TechnoFILE is copyright and a registered trademark © ® of
Pandemonium Productions.
All rights reserved.
E-mail us Here!
Austin Powers in Goldmember on DVD

Austin Powers in Goldmember on DVD

The third installment of Mike Myers’ James Bond spoof is easily the weakest of the set, though it still has its moments and will undoubtedly please the millions of Powers fans around the world.

The story this time, again, involves a scheme for world domination by Dr. Evil (Myers), this time aided by fellow evildoer Goldmember (Myers, again). They’re going to flood the world by melting the polar ice (rather than waiting for global warming to do it, we suppose), unless they get a ransom of an amount of money that amounts to gibberish.

To further complicate things, Austin (Myers) also has to save his secret agent father, Nigel (Michael Caine), forcing him yet again back to the past - this time the disco-dripping year of 1975.

His lust interest and sidekick this time around is Beyoncé Knowles as a Pam Grier-ish Foxxy Cleopatra, and the cast is rounded out by so many cameo appearances that trying to see who’ll be next gets in the way of the story - not that that’s necessarily a bad thing, since this story doesn’t come close to the imagination or humor of the first two Austin Powers films.

Despite the many laughs (teenage boys will probably love the humor) Austin Powers in Goldmember definitely shows that the concept has run its course and should be put to bed. Then again, the real James Bond movies ran out of steam about the same time Connery left, yet they’ve still provided plenty of entertainment since then…

But this time around, co-writer Myers relies less on his wit and more on shtick, childish bathroom humor, and spoofing pop culture. This is nothing new for Austin Powers flicks, of course, but here it moves from being knee slapping hilarious to just being there for the sake of it. Too bad.

The characters from the other movies are back again, including Verne Troyer as Mini-Me, Michael York as Basil Exposition (Austin Powers’ version of “M”), Seth Green as Scott Evil, Robert Wagner as Number Two and Mindy Sterling as Frau Farbissina, but at times they appear almost embarrassed to be there, where before they were happily part of the gags.

Oh, you’ll definitely have to see this entry if you’ve enjoyed the others, but in the end it comes off as more a self indulgent in-joke than a classic spoof in the manner of the first Austin Powers movies. It made us want to watch Our Man Flint again.

The DVD is one of New Line’s Infinifilm discs, which means it’s loaded with all sorts of special materials. Unfortunately, we only received a pre-release screener and all it did was list the features, so we can’t comment on whether or not they’re any good - but they sure sound neat!

Here’s a listing of what’s offered:

Beyond the Movie features:

  • Documentaries
  • MI-6: International Men of Mystery
  • Fashion Vs. Fiction
  • Disco Fever
  • Fact track (trivia subtitle track)

All Access Pass features:

  • Filmmaker commentary - Jay Roach and Mike Myers
  • The World of Austin Powers
  • Jay Roach & Mike Myers: Creative Convergence
  • Confluence of characters
  • Star Search: the Kids
  • Opening Stunts
  • The Cars of Austin Powers in Goldmember
  • Anatomy of three scenes
  • Visual FX segment
  • Deleted/Alternate Scenes with optional commentary
  • Music Videos
  • Trailers

There’s also some DVD ROM component, including a feature that’ll supposedly let you record your own voice in a dozen scenes.

The picture quality seems fine, though because it was a screener it faded to black and white periodically (to make it less desirable to pirates) so we don’t really know how it’ll end up. It’s being offered in both anamorphic widescreen (16x9 TV compatible) and Pan&Scan versions, in separate packages, so as usual we recommend you buy the widescreen version because it’ll last you over the long run. Audio is Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS surround, and it’s probably fine as well, but our screener was only in stereo and so we can’t comment on how it uses the surround channels.

Austin Powers in Goldmember, from New Line Home Entertainment,
95 min. anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1), 16x9 TV compatible/Pan&Scan, Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS surround sound
Starring Mike Myers, Beyoncé Knowles, Michael Caine, Seth Green, Robert Wagner
Produced by John Lyons, Mike Myers
Written by Mike Myers and Michael McCullers, Directed by Jay Roach

 

Tell us at TechnoFile what YOU think

Google
 
Web www.technofile.com
 

Home

Audio/Video

Automotive

Blu-rays

Computers

Gadgets

Games

Letters

Miscellaneous

Search

Welcome

Support TechnoFile
via Paypal

TechnoFILE's E-letter
We're pleased to offer
our FREE private,
subscription-based
private E-mail service.
It's the "no brainer"
way to keep informed.

Our Privacy Policy

Updated May 13, 2006