Rating: 

The Info

Directed by: M. Jay Roach
Written by: Mike Myers, Michael McCullers
Starring: Mike Myers, Heather Graham, Michael York, Robert Wagner, Rob Lowe, Seth Green, Mindy Sterling, Verne Troyer, Elizabeth Hurley, Kristen Johnson
Produced by: John S. Lyons, Demi Moore, Mike Myers, Jennifer Todd, Suzanne Todd

The Nutshell

Austin Powers and Dr. Evil are back to battle each other through time as they go back to the 60s.

The Review

     Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery cleverly spoofed the James Bond films, introduced characters that grew on you, and became a surprise hit in video stores, staying in the top ten rental lists for weeks. The ever-increasing tape sales made a sequel inevitable. Unfortunately, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me isn't as funny as the original. It lacks the crazy energy that permeated through Man Of Mystery.

    Not surprisingly, the plot makes no sense. Dr. Evil (Myers) returns from space to once again try to take over the world. He discovers, much to his delight, that henchmen #2 (Wagner) and Frau Farbissina (Sterling) have cloned him, making a  mini-Dr. Evil, whom he astutely dubs "Mini-Me" (Troyer). Evil's son Scott (Green) also returns, to continue poking fun at his dad's idiocy. A new bad guy is added in Fat Bastard (Myers again), a seven hundred pound Scotsman (Myers has long enjoyed playing Scottish characters, see his SNL years on television or So I Married An Axemurderer for more).

   Dr. Evil manages two incredible feats. He builds a time machine, and discovers a way to steal Austin Powers' mojo (his sexual lifeforce, and source of his grooviness). Fat Bastard extracts Austin's mojo in 1969, after he is frozen in 1967. Instantly Austin, in present day America, feels the impact, as he can't "get it on" with Ivanna Humpalot, a Russian model.  Austin heads back in time to thwart Dr. Evil and regain his mojo, meeting secret agent Felicity Shagwell (Graham) along the way.

    The Spy Who Shagged Me suffers from a problem that plagues many comedy sequels: repetition. Mike Myers, who not only handles three different roles, but also writes and produces, brings too much along from the first. An example: In Austin 1, a minor character is dropped from his chair into a fiery pit but doesn't die. The fact that he doesn't die and the ensuing dialogue is hilarious. In the sequel, he is brought back for a single scene where once again he almost dies but not quite, provoking similar dialogue. Having seen it before, it simply isn't as funny. Countless moments and lines from the first film are repeated, but almost never have the same impact that they did the first time.

    The characters aren't given any good material to work with this time. Rob Lowe appears as #2 in 1969 in a dead-on impression of present day #2, Robert Wagner, but he is given nothing funny to say. Everyone's favourite character, Dr. Evil, has some hilarious moments, but after the first half of the film, he gets boring. He spends much of the film doting on his little clone, Mini-Me, who is an unfortunate addition to the series. Except for a fight against Austin on the moon, Mini-Me rarely has anything funny to do. The other new henchman, Fat Bastard, is another mistake. It sometimes seems that big people are the only group in society that are still considered okay to be made fun of in films. Sadly, Fat Bastard makes most of the audience laugh hysterically, but looking around you notice that most of the big folks present aren't laughing. This is cheap, easy humour that the first Austin was above.

   One aspect of the series that hasn't changed for the worse is Myers' vision of the 60s. Once again, his version of "swinging London" is full of bright colours, spontaneous streetdancing, and tight clothes. Fitting right in is Felicity Shagwell, who looks incredible on the screen, but cannot hold a handle to Elizabeth Hurley's Vanessa for sheer... shaggadelicness? Appearances by Burt Bacharach, Elvis Costello, Willie Nelson and Woody Harrelson make pleasant surprises along the course of the film. Throw in a musical number by Dr. Evil, Austin's constant hipness and some kinky scenes during the credits and the film is saved from being a disappointment.

Copyright - Tim Chandler

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