“Spy x Family: Code White,” is a film that follows two seasons of the beloved anime “Spy x Family,” released in U.S. theaters on April 19. Building upon the plot of the anime, “Code White” continues the story of a spy, assassin and child psychic who come together to form a family, all while keeping their identities a secret from one another.
Loid Forger, a spy and the series’ main protagonist, is informed by his supervisor that the operation holding his makeshift family together is set to be taken over by another spy. Loid decides to put more effort into the operation, hoping that success will allow him to remain on the team.
Through anime logic, this means that he needs to help his daughter Anya win a cooking competition at her school. To improve her chances of winning, he decides that she should make a rare dish, Meremere, which can only be found in the northern country of Frigis.
The family, which includes Yor, mother of Anya and an assassin, travel to Frigis over the weekend so they can taste the Meremere before the conclusive test.
Anya’s endearing clumsiness lands her in the middle of a military espionage plot, which develops alongside the makeshift family’s sightseeing and quality time. The escalating quest for the Meremere culminates in a frightening encounter with Colonel Snidel, a villain new to the franchise, and the family must scramble to protect each other in the midst of this political disarray.
Although the plot seems complicated, viewers who haven’t seen the anime won’t have much trouble catching on to the movie’s premise. There is a brief exposition at the beginning of the film, but it’s subtle enough not to bore any returning fans.
I really liked the pacing and structure of this movie — it balances the wholesome family fun with legitimately high stakes, and it blends emotional and suspenseful moments with substantive grace. Fans who are drawn to the loving bonds between characters, as well as the cute demonstrations of Anya’s naive earnestness, will certainly find what they’re looking for.
There are also brief appearances from the anime’s supporting characters; quick enough for fans not to miss their presence, but not so lengthy as to draw attention away from the stars.
The stakes of the film are very high, and Colonel Snidel is legitimately an intimidating character. The gravity of his unforgiving nature isn’t at all compromised by “Code: White” being a family movie.
I personally would have liked the film to have had a more permanent impact on the series.
Ultimately, it doesn’t change anything regarding the overarching plot of the show, which is a plus for people who were unable to or chose not to see the film. However, as the anime moves at a fairly slow pace to begin with, I was hoping that a movie almost six times the length of a standard episode would increase some of the series’ momentum.
There is also an absurdly vivid scene where Anya meets the God of Toilets, which went on for so long that I found it vaguely disturbing. This might appeal to viewers who enjoy the campy side of anime, but it just dissolved all of the building suspense I felt up until that point.
“Code: White” is an intensely charming, fun romp through the world of “Spy x Family,” and highly enjoyable for fans of Loid, Anya, and Yor. Despite the genuinely interesting plot,, you can skip this film without impacting your experience with the series as a whole.
Rating: 3.5/5
