Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
1997 · Directed by Jay Roach
Original language: English
- comedy
- crime
The story
As a swinging fashion photographer by day and a groovy British superagent by night, Austin Powers is the '60s' most shagadelic spy. But can he stop megalomaniac Dr. Evil after the bald villain freezes himself and unthaws in the '90s? With the help of sexy sidekick Vanessa Kensington, he just might.
What it’s like
Bright, saturated 1960s pop-art sets shot in glossy late-90s film: lurid carpets, mod shift dresses, pastel lounges and a wash of hot pink and lime that makes every frame feel like a record sleeve. The camera is mostly plain and well-lit, with snappy cuts, quick zooms and sitcom-style two-shots, so the jokes land on the faces, and the sound is a bouncy lounge-and-funk score with cheerful Bond-style brass and a sudden clang of goofy sound effects. Its vibe is brash, cheeky and affectionate, a playful spoof of spy-movie glamour with a Las Vegas-trash shine. The rhythm is brisk and relentlessly gag-driven, with a running string of cheesy one-liners, rude innuendo and deliberately silly set pieces, and a loose, warm arc about a vain, goofy hero finding some sincerity alongside his partner. Violence is cartoonish and bloodless, with fights and gunplay played for slapstick; sexual references are constant but crude and mostly verbal, and nothing is truly frightening or cruel. It suits a lazy Friday night, a group watch, or a comfort rewatch when you want to laugh out loud, and it is for people who love broad, self-aware parody and don't mind their humour a little juvenile.
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