AUSTIN POWERS
New Line Cinema (1997)
Widescreen

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Film Review:

When I first heard about this film I didn't think it would be very good, but once it was released, it turned into a sleeper hit. Mike Myers does double duty as swinging secret agent Austin "Danger" Powers, who in the 60's was in his prime. Myers also plays Powers' nemesis Dr. Evil, one of the best movie villains in a long time. With Austin hot on his trail, Dr. Evil escapes and freezes himself After Austin is cyrogenically frozen as well (so he can live to see the day when Dr. Evil returns,) he is unthawed 30 years later to find that a lot has changed since the 60's.

The film totally risks everything just to get a laugh, and while some of them> don't work, there are some that are very funny. Myers is "groovy" as both Austin and Dr. Evil, and Elizabeth Hurly is Agent Vanessa Kensington, who Austin tries to woo. The film has some fun spoofing some classic spy films such as the James Bond movies and "Our Man Flint" films. This was a surprise hit and a comedy classic for the 90's!

DVD Review:
When released, this DVD was one of the first New Line Platinums. Platinums, in case you're wondering, are like Special Edition DVDs. This one certainly qualifies as one as it has oodles of extras and fun features!

The colors are bright and vibrant. I saw every detail, just like I did in the theaters. Sound is pretty good, but there's not much in the way of power on the soundtrack to begin with. There are some minor explosions towards the end, however, the music sounds really good on this disc.

There are plenty of extras on this disc which are suprisingly, very interactive. There are cool menus which play spy music, chapter stops with scenes from the movie that play, an animated music sequence called "Music to Shag to," cast biographies and filmographies, a special cameo menu, the original theatrical trailer, six deleted scenes (two of which are alternate endings...let's just say, we should be glad these scenes and the endings were cut...but they are still fun to watch), clips from some of the other actors movies like Elizabeth Hurly ("Dangerous Ground"), Mimi Rodgers ("Monkey> Trouble," "The Rapture," "Lost In Space"), and more. There is also a "shagadelic" commentary from Mike Myers and director Jay Roach. The commentary is not boring at all. Myers and Roach talk about the mistakes they made while filming and the jokes hidden in the background that you might not catch on first viewing. It's a fun commentary that goes along splendidly with the movie.

Final Analysis:

This is a really stylish disc. New Line went to a lot of trouble to assemble the extras, and they are the best thing about it. If you love to laugh, buy it, or buy it for the extras alone!

Film Grade: * * * 1 / 2

Picture: * * * *

Sound: * * * 1 / 2

Extras: * * * *

GRADE: * * * *

Keep the discs spinning,

Filmnut