Eddie Murphy, usually considered a great comedic legend, has not enjoyed a successful year. Following the box office flops "Showtime" in March and "The Adventures of Pluto Nash" in August, he stars in yet another pathetic film, Sony Pictures' new release "I Spy." A remake of a '60s television program starring a young Bill Cosby, "I Spy" is plagued by a bad script, poor acting and a general lack of quality in all areas of film making, save for a few special effects. Betty Thomas, director of the 2000 Sandra Bullock vehicle "28 Days" and Eddie Murphy's "Doctor Doolittle" films, masters yet another cinematic flop.The plot is very basic: A secret superweapon is stolen from the United States by an international criminal syndicate and a secret agent must team up with a civilian to reclaim the weapon. In this case, the superweapon is the Switchblade, a fighter jet with a cloaking device. Owen Wilson ("The Royal Tenenbaums") plays Alex Scott, a seemingly capable yet extremely socially aloof agent for the fictional Bureau of National Security. After returning from a mission in Uzbekistan, Scott is told he must team up with a championship boxer (Murphy), the flamboyant and egomaniacal Kelly Robinson. Together, they are assigned the task of going to Budapest to get the plane back from Gundars, an international criminal mastermind played by Malcom McDowell.

Along for the ride are Famke Janssen ("X-Men"), portraying another agent and the object of Alex's desire as well as eye candy for the rest of us, and Gary Cole ("One Hour Photo") as Carlos, the greatest superspy that the BNS has to offer and Alex's rival in espionage. Throw in a few car chases, shoot-out scenes and an explosion or two and you have the entire plot.

Wilson, whose only good roles are in Wes Anderson-directed films like "The Royal Tenebaums" does not give a great performance. Half the time he is wooden and stodgy, the other half he appears perpetually stoned and confused as to why he is on screen. In fact, Alex Scott is basically a more intelligent and less self-interested version of the idiot Wilson played in the Ben Stiller vehicle "Zoolander." McDowell's role as the international supervillian is not much different from the other bad-guy parts he has held in the past (see "Tank Girl"). Gary Cole just slapped on a foreign accent for his role but left any decent acting at home.

Murphy's performance makes it clear that the filmmakers most likely tossed him a script and told him to overact to the best of his ability, which he does. Kelly Robinson is an annoying, self-important character, but without any good lines. The most humorous scene - and it is hilarious - is a phone call Robinson receives from George W. Bush after winning a championship bout. Whoever does the Bush impression is quite funny, but the rest of the movie is not, and it is a real shame.

Murphy, who in the past mastered the art of the buddy comedy with "48 Hours" and "Beverly Hills Cop" already had one film of the sort flop this year. "Showtime," in which he shared the screen with Robert DeNiro, was a critical and commercial failure. "I Spy" will most likely be another. Wilson, on the other hand, is ruining the genre of the buddy comedy with this and other films like "Shanghai Noon." It is unclear if he is a serious actor who is trying to be funny, or a comic actor who tries desperately to be serious.

"I Spy" is filled with crude jokes, weak plot devices and the most basic story line possible. Most unfortunate is that we are once again subjected to a great comedic legend (Murphy) being thrown a poorly-written script and a weak supporting cast. Ultimately, this film is another prepackaged action-comedy star vehicle that seems destined for the same critical and commercial failure that Murphy's previous film's this year met.