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Review by Jack Foley |
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AS SUPERSPY James Bond prepares to Die Another Day, shagadelic 007 wannabe
Austin Powers polishes off his mojo for another groovy outing, hoping to make
it third time lucky for the swinging Sixties sex machine at the summer Box
Office.
Goldmember marks another comedy triumph for the talented Mike Myers, building
on the success of its predecessors to deliver another crowd-pleasing tour
de force, even if it occasionally feels a little too familiar.
Opening with a veritable who's who of A-list cameos (we're talking Tom Cruise,
among others!) for the obligatory pre-credits sequence, Goldmember then sets
about parodying the best (and worst) of the James Bond franchise, while taking
a generous side-swipe at anything else in its way.
And if it seems tired at times (repeating gags from the first two movies and
bringing back characters, such as Fat Bastard, who were largely unwanted),
it is credit to Myers and director Jay Roach that this third instalment still
possesses enough in its locker room to get a rise out of the most hard to
please audiences.
This time around, Austin must travel back in time to 1975 to rescue his father
(Michael Caine) from the clutches of new villain, Goldmember, before returning
to the present day to do battle with Dr Evil and his cronies. Aiding him is
Beyoncé (Destiny's Child) Knowles's sassy Foxxy Cleopatra and Michael
York's stiff upper-lipped Basil Exposition, while pitted against him are the
usual crowd of misfits, comprised of Dr Evil, Mini-Me (Verne Troyer), Scott
Evil (Seth Green) and Number Two (Robert Wagner).
As with previous Powers movies - International Man of Mystery in 1997 and
The Spy Who Shagged Me in 1999 - Goldmember starts off very brightly before
losing some of its momentum later on, partly due to Myers' appetite for introducing
new characters, some of whom aren't necessary.
So while Dr Evil and Mini-Me remain tremendous fun when on-screen (their rendition
of 'Hard Knock Life', from prison, is one of many highlights), the likes of
Goldmember fail to generate the necessary giggles, tip-toeing the line between
gross out and just plain gross (the Dutch villain has a fondness for eating
his own flaky skin!) without ever seeming funny.
Fortunately,
Myers manages to cram so many gags into a tight running time that audiences
don't have to wait long in between laughs, while also providing the movie
geeks among us with plenty of in-jokes to continue counting the references.
On the Bond front, we have variations on the crocodile scene from Live and
Let Die, and the laser between the legs sequence from Goldfinger, as well
as countless other Naked Gun-style take-offs from other movies such as
The Matrix and The Italian Job.
Less subtle, but still very funny, is Myers' use of toilet humour (urine gets
two cameos), as well as his reliance on suggestive shadows (used first in
The Spy Who Shagged Me and again here).
But it is clear throughout that Myers holds the Austin Powers franchise with
very deep affection and his enthusiasm for the character is infectious. At
the end of the day, this is all about laughter and the comedian delivers it
by the cameo-laden bucketload. So go and feel good for a while...
