Robert Rodriguez Month - Spy Kids: Armageddon (2023)

         Hey guys, Chuck here, and we're back with more Robert Rodriguez Month, and the latest of the Spy Kids movies: Spy Kids: Armageddon. This movie was made as part of a multi-film deal Robert Rodriguez made with Netflix for more family friendly fare, which started with the 2020 superhero movie We Can Be Heroes. Spy Kids: Armageddon, which Rodriguez directed, was co-written by Rodriguez and his son Racer Max. Yeah, for the first time in a Spy Kids movie, Robert Rodriguez's actual children, now adults involved in filmmaking themselves, are a part of the production process. Cool. As far as who's in the movie, the cast includes Zachary Levi, Gina Rodriguez, Connor Esterson, Everly Carganilla, D.J. Cotrona, and Billy Magnussen. 

        Now, the plot of Spy Kids: Armageddon combines plot points and elements from the original three Spy Kids movies, but does something unique with them. It follows the Tango-Torrez family, which consists of parents Terrence Tango and Nora Torrez, who are both spies working for the OSS, because of course they are. We also have their two children: Tony, who is an avid gamer and likes to bend the rules, and Patty, who always believes in honesty and following the rules. Also, Terrence and Nora have been working on something called the Armageddon Code, which can bypass access into any system. But, because of the danger it poses, Terrence and Nora have tech restrictions imposed on their children, despite Nora's protests on the idea. 

       Tony is getting himself excited for the release of a brand new video game, Hiskor, which is a sequel to a game called Loskor. The creator of the games is a man called Rey Kingston, who believes that video games can make people better. Tony finds himself winning a card game (albeit, through less than honest means), and wins the prize of a copy of Hiskor, much to Patty's chagrin. Again, she is all about being honest. Anyway, the OSS has a breach in the database, and Terrence and Nora go to investigate, finding a laptop rigged to unlock only by completing a level of Hiskor. But, Terrence uses the Armageddon Code and bypasses the security. Unfortunately, characters from the game Hiskor, such as the Heck Knight, end up attacking both Terrence and Nora, but they are dispatched pretty easily. 

       That night, Tony sneaks into the games room, and he uses his father's password to approve the download of Hiskor. This, unfortunately, gives Kingston a direct access to the Tango-Torrez computer system, allowing him to steal the Armageddon Code before it can be purged and deleted. The next morning, half of the computer systems across the world have become affected, and ordinary people are unable to access bank info, smart cars, smart homes, and the like...unless they clear a level of Hiskor. Tony, realizing what he's done, works with his parents to try and fix the issue. Terrence and Nora, meanwhile, make plans to get themselves and the kids to a safehouse, after Tony and Patty unlock the vehicles to get there. 

       Unfortunately, Terrence and Nora are nabbed by the Heck Knight and other characters from Hiskor, forcing Tony and Patty to go to the safehouse alone. Upon arrival, they learn their full names are what unlocks the safehouse for them, and are shocked to learn the truth: their parents are spies. The safehouse is filled with things to keep them occupied, including gadget and physical exercise training simulations, a bunk bed, food, and even a spy suit fabricator. After a montage of the two training, Tony and Patty are picked up by Devlin and other OSS agents, and they are taken to OSS Headquarters, where Tony is able to clear a level of Hiskor, thus allowing Devlin and the OSS back into their system. However, Devlin has no intention of allowing Tony and Patty to go after their parents, but they go anyway, locating the hidden base that Kingston took Terrence and Nora to. 

         But, why did Kingston abduct Terrence and Nora? Well, it turns out that they killed Kingston's father, the original creator of the Armageddon Code, during what they refer to as "Operation: Fireball." However, it turns out that Terrence never figured out how the Armageddon Code worked...Tony did. And, the second half of the Armageddon Code, which would give Kingston access to ALL the computer systems worldwide, is in a little robot crab that was hidden in the safehouse. Unfortunately, when Tony combines the two halves of the Armageddon Code, Kingston dives into the virtual world of Hiskor, with the Tango-Torrez family following behind him. However, Patty makes one rule: play honestly and fairly. 

         Within the world of Hiskor, Tony and Patty take the form of their favorite characters, and they work with their parents to fight bad guys, which leads to the final bosses: Kingston and Heck Knight. Tony goes to face Kingston, while the rest of his family go to defeat Heck Knight. Patty defeats Heck Knight, who swears allegiance to her for her fighting honorably. Tony also defeats Kingston, and the damage caused by the Armageddon Code is undone, restoring the world's computer systems to normal. The OSS looks to lock up Kingston, but Tony and Patty come up with an alternative: for Kingston to better himself inside of his own game. Meanwhile, Tony and Patty agree to join the OSS, provided they rethink the way the agency operates. And, the movie officially ends with Tony and Patty as the start of a new generation of Spy Kids. 

        Now, as I said at the start of the review, Spy Kids: Armageddon combines plot elements from the original three Spy Kids movies. The plot about the kids learning their parents are spies, and have to become spies themselves to save their parents is obviously from the original Spy Kids. The enemy designs and the architecture of Kingston's hideout and the game world of Hiskor is based on the ruins architecture on the Ukata island in Spy Kids 2. The idea of a video game world is based on the game world of Spy Kids 3-D. And even the villain, Rey Kingston, feels like an amalgamation of Floop, Toymaker, and even Danger D'Amo. And, I thoroughly enjoyed Billy Magnussen's performance and arc in this movie as the character of Rey Kingston. 

       As for the other characters, both Zachary Levi and Gina Rodriguez were genuinely likeable as Terrence and Nora. Not quite as iconic as Antonio Banderas and Carla Gugino as Gregorio and Ingrid from the original three movies, but they were still very smart and likeable in this movie. D.J. Cotrona, while certainly no substitute for George Clooney, was definitely entertaining as Devlin. And both Connor Esterson and Everly Carganilla were great in the lead roles of Tony and Patty. Again, not as iconic as Carmen and Juni yet, but they definitely have room to grow in these roles, just as Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara did with their characters of Carmen and Juni. 

         Overall, though, Robert Rodriguez made a decent return to the Spy Kids franchise with this movie. Unlike All the Time in the World, this movie certainly felt like a fresh return to a familiar franchise. And, I thought it was cool that Robert's kids were more directly involved with the production of this movie, which felt like a story that old fans can appreciate, and newcomers can enjoy independently of the original three movies. Also, the visual effects were much better than the last two Spy Kids movies. But, much like with We Can Be Heroes, it's very likely that the visual effects weren't nearly as cheap looking because the movie is a Netflix exclusive. So, I'm giving Spy Kids: Armageddon a rating of 4/5. 

       Alright guys, this is Chuck signing off, and next time we return for Robert Rodriguez Month, we'll be getting into my all-time favorite Robert Rodriguez film: Sin City.