Why are the British detectives and spies portrayed as more sophisticated than Americans in our movies? Three reasons I can think of.
First, the genres and the archetypes of said genres both come from the United Kingdom, in an age where men were cultured and sophisticated. I refer, mainly, to James Bond and Sherlock Holmes. They are cultured, intelligent and homo superior – they enjoy the fine things of life because that is what men of high class do – and the fact that they are so erudite makes their American counterparts look crude in comparison.
Second, the American detective genre is hard-boiled, not cultured… Mike Hammer, Sam Spade… the detective in America is not cultured but aggressive and as rough as the coarsest sandpaper. They are not “consulting detectives” who live in a flat but working guys trying to earn a buck. They reflect the working stiffs who read their stories.
Third and finally, spies in American fiction have been portrayed repeatedly as either bad-ass mofo’s or as gray government employees. The emphasis has been on action or the complexities of the “real world” spy business in American fiction, and neither emphasis leads itself to “sophistication.” You rarely see American spies have the type of “exotic adventures” that the British spies do – and when I say “british spies” I mean, basically, James Bond.