It's not unusual for movie directors to work out their own issues on-screen. (Although, the saying, "It's cheaper than therapy" doesn't apply here.) Simply look at movies like Roman Polanski's Macbeth or Brian De Palma's Body Double and see examples of directors taking personal tragedy or frustration and putting it unmistakably into their movies. Typically when this happens, it is dark examples like these. However, Spy Kids: All the Time in the World proves that a director can take themes from their real life and put it into a movie.

Just as in real-life, Spy Kids: All the Time in the World takes place about 8 years after the events of Spy Kids 3: Game Over. Marissa Wilson (Jessica Alba) is a former OSS spy who has given up her exciting life to settle down with her husband of one year, Wilbur Wilson (Joel McHale) and their new baby. Marissa is also adjusting to her stepchildren, Rebecca (Rowan Blanchard) and Cecil (Mason Cook), who don't particularly care for her. Rebecca acts out by pulling pranks, and Cecil turns off his hearing aids. Despite these road bumps, things are pretty normal until Marissa's old nemesis, Tick Tock, escapes from custody to team up with The Timekeeper for a scheme to stop time. Unfortunately, one of the key components of their plan is housed in a necklace which Marissa has given to Rebecca. When the kids are threatened, they quickly learn about OSS and Marissa's secret lives. They also learn that they have some famous cousins and that their uniquely youthful talents are about to be called into action.

The Spy Kids franchise has always been one which has confused me. For my money, the movies are mediocre at best, and the first three certainly deteriorated in quality as the series progressed. Yet, they made enough money (and had low enough budgets) to keep coming. I appreciate the energy which Robert Rodriguez brought to the films, and it was fascinating to see the celebrities which Rodriguez was able to wrangle into the movies, but they were also redundant and borderline annoying. Rodriguez clearly has a fertile imagination, but he leaned on his love of CG backgrounds and sets one too many times.

Thus, it was somewhat surprising when a new Spy Kids movie was announced. As original "Spy Kids" Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara have grown up, Rodriguez introduces a new story which exists in the same universe as the original trilogy, but offers new characters. Rodriguez also brings some other new things to the film. Having worked with Jessica Alba twice before (Sin City and Machete), Rodriguez brings her back to play the spy mom. He's also included some ideas which are presumably from his real life. Rodriguez is divorced and has five children. He's also been linked to actresses like Rose McGowan. Thus, one can assume that Spy Kids: All the Time in the World themes of stepchildren and devoting as much time as possible to one's family come directly from Rodriguez's real life. These are acceptable ideas, especially the second one, but the movie hits us over the head with them to the point that it feels more like a PSA than a movie.

That issue aside, Spy Kids: All the Time in the World is a pretty fun movie and it's acceptable as family entertainment. There's one thing for certain, Rebecca and Cecil aren't as annoying as Carmen and Juni from the original trilogy. The story is decidedly convoluted, but there is a twist ending which is actually surprising and interesting. There aren't as many gadgets in this movie, but there is some fun spy stuff. The best part of the movie is Argonaut, the robot dog assigned to protect the kids who is voiced by Ricky Gervais. Yes, this is basically Ricky Gervais as a dog, but he does have some great lines. There aren't as many interesting cameos in this one, but Rodriguez has assembled a good cast, although Joel McHale is under-used.

Was anyone clamoring for a new Spy Kids movie? Somehow I doubt it. At this point, after three Spy Kids movies and Shorts, Rodriguez's schtick has grown tiresome, and it's time for him to try something new. Having said that, Spy Kids: All the Time in the World is better than I thought it was going to be, and much better than many reviews would have you believe. It's certainly worth a rental, and who knows, it may be embraced by blended families. Somehow, I think Robert Rodriguez would love that.

Spy Kids: All the Time in the World made me wonder where one goes to hire henchmen on Blu-ray Disc courtesy of Dimension Home Entertainment. The film has been letterboxed at 1.78:1 and the Disc contains an AVC 1080p HD transfer which runs at an average of 20 Mbps. Rodriguez shoots digitally and I assume that this was a digital to digital transfer. The image is very sharp and clear, showing no grain and no defects from the source material. The colors look very good and the image is never overly dark or bright. The crispness of the image gives it a nice amount of detail and depth, even in this non 3D version. The Disc carries a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track which runs at 48 kHz and an average of 4.5 Mbps. The track provides clear dialogue and sound effects. The stereo effects are nicely done, most notably when sounds move from side-to-side in the front channels. The sounds also move to the rear speakers, showing off some nice surround effects during the action scenes. The subwoofer effects are present, but never overwhelm the dialogue.

The Spy Kids: All the Time in the World Blu-ray Disc contains several extras. The Disc offers six DELETED SCENES which run about 8 minutes. Most of these are incidental moments, but we do get more of Danny Trejo's cameo (which is only glimpsed in the movie) and a Jaws reference. "Robert Rodriguez Interview" (7 minutes) has the director chatting with a kid reporter who asks some pretty good questions. "Spy Kids: Passing the Torch" (8 minutes) has Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara talking about having new young actors take over the "Spy Kids" roles. "Rowan & Mason's Video Diary" (5 minutes) takes us on-set to follow the two young stars around, as we see what their average day is like. "How to Make a Robotic Dog" (4 minutes) takes us behind the scenes to see the real dog used to play Argonaut. We then get an interview with the voice of the dog in "Ricky Gervais as Argonaut" (4 minutes). "Spy Gadgets" (4 minutes) examines the cool props used in the movie.