Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

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Audience Member Core memory of my childhood. So many funny moments and one liners. Mike Myers at his finest. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 12/16/24 Full Review GuestLord D even though this movie came out a long time ago, its humor is still top notch Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 09/22/24 Full Review Colby B Timeless classic, haven’t met someone that didn’t like this movie Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 06/04/24 Full Review Michael W Firstly, I want to mention that I want to try and avoid making comparisons to other films in this review but I feel like I have to. This first Austin Powers flick is one of the all time great spoof films, and while the sequels are fun they're a big step down, so I can't help but compare where this film went right and where they went wrong. As someone who grew up with the old Bond films and the Carry On films, I've always really appreciated this film. Despite being an American production it has a very British feel to it, well after all the Bond series that it parodies it British itself. Comparing it to the sequels, they were much more Americanised and while this isn't in itself an inherently bad thing this one has a certain uniqueness and charm that isn't found in many other films in general. It has a wonderful soundtrack, and amazing sets and costumes that look great and the intentionally over-the-top nature of it all is just too amusing for me to resist. The casting is very strong with Michael York brilliant as Basil Exposition, a parody of Q from Bond, and there's super fun cameos with Will Ferrell, Tom Arnold and Carrie Fisher. Liz Hurley fits her role like a glove and plays really well alongside Myers, such great chemistry. The jokes themselves are hilarious, there's loads of great, well written observations about the cliches of Bond movies. Examples of this include Seth Green pointing out the inconsistencies of Dr Evil's plans, the gag about the deceased henchman, and Dr Evil's monologue playing up the fact that villains often have strange backstories. It's no exaggeration to say that this monologue is perfectly written, with every word perfectly used, and Myers delivery of it was faultless. My personal favourite though is the blackjack scene, my interpretation of it is that it parodies James Bond's ability to win at casino games of chance through skill, luck & cunning even if his opponents are cheating. This turns that on its head by having Austin Powers not even understand the basic concepts of the game. The film does have crude sexual humour, but much of this isn't there needlessly and is a parody of just how over-the-top these 60s Bond films were with their nature and outrageous character names. The sequels lean into slapstick and broader humour far more, but the jokes present in this one are seemingly all well thought out and it never once appears as forced. Comparing it to, say, Scary Movie (or even this film's sequels), they push themselves to cramming in a joke in every sentence, while this means the film has plenty of laughs in it, it all gets a bit tedious and many of them don't land anyways. Here, the humour never feels rushed or forced, and it all feels natural. It has a lighthearted tone and is never mean spirited, Myers love of the period and it's spy movies really shine through. With this film even if you don't know much about the source material it's still funny, a trait also present in Mel Brook's best films or, say, Galaxy Quest. If you know the source material well, then this only enhances what should already be a very entertaining experience. If you're a comedy movie lover, you really can't go wrong here. A classic. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/17/24 Full Review Estevan G Comedic gem that hilariously parodies the spy genre. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/12/24 Full Review Phillip L An iconic classic that has stood the test of time and always will. A must see Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/01/24 Full Review Read all reviews

Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

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