"Never been a faker..."

Going to the cinema, especially as a family, can be an expensive business these days. An average trip to our local multiplex (2 Adults, 1 Teen and 1 Child plus associated beverages) can cost upwards of Forty quid, so you can imagine it doesn't happen terribly often, especially with the high profile new releases. Frankly, I've lost count of the number of films in the last few years I missed at the cinema. However, Vue Cinemas have an early morning weekend strand called KIDS AM which prices family films at (currently) £1.25 a ticket. So, that's the four of us for less than a fiver. A veritable godsend that has meant we've been able to see recent films like Cars 2 and Rango for a reasonable price and all we have to do is sacrifice the Sunday morning lie-in.

Last Sunday I finally caught up on a recent film from my all-time number one greatest film-making hero. Yes, we went and saw "Spy Kids: All The Time In The World" from the worlds best known medical guinea-pig turned all round film-making renaissance man, Robert Rodriguez. 

I should go on record as saying that my favourite film of all-time is Rodriguez debut, "El Mariachi." It's generally a great, enjoyable action film, but the simple achievement of making it for $7000 makes it even more impressive. Take the DVD of the film with its director's commentary and 10 minute film school feature in conjunction with Rodriguez' diary "Rebel Without A Crew" and you have pretty much all you need to know about low-budget film-making. To describe reading the "Rebel" diaries as a transformative experience might be a little innacurate as I'm sat here blogging about it rather than a film-maker myself, but I did learn alot which has proven useful in scripting and film-making in the past.

Unlike some of his contemporaries (Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith being the obvious examples) Robert Rodriguez hasn't stayed in just the one style of film, be it action, horror, comedy, etc. While he's continued to work in the same vein that made him (Recent actioners include Sin City and Grindhouse follow-up Machete) Rodriguez has always made time for more family-orientated fare with films such as Shorts, Sharkboy & Lavagirl and the aforementioned Spy Kids franchise and I've loved them just as much as his more adult aimed movies. As a family-man himself Rodriguez obviously prides himself on making films that will entertain his own kids as well as the adults that accompany them.

"All The Time In The World" is a reboot and sequel to the series, working from the same premise as the first film. 'What if you found out your parents were spies?'. New tweens Rebecca and Cecil's (Rowan Blanchard and Mason Cook) father is career-obssessed and has no time for them while they in turn have no time for their step-mother (Jessica Alba taking over from Antonio Banderas as the retired spy). When Alba's character is called out of retirement to confront the suitably bonkers villain, The Timekeeper and his sidekick Tick-Tock, the kids find themselves accompanied on a mad adventure accompanied by a talking robot dog (voiced by Ricky Gervais) which leads them to take over as the next generation of Spy Kids from their predecessors (Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara are all growed up!)

While plenty to be had here for new and old fans of the series (References to the first three films abound including a very brief cameo from Danny Trejo) Rodriguez has learnt the lessons of "Spy Kids 3D" so that this time the characters and themes aren't overshadowed by the action and adventure. Indeed, it has to be said that the FX work here is far beyond the green-screen work of the previous film, but with it being grounded in the real world it works much better than the Kiddie-Matrix stylings of "Game Over." The theme of this film is making time for your family because you don't know when that time will run out. As with any film of this genre it's a little heavy-handed on the theme, but you know what you're getting when you walk in the door, so you can't complain when it delivers what you expect.

A word about Aroma-scope or, as we all usually call it, Smell-o-vision. The third Spy Kids film was in 3D, so obviously someone wanted to find somewhere else to go with the fourth. At strategic points throughout the film you're asked to scratch and sniff a card that you are given but, to be honest, its a one-note gag and was entirely unnecessary. The film stands up in its own right and, speaking as someone who isn't bothered about 3D either, that's all it needs to do for me.

Lots of bond-style gadgets and visually dizzying action will keep the kids entertained throughout while Dad's like myself can appreciate Jessica Alba in a skin-tight catsuit (and the movie geeks can puzzle over Jessica Alba being Alexa Vega's aunt. They aren't THAT far apart in age.) Credit also to the supporting cast with Joel Mchale as the spy-hunting father and Entourage's Jeremy Piven who play it absolutely straight in role's that scenery-chewing would pull us right out of the film.

Whether you are previously familiar with the Spy Kids franchise or not you and your family will enjoy this mini-Bond epic for what it is, a pure escapist entertainment, and whether we see a Spy Kids 5 or not you should make time to sit down with the kids for "All The Time In The World."