50 Worth-Watching Spy Films - Page 2

Spy films are films that revolve around the theme of espionage, whether it is depicted fantastically or realistically. The films' theme varies, but they often focus around the activities of covert government agencies and the conduct of their agents. The stories are frequently told through action, secret and often Science Fiction-oriented technological gadgetry, escapism, exotica, and even Erotica. Though spy films did not take off in a big way until the 1930s, they have been around since the early 1900s. These early films typically revolved around invasion paranoia of the Great War era, typically involving German spies invading, and are responsible for numerous tropes that became commonplace in spy movies, such as identifying a secret agent by a number, the use of a secret headquarters of operation, and a romantic sub-plot involving an attractive foreign agent. The genre grew in popularity during the 1930s, with more films adopting a common style and clichés.