Netflix's new docu-series Spycraft promises as much adrenaline-pumping action as would a Hollywood-directed flick with Tom Cruise in the lead.
The eight-part series investigates the various methods countries have used to spy on each other and gathered intelligence over the decades.
Spycraft, which takes its viewers on a guided tour of how espionage developed through time, bears resemblance to the dramatic documentaries one would find from the 90s that gave viewers the sense of plot twists, cliffhangers and dramatic irony, aspects that make this a compelling watch among the labyrinth of spy docuseries we find today.
One is on tenterhooks while watching how brilliantly creative minds demonstrate how they develop various types of methods of gathering intelligence while remaining undetected under airtight surveillance.
The sophistication we see in modern-day espionage has been the result of countries racing to develop better, faster technologies with increased stealth.
Good surveillance is all about studying a rival's secrets, we are told, as different methods of espionage are put under the microscope to analyse in each episode.
Taking the form of poisoning enemies to "sexpionage" to good old covert operations, all are brought out in the open to examine through the eyes of experts in the field.
To paint a picture of how intelligence gathering has changed, while in many instances remaining the same, we sit through past stock news footage combined with re-enactments and expert interviews in a bid to offer all sides of the story.
In one episode, a discussion on high-tech surveillance is used to broaden our knowledge of bugging devices used by superpowers such as China, the US and Russia.
A high level of creativity and ingenuity is on full display from one assignment when a microphone was planted in an ambassador's shoe to a listening device that needed no electricity to work, while on another a listening device was put in a projectile and shot into a tree from long range, very much in James Bond style.
Yet another form of surveillance is the "eye in the sky", mostly conducted by drones, the cameras being able to follow a greater number of people with higher resolution than in the past.
Later, experts discuss how China mounts cameras in the streets to track every citizen's movements, assigning them a "social score" that can impact employment and other opportunities.
While assessing Spycraft one finds that opting to stick to the facts is a refreshing aspect of this docuseries.
While it refrains from dramatising facts, it does not offer much in the way of analysis.
The lack of critical discourse surrounding spy techniques is definitely a downer as we watch in the first episode how it brushes straight over US whistleblower Edward Snowden's name while briefly mentioning the dangers modern technology poses.
What the audience gets are facts of each example they offer, doing so in a concise, fast-paced presentation that keeps viewers engaged. If you happen to be more of the analytical type, wishing for an in-depth discussion of various methods and technologies spies opt for today, you will be disappointed.
Spycraft will appeal to the masses as it is a fast-moving production, with various retired experts weighing in to add to the reality of the presence of modern-day spy techniques in our lives.
For me, it was simply an enjoyable yet flawed docuseries; it could have done more to not make it a fast-food hit of information that never quite dives deeply enough to completely satisfy the viewer.
