Being in the spy business is tough, according to the movies. I mean, you get to be dead sexy, wear cool clothes, get trained in sci-fi style martial arts and go to cold looking places in Europe a lot and an occasional Troipcal paradise (although that paradise will always be run by someone nefarious).
The problem with being a spy, I have learned, is that when things go bad, instead of just KILLING you the way they should, the Company tends to block your memory and release you into the wild.
From what I can tell, the latest Affleck movie entitled "Paycheck" is one of this particular slice of the "amnesia" spy genre. I am certain the trend has been going on for 50 years, but I'm a little slow on the uptake and just noticed. More amazing is that somehow the fact that Matt Damon was in "The Bourne Identity" just last year somehow escaped Affleck. Since we're led to believe Matt and Ben are such good chums, one would assume that Ben might have noticed his buddy just made this same movie. Especially since, according to IMDB, there's a sequel to "The Bourne Identity" in the works. Not so! Instead, our Christmas present from Affleck is the same dopey sweater we got last year.
As far as I can tell, "The Long Kiss Goodnight" may have helped spark this trend, but I am probably wrong. After all, there are a lot of shades of this sort of idea in "Total Recall."
So, if anyone else can think of any movies in which someone must tediously figure out who they are or what has been happening to them for the past few years, please send me an e-mail. I will compile all answers and report out. TV shows, books, magazines, Christmas Pageants and all other forms of media are also acceptable for this report on amnesiac spies.
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