Welcome to Reel People. It’s a place where, you guessed it, real people like yourselves spout off on new movie releases. It works best if you - yes, we mean you - jump into the forum link below and tell us what you think of the movie, too.

This week, we’re watching Get Smart.

What I Liked: I must apologize for not being born in the late 50’s to appreciate all of the references to the original series, but I still caught a few. Steve Carell was a great choice for Maxwell Smart for this new iteration of the show. He really seems to make every character he plays seem tailor made for him and this is no exception. The film did do a nice job of balancing humor and action but I think that in their effort to stay true to the original series, they dumbed down a lot of the story and dialogue and tried to bring in new younger viewers. The rest of the cast worked well together and who can deny Hathaway’s soft yet gorgeous features.

What I Disliked: Whereas Carell gives his all to the Maxwell Smart character, Hathaway seems to be phoning in her performance at times and leads me to think that she may not have what it takes to play a “strong female action character.” The chemistry doesn’t always work between them two either. They do pay homage to the original series and jokes related to those work well, but several other jokes do fall flat.

Would I Recommend?: Fans of the original will still enjoy this modernized version I’m sure, but for the sequel, (which I’m sure they’ll be others and I’d love to watch Carell as Smart again) filmmakers are going to have to go bigger and better. Definitely take a date to watch it if not for Hathaways’s good looks and giant explosions, Steve Carell’s unparalleled ability at delivering awkward lines...and loving it.

Score: 8 out of 10

- Nizar Babul

What I Liked: The movie got some things right: some of Get Smart’s catchphrases, the shoe phone, the theme song playing while Smart goes through a series of doors and into a telephone booth, the CONTROL spy agency, the evil group KAOS and the gadgets.  Steve Carell was an excellent choice for Maxwell Smart.  He was believable and funny in that role, without stooping to imitation or mimicry.  Most of the casting choices were perfect, especially Dwayne “formerly known as The Rock” Johnson, Alan Arkin and David Koechner.

What I Disliked: The movie got some things wrong.  Changing the bumbling, clueless-but-lucky idiot Maxwell Smart character into an intelligent-but-clumsy policy wonk sapped a lot of fun out of the character and the movie.  I wanted to hear more of the familiar and funny Get Smart catchphrases.  Anne Hathaway, while beautiful and talented, was miscast in the role of Agent 99.  She’s too young (although the film gives an explanation for that, which I won’t spoil for you here) and has zero chemistry with Carell.  Terence Stamp’s time as the villain Siegfried was wasted, as he had very limited screen time.

Would I Recommend?: Yes, although it “missed it by that much.”

Score: 7 out of 10

- Lisa Ciurro