Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysLGBTQ+ Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Spy Game

  • 20012001
  • RR
  • 2h 6m
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
156K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,005
275
Brad Pitt and Robert Redford in Spy Game (2001)
  • Action
  • Crime
  • Thriller
Retiring CIA agent Nathan Muir recalls his training of Tom Bishop while working against agency politics to free him from his Chinese captors.Retiring CIA agent Nathan Muir recalls his training of Tom Bishop while working against agency politics to free him from his Chinese captors.Retiring CIA agent Nathan Muir recalls his training of Tom Bishop while working against agency politics to free him from his Chinese captors.
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
156K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,005
275
  • Director
    • Tony Scott
  • Writers
    • Michael Frost Beckner(story)
    • David Arata(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Robert Redford
    • Brad Pitt
    • Catherine McCormack
Top credits
  • Director
    • Tony Scott
  • Writers
    • Michael Frost Beckner(story)
    • David Arata(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Robert Redford
    • Brad Pitt
    • Catherine McCormack
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 414User reviews
    • 95Critic reviews
    • 63Metascore
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 3 nominations

    Photos88

    Brad Pitt and Robert Redford in Spy Game (2001)
    Brad Pitt in Spy Game (2001)
    Brad Pitt and Robert Redford in Spy Game (2001)
    Brad Pitt and Robert Redford in Spy Game (2001)
    Robert Redford in Spy Game (2001)
    Robert Redford in Spy Game (2001)
    Brad Pitt in Spy Game (2001)
    Brad Pitt in Spy Game (2001)
    Robert Redford and Stephen Dillane in Spy Game (2001)
    Spy Game (2001)
    Brad Pitt, Robert Redford, and Catherine McCormack in Spy Game (2001)
    Brad Pitt and Robert Redford in Spy Game (2001)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Robert Redford
    Robert Redford
    • Nathan Muiras Nathan Muir
    Brad Pitt
    Brad Pitt
    • Tom Bishopas Tom Bishop
    Catherine McCormack
    Catherine McCormack
    • Elizabeth Hadleyas Elizabeth Hadley
    Stephen Dillane
    Stephen Dillane
    • Charles Harkeras Charles Harker
    Larry Bryggman
    Larry Bryggman
    • Troy Folgeras Troy Folger
    Marianne Jean-Baptiste
    Marianne Jean-Baptiste
    • Gladys Jennipas Gladys Jennip
    Matthew Marsh
    Matthew Marsh
    • Dr. Byarsas Dr. Byars
    Todd Boyce
    Todd Boyce
    • Robert Aikenas Robert Aiken
    Michael Paul Chan
    Michael Paul Chan
    • Vincent Vy Ngoas Vincent Vy Ngo
    Garrick Hagon
    Garrick Hagon
    • Cy Wilsonas Cy Wilson
    Andrew Grainger
    • Andrew Ungeras Andrew Unger
    Bill Buell
    Bill Buell
    • Fred Kappleras Fred Kappler
    Colin Stinton
    Colin Stinton
    • Henry Pollardas Henry Pollard
    Ted Maynard
    • CIA Administratoras CIA Administrator
    Tom Hodgkins
    • CIA Lobby Guardas CIA Lobby Guard
    Rufus Wright
    Rufus Wright
    • Folger's Secretaryas Folger's Secretary
    Demetri Goritsas
    Demetri Goritsas
    • Billy Hylandas Billy Hyland
    Quinn Collins
    • OPS Center Security Officeras OPS Center Security Officer
    • Director
      • Tony Scott
    • Writers
      • Michael Frost Beckner(story) (screenplay)
      • David Arata(screenplay)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

    More like this

    The Recruit
    6.6
    The Recruit
    Enemy of the State
    7.3
    Enemy of the State
    Crimson Tide
    7.3
    Crimson Tide
    The Devil's Own
    6.2
    The Devil's Own
    The Mexican
    6.1
    The Mexican
    The Fan
    5.9
    The Fan
    The Kingdom
    7.0
    The Kingdom
    Three Kings
    7.1
    Three Kings
    Domino
    5.9
    Domino
    Men of Honor
    7.2
    Men of Honor
    Clear and Present Danger
    6.9
    Clear and Present Danger
    Ronin
    7.2
    Ronin

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The scene where Robert Redford's character asks Brad Pitt's character if he knew anybody in 'this apartment house' and tells him to be up on one of the balconies in five minutes is from a book by former Mossad agent Victor Ostrovsky who describes this test as part of the training of a Mossad agent.
    • Goofs
      When Duncan is negotiating with Deng, he clearly tells Muir "Deng wants five-hundred-thousand YUAN for the power out in Su Chou." In 1991, this would have been about $95,500 U.S. dollars, so when Muir counter-offers and says "No way. Tell him $100K and I'll pay him in dollars," he is offering more than Deng asked for. The final price, $282,000USD, would have been approximately 1,500,000 yuan in 1991.
    • Quotes

      Nathan Muir: [inside a CIA briefing room] When I was a kid I used to spend summers on my uncle's farm. And he had this plow horse he used to work with everyday. He really loved that plow horse. One summer she came up lame. It could barely stand. The vet offered to put her down. You know what my uncle said?

      Charles Harker: [inside a CIA briefing room] No, Muir, what did he say?

      Nathan Muir: [inside a CIA briefing room] He said, why would I ask somebody else to kill a horse that belonged to me?

    • Crazy credits
      In the opening credits, many of the credits are each preceded by a jumble of letters flickering on the screen. This may be a reference to the opening credit sequence of one of Robert Redford's earlier spy movies, Sneakers (1992).
    • Connections
      Featured in The Making of 'Spy Game' (2001)
    • Soundtracks
      Rocky Mountain Way
      Written by Rocke Grace, Kenny Passarelli (as Ken Passarelli), Joe Vitale (as Joey Vitale), Joe Walsh

      Performed by Joe Walsh

      Courtesy of MCA Records

      Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

    User reviews414

    Review
    Top review
    Spy Game: Robert Redford, Brad Pitt, Catherine McCormack, Stephen Dillane. High paced, boy's own Amercian spies out to save the world and maybe each other. 3 Flys Out of 5
    You can rely on Robert Redford and Brad Pitt for polished performances and action director Tony Scott (Crimson Tide, Enemy Of The State, True Romance, Top Gun) will always keep the pace of a movie galloping along, but will the mix necessary produce a quality movie?

    Spy Game is essentially about the foibles of humanity. Even seasoned hard nosed spies can have softer moments you know.

    Nathan Muir (Redford) is on his last day as a spy with the CIA when his protégéé Tom Bishop (Pitt) gets nabbed on an unauthorised mission trying to break someone out of a Chinese Prison. Bishop is going to be executed in 24 hours unless Muir can do something.

    Muir realises that the CIA is going to dump Bishop for the sake of impending trade talks. We are treated to a series of extended flashbacks to Vietnam, Berlin and Beirut which chronicle Muir and Bishop's relationship.

    Spy Game is mostly a boys own story with lots of explosions showing smart men outwitting the opposition. As Muir teaches Bishop his tradecraft we're introduced to how spies are taught to case a restaurant, fix a radio, vomit on demand.

    We're told how they are trained to be callous, to look at the big picture, to stay remote, to sell out people if that's of use. They're taught how to kill.

    And we're shown again and again the CIA assassinating people, causing civil unrest, authorising explosions, arranging murders. The film makes no apologies for this but implies that for the good of the free world, well someone has to do it. Spy Game certainly surfs sweetly on American patriotism.

    Spy Game is predictably interesting though mainly because of Robert Redford who still has that million dollar smile and Brad Pitt who mixes boyish charm with a slight degree of angst.

    Tony Scott's film making style however really needs to slow down. Relentless pace and swooping cameras are eventually tiring and they don't give time to contemplate. Still, Spy Game is slick and informative. I'm damn glad I don't live in a war zone.

    3 Blown Apart Flys
    helpful•39
    21
    • Steve-176
    • Jan 27, 2002

    FAQ6

    • How many wives did Nathan Muir actually have?
    • Who is Harry Duncan?
    • What was Operation Sideshow?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 21, 2001 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • Germany
      • Japan
      • France
      • United Kingdom
    • Languages
      • English
      • German
      • Arabic
      • French
      • Cantonese
    • Also known as
      • Spygame
    • Filming locations
      • Budapest, Hungary
    • Production companies
      • Universal Pictures
      • Beacon Pictures
      • Kalima Productions GmbH & Co. KG
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $115,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $62,362,560
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $21,689,125
      • Nov 25, 2001
    • Gross worldwide
      • $143,049,560
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 6 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • DTS
      • Dolby Digital
      • SDDS
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.39 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Brad Pitt and Robert Redford in Spy Game (2001)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Spy Game (2001) officially released in India in Hindi?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View list
    List
    2022 TV Guide: The Best Shows Coming This Year
    See the full list
    View list
    List
    The Best Movies and Shows to Watch in June
    See the full list

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.