Sometimes a film reminds you just how healthy it is to laugh; Austin Powers, International Man Of Mystery is that kind of film. It's a 007 spoof with Mike Myers - who wrote the screenplay, co-produced and stars as the eponymous hero whom we first meet in 1967 in a failed attempt to catch his nemesis Dr. Evil - there's not a lot of subtlety in this film. Dr. Evil takes off to orbit the Earth cryogenically frozen in a Bob's Big Boy; Austin Powers follows suit in order to be unfrozen when Dr. Evil reappears on Earth. Much as it may horrify us, it seems that Austin is the only person capable of dealing with the evil one, who incidentally is also played by Myers. Re-emerging into the nineties with all the cultural imperatives of the Sixties proves hilarious...
I have to admit that I embarrassed myself with this film. I didn't laugh, I hooted, pretty constantly. Myers, of Wayne's World fame is such a likeable goof - he's got a real talent for stupid humour and let's face it, the Sixties are ripe for a send-up. The production designer Cynthia Charette and costume designer Deena Appel let their imaginations fly, entering into the spirit of things beautifully... and Jay Roach - it's his first film as director - keeps the tempo bubbling along. Elizabeth Hurley - who manages to take a joke at her own expense - is really terrific as Austin's offsider - he was in love with her mother, played by Mimi Rogers, way back when. There's a paralisingly funny cameo by Tom Arnold, and Burt Bacharach, Christian Slater, Carrie Fisher, Robert Wagner and Rob Lowe all have their moments... I had such a good time with this film.
