O Espião Fantasma

Richard Gere’s movies are generally very underrated on this site. For example, The Hunting Party or The Mothman Prophecies. That’s why I thought that no matter the rating on here, the movie can actually be a pretty well-made thriller. I don’t really care about the average ratings and when it comes to Richard Gere’s movies, I technically ignore the ratings altogether. I can honestly say that I was really excited about this movie. Truly excited. And frankly, it was a fairly big disappointment. The story is crazy, the execution is very B-grade, the music also plays into all that. Only the actors aren’t terrible, but that’s just not enough for a political thriller that’s supposed to come up with something… shocking, which the movie was, but it didn’t really evoke any emotions in me. I’d even say that the director messed up big time. (22/10/2012)

A retarded spy thriller stubbornly alternating between hideous camera filters and creative helplessness. From the start, Richard Gere has “I’m Cassius” practically tattooed on his forehead in marker, yet the film refuses to acknowledge that everyone knows this except for the stiff Topher. And, as if that wasn’t enough, they later scribble on his forehead, “Now we’re going to make fools of you.” Michael Brandt's skill nearly drags this into Seagal territory (with Master Steven, of course, it would be Double Agent, Triple Chin), and I hereby ask all residents of Washington who have never worked for the Russian Secret Service to line up inside the Lincoln Memorial. There’ll be plenty of room. (18/02/2019)

A solid crime thriller with a slightly weaker plot, but with excellent pacing and a tough Richard Gere in the lead role. I was surprised by how much the movie grabbed me and that I didn't get bored with it. Underrated in my opinion... 75% (28/06/2014)

Richard Gere has a lot of bad luck, when someone finally gives him a role where he could excel, it's a mess that he can't make a good movie out of. The Double could have been a decent spy rom, but instead it's thoughtless, visually unappealing, and ultimately quite boring and unconvincing, relying solely on somewhat decent actors. It really kills the B-movie feeling, because it has many things that are similar, and sometimes even better (less polished) than, for example, in The Sentinel, but due to the limited budget and fewer big names, The Double unfortunately gets lost in the final assessment and falls into oblivion. Its siblings seem much cooler at first glance, which is very important within the genre. The double catharsis can be survived, and based on the trailer, one somewhat expects it. (03/03/2012)