Austin Powers in Goldständer

`Austin Powers in Goldmember' provides us with an hour and a half of inspired silliness. Not all of the film's elements work equally well, of course – a seemingly common occurrence in even the best of comedies – but this third in the series of popular spy spoofs generates more laughs than almost any other movie released in 2002.

Prime credit goes, of course, to Mike Myers, who both co-wrote the screenplay and inhabits no fewer than four of the movie's main characters. By this time, Myers has become so adept at his characterizations that watching him at work and at play here provides one of the prime pleasures of our viewing experience. Also in attendance are the usual suspects: Verne Troyer as Mini-Me, Michael York as Basil, Robert Wagner as Number 2, Seth Green as Scottie and Mindy Sterling as Frau Farbissinia. Folks added to the brew this time around include Fred Savage, Michael Caine and Beyonce Knowles as Foxxy Cleopatra, a bad-ass soul sister brought back from 1975 – Afro hairdo and all - to help Austin rescue his kidnapped father and prevent Dr. Evil from yet again trying to destroy the world (this time by using a giant meteorite to melt the polar ice caps and flood the earth).

Co-written by Michael McCullers and directed by Jay Roach, the film has the good sense to throw caution to the wind and give Myers free rein to indulge himself in his own brand of inspired lunacy. The film starts off with a deliriously clever and funny opening credit scene in which many of Hollywood's biggest names make surprise, good-natured cameo appearances. That sense of unbridled fun carries through pretty much the entire film, although there are, as to be expected, ideas, bits and jokes that seem less effective than others. As with the two previous films, this `Austin Powers' suffers from the unfortunate tendency to both repeat and explain too many of its jokes. Sometimes you do find yourself wishing that the writers would put a bit more faith in the audience to get the humor the first time around. Still, there seems to be much less of that in this particular episode, and there are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments to more than compensate for the occasional – though not all that frequent – clunker or lull that manages to sneak its way in there from time to time.

`Austin Powers in Goldmember' wallows a bit overmuch in the sordid moments, the gross-out gags, the locker room and bathroom humor that have become, alas, the hallmarks of the modern comedy. In short, this is probably not the film to take the family to see if your family includes impressionable children and/or easily offended adults. The sexual and scatological meters run into the red zone rather often in this film.

Nevertheless, `Austin Powers in Goldmember' works well if you enjoy a comedy where the actors seem for once to have been actually having a fun time while making it. Their infectious joy spills off the screen in a way that it doesn't in movies like `Mr. Deeds,' `Men in Black II' or, perish the thought, `The Master of Disguise,' to name just a few of the comedic bombs that have been foisted upon the unsuspecting public this summer. In contrast to the makers of those films, Mike Myers knows how to deliver the goods and, in the process, give his fans their hard-earned money's worth. Reserve us a seat for the next installment.

A great end to the trilogy, goldmember has the laughs and has some great moments. The storyline is bogus, but it doesn't matter, there are so many iconic scenes that it makes up for everything else.

The first Austin Powers film was so fresh, zany, charming, witty and unique. It took some time for many people to catch on (hence it's legendary video rental record), but it was dazzlingly, mesmerizingly adorable. The sequel came out and rather tarnished the prior film by either dumping or revising various story elements and especially by taking a turn towards the crude and vulgar. Still, it had it's share of interesting moments and laughs. In this third installment, the goodwill is almost completely gone. What remains is a hopelessly indulgent, often foul and unfunny conglomeration of "jokes" and gags, many based on bodily functions or other off-key subjects. That is not to say that the film doesn't still deliver quite a few laughs. It's just that by now, the whole enterprise seems very worn and familiar. There are several truly funny sequences in the film, but mostly it is saved only by some surprising and "right on" star cameos and the fresh appeal of Knowles. The (typically) ludicrous plot kicks off with Powers having to rescue his father (Caine) from the title character by travelling (too briefly) to 1975. Then the whole parade of series characters is involved in either starting or stopping the world's total destruction. Myers is undeniably brilliant at creating various characters and giving them each a voice of his own. He succeeds in creating these people who seem real unto themselves. Unfortunately, he also is bent on catering to what has to be a 13-year-old boy target audience with endless, endless potty jokes and gross out gags. Some of them are very amusing. Some of them are just gross. After a short while it becomes overkill. Knowles (who is certainly no "actress") comes across as very attractive and surprisingly charismatic on film. Her character is mostly decorative, but she serves the purpose very, VERY well. Her take-no-prisoners attitude is refreshing, even if she is continuously shown being kicked in the face. By now, Myers is so much the whole show that previous supporting cast members (Sterling, Green, Wagner, York) can barely get a word in. Who knows how much of their stuff was cut in the hour-plus of leftover material, but certainly plenty of Myers was left in. It's hard to imagine the lengthier cut because this one seems interminable, even with the bright spots. The opening sequence is brilliant. The character named Dixie......hilarious full name. Other creative and funny bits occur throughout, but the film can not escape it's pall of crudeness and alienating self-indulgence.

While this is still not as funny as the first one, it's still worth watching. It has a load of recycled jokes from both of the earlier films, and a little too many references to the first, in my opinion. It's not entirely bad though, after a slow start it kicks off and gets very funny, very quickly. Most of the old characters return, with a few new ones too. The plot is pretty much the same old deal from the first two, still spoofing old Bond movies. The acting is still pretty good. The characters are more colorful in this one, I think. More developed, perhaps. The sexual crude humor is still there, and is better here than in the second movie, I think. The first is still the best, but if you only see one of the sequels, I recommend you see this one. I thought the twist-in-the-end was pretty lame, but it didn't entirely ruin the movie, as it didn't seem totally out of character or totally unbelievable. I'd recommend this to anyone who liked either or both of the first two movies. The humor is mostly the same, and people who enjoyed the first two will most likely also enjoy this one. 7/10

To be brutal, this movie is cynical. I mean, Mike Myers is a funny guy, but this constant rehash of old material (see the radar jokes, the shadow-on-the-wall, the father-son misunderstandings) is just a bit worrying and suggests Mr. Myers has run out of ideas.

There are some classic moments in the movie, like the beginning sequence, and the shadow-on-the-wall sequence involving Mini-me, but the whole thing stinks of self-indulgence and money-making rather than originality or passion.

I felt myself, straining to laugh throughout the 90 minutes or so I was in the cinema, and I SO wanted to love this movie as I loved the previous two installments. Mike Myers is funny, and Beyonce Knowles is surprisingly good too, but Michael Caine isn't given the right material to shine and the Osbournes cameo verges on the pointless.

Good, but not your best effort. Austin Powers 4? No thank you