie’s presence captivates this pedestrian material making the film endurable.

Director Brian Levant gives a lot of leeway to Jackie during action scenes. The good thing about ‘Spy Next Door’ could be the fresh adoring youth, which might nudge them to discover his previous films that are ageless treasures of cinematic past.