The Spy Who Dumped Me understands that women want action, friendship, love, drama, and characters to invest in that go against boring & overused stereotypes. Oh and that love part, it’s not with the guy from Outlander. Nope. The LOVE STORY is between Audrey (Mila Kunis) and Morgan (Kate McKinnon) aka the BFF’s who support the hell out of each other in the middle of a spy shit storm!
Here are 7 life lessons we learned from The Spy Who Dumped Me!
1. Women want action movies with substance.
This movie understood that as a woman, I want a multitude of things. I’m not some easily mollified thing that can fit into a box. I want action, drama, comedy, mystery, and romance. I want discovery, doubt, love, and characters who are more than cookie cutter stereotypes.
The Spy Who Dumped Me took care to make sure that even the male characters were formed characters and not flat just because the women were fully formed. This led to a movie where I could easily invest in everyone’s journey and where the gaze wasn’t female or male skewed.
2. The real love story can be between two best friends.
This movie understood that as a woman, I want a multitude of things. I’m not some easily mollified thing that can fit into a box. I want action, drama, comedy, mystery, and romance. I want discovery, doubt, love, and characters who are more than cookie cutter stereotypes.
The Spy Who Dumped Me took care to make sure that even the male characters were formed characters and not flat just because the women were fully formed. This led to a movie where I could easily invest in everyone’s journey and where the gaze wasn’t female or male skewed.
3. The blonde “sidekick” doesn’t have to be a stereotype.
The sidekick, especially if they’re blonde, has always been delegated the fun and quirky stereotype. They are there as a filler and to prop up the true star of the show. And it’s lame. In The Spy Who Dumped Me, it flips this stereotype the bird and gives us a woman’s journey that is just as important as the “leads.”
Morgan, my sweet summer child, is more than the fun and weird best friend. She’s got dreams and doubts that hold her back and tear her apart when nobody’s looking. She’s brave, honest, and needs a push like everyone else to make her dreams come true, which she does! Morgan is refreshing and the kind of “sidekick” I NEED TO SEE MORE OF.
4. You can start over at any age.
Both Morgan and Audrey are stuck. They don’t know where they’re going, how long they’re gonna be here, or who will come into their lives. In fact, the only thing that they’re absolutely 100% about is there relationship. It’s love and it’s forever.
In The Spy Who Dumped Me these two women find purpose and come to a realization that you can start over at any age, and that it’s perfectly alright! There are no manuals, no to-do-lists, or wiki pages. And better yet, they don’t have to leave each other’s side or sacrifice what they have because they have figured out there purpose. They’re forever!
5. Women don’t have to be the “love interest” in an action movie.
As soon as I caught eye of Sam Heughan in the trailer for this movie I groaned, face palmed, and put The Spy Who Dumped Me into my rear view mirror. This guy is hot. Like, burning hot. And as the star of Outlander, I had pegged him and the ACTUAL lead of this adventure. After trailers and catching the movie because there was nothing else in the theater, I realized I was wrong.
Audrey and Morgan are the leads of this story. They’re not the man’s love interest, the sexy stranger of intrigue, or the jilted lover out for revenge on Heugan’s character. Been there, done that. Audrey and Morgan we’re the leads who were going through a journey of self discovery with a strong side serving of humor, action, love, and friendship.
This right here is why I changed my mind, gave this movie a chance, and ended up loving it because of it.
6. Ladies supporting ladies is REAL and we need more of it.
In the middle of all the danger and possible death, Morgan made Audrey pause and acknowledge the amazing things that she had done. This support is a continuous thing throughout the movie and when Morgan experiences self doubts and confusion about the kind of person she is, Audrey is there to back her up!
THIS IS WHAT WOMEN DO! We lift each other, we’re there, and we’ll punch the lights out of any doubt that tricks our BFF’s into thinking they aren’t the beautiful unicorn we know them to be. Even if that person is an ex or a stranger in the middle of an extravagant gala. We’re there for each other.
7. Holding hands is acceptable!
During Star Wars The Force Awakens, Finn holds hands with Rey as they’re running and trying to escape Jakku. She slaps his hand away consistently. And for me, someone who has been taught that escape for a woman is only possible because of a man or because of his assistance, was blown away that she could do this by herself and that she knew it.
In The Spy Who Dumped Me the BFF’s hold hands while they’re trying to crawl away from a dangerous situation. Now, you’d expect me to feel the same way that I did when I saw Rey slapping away Finn’s hand but I didn’t. This wasn’t Audrey trying to save Morgan or the reverse. This was making sure that no bitch was left behind!
They knew that they could trust each other to make it out and holding hands at anytime during this movie didn’t slow them down one bit. In fact, it gave them strength and the ability to go on because they knew they weren’t alone.
The Spy Who Dumped Me is available to purchase on Blu-Ray, DVD, and Digital!
