Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over

Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Robert Rodriguez
Produced by	Elizabeth Avellan Robert Rodriguez
Written by	Robert Rodriguez
Starring	Antonio Banderas Carla Gugino Alexa Vega Daryl Sabara Ricardo Montalbán Holland Taylor Mike Judge Cheech Marin Sylvester Stallone
Music by	Robert Rodriguez
Cinematography	Robert Rodriguez
Edited by	Robert Rodriguez
Production company	Dimension Films Troublemaker Studios
Distributed by	Miramax Films
Release dates	July 25, 2003 (2003-07-25)
Running time	82 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$39 million[1]
Box office	$197 million[2]

3D glasses for "Spy Kids 3D". Glasses included with DVD release did not include the strap.

Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (also known as Spy Kids 3: Game Over) is a 2003 American science fantasy adventure comedy family film produced, written and directed by Robert Rodriguez, co-produced by Elizabeth Avellan, Dimension Films and Troublemaker Studios and the third installment in the Spy Kids series. It was released in the United States on July 25, 2003 by Miramax Films. The film stars Antonio Banderas, Carla Gugino, Alexa Vega, Daryl Sabara, Ricardo Montalbán, Holland Taylor, Mike Judge, Cheech Marin, and Sylvester Stallone. The film earned $197 million on a $39 million budget. Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over was released on DVD on February 24, 2004 by Dimension Home Video and Blu-ray on August 2, 2011 by Lionsgate Home Entertainment.

Plot

Juni Cortez (Daryl Sabara), after stopping Donnagon from activating the EMP device, has retired from the OSS, no longer wanting to work. He now lives a quiet life and works as a private detective, although his salary is very little. One day, he is contacted by President Devlin (George Clooney), former head of OSS, who informs him that his sister, Carmen Cortez (Alexa Vega), is missing after a mission gone wrong. Upset about this, Juni returns to the OSS to learn more about his sister.

Arriving at the technological and computer part of the OSS, he is reunited with Donnagon Giggles (now reformed) and his wife Francesca (Salma Hayek), who explain that Carmen was captured by the Toymaker (Sylvester Stallone), a former OSS informant. The Toymaker was imprisoned in cyberspace by the OSS, but he has since created Game Over, a virtual reality-based video game which he intends on using to escape cyberspace via players that reach Level 5, which is unwinnable. Juni agrees to venture into the game, save Carmen, and shut down the game, given only 12 hours to win. He is also informed that his sister was last seen on Level 4.

In the game, which takes place in a full 3D environment, Juni finds the challenges difficult, having only 9 lives within the game and already losing one at the start. While roaming a cartoon-like medieval village, he finds three beta-testers, Francis (Bobby Edner), Arnold (Ryan Pinkston) and Rez (Robert Vito), who provide him with a passage to the Moon and launch him into space, but mostly to get rid of the competition.

Juni lands on the Moon, losing another life at the process, and receives an opportunity to bring in a fellow ally to assist him, selecting his wheelchair-bound grandfather Valentin (Ricardo Montalbán). He receives a power-up which gives him a robotic bodysuit, allowing him to walk and possess superhuman strength and durability, and abandons Juni, telling him that they will regroup later. Searching for the entrance to Level 2, Juni ventures into a robot battle arena where he fights a girl named Demetra (Courtney Jines) and pink pants Perkins ( Paul Albone)in order to return to Earth and Level 2. In the fight, he receives a robotic, more powerful suit, and he is placed on a huge mecha to combat Demetra. In the 3-round fight, in which he loses another life, he defeats Demetra and returns to Earth.

He meets the beta-testers again who believe he is a player named "The Guy", who can supposedly beat Level 5. Rez is unconvinced and challenges Juni to a "Mega-race" involving a multitude of different vehicles, which will allow them on Level 3. The only apparent rule of this game is "Win, at all costs." Juni wins the race with help from Valentin, and Demetra joins the group; she and Juni display romantic feelings for each other, with him giving her a med-pack with extra lives and she provides him with an illegal map of the game. Upon entering level 3, Arnold and Juni are forced to battle each other, the loser getting an immediate game over. During the fight, Juni loses almost all of his lives, but Demetra swaps places with Juni and is defeated, seemingly getting a game over, much to Juni's sadness.

The group get to Level 4 where Juni finds Carmen, released by the Toymaker, who leads the group on. Juni follows a map to a lava-filled gorge. The group surf their way through the lava but Donnagon attempts to prevent them from reaching Level 5 to save them, but this fails, as they fall into the lava and discover that lava does not mean the game over, but that it is actually possible to swim, and they reach a cavern where they find the door to Level 5. Outside the door to Level 5, Carmen informs them that they only have 5 minutes left. After the other gamers start to think that Carmen and Juni are deceivers and Rez threatens to give Juni a game over, the real "Guy" (Elijah Wood) appears and opens the door. However, he is struck by a lightning, which makes him lose all of his 100 lives, forcing the group to move on.

In the Level 5 zone, which is a purple-ish cyberspace, Demetra then appears, claiming to have gotten back into the game via a glitch but Carmen identifies her as "The Deceiver", a program used to fool players. Demetra confirms this and apologizes to a stunned Juni before the Toymaker attacks the group with a giant robot. Valentin then appears, holding the entrance back to the real world open so the group can escape. However, he cannot come with them since someone needs to hold the door open. Demetra, shedding a tear, quickly holds the door open so he can go with them. After their return though, it is revealed that Valentin released the Toymaker, with the villain's army of robots now attacking a nearby city.

Juni and Carmen summon their family members: Parents Gregorio and Ingrid, Gregorio's brother Machete, their Grandma, and Uncle Felix. With too many robots to handle, Juni calls out to their "extended" family (or "everyone", as Juni puts it), summoning characters from the first two films (including Fegan Floop and Alexander Minion, Dinky Winks and his son, scientist Romero (plus a Spork), and Gary and Gerti Giggles). All the robots are destroyed except for the Toymaker's. Valentin confronts The Toymaker, and forgives him for putting him in his wheelchair, which he had been trying to find him to do all those years. The Toymaker shuts down his robot and joins the rest of the Cortez family and their friends in celebrating their families.

Cast

• Daryl Sabara as Juni Cortez
• Alexa Vega as Carmen Cortez
• Ricardo Montalban as Grandpa/Valentin/Wizard
• Sylvester Stallone as Toymaker
• Courtney Jines as Demetra
• Mike Judge as Donnagon Giggles
• Salma Hayek as Francesca Giggles
• Robert Vito as Rez
• Ryan James Pinkston as Arnold
• Bobby Edner as Francis
• Antonio Banderas as Gregorio Cortez
• Carla Gugino as Ingrid Cortez
• Holland Taylor as Grandma
• George Clooney as President Devlin
• Cheech Marin as Felix Gumm
• Danny Trejo as Isador "Machete" Cortez
• Emily Osment as Gerti Giggles
• Matt O'Leary as Gary Giggles
• Alan Cumming as Fegan Floop
• Tony Shalhoub as Alexander Minion
• Steve Buscemi as Romero
• Bill Paxton as Dinky Winks
• Elijah Wood as The Guy
• James Paxton as Little Dink/Dinky Winks Jr.
• Selena Gomez as Water Park Girl
• Paul Albone as pinky pants Perkins

Soundtrack

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	link
Filmtracks
SoundtrackNet

The film score was composed by Robert Rodriguez and is the first score for which he takes solo credit. Rodriguez also performs in the "Game Over" band, playing guitar, bass, keyboard and drums, including the title track, "Game Over", performed by Alexa Vega.^[3]

Track listing

All selections composed by Robert Rodriguez and performed by Texas Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by George Oldziey and Rodriguez.

1. "Game Over" (vocals by Alexa Vega)
2. "Thumb Thumbs"
3. "Pogoland"
4. "Robot Arena"
5. "Metal Battle"
6. "Toymaker"
7. "Mega Racer"
8. "Programmerz"
9. "Bonus Life"
10. "Cyber Staff Battle"
11. "Tinker Toys"
12. "Lava Monster Rock"
13. "The Real Guy"
14. "Orbit"
15. "Welcome to the Game"
16. "Heart Drive" (performed by Bobby Edner and Alexa Vega)
17. "Game Over (Level 5 Mix)" (performed by Alexa Vega)
18. "Isle of Dreams (Cortez Mix)" (performed by Alexa Vega)
    • Tracks 17–18 produced by Dave Curtin for DeepMix.

Release

Critical reception

Review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes gave the movie 46%, with the critical consensus that "The movie will be found wanting if one is not taken in by the 3-D visuals."^[4] The film also received a 57/100 rating on Metacritic.^[5] Bob Longino of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote that "the 3-D process will hurt your eyes. The onscreen characters, who also wear 3-D glasses, even say so when it's time to take them off." However, he also stated that it helped mask what he deemed as an overall lack of a story.^[6] Jim Lane of Sacramento News and Review called the 3D scenes "murky and purple like a window smeared with grape jell-o."^[7] Roger Ebert suggested that perhaps Rodriguez was held back by the film's technical constraints. Ebert also admitted to showing disdain for the 3D gimmick, saying that the picture quality with the 3D glasses is more murky and washed out than the crisper and more colorful 2D films.^[8] Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle noted Carmen's absence for much of the film and criticized the plot's repeated scenes of Juni attempting over and over again to reach Level Five.^[9] Kimberly Jones of the Austin City Chronicle praised the visuals but called the plot twig-thin and stated that the parents' near absence in the story makes Rodriguez's continuing theme of family ties seem much less resonant than in the other films.^[10] The film earned a Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor (Sylvester Stallone).The reason the characters were in minor roles and cameos was because Rodriguez was filming Once Upon a Time in Mexico while writing the third Spy Kids film.^[11]

Box office

The film opened with a surprising $33.4 million, but did not quite live up to the first Spy Kids film. In the end, it grossed $111 million in North America. However, its overseas intake was double that of either of the first two Spy Kids films at $85.3 million, grossing a worldwide total of $197,011,982, making it the highest grossing film in the series. The film's 3D effect was not removable on the DVD, but a 2D version (Titled Spy Kids 3: Game Over) was available to view on a second DVD disc, and on television airings. Some international retailers included sets of 3D glasses made of cardboard with the film, although most did not.

Blu-ray version

The 2D version of the film was released on Blu-ray August 2, 2011.^[12] On December 4, 2012 Lionsgate released the 3D version as a double feature with The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl on Blu-ray 3D.^[13]

References

External links

• Official website
• Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over at the Internet Movie Database
• Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over at Rotten Tomatoes
• Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over at Box Office Mojo